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  Tono-Bungay - Book the Third:...

  H. G. Wells

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  Herbert George "H. G." Wells (1866 - 1946) was an English writer.
  He was prolific in many genres, including the novel, history, politics, social commentary, and textbooks and rules for war games. Wells is now best remembered for his science fiction novels and is called a "father of science fiction"
  BOOK THE THIRD: THE GREAT DAYS OF TONO-BUNGAY: But now that I resume the main line of my story it may be well to describe the personal appearance of my uncle as I remember him during those magnificent years that followed his passage from trade to finance. The little man plumped up very considerably during the creation of the Tono-Bungay property, but with the increasing excitements that followed that first flotation came dyspepsia and a certain flabbiness and falling away.

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  The Schoolboy's Story

  Charles Dickens

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  The Schoolboy's Story is a short stories by Charles Dickens. Charles John Huffam Dickens (7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's most memorable fictional characters and is generally regarded as the greatest novelist of the Victorian period. During his life, his works enjoyed unprecedented fame, and by the twentieth century his literary genius was broadly acknowledged by critics and scholars. His novels and short stories continue to be widely popular. Born in Portsmouth, England, Dickens was forced to leave school to work in a factory when his father was thrown into debtors' prison.
  Being rather young at present--I am getting on in years, but still I am rather young--I have no particular adventures of my own to fall back upon. It wouldn't much interest anybody here, I suppose, to know what a screw the Reverend is, or what a griffin SHE is, or how they do stick it into parents--particularly hair-cutting, and medical attendance. One of our fellows was charged in his half's account twelve and sixpence for two pills--tolerably profitable at six and threepence a-piece, I should think--and he never took them either, but put them up the sleeve of his jacket.

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  American Short Story The -...

  Mark Twain, Henry James, Kate...

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  The American literary tradition has, in a far shorter span of time than others throughout history, achieved a glowing and glittering reputation. 
   
  From its transatlantic roots it has absorbed the sons and daughters of other cultures, other lands and made them part of her own. 
   
  America prides itself on liberty, on justice for all and, if you are a wealthy white man, that is essentially true.  Sadly, many other segments of society find it difficult to feel or become part of this endeavour. 
   
  Within this chronological history of the American short story, that prejudice has helped shape the borders of those two endless questions about any anthology.  Why that story? Why that Author? 
   
  We made some hard choices.  We start with Uriah Derrick Dárcy, an unlikely American name and, to all intents, it appears to be a pseudonym, about whom little is known or can be verified. He leads our literary parade.  From here leviathans appear on a regular basis; Hawthorne, Poe, Melville, Twain but also note how many women are here and not just Stowe, Alcott and Chopin.  Women’s status as writers is often neglected or undervalued, predominantly due to their second-class social status throughout much of history but their stories, their angles of approach to writing are both expertly crafted and refreshing.   
   
  Another stain on the social and cultural fabric of American has been that of Race.  Black people were harshly and unfairly treated as a matter of course.  The Civil War may have opened the door but in reality little changed.  The majority of the stories included here written by black authors are disturbing in the wrongs they were accused of, and the burdens they were forced to carry.  This eye-opening literature enables us to once more take stock and applaud and bring some glimmers of recognition to their struggles and their art.  
   
  There are some authors, liberally sprinkled throughout, both male and female who may previously have escaped your attention.  Enjoy them.  Adore them.  Make them part of your everyday reading and listening.  These forgotten voices are fine examples both of their craft, their art, and their take on society as it was then. 
   
  In the period we cover from the late 18th Century, around the time of the American Revolution, up until the catastrophe of World War 2, the printing press was creating a market to share words.  With industrialization and a large swathe of people eager to be distracted from hard working lives, a plethora of magazines and periodicals shot up, all clamoring for works to publish, to share those words, to introduce new ideas and explain how some of us view ourselves and each other.  Some of these authors were only published that way, one story wonders—hitched to the fading star of a disposable periodical.   
   
  And, of course, the elephant in the room was the English.  In its early days US copyright law was non-existent and didn’t recognise anyone else’s.  Publishers were free to take the talents of Dickens or Trollope and freely print it without permission or coin.   Competing against that, gave you a decided disadvantage. 
   
  Within these stories you will also find very occasional examples of historical prejudice.  A few words here and there which in today’s world some may find inappropriate or even offensive.  It is not our intention to make anyone uncomfortable but to show that the world in order to change must reconcile itself to the actual truth rather than put it out of sight.  Context is everything, both to understand and to illuminate the path forward.  The author’s words are set, our reaction to them encourages our change. 
   
  Within this melting pot of styles, genres and wordplay one fact stands out: The American short story Literary tradition has a strong, vibrant and almost inclusive history, if you know where to look.  Which is here

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  The Red and the Black

  Stendhal

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  "The Red and the Black" is a psychological novel that follows the story of Julien Sorel, a young and ambitious protagonist from a provincial town in France. Set against the backdrop of the post-Napoleonic era, the novel explores themes of love, social climbing, and the clash between individual aspirations and societal expectations. Julien, a clever and ambitious young man, navigates the complexities of love and politics as he seeks to rise above his social station.

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  Man and the Cannon The (Unabridged)

  Victor Hugo

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  Victor-Marie Hugo 26 February 1802 - 22 May 1885) was a French poet, novelist, essayist, playwright, and dramatist of the Romantic movement. During a literary career that spanned more than sixty years, he wrote abundantly in an exceptional variety of genres: lyrics, satires, epics, philosophical poems, epigrams, novels, history, critical essays, political speeches, funeral orations, diaries, and letters public and private, as well as dramas in verse and prose.
  THE MAN AND THE CANNON: One of the carronades of the battery, a twenty-four pounder, had broken loose. This is the most dangerous accident that can possibly take place on shipboard. Nothing more terrible can happen to a sloop of war in open sea and under full sail.

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  Top 10 Short Stories The -...

  Virginia Woolf

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  Short stories have always been a sort of instant access into an author’s brain, their soul and heart.  A few pages can lift our lives into locations, people and experiences with a sweep of landscape, narration, feelings and emotions that is difficult to achieve elsewhere. 
   
  In this series we try to offer up tried and trusted ‘Top Tens’ across many different themes and authors. But any anthology will immediately throw up the questions – Why that story? Why that author?  
   
  The theme itself will form the boundaries for our stories which range from well-known classics, newly told, to stories that modern times have overlooked but perfectly exemplify the theme.  Throughout the volume our authors whether of instant recognition or new to you are all leviathans of literature. 
   
  Some you may disagree with but they will get you thinking; about our choices and about those you would have made.  If this volume takes you on a path to discover more of these miniature masterpieces then we have all gained something. 
   
  Stream of consciousness seems matter of fact nowadays.  But Woolf catapulted it into a new Modernist form.  Characters now came with much individuality, flaws and form that literature was forever changed.  Despite her tragic suicide and the sure loss of what was to come these stories still confirm her literary greatness. 
   
  1 - The Top 10 - Virginia Woolf - An Introduction 
  2 - Solid Objects by Virginia Woolf 
  3 - An Unwritten Novel by Virginia Woolf 
  4 - Mrs Dalloway in Bond Street 
  5 - A Society by Virginia Woolf 
  6 - Kew Gardens by Virginia Woolf 
  7 - The String Quartet by Virginia Woolf 
  8 - Monday or Tuesday by Virginia Woolf 
  9 - A Haunted House by Virginia Woolf 
  10 - The Mark on the Wall by Virginia Woolf 
  11 - The Legacy by Virginia Woolf

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