Literary Birthday – 7 September – Taylor Caldwell

Taylor Caldwell was born on 7 September 1900 and died on 30 August 1985.

Taylor Caldwell Quotes

1. If people are lucky enough to have family they should cultivate it.
2. Character, I am sure, lies in the genes.
3. Learning should be a joy and full of excitement. It is life’s greatest adventure; it is an illustrated excursion into the minds of the noble and the learned.
4. A writer has got to be a cynic. You’ve got to look at life clearly. No rose-coloured glasses. The human race is not very admirable. …I think I appeal to readers because there’s nothing false or hypocritical in what I write. And they recognise themselves, they recognise their fears. And they know what bastards they are.
5. People are scared to death of dying. I am the opposite.
6. A wise man distrusts his neighbour. A wiser man distrusts both his neighbour and himself. The wisest man of all distrusts his government.
7. Giving a phenomenon a label does not explain it.

Taylor Caldwell was an Anglo-American novelist and one of the most widely read authors of the 20th century. She also wrote under the pen names Marcus Holland and Max Reiner. She wrote family sagas and historical fiction. Over a career spanning five decades, Caldwell wrote more than 40 novels, many of which became New York Times bestsellers. Her best-known books include Dynasty of Death, Dear and Glorious Physician, and Captains and the Kings. Her fiction often explored self-reliance, individual freedom, and the struggle for justice. She also examined the abuse of political power and the conflict between the desire for wealth and power and the need for love and family. Caldwell’s final novel, Answer As A Man, was published in 1981. It became a New York Times bestseller even before its official publication date. Many of her books were adapted for film and television.

by Amanda Patterson
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