author
Harriet Maxon Thayer
1889–1984
Remembered for a small but varied body of work, this early-20th-century American writer published fairy tales, poetry, and at least one short story singled out for a major annual anthology. Her surviving books suggest a taste for graceful language, gentle fantasy, and thoughtful moral themes.
1 Audiobook
The genial sultan; The princess who could not see; Late for the coronation
by Harriet Maxon Thayer
About the author
Harriet Maxon Thayer (1889–1984) was an American author whose known published work spans several forms. Project Gutenberg lists her as the author of The Genial Sultan; The Princess Who Could Not See; Late for the Coronation, a 1923 collection of fairy tales, and records also show her 1936 poetry book Anniversary and Other Poems.
Her fiction reached at least some wider literary notice: the short story "Kindred" was published in 1921, and bibliographic records connect her with The Best Short Stories annual series edited by Edward J. O'Brien. Taken together, those sources point to a writer who moved comfortably between imaginative children's storytelling and more literary short fiction and verse.
Reliable biographical detail beyond her dates has proven hard to confirm from widely available sources. Memorial records indicate she was born on January 22, 1889, and died on June 6, 1984, and was associated with Wisconsin in burial records.