author
May Kendall
b. 1861
A witty Victorian poet and novelist, she wrote with a playful intelligence that could turn fairy tales, science, and social ideas into sharp satire. Her work still stands out for its unusual mix of humor, imagination, and curiosity about the modern world.
1 Audiobook
'That Very Mab'
by May Kendall, Andrew Lang
About the author
Born Emma Goldworth Kendall in Bridlington, Yorkshire, in 1861, May Kendall became known as an English poet, novelist, and satirist. She studied at Somerville Hall, Oxford, and began publishing in the 1880s, writing for periodicals including Punch as well as several literary magazines.
She is best remembered for co-writing the novel That Very Mab with Andrew Lang and for her poetry collections Dreams to Sell and Songs from Dreamland. Her writing often brought fantasy into conversation with science and social change, giving her poems and stories a lively, offbeat character.
Later in life, she also worked with social investigator B. Seebohm Rowntree in York. No clear, verifiable portrait image of her was available from the sources I checked, so no profile image is included here.