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  The Odyssey

  Homer

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  Trouble is brewing at the home of the hero Odysseus, who has spent years fighting in the Trojan Wars and is now captive of the beautiful nymph Calypso. Hordes of suitors to his wife have invaded the family house, and Odysseus' son Telemachus sets out to find his father. Freed from the clutches of Calypso after the intervention of Zeus, Odysseus begins his epic return journey. 
   
  The timeless themes of the Odyssey - survival, courage, loyalty and hospitality - have resonated with readers through the ages, making it the most enduring classic in western civilization. This edition features a striking graphic cover design, bringing the classic work to new readers.

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  Oedipus

  Sophocles

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  'Vengeance will be taken on the killer, then the land will be clean. The contamination will be washed away. The rains will come and the people will be healed.'
  According to the Oracle, if the murderer of old King Laius is found and punished then all will be well. The people turn to their new ruler, Oedipus, the man who solved the riddle of the Sphinx, to hunt down the perpetrator and bring salvation.
  He vows to succeed whatever the cost – and so begins an unstoppable pursuit of the truth through a harrowing labyrinth of fear and love.
  Intimate and revelatory, Ella Hickson's version of Sophocles' transcendent tragedy premiered at The Old Vic, London, in 2025, produced by The Old Vic in association with Hofesh Shechter Company. It was co-directed by Matthew Warchus and Hofesh Shechter, and starred Rami Malek and Indira Varma.

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  Cymbeline

  Pierre Arthur Laure, Tom...

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  This strange, dark romance includes two songs composed by Shakespeare that are amongst the most beautiful in the English language. 
  Imogen, the daughter of King Cymbeline, is persecuted by her wicked stepmother, the Queen, and by Cloten, the Queen’s doltish son. Disguised as a boy, she sets out to find her husband, the banished Posthumus. On her journey, she unwittingly meets her two brothers, stolen from the court as infants. Posthumus, meanwhile, has been convinced by the villainous Iachimo that Imogen is unchaste and agrees to a test of her faithfulness. 
  Sophie Thompson is Imogen, and Ben Porter is Posthumus. Cymbeline is played by Jack Shepherd while Suzanne Bertish is the Queen. Stephen Mangan plays Cloten, and Ron Cook plays Iachimo. 
  ACT I Scene 1. Imogen, daughter of King Cymbeline of Britain, has angered father by marrying Posthumus. Cymbeline himself reared the orphaned Posthumus, his own two sons having been abducted in infancy. The wicked queen (whose son Cloten was Cymbeline’s preferred match for Imogen) pretends kindness to the young couple. Before Posthumus leaves for exile in Rome, Imogen gives him a ring, receiving in return a bracelet.Scene 2. Cloten’s attendants ridicule him.Scene 3. Pisanio, Posthumus’ servant, tells Imogen of his master’s departure.Scene 4. Posthumus meets Iachimo in Rome. When Posthumus extols Imogen’s virtue, Iachimo wagers him ten thousand ducats to his diamond ring that he can persuade her to commit adultery. Posthumus accepts the wager. Scene 5. The doctor, Cornelius, is suspicious when the queen gathers poisonous plants. He reveals privately that what she believes to be a fatal poison is in fact a sleeping draught. The queen tries unsuccessfully to turn Pisanio against Posthumus and gives him the poison, claiming that it is a life-saving remedy. Pisanio spurns the queen, disbelieving her.Scene 6. Iachimo comes to see Imogen, bringing a letter of introduction from Posthumus. Realizing that he can only win the wager by resorting to subterfuge, he claims that Posthumus has been unfaithful, suggesting that she avenge herself by becoming his lover. When she reacts with revulsion, he assures her that he was merely testing her devotion. She then agrees to his request to leave a trunk of valuables in her chamber overnight for safekeeping. 
  ACT IIScene 1. Cloten wants to meet Iachimo. Scene 2. While Imogen sleeps, Iachimo creeps from the trunk. He carefully notes details of her chamber and person and then eases Posthumus’s bracelet from her arm. Scene 3. When Cloten tries to woo Imogen she dismisses him impatiently. She asks Pisanio to find her missing bracelet.Scene 4. Iachimo uses his observations of Imogen, and her bracelet, to convince Posthumus that he has slept with her. Posthumus vows revenge. 
  ACT IIIScene 1. Cymbeline refuses to pay a tribute to Caesar, and Rome declares war on Britain. We learn that Cymbeline had fond associations with Rome and Caesar in his youth. Scene 2. Posthumus writes to Pisanio ordering to kill Imogen. Pisanio refuses to believe her unfaithful. In order to help Pisanio in his task, Posthumus tells Imogen to meet him at Milford Haven. Scene 3. Belarius, unjustly banished by Cymbeline, abducted his sons Guiderius and Arviragus, and lives with them in a remote Welsh cave. The young men, unaware of their provenance, are frustrated by their isolated life.Scene 4. As Imogen and Pisanio approach Milford he shows her Posthumus’ letter. She begs him “Do his bidding strike!” Pisanio convinces her that she should report her death to Posthumus; she meanwhile must dress as a man and seek the protection of Lucius, a noble Roman. Before they part, Pisanio gives Imogen the Queen’s potion, as a remedy for sickness.Scene 5. Imogen is missing from the court. The Queen privately hopes that she is either dead or exiled and that “She being down,/I have the placing of the British crown.” Believing Imogen well on her way to Rome, Pisanio tells Cloten tha

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  Psychology

  Katherine Mansfield

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  "Psychology" is a 1920 short story by Katherine Mansfield. It was first published in Bliss and Other Stories.
  A man visits a woman for tea. He tells her this is the only place he pays attention to in terms of its furniture and so on. He also loves her 'little boy'. They then talk about the state of the novel as a literary genre - coming to the conclusion that the psycho-novel is shoddy. She feels anguished about possibly having failed in not following suit with that genre however, and he leaves...

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  Man Size in Marble - From their...

  Edith Nesbit

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  Edith Nesbit was born on the 15th August 1858 in Kennington, then part of Surrey.   
  Due to the health issues and tuberculosis of her sister Mary, Nesbit’s early life was one of constant changes of house both in England and on the continent. 
  At age 17, Nesbit met Hubert Bland and they married three years later―whilst she was 7 months pregnant.  Bland also kept his affair with another woman going throughout their marriage and the two children of that relationship were raised by Nesbit as well as her own three with Bland. 
  Together they were founder members of the Fabian Society in 1884 naming their son Fabian in its honour.  They also edited the Society's journal; ‘Today’.  Nesbit was an active lecturer and prolific writer on socialism during those years but gradually her work for them dwindled as her career as a children’s writer grew.  Her most famous success was ‘The Railway Children’ but she was also very prolific and greatly accomplished in poetry, short stories―especially her macabre ghost and supernatural stories―and novels for adults.  
  In February 1917, some three years after the death of Bland she married Thomas ‘the Skipper’ Tucker in Woolwich, where he was a ship's engineer on the Woolwich Ferry. 
  Edith Nesbit died from lung cancer on the 4th May 1924 at her house ‘The Long Boat’ at Jesson, St Mary's Bay, New Romney in Kent.  She was 65.

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  Mansfield Park

  Jane Austen

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  "In a house full of noise and vanity, the quietest voice speaks the loudest truth."
  
  Fanny Price is the "poor relation" at Mansfield Park, constantly reminded of her lower status by her aunts and cousins. Isolated and overlooked, she finds a sole ally in her kind cousin, Edmund. However, the social order of the estate is thrown into chaos by the arrival of the sophisticated and worldly Crawford siblings. As flirtations, scandals, and amateur theatricals threaten to dismantle the family's reputation, Fanny must stay true to her own moral compass. Mansfield Park is a masterful study of character, exploring the tension between traditional values and the seductive allure of modern wit.
  
  A Psychological Masterpiece: Unlike Austen's more spirited heroines, Fanny Price is a study in fortitude and silence. Her journey is one of internal growth, proving that integrity and principles are more valuable than charm or wealth.
  
  The Critique of Regency Society: Austen uses the Bertram family to examine the consequences of poor parenting and the fragility of social standing. The novel touches on themes of education, duty, and even the source of the family's wealth, making it one of her most socially conscious works.
  
  Experience the depth of Austen's genius. Purchase "Mansfield Park" today.

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