Hanna Lévy-Hass

(1913 - 2001)

Photograph of German literary critic Walter Benjamin.

Walter Benjamin

(1892 - 1940)

Portrait bust of Greek historian Xenophon.

Xenophon

(c. 430 BC - c. 351 BC)

Sufi mystic and poet Rumi.

Rumi

(c. 1207 - 1273)

Photograph of journalist, author, and professor Michael Pollan.

Michael Pollan

English novelist, historian, traveler, and the author Jason Goodwin.

Jason Goodwin

British explorer John Smith.

John Smith

(c. 1580 - 1631)

Photograph of African American abolitionist and U.S. diplomat Frederick Douglass.

Frederick Douglass

(c. 1818 - 1895)

American rock musician Ted Nugent.

Ted Nugent

Writer and editor Scott Korb.

Scott Korb

Portrait of Sister Juana Inés de la Cruz in a nun's habit.

Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz

(c. 1651 - 1695)

American historian Francis Parkman.

Francis Parkman

(1823 - 1893)

Welsh clergyman and historian Gerald of Wales.

Gerald of Wales

(c. 1146 - c. 1223)

French author Anthelme Brillat-Savarin.

Anthelme Brillat-Savarin

(1755 - 1826)

Calvin Trillin standing in front of a refrigerator in a black and white photograph

Calvin Trillin

Photograph of American novelist Willa Cather.

Willa Cather

(1873 - 1947)

Novelist and psychiatrist Daniel Mason.

Daniel Mason

American novelist Upton Sinclair.

Upton Sinclair

(1878 - 1968)

Dio Cassius

(c. 150 - 235)

French author Émile Zola.

Émile Zola

(1840 - 1902)

Oil painting portrair Michel de Montaigne in red robes and white collar

Michel de Montaigne

(1533 - 1592)

Photograph of American food writer M.F.K. Fisher with cat.

M.F.K. Fisher

(1908 - 1992)

English animal rights advocate Donald Watson.

Donald Watson

(1910 - 2005)

American journalist Barbara Demick.

Barbara Demick

Greek physician, writer, and philosopher Galen.

Galen

(129 - c. 216)

Ovid

(43 BC - c. 17)

Juvenal

(c. 60 - c. 130)

Jonathan Swift

Jonathan Swift

(1667 - 1745)

Chinese diplomat, general and scholar Chen Jitong.

Chen Jitong

(1851 - 1907)

English novelist, essayist, and critic George Orwell.

George Orwell

(1903 - 1950)

Photograph of English novelist Charles Dickens.

Charles Dickens

(1812 - 1870)

Irish author Marguerite Gardiner, Countess of Blessington.

Marguerite Gardiner

(1789 - 1849)

Photograph of Marcel Proust looking pensive.

Marcel Proust

(1871 - 1922)

English novelist Henry Fielding.

Henry Fielding

(1707 - 1754)

Engraving of Roman poet Horace.

Horace

(65 BC - 8 BC)

American journalist Hunter S. Thompson.

Hunter S. Thompson

(1937 - 2005)

Australian poet and essayist Les Murray.

Les Murray

(1938 - 2019)

Spanish soldier and author Bernal Díaz del Castillo.

Bernal Díaz del Castillo

(c. 1495 - 1584)

English author Evelyn Waugh.

Evelyn Waugh

(1903 - 1966)

Comedian, actor, and writer Patton Oswalt.

Patton Oswalt

Indian actress and food writer Madhur Jaffrey.

Madhur Jaffrey

Poet, essayist, and editor Ray Gonzalez.

Ray Gonzalez

British traveler Charles M. Doughty.

Charles M. Doughty

(1843 - 1926)

French Benedictine monk Antoine Augustin Calmet.

Antoine Augustin Calmet

(1672 - 1757)

photograph of David Foster Wallace speaking at a podium

David Foster Wallace

(1962 - 2008)

Henry David Thoreau

Henry David Thoreau

(1817 - 1862)

Saint Augustine (detail), by Philippe de Champaigne, c. 1645.

Saint Augustine

(354 - 430)

American poet Allen Ginsberg.

Allen Ginsberg

(1926 - 1997)

American author Alice B. Toklas.

Alice B. Toklas

(1877 - 1967)

Czech writer Bohumil Hrabal.

Bohumil Hrabal

(1914 - 1997)

American journalist and author Paul Roberts.

Paul Roberts

French author Alexandre Dumas.

Alexandre Dumas

(1802 - 1870)

Painting of Benjamin Franklin reading a batch of papers next to a classical bust.

Benjamin Franklin

(1706 - 1790)

John Wecker

(1528 - 1586)

American chef, author, and television personality Anthony Bourdain.

Anthony Bourdain

(1956 - 2018)

British suffragette activist, writer, and speaker Constance Lytton.

Constance Lytton

(1869 - 1923)

Black and white photograph of Mencken looking over his shoulder at the camera

H.L. Mencken

(1880 - 1956)

Portrait bust of presumed author of the Iliad and the Odyssey Homer.

Homer

(c. 800 BC - 725 BC)

Chinua Achebe

(1930 - 2013)

Black and white engraving of Roman author Petronius.

Gaius Petronius Arbiter

(c. 27 - 66)

American food writer Ruth Reichl.

Ruth Reichl

Laura Ingalls Wilder

(1867 - 1957)

Painting of humanist and scholar Erasmus.

Erasmus

(1466 - 1536)

American author, music journalist, and cultural critic Greil Marcus.

Greil Marcus

Photograph of American editor Brent Cunningham.

Brent Cunningham

Lewis Lapham at his desk

Lewis H. Lapham

(1935 - 2024)

Chinese tea writer Lu Yu.

Lu Yu

(733 - 804)

Photograph of Charles Baudelaire

Charles Baudelaire

(1821 - 1867)

Piers Paul Read

American author Tom Robbins.

Tom Robbins

Statue of the Persian poet Ferdowsi.

Ferdowsi

(c. 935 - c. 1020)

Black and white image of Greek biographer and writer Plutarch.

Plutarch

(46 - c. 120)

Painted portrait of English poet John Milton.

John Milton

(1608 - 1674)

British author Hilaire Belloc.

Hilaire Belloc

(1870 - 1953)

Image of Chinese Song Dynasty poet Mei Yaochen.

Mei Yaochen

(1002 - 1060)

Italian artist and author Giorgio Vasari.

Giorgio Vasari

(1511 - 1574)

Scottish novelist Tobias Smollett.

Tobias Smollett

(1721 - 1771)

Color photograph of American writer Annie Dillard.

Annie Dillard

Neoplatonist Greek philosopher Porphyry.

Porphyry

(c. 234 - c. 305)

American cook and author Julia Child.

Julia Child

(1912 - 2004)

American professor and journalist Deborah Blum.

Deborah Blum

American musician Duke Ellington.

Duke Ellington

(1899 - 1974)

Image of Japanese haiku poet Matsuo Bashō.

Matsuo Basho

(1644 - 1694)

Photograph of Vladimir Nabokov

Vladimir Nabokov

(1899 - 1977)

Harper Lee

(1926 - 2016)

English novelist and writer Frances Trollope.

Frances Trollope

(1779 - 1863)

Roman emperor Julian.

Julian

(332 - 363)

Photograph of American writer Ralph Ellison.

Ralph Ellison

(1914 - 1994)

American poet William Carlos Williams.

William Carlos Williams

(1883 - 1963)