Samantha at Saratoga, or "Racing After Fashion", by Josiah Allen's Wife (Marietta Holley) (HC, 1887, $1, as book and binding have parted ways, as well as other problems.)
One of the things that makes this volunteer job such a pleasure is finding forgotten treasures. I looked up this author only because I couldn't figure out who the author was, Mrs. Allen, or Ms. Holley. It turns out that Ms. Holley wrote 10 books on the fictional Mrs. Allen, and this is the most famous one.
Holley was one of the first three female American humorists, and her popularity rivaled that of Mark Twain. This book made it onto the best seller list for the decade of the 1880s. With her gentile satire she took on the issues of women's rights and alcohol prohibition. She was friends with Susan B. Anthony and Clara Barton. Extreme shyness and a slight speech impediment kept her from public speaking. Even so, she was invited to speak before Congress. (She declined.) Mrs. Allen, the character of her most popular books, was a married New England farmer's wife who took various trips around the country. Ironically, Holley was never married, and had hardly ever left her family's farm.
I am sorry this book is in such awful shape. Still, I got to tell you about a forgotten heroine. You can find this book in the glass case at the front of the store. (Avail 9/14)
