John Cooke American novelist Date of Birth: 03.11.1830 Country: USA

Biography of John Cook

John Cook, an American novelist and the brother of poet Philip Cook, was born in the Shenandoah Valley in the city of Winchester. He was one of the 13 children of John Rogers Cook and Maria Pendleton Cook. He was born on the family plantation, "Embers Hill," which burned down in 1838. The family then moved to Charles Town and later to Richmond in 1840. According to his father's will, John began studying law, but financial difficulties in 1849 prevented him from attending the University of Virginia. He turned to journalism and between 1848 and 1853, he published several works. In 1854, he started writing and publishing books. In 1858, his father passed away, and John completely abandoned the study of law. Soon, he became a well-known novelist and went on to write 31 books and approximately 200 articles and poems. In his novellas, Cook depicted the history and contemporary life of Virginia, particularly in his work "The Virginia Comedians" (1854) and later in his book about the Civil War, "The Wearing of the Gray".