Publisher's Synopsis
McCutcheon (1866-1928) was an American popular novelist and playwright whose best known works include the series of novels set in Graustark, a fictional Eastern European country, and the novel Brewster's Millions which has been adapted into a play and several films. He was born in Tippecanoe County, Indiana and his father, despite his own lack of formal education, stressed the value of literature and encouraged his sons to write. He studied at Purdue University and during his college years was editor of the Lafayette Daily Courier and wrote a serial story about Wabash River life. Despite his Graustark novels being popular bestsellers which brought him widespread fame, McCutcheon hated the characterisation of being a romantic and preferred to be identified with his playwriting. This novel was first published in 1906 and was the fifth best-selling novel in the US for that year, and also the best-selling book in the US for the month in the January 1907 issue of The Bookman. It was also serialised by newspapers in 1908.
