Joanna Trollope, a prominent British author, has donated her entire literary collection to Oxford's Bodleian Libraries.
The archive features research notes, correspondence and manuscript drafts of the author's 18 contemporary fiction books, 2 non-fiction publications, 10 historical fiction works and short stories. The archive also comprises of media recordings, articles and interviews, professional correspondence, speeches or lectures given to literary or charity organisations.
Trollope's writing career spans 36 years and has generated 18 highly acclaimed novels. Several of them have been adapted for television and stage productions. Trollope has also penned a book on women in the British Empire, "Britannia's Daughters" and reworked on Jane Austen's "Sense & Sensibility"as part of 'The Austen Project' (2014).
The Oxford Scholar's works have received world-wide attention for analyzing the relationship between the genres of romance and realism and gender studies.
The University of Oxford Alumna was named OBE in the 1996 Queen's Birthday Honors List. Trollope chaired the Orange Prize for Fiction 2012 and has been closely associated with several literary organizations and charities, including the Society of Authors, the RNIB and the National Literacy Trust.
Trollope's research and handwritten manuscripts present interesting facets particularly in the digital age. The collection will offer researchers an intriguing insight into the author's craft, creative process and publishing success.
"Joanna Trollope's archive gives us an insight into the craft of an immensely popular writer and flag bearer for fiction. Her novels, always handwritten, are meticulously researched and the collection provides an insight into this process. The archive more generally demonstrates the way in which she has championed literature and literacy through her charitable work, her service on many committees, and her involvement in the judging of numerous literary awards," Richard Ovenden, Bodley's Librarian said in a statement.
Trollope's archive will join Bodleian's existing, wide-range of collections on literary manuscripts including her relative, Anthony Trollope, the Victorian novelist.
The Bodleian Libraries plans to index Trollope's literary archives for the readers.
In March, the University of Colorado received a collection of Holocaust-era documents, books and photographs from the daughter of a prominent Holocaust collector and researcher, Harry W. Mazal.
"This acquisition will transform CU-Boulder into a global center of scholarship on the 20th century Jewish experience," Professor David Shneer, the Louis P. Singer Chair in Jewish History and director of the Program in Jewish Studies, said in a statement. ".....CU is now one of the only places in the world to be able to demonstrate how global Jewish life continued and flourished in the United States after World War II."
