Born into a wealthy family in Toulouse, Gabrielle de Coignard (ca. 1550-86) married a prominent statesman in 1570. Widowed three years later, with two young daughters to raise, Coignard turned to writing devotional verse to help her cope with her practical and spiritual struggles.
"Spiritual Sonnets" presents the first English translation of 129 of Coignard's highly autobiographical poems, giving us a startlingly intimate view into the life and mind of this Renaissance woman. The sonnets are all written "in the shadow of the Cross" and include elegies, penitential lyrics, Biblical...

This collection of essays focuses on the girl sleuth, made famous by Nancy Drew, but also characterized by other detectives like Cherry Ames, Trixie Belden, Linda Carlton, and, in today's world, by Veronica Mars and Hermione Granger.