“The story appeared first as a serial in the National Era, an antislavery paper, beginning in June 1851. Calvin thought the book had little importance. He wept over it, but he wept over most of the things she wrote. Her publisher warned that her subject was unpopular and said she took too long to tell her story. On the advice of a friend who had not read the manuscript, she decided to take a 10 percent royalty on every copy sold instead of a 50-50 division of profit or losses, as had also been offered to her. She herself expected to make no money from it; she thought it inadequate and was sure her friends would be disappointed with her. Within a week after publication ten thousand copies had been sold. The publisher had three power presses running twenty-four hours a day. In a year sales in the United States came to more than three hundred thousand. The book made publishing history right from the start. In England, where Mrs. Stowe had no copyright and therefore received no royalties, sales were even more stupendous. A million and a half copies were sold in about a year’s time. The book had a strange power over almost everyone who read it then, and for all its Victorian mannerisms and frequent patches of sentimentality much of it still does. Its characters have a vitality of a kind comparable to the most memorable figures in literature. There is sweep and power to the narrative, and there are scenes that once read are not forgotten. The book is also rather different from what most people imagine, largely because it was eventually eclipsed by the stage version, which Mrs. Stowe had nothing to do with (and from which she never received a cent), and which was probably performed more often than any play in the language, McCullough, David. Brave Companions (pp. 44-45). Simon & Schuster. Kindle Edition. McCullough, David. Brave Companions (p. 44). Simon & Schuster. Kindle Edition. McCullough, David. Brave Companions (p. 44). Simon & Schuster. Kindle Edition. McCullough, David. Brave Companions (p. 44). Simon & Schuster. Kindle Edition. ”
