Ayn Rand

In December 1945, Rand named Calumet “K” as her favorite work of literature in a letter to editor Barbara Brandt. She proposed republication under her recommendation for readers of The Fountainhead and offered to write a preface. This is a paraphrase of the linked letter.

This text documents what the source says, but it is not verified as a word-for-word quote.

Ayn Rand Institute · 1945-12-11 · accessed 2026-10-01

Letter · Original letter transcript

Original letter transcript explicitly identifies the book as her favorite and proposes its republication under her recommendation.

In What Is Romanticism?, Rand singled out Quo Vadis as a top-rank novel for its integration of character, purposeful action and plot. Her judgment concerns this novel, rather than every work by Sienkiewicz. The essay was collected in The Romantic Manifesto in 1969; the linked web excerpt is undated. Paraphrase.

This text documents what the source says, but it is not verified as a word-for-word quote.

Ayn Rand Institute · 1969 · accessed 2026-10-01

Article · Republished original essay excerpt

ARI republishes Rand’s own essay from The Romantic Manifesto, page 107; she singles out Quo Vadis and The Scarlet Letter as individual top-rank Romantic novels. 1969 is the first collected edition year; the linked ARI Campus republication is undated; this does not assert the essay’s original periodical date.

Rand paired The Scarlet Letter with Quo Vadis in her assessment of top-rank Romantic novels, emphasizing characters’ choices and the events those choices produce. These two selections share one essay passage. The Romantic Manifesto first collected the essay in 1969; the linked web excerpt is undated. Paraphrase.

This text documents what the source says, but it is not verified as a word-for-word quote.

Ayn Rand Institute · 1969 · accessed 2026-10-01

Article · Republished original essay excerpt

ARI republishes Rand’s own essay from The Romantic Manifesto, page 107; she singles out Quo Vadis and The Scarlet Letter as individual top-rank Romantic novels. 1969 is the first collected edition year; the linked ARI Campus republication is undated; this does not assert the essay’s original periodical date.