Maggie: A Girl of the Streets

Stephen Crane · 1871–1900 · United States

Why it matters

A Bowery tenement girl is destroyed by poverty, an abusive family, and a seducer's empty promises. Crane's self-published debut, too grim for commercial publishers, became a founding text of American literary naturalism.

At a glance

Short and plainly told, though its slang-heavy dialogue and irony take some acclimation.