American author Alice Hegan Rice was born on this day in 1879 (d: 10 February, 1942). She is best known for her novel Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch which was published in 1901.
Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch was a thinly veiled social commentary, with memorable characters fighting enormous odds. The book was an immediate success and was translated to both stage and screen.
Mrs. Hegan is also known as a life-long philanthropist.
Mrs. Hegan’s most known works are set among the urban poor in Kentucky. The author got to know those people while volunteering as a settlement worker.
Alice Hegan Rice wrote a sequel to Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch called Lovey Mary (published in 1903) in which an orphan girl runs away from the orphanage and is taken in by Mrs. Wiggs.
Hegan’s husband, Cale Young Rice, was a poet and dramatist.
Hegan’s uncle was author Frances Little.
Hegan’s works were translated to German, Swedish, French and Danish during her lifetime.
Even though we remember Hegan for her novels, she was also famous for the short stories she contributed to magazines.
A father, husband, avid reader, blogger, software engineer & wood worker who is known the world over as a man of many interests and to his wife as “an idiot”.