In the middle of the nineteenth century, the highest paid and most famous newspaper writer in the US was a woman known to the world as Fanny Fern, the nom de plume of Sara Payson Willis. features a selection of Fern's columns, mostly from her years as a weekly columnist for the , along with an introduction that shares the remarkable story of Fern's perseverance and success as a woman in a male-dominated profession. For readers in her own time, Fern's frank and unbridled social commentary and boldly satirical voice made her a household name. Fern's subversive and witty commentary about social mores, gender roles, childhood, authorship, and family life transcend time and continue to resonate with and entertain readers today. is the most extensive collection of Fern's newspaper writings to date and includes several works that have been out of print for over a century, making this author's writing on a wide range of issues accessible for readers within and outside of classrooms and academic settings.