Hawthorne finished six novels in his lifetime

I read on Writer’s Almanac this week that yesterday (Sunday) was Nathaniel Hawthorne’s birthday.
Hawthorne is probably best known for being the author of “The Scarlet Letter,” and his story, “Young Goodman Brown,” is one of my favorite short stories. Many of you will be familiar with “The Scarlet Letter,” which was made into a popular movie staring Demi Moore back in the 1990s. “The Scarlet Letter” is the story of Hester Prynne, who is forced to wear a scarlet “A” on her chest after she gives birth out of wedlock after an adulterous affair.
Hawthorne published six novels during his lifetime and wrote two unfinished novels. His finished novels included “The Scarlet Letter” (1850), “Fanshawe” (1828), “The House of the Seven Gables” (1851), “The Blithedale Romance” (1852), “The Marble Faun” (1860) and “Septimius Felton; or the Elixir of Life” (1872). His unfinished novels included “The Dolliver Romance” (1863) and “Doctor Grimshawe’s Secret: A Romance” (1882).
Many of us get our first dose of Hawthorne when we have to read one of his short stories in our high school literature classes. Some of his best known short stories include the following:
- My Kinsman, Major Molineux (1832)
- Young Goodman Brown (1835)
- The Gray Champion (1835)
- The White Old Maid (1835)
- Wakefield (1835)
- The Ambitious Guest (1835)
- The Minister’s Black Veil (1836)
- The Man of Adamant (1837)
- The Maypole of Merry Mount (1837)
- The Great Carbuncle (1837)
- Dr. Heidegger’s Experiment (1837)
- A Virtuoso’s Collection (1842)
- The Birth-Mark (1843)
- Egotism; of, The Bosom-Serpent (1843)
- The Artist of the Beautiful (1844)
- Rappaccini’s Daughter (1844)
- P.’s Correspondence 91845)
- Ethan Brand (1850)
- Feathertop (1852)
In the end, I’d be interested to know how many of these books or short stories you’ve read. Which did you like? Which would you recommend? Let us know in the comments section below.