When did a best selling novel sweep across the nation between 1850 and 1861?

The best-selling novel that swept across the nation between 1850 and 1861 was Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe.

Published in 1852, it became an instant sensation, selling over 300,000 copies in its first year and over 3 million by 1861.

It had a profound impact on American society, fueling the abolitionist movement and contributing to the growing tensions that led to the Civil War.