Lost and found manuscripts of 2011

From the famous theft of Ernest Hemingway’s novels to the loss of William Faulkner’s novel four times, manuscripts have had a way of getting lost. It is no less than a eureka moment when they’re found many years later.

This year has been quite eventful in terms of discovering lost literary treasures.  Here’s a look at the famous manuscripts which were found in 2011.

Jack Kerouac – The Sea is My Brother: The Lost Novel
The original 158-page handwritten manuscript was Kerouac’s first novel, begun when the writer – most famous for his free-wheeling trip across America captured in On The Road.

Agatha Christie – Murder in the Making
This is the second volume compiled from Christie’s unpublished notebooks, which were discovered in her home in 1973.

Charlotte Bronte – The Young Men’s Magazine, Number 2
This was written in 1830 when the author was 14. It is set in Glass Town, the earliest fictional world created by the Bronte siblings. It sold for a record 690,850 pounds ($1.1 million) at auction, more than double the price expected.

Rabindranath Tagore ‘s notebook
A previously unknown notebook of Nobel Laureate Rabindranath Tagore, containing his poems and other works, dated back to 1928 fetched $ 170,500 at a Sotheby’s auction. The book contained 12 poems and lyrics for as many songs in Bengali, including some heavily amended drafts of his subsequently published works.

Enid Blyton’s 180 page manuscript
A 180 page manuscript, otherwise unpublished was published and titled as Mr. Trumpy’s Caravan . It was found in February after a collection of papers belonging to the writer were auctioned in 2010. The auction took place right after the death of Enid’s oldest daughter who possessed those papers.

James M Cain – The cocktail waitress
This lost novel by The Postman Always Rings Twice author James M Cain has been discovered, and is set for publication next autumn. This was the last book written by Cain before his death in 1977, but it was never published.