Harriet Beecher Stowe

Stowe published more than thirty books on a broad range of topics that encouraged people to confront such controversial topics as slavery, religious reform, and women’s rights. Her informal, conversational writing style allowed her novels to reach a wide audience in a way scholarly works could not. In 1852, she published her most famous work, an anti-slavery novel titled Uncle Tom’s Cabin. It was the best-selling novel of the 19th century and, after the Bible, ranked as the second best-selling book of the century. The story opens with the Kentucky farmer Arthur Shelby facing the loss of his farm due to debts. In order to keep the farm, he decides to sell two of his slaves—Uncle Tom, a middle-aged man with a family, and Harry, the four-year-old son of Eliza, Mrs. Shelby’s maid. The novel follows two storylines: Uncle Tom’s journey down the Mississippi River and Eliza’s escape with Harry before he is sold.