On the Origin of.... Writers! Trivia Quiz

Answer: Bloemfontein

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien was born in Bloemfontein, South Africa in 1892. The family moved to England when he was 3 years old. He was home-schooled by his mother Mabel. His father died when he was very young. After serving in World War I, he commenced his writing career while a Reader in English Language at the University of Leeds.

He is best known for his books on Middle-Earth, 'The Hobbit' and 'The Lord of the Rings' trilogy.

Answer: Florida

Florida, Missouri that is! Twain (real name Samuel Langhorne Clemens) was born in 1835 and the family moved to Hannibal Missouri when he was 4 years old. He left school early after the death of his father. Slavery and river boats were part of his everyday experiences growing up and these subjects featured heavily in much of his fictional writing, including his famous novels 'Adventures of Huckleberry Finn' and 'The Adventures of Tom Sawyer'.

A close friend of Nikola Tesla, Twain patented three inventions including a self-adhesive scrap book.

His fascination with science provided some of the ideas behind 'A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court'.

Answer: Philadelphia

The American novelist (and poet) Louisa May Alcott was born in Germantown, part of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1832. Her most famous novel, 'Little Women', written in 1868, is semi-autobiographical, reflecting in part on the difficulties of her own poverty-stricken childhood with her three sisters. Alcott was a fierce defender of women's issues.

She also had great success with the follow-ups to 'Little Women', namely 'Little Men' (1871) and 'Jo's Boys' (1886).

Answer: Edinburgh

Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, in 1859. Although often incorrectly ascribed as part of a compound family name, 'Conan' was one of two given middle names. He referred to himself as Arthur Conan Doyle and that name was used in his extensive writings. Most famous for his creation of super sleuth, Sherlock Holmes in a number of compelling mystery novels, Doyle also wrote short stories and several critically acclaimed historical novels.

He was trained in medicine at the University of Edinburgh and had several medical practices through his career and was a fierce advocate of the benefits of vaccination. Doyle was also an accomplished sportsman, including playing 10 first class cricket matches for the Marylebone Cricket Club.

Answer: Torquay

Agatha Mary Clarissa Christie was born into a wealthy family in Torquay, England in 1890. After a few relatively unsuccessful attempts at writing, and serving as a nurses' aide during World War I, Christie had great success with her first novel featuring the Belgian detective, Hercule Poirot in 'The Mysterious Affair at Styles' first published in 1920.

A highly successful career ensued with both Poirot and Miss (Jane) Marple featuring in large numbers of mystery novels. Christie's personal life was at time troubled, including a famed 'disappearance' in 1926 around the time of her separation from her first husband.

In honor of her astounding literary success, Christie was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 1956.

Answer: Moscow

Regarded as one of Russia's greatest poets and playwrights, Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin was born in Moscow in 1799. By the time he finished school, Pushkin was already widely known in Russian literary circles, having published his first poem at the age of 15.

His clearly and strongly articulated socially progressive views angered the Russian Government and he was forced to leave Moscow and reside in other parts of the country including Chisinau and the Crimea, and then later on in Pskov. Whilst in internal exile, he wrote 'Boris Godunov' which was to become his most famous play.

He wrote large numbers of poems and short stories, including 'Mozart and Salieri', which formed the basis of the 1984 film 'Amadeus'. His work also provided the foundation stories for several of Russia's greatest classical musical compositions including Tchaikovsky's 'Eugene Onegin'.

Answer: Motihari

Eric Arthur Blair is far more commonly known by his pen-name of George Orwell. Blair was born in 1903 in Motihari (in the state of Bihar) in eastern India where his father Richard served in the Indian Civil Service. His mother moved Eric and his two sisters to England when he was just a one year old child.

He attended boarding schools, which he generally hated, but performed admirably in his academic pursuits, including history, which led him to a scholarship at Eton College. His academic results dwindled but his literary interests flourished.

After leaving Eton he traveled to Burma where he worked as a policeman. After eventually resigning from the police force he moved to London where he explored the poorer sections around the East End and then to Paris in 1928.

He commenced life as a full time writer gaining success with 'Down and Out in Paris and London' (1933). His novels include the dystopian classic '1984' and the scathing satire of Stalinist Russia in 'Animal Farm'. He also wrote several extremely popular non-fiction books including 'The Road to Wigan Pier' and 'Homage to Catalonia'.

Answer: Lyon

Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, or more formally, Antoine Marie Jean-Baptiste Roger, comte de Saint-Exupéry, was born in Lyon, France in 1900 into an aristocratic, family, although his father's death when Antoine was only 4 left his family impoverished. After struggling academically, he joined the army (light cavalry) and after some private flying lessons, joined the French Air Force. Flying quickly became a passion despite several crashes.

The beauty and mysticism he felt when flying resulted in his evocative novel 'Wind, Sand and Stars', which won the USA National Book Award.

His most famous novel is 'The Little Prince' which was partly derived from his memories of his cherished older brother who died at the age of 17. Saint-Exupéry served in the French Air Force in World War II and went missing over the Mediterranean on a reconnaissance flight in 1944.

Answer: Bacchus Marsh

Australian novelist Peter Philip Carey was born in Bacchus Marsh, a small town near Melbourne, Victoria in 1943 where his parents ran a local car dealership. He lost interest in a science degree he was undertaking and moved into advertising and worked for several major agencies.

He initially wrote for literary magazines included 'Meanjin'. His first novel 'Bliss' was published in 1981. This was followed by several highly successful novels including 'Illywacker' (1985) and 'Jack Maggs' (1998). Carey joined such literary luminaries as Hilary Martel and J.M Coetzee when he was awarded his second Booker prize for 'The True History of the Kelly Gang' in 2001 after initially winning that award for 'Oscar and Lucinda' in 1985.

Answer: Mondovi (now Dréan)

The French philosopher and writer Albert Camus was born into an impoverished family in Mondovi in what was then French Algeria in 1913. His father died soon after from injuries sustained in World War I. Academically gifted, Camus was accepted into the University of Algiers, where in 1930 tuberculosis curtailed his football (soccer) career, his passion. During World War II, Camus joined the French Resistance, where he edited their 'underground' newspaper.

He witnessed the liberation of Paris in 1944 and then a year later was appalled at the use of atomic weapons against Japanese civilians, which contributed to his strong pacifist views.

He wrote 'The Stranger' (also known as 'The Outsider') in 1942 and five years later his perhaps most famous work 'The Plague'.

His tuberculosis returned and while convalescing he published 'The Rebel' in 1951 which dealt with rebellion, revolution and a repudiation of communism. His major contribution to philosophy was in developing 'the idea of the absurd' - the battle between the human need to find meaning in life and the inability to do so. Camus was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1957 "for his important literary production, which with clear-sighted earnestness illuminates the problems of the human conscience in our times".