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  Æpyornis Island - From their...

  H G Wells

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  Herbert George Wells was born on September 21st, 1866 at Atlas House, 46 High Street, Bromley, Kent. He was the youngest of four siblings and his family affectionately knew him as ‘Bertie’.  
  The first few years of his childhood were spent fairly quietly, and Wells didn’t display much literary interest until, in 1874, he accidentally broke his leg and was left to recover in bed, largely entertained by the library books his father regularly brought him. Through these Wells found he could escape the boredom and misery of his bed and convalescence by exploring the new worlds he encountered in these books.  
  From these humble beginnings began a career that was, after several delays, to be seen as one of the most brilliant of modern English writers.    
  Able to write comfortably in a number of genres he was especially applauded for his science fiction works such as The Time Machine and War of the Worlds but his forays into the social conditions of the times, with classics such as Kipps, were almost as commercially successful.  His short stories are miniature masterpieces many of which bring new and incredible ideas of science fiction to the edge of present day science fact.  Wells also received four nominations for the Nobel Prize in Literature 
  Despite a strong and lasting second marriage his affairs with other women also brought the complications of fathering other children.  His writings and work against fascism, as well as the promotion of socialism, brought him into increasing doubts with and opposition to religion.  His writings on what the world could be in works, such as A Modern Utopia, are thought provoking as well as being plausible, especially when viewed from the distressing times they were written in. 
  His diabetic condition pushed him to create what is now the largest Diabetes charity in the United Kingdom.  Wells even found the time to run twice for Parliament. 
  It was a long, distinguished and powerfully successful career by the time he died, aged 79, on August 13th, 1946.

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  Briar Rose and Other Stories

  The Brothers Grimm

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  This charming collection of Grimms' Fairy Tales includes "Briar Rose", "Fundevogel", "The Fox & the Cat" and "The Fox & the Horse". Grimms' Fairy Tales was first published in Germany in 1812 as "Kinder und Hausmärchen". This series of recordings is based on the original 1823 English translation by Edgar Taylor, with subsequent editing by Marian Edwardes.

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  War And Peace - The Original...

  Leo Tolstoy

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  Arguably the greatest literary masterpiece, War and Peace is an amazing blend of philosophy, history, spirituality, and love told through two families, the Rostovs and the Bolkonskys. The Rostovs personify the Russian spirit. Count Rostov, a generous, kind spendthrift, can deny his family nothing. His countess is a warm, loving, overindulged woman. These characteristics are reflected in their children, while the austere Bolkonskys are duty-bound. As normal human beings do, the three main characters grow, expand, and change over the course of fifteen years (1805-1820) beginning when Natasha Rostov is a young girl. It is a joy to watch her evolve into a beautiful, mature woman who loves two men: Prince Andrey Bolkonsky, an elegant, aristocratic army officer, and his friend, Count Pierre Bezukhov, a bear of a man who seeks answers to life in Freemasonry, mysticism, and superstition, and finally finding them in the philosophy of Platon Karatayev, an illiterate peasant soldier. Andrey and Pierre argue the plight of the peasants, the rights of the aristocracy, and the merits of war, mirroring Tolstoy’s own reflections. The main focus is Napoleon’s invasion of Russia and his ignominious retreat.

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  Alice in Wonderland

  Lewis Carroll

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  "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland," written by Lewis Carroll in the mid-19th century, is a classic children's novel. The story follows a young girl named Alice, who, feeling bored and sleepy while sitting by a riverbank, encounters a White Rabbit. Intrigued, she follows the Rabbit down a rabbit hole and plunges into a fantastical world filled with curious creatures and whimsical adventures. 
  At the beginning of the book, Alice daydreams about her surroundings before spotting the flustered and animated White Rabbit. Her curiosity leads her to pursue the Rabbit, resulting in her tumbling down a deep rabbit hole. This brings her to a curious hall filled with locked doors. As she navigates this new world, Alice experiences a series of bizarre changes in size after eating and drinking mysterious substances.  
  Initially frustrated by the challenges posed by her fluctuating size and the peculiar inhabitants she encounters, Alice begins to explore her surroundings. The narrative sets the tone for her whimsical and often nonsensical adventures, which characterize the entire tale.

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  Mateo Falcone

  Prosper Mérimée

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  There are stories that strike like a bullet—swift, precise, and inescapable. Mateo Falcone is one of them.
  In the sun-scorched Corsican wilderness, where honor is measured in blood and a man's word is as unyielding as the mountains, a moment of hesitation can seal one's fate. A fugitive seeking refuge, a child faced with an impossible choice, a father whose sense of justice knows no mercy—Mérimée paints a world where tradition rules with an iron grip, and betrayal, no matter how small, does not go unanswered.
  There are no heroes here, no villains—only the weight of an unwritten law, passed down through generations, and the chilling certainty of what must come next. A tale as sharp as a knife's edge, Mateo Falcone lingers in the mind long after the final page, leaving behind the echo of a single gunshot and the question: what price does honor demand?

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  The Decameron Volume II

  Giovanni Boccaccio

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  "The Decameron" is a collection of novellas by Italian author Giovanni Boccaccio, written between 1348 and 1353. It is a masterpiece of Italian literature and a significant work of early Renaissance literature. The frame narrative of "The Decameron" revolves around ten individuals who flee plague-ridden Florence and take refuge in a villa in the countryside. To pass the time, they tell one another stories—100 in total—over the course of ten days. These stories encompass a wide range of themes, from love and morality to wit and humor, and they offer a vivid portrayal of Italian society in the 14th century.

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