Events on February 01, 2007:

Author Birthdays: Hughes & Spark

Today is the birthday of poet and author Langston Hughes (1902). His books of poetry include The Weary Blues, Fine Clothes to the Jew, and Montage of a Dream Deferred (all gathered in one volume, The Collected Poems of Langston Hughes).  In the 1930s he traveled widely and served as a newspaper correspondent. Hughes's non-poetical literary output was highly diverse, including a collection of short stories, The Ways of White Folks, works for the stage, translations, and newspaper columns featuring his comic character Jesse B. Semple, nicknamed Simple.

Today is also the birthday of Muriel Spark (1918), born in Edinburgh, Scotland.  Spark was well known as a critical essayist and had published seven books before the publication of her most famous novel, The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie. Other notable works include: The Girls of Slender Means, A Far Cry from Kensington, and Loitering with Intent.