Publisher: arslan
Writer Algernon Blackwood is recognized as one of the pioneers of the genre of 'weird' fiction. He specializes in subtly creepy tales whose horrific significance gradually sneaks up on you, rather than assaulting you with gore and violence. In The Centaur, Blackwood explores the solitary life of a strangely magnetic misfit who decides to live his unusual life on his own unique terms.
When Algernon Weatherhead moves into Wisteria Villa, he finds himself living next door to the Currie family, who are besotted with their black poodle Bingo. Algernon falls in love with the Colonel Currie's adopted niece Lillian... but he cannot make friends with Bingo, a dog with a deeply psychotic desire to bite neighbours, tradespeople, the gardener and passers-by.When Algernon shoots Bingo dead by accident, events lead to him burying the body in a shallow grave and pretending the dog has run away. But when Lillian makes it a condition of her agreeing to marry Algernon that he should find Bingo, he is left with a dilemma...the only solution is to find a doppelganger for Bingo and convince the Curries that it really is their dog.Show book
When young Russian aristocrat Dimitri Sanin, on his way home from Italy, enters a patisserie in Frankfurt, he little dreams it will alter the course of his entire life. Faced with Gemma, the most beautiful girl he has ever seen, he is blown away by the spring torrents of love. But fate has a challenge in store for Sanin, one he must successfully overcome or lose his chance of future happiness. This tale of struggle against the force of natural passion speaks to the hearts of all who have experienced the fragile beauty of first love and the dark power of desire.Show book
The 'Eroes of Thames tells the story of a famous swimmer, Peter Jimpson and his son, also named Peter, trying to maintain their fame in the big city of London. The father designed a skit in which his son would fake drowning in the Thames, and a random passerby (actually Peter himself) would dramatically rescue the boy. His plan is thwarted when a pair of grifters catch onto Peter's scheme and prevent him from following through with it as planned.Show book
37 short pieces perfect for newer recorders. These one page Stories of (mostly) Wonderful Deeds were written for Little Folk to teach them about famous incidents in their history. Bonnie Prince Charlie, Nelson and Hardy, Bruce and the Spider, David Livingston, Canute, Sir Philip Sydney, and Elizabeth and Raleigh are just some of the well known people and incidents covered in short stories. (Summary by phil chenevert)Show book
This is the fully illustrated and extended annotated edition including a rare and extensive biographical essay on the author, his life and works plus a wealth of illustrations. The scene of "A Legend of Montrose" is laid "during the period of that great and bloody Civil War which agitated Britain during the 17th century," and which finally cost Charles I his kingdom and head. In the Scottish Highlands the struggle lay between the Covenanters who adhered to the Royalist cause, and the Presbyterians; the field being further complicated by private feuds and the presence of outlaw clans. Dugald Dalgetty, a boastful soldier of fortune, meets the Earl of Menteith, who persuades him to join the Royalist army. They remain overnight at Darnlinvaroch Castle, where Dalgetty is told the story of Angus and Allan McAulay and their troubles at the hands of outlaws. Allan, who is of gloomy nature, is soothed by the harp-playing of Annot Lyle, a girl whose birth is enshrouded in mystery. The next day several heads of clans arrive; whereupon the Earl of Montrose, who has been in disguise, takes command of the troops in the King's name ...Show book
Idylls of the King, published between 1859 and 1885, is a cycle of twelve narrative poems by the English poet Alfred, Lord Tennyson which retells the legend of King Arthur, his knights, his love for Guinevere and her tragic betrayal of him, and the rise and fall of Arthur's kingdom. The whole work recounts Arthur's attempt and failure to lift up mankind and create a perfect kingdom, from his coming to power to his death at the hands of the traitor Mordred. Individual poems detail the deeds of various knights, including Lancelot, Geraint, Galahad, Balin, and Balan, as also Merlin and the Lady of the Lake. There is little transition between Idylls, but the central figure of Arthur links all the stories. The poems were dedicated to the late Albert, Prince Consort. The Idylls are written in blank verse. Tennyson's descriptions of nature are derived from observations of his own surroundings, collected over the course of many years. The dramatic narratives are not epic either in structure or tone but derive elegiac sadness in the style of the idylls of Theocritus. Idylls of the King is often read as an allegory of the societal conflicts in Britain during the mid-Victorian era.Show book
