Reproduction of the original: The Story of Mary MacLane by Mary MacLane

Promiscuous prophet or philandering fool? Mary MacLane is a woman you would be mad not to meet. More than one hundred years ago, The Story of Mary MacLane set America aflame. A shocking confessional from a 19-year-old girl who refused to succumb to the corset-bound prudery of her age, Marys scandalous memoir broke all the rules -- and sold over 100,000 copies. The Story of Mary MacLane by Herself will whirl you through a kaleidoscopic tale of the greatest genius youve never heard of, defy you to look deep within and dare you to dance with the devil. (3 male, 1 female).

With candid memoirs like I, Mary MacLane, this controversial Canadian writer helped to usher in a new era of confessional autobiography and to remake the notion of what constituted acceptable subject matter for female essayists and authors. Setting down thoughts and events both quotidian and scandalous in an inimitably unique voice, Mary MacLane is one of the most important literary figures of the early twentieth century.--Publisher description.

NATIONAL BESTSELLER “A delectable brew of gothic horror and Hollywood satire . . . [and] what makes all this so much fun is Danforth’s deliciously ghoulish voice . . . exquisite." —Ron Charles, THE WASHINGTON POST "A multi-faceted novel, equal parts gothic, sharply funny, sapphic romance, historical, and, of course, spooky.” —ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY Named a Most Anticipated Book by Entertainment Weekly • Washington Post • USA Today • Time • O, The Oprah Magazine • Buzzfeed • Harper's Bazaar • Vulture • Parade • HuffPost • Refinery29 • Popsugar • E! News • Bustle • The Millions • GoodReads • Autostraddle • Lambda Literary • Literary Hub • and more! The award-winning author of The Miseducation of Cameron Post makes her adult debut with this highly imaginative and original horror-comedy centered around a cursed New England boarding school for girls—a wickedly whimsical celebration of the art of storytelling, sapphic love, and the rebellious female spirit Our story begins in 1902, at the Brookhants School for Girls. Flo and Clara, two impressionable students, are obsessed with each other and with a daring young writer named Mary MacLane, the author of a scandalous bestselling memoir. To show their devotion to Mary, the girls establish their own private club and call it the Plain Bad Heroine Society. They meet in secret in a nearby apple orchard, the setting of their wildest happiness and, ultimately, of their macabre deaths. This is where their bodies are later discovered with a copy of Mary’s book splayed beside them, the victims of a swarm of stinging, angry yellow jackets. Less than five years later, the Brookhants School for Girls closes its doors forever—but not before three more people mysteriously die on the property, each in a most troubling way. Over a century later, the now abandoned and crumbling Brookhants is back in the news when wunderkind writer Merritt Emmons publishes a breakout book celebrating the queer, feminist history surrounding the “haunted and cursed” Gilded Age institution. Her bestselling book inspires a controversial horror film adaptation starring celebrity actor and lesbian it girl Harper Harper playing the ill-fated heroine Flo, opposite B-list actress and former child star Audrey Wells as Clara. But as Brookhants opens its gates once again, and our three modern heroines arrive on set to begin filming, past and present become grimly entangled—or perhaps just grimly exploited—and soon it’s impossible to tell where the curse leaves off and Hollywood begins. A story within a story within a story and featuring black-and-white period-inspired illustrations, Plain Bad Heroines is a devilishly haunting, modern masterwork of metafiction that manages to combine the ghostly sensibility of Sarah Waters with the dark imagination of Marisha Pessl and the sharp humor and incisive social commentary of Curtis Sittenfeld into one laugh-out-loud funny, spellbinding, and wonderfully luxuriant read. “Full of Victorian sapphic romance, metafictional horror, biting misandrist humor, Hollywood intrigue, and multiple timeliness—all replete with evocative illustrations that are icing on a deviously delicious cake.” –O, THE OPRAH MAGAZINE

“Anyone who reads her will never forget her voice.” - Biographile Mary MacLane (1881-1929) was the first of the modern media personalities: a pioneer in self-revelation, in defiance of established rules, in living on her own terms - and writing it in brilliant style. At age 19 she burst upon the world out of Butte, Montana with a journal of private thoughts and longings that incited national then international attention. In the books and newspaper articles that followed she evolved a completely new, individual voice decades ahead of its time. She influenced Gertrude Stein, inspired F. Scott Fitzgerald, and was hotly discussed by everyday people - and America’s biggest writers. Yet despite sparking film, stage, and music projects today - and being endlessly quoted on the Internet - the writer behind the writing has remained unknown until now. HUMAN DAYS: A MARY MACLANE READER features the complete texts of all her books (with expurgated passages restored), her colorful newspaper articles (much never before reprinted), an intriguing 1902 interview, the first viewing ever of her striking personal letters, illuminating introductions to each era in her life, and comprehensive notes that open the door to her influences and the age she came from and impacted so profoundly. A foreword from actress Bojana Novakovic provides a contemporary artist’s creative appreciation of the author’s still-powerful effect upon readers. “Mary MacLane comes off the page quivering with life. Moving.” - London Times “She reminds us of the power of personal narrative, honestly told.” - The Atlantic “In a pre-soundbite age she already knew how to draw blood in one direct sentence.” - The Awl “She had a short but fiery life of writing and misadventure, and her writing was a template for the confessional memoirs that have become ubiquitous.” - The New Yorker “One of the most fascinatingly self-involved personalities of the 20th century.” - The Age “A girl wonder.” - Harper’s “Confessional journalists have people like Mary MacLane to thank.” - Flavorwire “Her diaries ignited a national uproar, ushering in a new era for women’s voices. Her elegant, ambitious embrace of full-disclosure opened a door to what was possible for women.” - The Atlantic “Fiery frankness made her a pioneer.” - Time Out Chicago “Her poetry is one of extremes: lust for happiness, despair for life.” - Hairy Dog Review “Riveting.” - N.H. Public Radio “I Await The Devil’s Coming is a small masterpiece, full of camp and swagger.” - Parul Sehgal, NPR “Pioneering newswoman, later silent-screen star, considered the veritable spirit of the iconoclastic Twenties.” - Boston Globe “A pioneering feminist - a sensation.” - Feminist Bookstore News “First of the self-expressionists, and the first of the Flappers.” - Chicagoan Check www.marymaclane.com for exclusive content, news, and previews.