Source link : https://las-vegas-news.com/8-books-that-were-published-against-their-authors-wishes/
Most writers hope their work will be read. A few, though, left behind instructions that said the opposite: burn it, destroy it, or at least keep it hidden.
Those instructions were often ignored by a friend, a sibling, a publisher, or a grieving family. The eight books below show how often readers owe their favorite works to someone who chose not to obey.
The Aeneid by Virgil
Virgil died in 19 BCE after falling ill on a trip home from Greece. He had reportedly asked that the manuscript of his Latin epic be burned, because he considered it unfinished. The poem follows the Trojan hero Aeneas on his journey toward founding the line that would lead to Rome.
Emperor Augustus stepped in and overruled the request. The poet’s friends Varius and Tucca were given the job of preparing the text, and they were said to have made only light changes. Some lines in the poem remain incomplete, a visible reminder of how unfinished Virgil felt it was.
The Trial by Franz Kafka
Franz Kafka died in 1924 and left his friend Max Brod instructions to destroy his unpublished papers. Brod, who was also his literary executor, decided not to do it. He later explained that he had told Kafka beforehand he would refuse.
Brod edited and arranged the unfinished manuscript of The Trial, and it appeared in 1925. The story of Josef K., arrested without being told his crime, became one of the…
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Author : Matthias Binder
Publish date : 2026-11-05 06:55:00
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