About The Kentucky Cardinal James Lane Allen

The Kentucky Cardinal
James Lane Allen (1841-1925), author

Harpers Little Novels Series
New York: Harper and Brothers Publishers, 1894

Four illustrations by Albert E. Sterner
147 pages
4.5 x 6 inches, 16 cm.

A Story of Kentucky Before the War.

The Kentucky Cardinal was also published in serial form in Harper's Monthly Magazine. (Hamilton Evening Journal, Hamilton, Ohio, February 1, 1894)

"The longer I live here, the better satisfied I am in having pitched my earthly campfire, gypsy like, on the edge of a town, keeping it on one side, and the green fields, lanes and woods on the other." from The Kentucky Cardinal.

James Lane Allen spoke about his novel:

"I am now at work on what I consider the first novel of my life. It will embody three things: The humor of a Kentucky cardinal, the philosophic frankness of 'A Summer in Arcady,' and the spiritual seriousness and victory of 'The Choir Invisible.'  It is to be a story of town life and country life blended and contrasted.  It will be twice as long as anything that I have ever attempted." The Courier-Journal, Louisville , Kentucky, June 5, 1898.

Harpers Little Novels: A series of pocket-size books that sold for one dollar each. 

"I call him my rain-crow, because the sound of his voice awoke apprehensions of falling weather. A visit from him was an endless drizzle." from The Kentucky Cardinal

Albert Edward Sterner (1863-1946) was an American illustrator and painter. 
Left: Sterner's signature.