The Excellent Marriage of Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas

We would all be so lucky to have such a devoted spouse

Some years ago, I read Tillie Olsen’s Silences, which has been described as a book that sheds “critical light on the writings of marginalized women and working-class people.” In it, Olsen claimed that unmarried, childless writers stood a better chance of succeeding in their literary endeavors — possibly true in the past.

Olsen listed Gertrude Stein as an…