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At the age of 19 in 1902, MacLane published her first book, <em>The Story of Mary MacLane</em>. It sold 100,000 copies in the first month and was popular among young girls, but was strongly criticized by conservative readers, and lightly ridiculed by H.L. Mencken. She had always chafed at living in Butte, which was a small mining town, and used the money from sales of this book to move to Greenwich Village where she continued to write books and newspaper articles.<br /><br /> Some critics have suggested that even by today's standards, MacLane's writing is raw, honest, unflinching, self-aware, sensual and extreme. She wrote openly about egoism and her own self-love, about sexual attraction and love for other women, and even about her desire to marry the devil. (Summary from Wikipedia)

2I, Mary MacLane

By Mary MacLane

Described as "the first blogger", Mary MacLane lived a tortured life, ahead of her time. Her beloved father died when she was a young child, and at the age of 8, her stepfather moved the family from its home in Winnipeg, Canada to Montana in the United States, where young Mary had a hard time making friends. Her sensational autobiographical style of writing was considered scandalous, as she told of her bohemian lifestyle, feminist politics and open bisexuality. Although popular during her lifetime, among a sensation-seeking public, and being credited with influencing such writers as Scott Fitzgerald and Edith Wharton, her work lost its popularity after her death at the age of 48. - Summary by Lynne Thompson

3My Friend Annabel Lee

By Mary MacLane

Published in 1903, this selection of dialogues by Mary MacLane entails a mystery of wondering who she is speaking with. Is it the statue she describes at first? Is it an imaginary friend? Is it the author’s alter-ego? Or perhaps, is it a friend she knows in-the-flesh whom the author wished no one to recognize the identity of? These questions are never truly answered for how could a statue send word by postal mail or know some of the deeper vulnerabilities of the author without her knowing them herself? In these talks between herself and Annabel Lee come glimmerings of another time, discussions in the whimsy of personal stories, happenings in the neighbourhood, and the reflections in the deeper meaning of life as well as the bonds of friendship. - Summary by Daryl Wor