Resources Writings by Thornton Wilder Plays The Russian Princess, 1913 The Trumpet Shall Sound, 1926 The Angel That Troubled the Waters, 1928 The Long Christmas Dinner and Other Plays, 1931 Lucrèce (translation), 1932 A Doll's House (adaptation), 1937 Our Town, 1938 The Merchant of Yonkers, 1939 The Skin of Our Teeth, 1942 The Victors (translation), 1948 The Matchmaker, 1955 The Alcestiad, 1955 Plays for Bleecker Street, 1962 Novels The Cabala, 1926 The Bridge of San Luis Rey, 1927 The Woman of Andros, 1930 Heaven's My Destination, 1935 The Ides of March, 1948 The Eighth Day, 1967 Theophilus North, 1973 Opera Libretti The Long Christmas Dinner, 1961 The Alcestiad, 1962 Screenplays Shadow of a Doubt, 1943 Other American Characteristics and Other Essays, 1979 The Journals of Thorton Wilder, 1939-1961, 1985 NOTE: Companion editions of Our Town are available from HarperCollins (hardcover) and Perennial (paperback). Bibliography Biographies Goldstone, Richard H. Thornton Wilder: An Intimate Portrait. New York: Saturday Review Press, 1975. Harrison, Gilbert A. The Enthusiast: A Life of Thornton Wilder. New Haven, CT: Ticknor & Fields, 1983. Simon, Linda. Thornton Wilder: His World. New York: Doubleday, 1979. Correspondence Burns, Edward, and Ulla E. Dydo, eds. The Letters of Gertrude Stein and Thornton Wilder. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1996. Interviews Bryer, Jackson R., ed. Conversations with Thornton Wilder. Jackson, MS: University Press of Mississippi, 1992. Criticism Blank, Martin. ed. Critical Essays on Thornton Wilder. New York: G.K. Hall, 1996. Blank, Martin, Dalma Hunyadi Brunauer, and David Garrett Izzo, eds. Thornton Wilder: New Essays. West Cornwall, CT: Locust Hill Press, 1999. Burbank, Rex. Thornton Wilder. Boston, MA: Twayne, 1978. Castronovo, David. Thornton Wilder. New York: Ungar, 1986. Goldstein, Malcolm. The Art of Thornton Wilder. Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska Press, 1965. Haberman, Donald C. The Plays of Thornton Wilder: A Critical Study. Middletown, CT: Wesleyan University Press, 1967. Haberman, Donald C. Our Town: An American Play. Boston, MA: Twayne, 1989. de Koster, Katie, ed. Readings on Thornton Wilder. San Diego, CA: Greenhaven Press, 1998. Kuner, Mildred Christophe. Thornton Wilder: The Bright and the Dark. New York: Crowell, 1972. Lifton, Paul. Vast Encyclopedia: The Theatre of Thornton Wilder. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1995. Mordden, Ethan. The American Theatre. New York: Oxford University Press, 1981. Smith, Joel A., ed. Wilder Rediscovered: Brown-Forman Classics in Context Festival. Actors Theatre of Louisville, 1997. Stresau, Hermann. Thornton Wilder. trans. Frieda Schutze. New York: Ungar, 1971. Wilder, Amos Niven. Thornton Wilder and His Public. Philadelphia, PA: Fortress Press, 1980. Web Sites Thornton Wilder Society Offers a variety of resources including an illustrated Thornton biography, a "Wilder and Film" essay by Susan D. Thomas, current articles of interest, and an extensive bibliography for Thornton Wilder and Our Town. "The Uncommon Decency Behind Wilder's Books: Beyond Grover's Corners Platitudes Lies Something Deeper, for Goodness' Sake" In a Washington Post article, staff writer Philip Kennicott explores facets of Wilder's writings that reveal his human empathy, while examining the personal struggles behind it. The Bridge of San Luis Rey, An Opera Inspired by Wilder's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, composer Paula Kimper has written an opera by the same name, set in Peru in 1714. If you are an NCTE (National Council of Teachers of English) member, you may find the following two sites useful. To become a member, visit the NCTE Web site. "Our Class Assists with Our Town" Log in and scroll down to 1999 January Classroom Notes Plus, v16.3 and then find the full text for the article "Our Class Assists with Our Town", which describes an original classroom exercise that teacher Kristen Burgess used to help her students appreciate how ordinary life occurrences can be turned into drama. "Focus on Teaching the Decades" Log in and scroll down to 2000 January Classroom Notes Plus, v17.3 and then find the full text for the "Focus on Teaching the Decades" articles, which provide classroom strategies that help students relate to modern history through the lens of literature. It features ideas on how to do guided "time travel." Computer Learning Foundation's Our Town Student Web Project Describes a Web-based student project in which students researched their town and developed a related Our Town Web site. Modern British, Irish, and American Drama: A Descriptive Chronology, 1865-1965 Developed by Binghamton University. Offers a chronicle of British, Irish, and American drama that can be accessed by decade and by year. Information about Our Town can be found under 1938. The Small Town Setting Use the list below to compare and contrast Our Town with other works set in small towns (see After Viewing question #2). Many contemporary young adult books are also set in small towns, such as The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier. Ask the school librarian or young adult librarian for additional suggestions. Films All the Right Moves American Graffiti Groundhog Day Footloose It's a Wonderful Life La Bamba The Majestic Pleasantville Sounder That Thing You Do The Truman Show Television Dawson's Creek Everwood The Gilmore Girls Smallville Books The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain The Crucible by Arthur Miller A Death in the Family by James Agee A Girl Named Zippy by Haven Kimmel The Heart is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers Mama Day by Gloria Naylor My Antonia by Willa Cather Spoon River Anthology by Edgar Lee Masters To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee Winesburg, Ohio by Sherwood Anderson Essays + Interviews | Drama to Film | Who's Who/Cast + Credits Story Synopsis | Teacher's Guide | Links + Bibliography | The Forum Home | About The Series | The American Collection | The Archive Schedule & Season | Feature Library | eNewsletter | Book Club Learning Resources | Forum | Search | Shop | Feedback ©