Other books that might interest you

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  Adventure of the Speckled Band...

  Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

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  Helen Stoner worries her stepfather may be trying to kill her after he contrives to move her to the bedroom where her sister had died two years earlier, shortly before her wedding. Stoner is herself now engaged, and Holmes learns that her stepfather's annuity (from the estate of his wife - Stoner's mother) would be greatly reduced if either sister married. During a late-night investigation of the bedroom, Holmes and Watson discover a dummy bell-pull near a ventilator. As they lie in wait a whistle sounds, then a snake appears through the ventilator. Holmes attacks the snake with his riding crop; it retreats to the next room, where it attacks and kills Stoner's stepfather.

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  The Bridge of San Luis Rey

  Thornton Wilder

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  Five people fall to their deaths when a bridge collapses over a river in Peru. Can Brother Juniper discover the reason that these five individuals had to die?   
  Exploring themes of love, goodness, and predestination, Wilder exposes the nature of his characters by examining their relationships. The bonds of parents and children, siblings, and surrogate parents are all examined with elegant skill, leading us to ask the hard questions that point to the inevitable river below.  
  The Bridge of San Luis Rey won the Pulitzer Prize for the Novel in 1928.

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  Shy Neighbourhoods (Unabridged)

  Charles Dickens

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  Charles Dickens was a writer and social critic who created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded as the greatest novelist of the Victorian era. His works enjoyed unprecedented popularity during his lifetime, and by the twentieth century critics and scholars had recognised him as a literary genius. His novels and short stories enjoy lasting popularity.SHY NEIGHBOURHOODS: So much of my travelling is done on foot, that if I cherished betting propensities, I should probably be found registered in sporting newspapers under some such title as the Elastic Novice, challenging all eleven stone mankind to competition in walking.

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  Odour of Chrysanthemums

  D. H. Lawrence

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  Elizabeth , a young wife and mother, waits for her husband Walter to come home from the coal mine. She attributes his lateness to him having gone drinking. As time goes on, she goes to look for him and alerts his colleagues. It transpires he has been killed in a pit accident. Elizabeth's mother-in-law helps her to wash the corpse after it is brought home from the mine. The reactions of the two women are in stark contrast - and the experience of laying out the body shows Elizabeth how she and her husband never really knew one another in life.

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  Typee

  Herman Melville

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  "Typee" is a novel written by Herman Melville and published in 1846. It is partly based on Melville's own experiences as a sailor and his brief stay in the Marquesas Islands in the South Pacific. The novel follows the adventures of Tommo, the narrator, who jumps ship with his companion Toby and finds themselves living among the Typee people, a Polynesian tribe known for their reputed cannibalism. 
   
  "Typee" offers a fictionalized account of the time Melville spent living with the Typee tribe, providing vivid descriptions of the landscape, customs, and rituals of the people he encountered. The novel presents a contrast between the seemingly idyllic and harmonious life of the Typee and the harsh realities of Western civilization. Melville explores themes of cultural encounter, colonialism, and the clash between primitive and civilized societies. 
   
  Throughout the novel, Melville reflects on the inherent biases and misunderstandings that arise when encountering different cultures. He challenges prevailing stereotypes and offers a more nuanced portrayal of the Typee people, depicting them as complex and fully realized characters rather than exoticized caricatures. The novel raises questions about the nature of civilization, the impact of colonialism on indigenous peoples, and the tensions between individual freedom and societal norms. 
   
  "Typee" garnered significant attention upon its publication, captivating readers with its adventurous narrative and its exploration of the exotic and unfamiliar. The novel contributed to the growing interest in the South Pacific and its cultures during the 19th century, influencing subsequent literary works and travel writing. While "Typee" is often overshadowed by Melville's later and more renowned works, such as "Moby-Dick," it remains an important early work in his career and a fascinating exploration of cultural encounters and human nature.

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  The Talking Horse

  Thomas Anstey Guthrie

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  When Gustavus Pulvertoft finds himself saddled with a horse with the power of human speech, he little imagines how quickly he will come a cropper. His courtship of the horse-loving Diana Chetwynd goes swimmingly so long as his talking horse is on good terms with Miss Chetwynd's grey mare... but when their trusty mounts fall out, a series of terrible events ensues which Pulvertoft is powerless to prevent. His determination to get revenge on the horse leads to his ultimate downfall.

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