Theresa Rebeck is a serious writer—serious about writing, serious about reading and seriously prolific.
Early in her career, she found herself saddled with the task of transcending the designation “woman playwright”—to become simply a playwright—and has this to say about it:
“As a writer, I have always considered it my job to describe the world as I know it; to struggle toward whatever portion of the truth is available to me… I believe that the hero’s journey is both male and female… I’m interested in writing about the way both genders make mistakes and the ways we grow, or don’t grow.”
Originally from Cincinnati, the novelist, playwright, and film and television writer now lives here in Brooklyn. She shared some of her favorite books with us; among them, a few classics featuring heroines struggling to transcend assigned identities.
Books for Kids
The Tangerine Bear by Betty Paraskevas & Michael Paraskevas
The Story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf
Horton Hatches the Egg by Dr. Seuss
Half Magic by Edward Eager
Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh
Books for Adults
Middlemarch by George Eliot
Bleak House by Charles Dickens
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel
Possession by A.S. Byatt
