Kate Chopin 
The Awakening and Other Stories 

The works of Kate Chopin were nearly forgotten for much of the twentieth century, but her popularity made a resurgence in the 1970s when readers and scholars turned their attention to early women’s literature. The Awakening, her best-known novel, is set in the Gulf Coast region around New Orleans, and is critically acclaimed for its style and for being ahead of its time in discussing important women’s issues. Also included in this volume are several of Chopin’s short stories, including “Désirée’s Baby” and “The Story of an Hour.”

About the author

Kate Chopin was born in St. Louis, Missouri, in 1850, and moved to Louisiana in 1870 after her marriage. When her husband died in 1882, she and her children returned to St. Louis, where she started writing. The author of two novels and more than a hundred short stories, Chopin was one of the most well-known writers of her time. Her writing fell out of vogue after her death in 1904, but during the mid-twentieth century, her work experienced a revival, and is now considered a precursor to modern feminist literature.