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| Specialty pages here at MFFLRR: Romance with a Minnesota Setting Early Minnesota Romance Authors Project Kristin's Movie Page Just for Fun |
| "Yeah, Minnesota's cold... but a romance novel and your MFFLRR will keep you warm!" |
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| Early Minnesota Romance Authors Project |
| The EARLY MINNESOTA ROMANCE AUTHORS PROJECT had its inception when the not-so-trivial question, "Who was the earliest MN romance novelist?", was asked. We have found that there is no simple answer to this question. To begin with the term 'romance' had to be clearly defined. The Romance Writers of America's definition requires that two basic elements comprise every romance novel: a central love story and an emotionally satisfying and optimistic ending. During the research, much information has been found that doesn't actually answer this question. This information was considered both interesting, as well as important to getting the "bigger picture" of the history of Minnesota romance authors. The research has been full of many twists & turns, but many treasures have turned up. We have included some of the resultant authors and titles here on this page. If working on this project sounds interesting to you, or you have some information that you feel should be included in this project, please contact MFFLRR. [email protected] |
| "So it was nothing but a love story after all. True; but is there so much love in the world that there is no longer any need of telling its story?"
- Lily A. Long (St. Paul), from her message to the reader concluding A Squire of Low Degree (1890) |
| 1915
UP THE ROAD WITH SALLIE Frances Roberta Sterrett, 1869-1947 New York; London: D. Appleton & Co. Sallie Waters, of Up the Road with Sallie , is a 'light-minded' girl (read 'not boring') from Waloo, MN, who kidnaps her very serious Great-aunt Martha, and together they have a great adventure. They travel in Sallie's roadster up the Mississippi river road. When they meet 2 gentlemen, Sallie gives them an alias, 'Sallie Smith', and coincidentally the gentlemen go by the highly suspect names of 'Smith Jones' and 'John Johnson'. Sallie & her aunt think that they are gentlemen robbers, while the gents think that the ladies are beautiful thieves. This story is fun, filled with mistaken identities, a sweet romance between Sallie & Smith Jones, and a 'corking' good read! The few illustrations in the book give the reader a nice image of the times. Up the Road with Sallie, was released in 1918 as a silent film, starring Constance Talmadge. |
| Frances Roberta Sterrett (1869-1947), was born in Red Wing, graduated from St Paul High School, and lived in Mpls. For a while she was editor of the Womens Dept of the Mpls. Journal. |
| 1929
EARLY CANDLELIGHT Maud Hart Lovelace New York; The John Day Co. Many people might be surprised to see the author of the Betsy-Tacy series included in the Early MN Romance Authors Project. However, Early Candlelight, is a wonderful story that truly belongs, as it is surely a romance by our definition. Delia DuGay & Jasper Page's relationship unfolds throughout this complex history of Ft. Snelling, circa 1830. The tale is very filled with interesting and factual characters and events that she researched while working at the MN Historical Society (she moved to St Paul while writing this book). I would recommend this book to anyone, but especially to Minnesota romance readers. Early Candlelight was reissued for the Minnesota Territory Centennial(1949) & for the 100th anniv of Lovelace's birth(1992). |
| Maud Hart Lovelace
1892-1980, Mankato, MN picture, circa 1931 |
| This dustjacket is from the 1949 reissue by the University of Minnesota Press for the Minnesota Territory Centennial. |
| 1917
ENCHANTED HEARTS Doubleday, Page & Co:Garden City; New York Enchanted Hearts was so popular in its time that George M Cohan produced it on stage as A Prince There Was in 1917, then it was turned into a movie in 1922. In 1936 Cecil B. DeMille produced it as a radio play for the LUX Radio Theatre. The picture shown is the glass slide used for creating the posters for the movie. Another story of mistaken identities, our younglovers are brought together by a young orphaned girl, Comfort Browne, as part of her fairy-stories. Comfort begs Charlie Martin to "resker" the True Princess, Kate Woods, while disguised as Mr. Prince. Charlie is grieving the loss of his brother (who went down on the Titanic), but this little "Fairy-Godmother" seems able to break through his grief and entice him into herplan. But Kate has problems of her own, grieving over her pregnant sister's suicide, which she was driven to when her husband's brother forced him to annull the marriage. You guessed it, her sister was Martin's sister-in-law, and Kate hates Martin. However, she does not know that Mr. Prince is Martin when they fall in love... ah, the troubles that a "Fairy-Godmother" has when she needs to bring together the Prince & the True Princess... |
| Darragh Aldrich, pseud.
(Clara Chapline Thomas Aldrich, 1877-1967) She graduated from U of M in 1900. She was the columnist 'Quentin' of 'Quentin's Corner', Minneapolis Tribune, 1906-14, and was a radio commentator and head of Women's Activities, WCCO radio, Minneapolis, 1941-56 picture: Mpls Public Library, Mpls Collection |
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| 1935
RED HEADED SCHOOL MA'AM The Penn Publishing Company; Philadelphia The Red Headed School Ma'am is a thoroughly charming romance... one that could easily be released today, following a "political correctness tune-up". Jo Ellen Farraday - nicknamed "Bricky" for her brickred hair - is a graduate from the U of MN's teaching college. Upon arriving in the border areas of MN, she is surprised to find that the stodgy schoolboard president she expects is the tall, handsome Game Warden Lemuel "Barry" Barrington. She chose the job in Wiley to be near Beau LeClerc ("who is he to her?" we ask) who- unbeknownst to her- is the mastermind behind a fur smuggling ring that Barry is trying to bust open. In the end, Bricky finds happiness with Barry, and Beau ends up with his love, Cricket, the French-Indian girl from town. There are some wonderfully dated lines (eg, he had "Ramon Novarro hair" *) that remind the reader that the book was written in 1931. Red Headed School Ma'am is a story filled with humor, mistaken identities, passion, jealousy, & intrigue... A must read! * Ramon Novarro was Ben-Hur in the classic 1925 film |
| This wonderful picture of Darragh in her natural element of the MN woods was shared with Teresa by the family that currently lives in Darragh & Chilson Aldrich's home. Thanks, Darralu (yes, she was named after Darragh!) |
| For more information about Maud, please visit Maud Hart Lovelace Society |
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