Every day brings a new story. And each day contributes to story telling -- in prose and in poetry, in art and in music, on the stage, on the screen, and, of course, in books.
Today is the story of July 1st
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It is the 182nd day of the year, leaving 183 days remaining in 2022.
Despite defying conventions during her life, she told her stories in classical, rustic style. Her themes included the stories of how love triumphs -- over class, over social mores, over poverty.
She was among the most popular writers during her day -- and after her death. Sand's works not only influenced French literature, but writers from England, Cuba, the United States, and Russia.
The English poet, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, wrote two poems in her honor. The American poet Walt Whitman cited her as an inspiration. The Russian novelist Fyodor Dostoevsky so loved her work he translated some of it into Russian.
As a journalist, she co-wrote stories with Jules Sandeau. Together, they used the name Jules Sand for their articles. That was also the name their first novel, Le Figaro, was credited to.
But when she started writing alone, she chose the name George Sand. During much of her life, she also chose to wear men's clothing -- for comfort, she said, and for the ability to more freely travel.
Her first novel, Indiana, also defied conventions -- it strongly questioned why women were forever tied to the first man they married. It told the tale of a woman who left her husband and married her true love. It was popular and critically praised.
Other novels showed that love can cross over boundaries of social and economic class. She often based her characters on her many lovers.
Later in life, she wrote of the countryside in Berry -- in central France, about 150 miles from Paris -- where her grandmother lived and whose estate she inherited. Her characters were often peasants or working class.
Sand died in 1876 in Berry.
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