The Flowering of New England, 1815-1865; Emerson, Thoreau, Hawthorne and the beginnings of American literature by Van Wyck Brooks

Few books have enjoyed the incredible combination of critical and popular success achieved by Van Wyck Brooks's "The Flowering of New England". Brooks's vivid narration brings readers into the awesome intellectual circle comprised of Emerson, Thoreau, Hawthorne, Margaret Fuller, and Alcotts, and many more, making them feel as if they themselves are participants in the creation of a new national literature. -- From publisher's description.