author
Marie Van Vorst
1867–1936
Best remembered for pairing fiction with first-hand reporting, she wrote about the lives of working women and later served as a volunteer nurse during World War I. Her books move easily between social reform, travel, and storytelling, giving them both warmth and bite.
7 Audiobooks
The Sentimental Adventures of Jimmy Bulstrode
by Marie Van Vorst
His love story
by Marie Van Vorst
The Woman Who Toils Being the Experiences of Two Gentlewomen as Factory Girls
by Mrs. John Van Vorst, Marie Van Vorst
The Girl From His Town
by Marie Van Vorst
Fairfax and His Pride: A Novel
by Marie Van Vorst
Modern French Masters
by Marie Van Vorst
Poems
by Marie Van Vorst
About the author
Born in New York City in 1867, Marie Van Vorst was an American writer, painter, and social investigator who came from a prominent family but turned much of her attention toward people living and working under far harder conditions. Early in her career she collaborated with her sister-in-law Bessie Van Vorst, and together they became known for writing that mixed literary skill with close observation of everyday life.
Her best-known nonfiction grew out of direct experience. For The Woman Who Toils, the two women worked undercover in factories and shops so they could describe the realities faced by women laborers. That interest in lived experience also shaped Marie Van Vorst's novels and later writing, which often combined social awareness with a readable, personal style.
She spent significant time in Europe, continued publishing fiction and essays, and during World War I served as a volunteer nurse in France. Marie Van Vorst died in Florence, Italy, in 1936, leaving behind a body of work that stands out for its curiosity, compassion, and willingness to look beyond her own world.