Other books that might interest you

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  Emma

  Jane Austen

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  Considered by many critics to be Jane Austen's finest achievement, Emma is the witty classic about youthful hubris and matchmaking gone awry. Emma Woodhouse, a privileged young lady with little to occupy her time, imagines that she dominates those around her in the small town of Highbury, but her inept matchmaking creates problems for herself and others.

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  Angèle au Couvent - A young...

  Mary Butts

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  Mary Frances Butts was born on 13th December 1890 in Poole, Dorset. 
   
  Her early years were spent at Salterns, an 18th-century house overlooking Poole Harbour.  Sadly in 1905 her father died, and she was sent for boarding at St Leonard's school for girls in St Andrews. 
   
  Her mother remarried and, from 1909, Mary studied at Westfield College in London, and here, first became aware of her bisexual feelings.  She was sent down for organising a trip to Epsom races and only completed her degree in 1914 when she graduated from the London School of Economics.  By then Mary had become an admirer of the occultist Aleister Crowley and she was given a co-authorship credit on his ‘Magick (Book 4)’. 
   
  In 1916, she began the diary which would now detail her future life and be a constant reference point for her observations and her absorbing experiences. 
   
  During World War I, she was doing social work for the London County Council in Hackney Wick, and involved in a lesbian relationship.  Life changed after meeting the modernist poet, John Rodker and they married in 1918. 
   
  In 1921 she spent 3 months at Aleister Crowley's Abbey of Thelema in Sicily; she found the practices dreadful and also acquired a drug habit.  Mary now spent time writing in Dorset, including her celebrated book of short stories ‘Speed the Plough’ which saw fully develop her unique Modernist prose style. 
   
  Europe now beckoned and several years were spent in Paris befriending many artists and writing further extraordinary stories.   
   
  She was continually sought after by literary magazines and also published several short story collections as books. Although a Modernist writer she worked in other genres but is essentially only known for her short stories.  Mary was deeply committed to nature conservation and wrote several pamphlets attacking the growing pollution of the countryside. 
   
  In 1927, she divorced and the following year her novel ‘Armed with Madness’ was published.  A further marriage followed in 1930 and time was spent attempting to settle in London and Newcastle before setting up home on the western tip of Cornwall.  By 1934 the marriage had failed. 
   
  Mary Butts died on 5th March 1937, at the West Cornwall Hospital, Penzance, after an operation for a perforated gastric ulcer. She was 46. 
   
  In ‘Angèle Au Couvent’ Butts takes up the story of a young school girl desperate for friendships but wrestling with her fluid interpretation of religion.

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  The Lady with the Dog

  Anton Chekhov

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  Anton Chekhov’s The Lady With The Dog weaves a tale of love, longing, and the elusive nature of happiness, set against the scenic backdrop of late 19th-century Yalta. When Dmitri Gurov, a man weary of his monotonous life, encounters Anna Sergeyevna and her small dog by the seaside, his world shifts unexpectedly. Both dissatisfied with their lives yet hesitant to embrace change, they find themselves drawn together by a connection as powerful as it is uncertain. Chekhov masterfully explores the complexity of human emotions, capturing a tale where love emerges quietly, in stolen glances and whispered confessions. 
  Narrated with depth and sensitivity by Jamie Rodriguez, this audiobook breathes life into Chekhov’s nuanced prose. Rodriguez’s narration captures the introspective nature of both Gurov and Anna as they grapple with societal expectations, moral dilemmas, and a longing for something more profound than the lives they lead. Through his voice, listeners will be transported to the quiet streets and gentle waves of Yalta, feeling the weight of every hesitation and the spark of every shared moment. 
  The Lady With The Dog is a timeless story that examines the human condition with honesty and grace. Chekhov’s narrative invites listeners to ponder the nature of happiness and the choices that shape our lives. This audiobook offers a rich, immersive experience that will resonate with anyone who has ever yearned for connection amidst the routines of daily life.

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  Riders of the Purple Sage

  Zane Grey

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  The first great Western, a story of courage and adventure in Utah canyon countryWhen Jane Withersteen’s father dies, he leaves her in sole possession of the family’s cattle ranch, situated on one of the most valuable pieces of land in Utah. The river that runs through the property gives Jane control of the local water supply—and the great power that comes with it. Coveting the property, a local Mormon leader named Tull tries to force Jane into a polygamous marriage—a fate that she resists. As Jane’s defiance grows stronger, so does the ire of the townsfolk, and the marriage seems all but inevitable until the infamous gunslinger Lassiter rides into town, bringing a quick trigger and frontier-hardened bravery that just may be Jane’s last great hope.Renowned for its rich depiction of the West, Riders of the Purple Sage is an unforgettable adventure story of love, honor, and courage, and perhaps the most popular Western of all time.This ebook has been professionally proofread to ensure accuracy and readability on all devices.

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  A Country Doctor - The plight of...

  Franz Kafka

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  Franz Kafka was born on 3rd July 1883 in Prague, then in Bohemia, the eldest of 6, into a middle-class Jewish family. 
   
  Life for the young Kafka and his passion for literature was often made an ordeal by his over-bearing and domineering entrepreneur of a father.   
   
  In 1889 Kafka was sent to the Deutsche Knabenschule, an elementary school in Prague. His father would only allow him to be educated in German-speaking schools and even went so far as to limit visits to the synagogue to four a year. 
   
  In 1901 he graduated from the classics-oriented Altstädter Gymnasium. Kafka did well there and across a large range of subjects.  He now enrolled at the Charles Ferdinand University, to study chemistry, but quickly switched to law for which he obtained his degree in June 1906 and then performed the mandatory year of unpaid service as clerk at the civil and criminal courts. 
   
  A job at an Italian insurance company left him little time to write and after a year he took another job with the Worker's Accident Insurance Institute for the Kingdom of Bohemia where he stayed until ill health led to his resignation in 1922. 
   
  Although he saw work as a means to pay the bills and to allow him time to write, he received several promotions and was noted as a good employee. 
   
  By 1917 Kafka was suffering from tuberculosis, which required frequent periods of convalescence. Interspersed with this, were several intense affairs before he settled in Berlin with Dora Diamant, a 25-year-old kindergarten teacher who herself having left the ghetto now influenced Kafka's interest in the book of Jewish law, the Talmud. 
   
  Kafka’s on-going health was littered with problems. Apart from TB there were several other ailments, including migraines, insomnia, boils, depression, all usually brought on by excessive stresses and strains. He attempted to counteract all of this by naturopathic treatments, a vegetarian diet and consuming large quantities of unpasteurized milk. 
   
  His tuberculosis still worsened. He returned to Prague, where he died on 3rd June 1924. He was 40. 
   
  His literary works are few in number but towering in influence.  His masterpieces include ‘The Trial’, ‘The Metamorphosis’ as well as a number of short stories which reveal facets of humankind that truthfully could only be born from Kafka’s brain and pen.

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  Life's Little Ironies

  Thomas Hardy

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  Delve into the bittersweet intricacies of human existence with "Life's Little Ironies" by Thomas Hardy, a poignant collection of short stories that reveal the unexpected twists and turns of fate. Set against the backdrop of rural England, these tales explore themes of love, betrayal, ambition, and societal pressures. Through vivid characters and ironic circumstances, Hardy masterfully exposes the tragic and often ironic quirks of life, rendering this anthology a timeless exploration of human nature and its complexities.

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