November 2, 2026
The famous quote-"Every election is a sort of advance auction sale of stolen goods"-comes from the American journalist, satirist, and cultural critic H.L. Mencken.
America's premier journalist H. L. Mencken became a reporter for the Baltimore Morning Herald and later joined the Baltimore Sun. He eventually became one of the most influential voices in American literature and was often critical of what he perceived as American cant, buffoonery and political chicanery.
He often railed against pretension, provincialism, prudery, organized religion, and Middle-Class conformism.
By the 1930s in opposition to Franklin Roosevelt and the New Deal, his strong libertarian opinions led him to be a prominent leader of the Old Right.
In The American Language, which was revised several times, he chronicled American expressions and idioms.
One of Mencken's greatest admirers, the delightful Murray N. Rothbard, wrote the definitive portrait of the Sage of Baltimore, H. L. Mencken: The Joyous Libertarian.
For five decades Mencken has been my favorite writer and I am extremely fortunate and distinctly proud to have many first editions of his multiple works in my personal library.
Explore the essential reading list for the perpetually displeased. Discover classic curmudgeonly literature, from Céline's biting *Journey to the End of the Night* to Bierce's razor-sharp wit in *The Devil's Dictionary* and Mencken's acerbic essays. Your guide to timeless grumpy books.
