Shaken, with hinge exposed at the FFEP. Edges worn, corners bumped and rubbed. Head and tail bumped, rubbed and frayed. Spine sunned with a light spot where a label of some sort was removed or fell off. Emeral green cloth with shamrock design stamped to the front board.
Born in Newark, New Jersey, Stephen Ryder Fiske achieved journalistic success at a young age. He was a paid contributor to several newspapers by the time he was twelve and, two years later, became the editor of a small newspaper. He attended Rutgers College until 1860, when he was asked to leave after he was found to be responsible for writing book chapters that satirized the college professors, according to D. W. Miller. Fiske's obituary, on the other hand, reports that he graduated sucessfully from Rutgers and was admitted to the bar two years later, but abandoned law for journalism ("Stephen Fiske").
After leaving Rutgers, Fiske moved to New York City and began writing for the New York Herald, where he served as an editorial writer and war correspondent there ("Stephen Fiske"). Through this work, he is considered part of the "Bohemian Brigade," a group of Civil War journalists with a tangential relationship to the Pfaff's bohemians (Starr). He also worked as a “special correspondent” who traveled the country with dignitaries such as the Prince of Wales and President Lincoln ("Stephen Fiske"). As a journalist, Fiske maintained a keen desire to be the first person to report a story. In one notable instance, he sent Biblical passages through the telegraph in an effort to tie up the lines, thus preventing his competitors from sending their stories (D. W. Miller). Fiske replaced Edward G. P. Wilkins as dramatic critic at the Herald in 1862. At the time, he also accused Wilkins of reviewing productions without actually seeing them.
After the war he returned to NYC where he worked in and around the theater, as well as put together some books. The final story in this collection is clearly related to this time.