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

Saint Augustine

(354 - 430)

Painted portrait of English poet John Milton.

John Milton

(1608 - 1674)

Black and white image of Greek biographer and writer Plutarch.

Plutarch

(46 - c. 120)

Novelist and psychiatrist Daniel Mason.

Daniel Mason

Italian artist and author Giorgio Vasari.

Giorgio Vasari

(1511 - 1574)

American journalist Hunter S. Thompson.

Hunter S. Thompson

(1937 - 2005)

Czech writer Bohumil Hrabal.

Bohumil Hrabal

(1914 - 1997)

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

M.F.K. Fisher

(1908 - 1992)

Dio Cassius

(c. 150 - 235)

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

Benjamin Franklin

(1706 - 1790)

English animal rights advocate Donald Watson.

Donald Watson

(1910 - 2005)

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

Frederick Douglass

(c. 1818 - 1895)

Lewis Lapham at his desk

Lewis H. Lapham

(1935 - 2024)

British author Hilaire Belloc.

Hilaire Belloc

(1870 - 1953)

American historian Francis Parkman.

Francis Parkman

(1823 - 1893)

American novelist Upton Sinclair.

Upton Sinclair

(1878 - 1968)

Neoplatonist Greek philosopher Porphyry.

Porphyry

(c. 234 - c. 305)

Henry David Thoreau

Henry David Thoreau

(1817 - 1862)

Australian poet and essayist Les Murray.

Les Murray

(1938 - 2019)

American journalist and author Paul Roberts.

Paul Roberts

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

Homer

(c. 800 BC - 725 BC)

Engraving of Roman poet Horace.

Horace

(65 BC - 8 BC)

Spanish soldier and author Bernal Díaz del Castillo.

Bernal Díaz del Castillo

(c. 1495 - 1584)

Piers Paul Read

American chef, author, and television personality Anthony Bourdain.

Anthony Bourdain

(1956 - 2018)

Black and white engraving of Roman author Petronius.

Gaius Petronius Arbiter

(c. 27 - 66)

American author Alice B. Toklas.

Alice B. Toklas

(1877 - 1967)

American journalist Barbara Demick.

Barbara Demick

Chinese tea writer Lu Yu.

Lu Yu

(733 - 804)

Comedian, actor, and writer Patton Oswalt.

Patton Oswalt

Photograph of Vladimir Nabokov

Vladimir Nabokov

(1899 - 1977)

English author Evelyn Waugh.

Evelyn Waugh

(1903 - 1966)

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

Michel de Montaigne

(1533 - 1592)

Ovid

(43 BC - c. 17)

Roman emperor Julian.

Julian

(332 - 363)

American poet William Carlos Williams.

William Carlos Williams

(1883 - 1963)

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

H.L. Mencken

(1880 - 1956)

Photograph of American editor Brent Cunningham.

Brent Cunningham

Image of Japanese haiku poet Matsuo Bashō.

Matsuo Basho

(1644 - 1694)

American author Tom Robbins.

Tom Robbins

Photograph of journalist, author, and professor Michael Pollan.

Michael Pollan

Welsh clergyman and historian Gerald of Wales.

Gerald of Wales

(c. 1146 - c. 1223)

British suffragette activist, writer, and speaker Constance Lytton.

Constance Lytton

(1869 - 1923)

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

Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz

(c. 1651 - 1695)

Scottish novelist Tobias Smollett.

Tobias Smollett

(1721 - 1771)

French author Alexandre Dumas.

Alexandre Dumas

(1802 - 1870)

French author Anthelme Brillat-Savarin.

Anthelme Brillat-Savarin

(1755 - 1826)

Photograph of German literary critic Walter Benjamin.

Walter Benjamin

(1892 - 1940)

Painting of humanist and scholar Erasmus.

Erasmus

(1466 - 1536)

Color photograph of American writer Annie Dillard.

Annie Dillard

Chinua Achebe

(1930 - 2013)

Harper Lee

(1926 - 2016)

Writer and editor Scott Korb.

Scott Korb

American poet Allen Ginsberg.

Allen Ginsberg

(1926 - 1997)

American cook and author Julia Child.

Julia Child

(1912 - 2004)

Poet, essayist, and editor Ray Gonzalez.

Ray Gonzalez

Indian actress and food writer Madhur Jaffrey.

Madhur Jaffrey

American professor and journalist Deborah Blum.

Deborah Blum

Chinese diplomat, general and scholar Chen Jitong.

Chen Jitong

(1851 - 1907)

English novelist Henry Fielding.

Henry Fielding

(1707 - 1754)

American rock musician Ted Nugent.

Ted Nugent

Jonathan Swift

Jonathan Swift

(1667 - 1745)

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

Jason Goodwin

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

Greil Marcus

photograph of David Foster Wallace speaking at a podium

David Foster Wallace

(1962 - 2008)

Photograph of American novelist Willa Cather.

Willa Cather

(1873 - 1947)

Photograph of American writer Ralph Ellison.

Ralph Ellison

(1914 - 1994)

John Wecker

(1528 - 1586)

English novelist, essayist, and critic George Orwell.

George Orwell

(1903 - 1950)

French Benedictine monk Antoine Augustin Calmet.

Antoine Augustin Calmet

(1672 - 1757)

Photograph of Charles Baudelaire

Charles Baudelaire

(1821 - 1867)

Laura Ingalls Wilder

(1867 - 1957)

Image of Chinese Song Dynasty poet Mei Yaochen.

Mei Yaochen

(1002 - 1060)

Sufi mystic and poet Rumi.

Rumi

(c. 1207 - 1273)

Hanna Lévy-Hass

(1913 - 2001)

American musician Duke Ellington.

Duke Ellington

(1899 - 1974)

French author Émile Zola.

Émile Zola

(1840 - 1902)

English novelist and writer Frances Trollope.

Frances Trollope

(1779 - 1863)

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

Calvin Trillin

British explorer John Smith.

John Smith

(c. 1580 - 1631)

British traveler Charles M. Doughty.

Charles M. Doughty

(1843 - 1926)

Greek physician, writer, and philosopher Galen.

Galen

(129 - c. 216)

Irish author Marguerite Gardiner, Countess of Blessington.

Marguerite Gardiner

(1789 - 1849)

Photograph of Marcel Proust looking pensive.

Marcel Proust

(1871 - 1922)

Juvenal

(c. 60 - c. 130)

Photograph of English novelist Charles Dickens.

Charles Dickens

(1812 - 1870)

Portrait bust of Greek historian Xenophon.

Xenophon

(c. 430 BC - c. 351 BC)

American food writer Ruth Reichl.

Ruth Reichl

Statue of the Persian poet Ferdowsi.

Ferdowsi

(c. 935 - c. 1020)