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  Christmas Formula - From their...

  Stella Benson

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  Stella Benson was born on the 6th January 1892 in Easthope, Shropshire to parents who were landed gentry. 
  Her early years involved frequent household moves which was difficult for the child as she suffered from ill-health.  Some of her early education was spent at schools in Germany and Switzerland and by 10 she had developed a lifelong habit of keeping a diary. 
  In the following years her parents separated, and she rarely saw her father. When she did, he encouraged to pause her writing until she had further experience and could better make sense of the world.  When he died, she learned he had been an alcoholic. 
  A winter spent in the West Indies provided material for her first novel ‘I Pose’ published the following year in 1915. 
  During the War years she became involved in the women's suffrage movement and dedicated time outside of writing to support the troops and help the poor. 
  In 1918 she decided to travel spending much time in California, where she also tutored at the University of California, and continued to write.  In China she met her future husband and after marrying in London, journeyed with him to his various Custom postings through Nanning, Beihai, and Hong Kong and the Far East. 
  The works continued to flow novels, short stories, travel essays all helped to build a deserved and burgeoning reputation. 
  Although her works are now in the forgotten and neglected department her writing style, characters, and narratives more than capably demonstrate her obvious talents.   
  Stella Benson died of pneumonia on the 7th December 1933, at Hạ Long in the Vietnamese province of Tonkin.  She was 40.

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  Little Men

  Louisa May Alcott

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  "Little Men" is a classic novel that continues the story of the March family from "Little Women." The focus shifts to Jo March, who is now married to Professor Bhaer and runs a school for boys called Plumfield. The novel explores the lives, adventures, and moral lessons of the boys at Plumfield, providing a heartwarming and insightful look into childhood and adolescence.

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  The Master-Knot of Human Fate

  Ellis Meredith

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  A kind of post apocalyptical take by Ellis Meredith on the biblical tale of Adam and Eve, if you will. Only two people have survived a cataclysmic disaster on earth, a man called Adam and a woman called Robin. Will these two decide to try to repopulate the earth? Is it even worth it, considering what happened, and how human history has "evolved"? A great blend of fantasy elements and philosophical contemplations makes this work stand out.

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  Frankenstein - or The Modern...

  Mary Shelley

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  Frankenstein tells the story of Victor Frankenstein, a young scientist who creates a sapient creature in an unorthodox scientific experiment.

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  The Wind in the Willows

  Kenneth Grahame

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  This shortened version of Kenneth Grahame’s original 1908 book uses only his original words, just fewer of them. Originally created for a one-man performance, this version is ideal for enjoying in just a few sittings 
  A classic tale for kids and big kids alike, The Wind in the Willows is a whirlwind ride through the seasons as Ratty, Mole and Badger follow the impulsive Toad on his hapless misadventures.

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  Volodya - From their pens to...

  Anton Chekhov

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  Anton Pavlovich Chekhov was born on 29th January 1860 in Taganrog, on the south coast of Russia.  
  His family life was difficult; his father was strict and over-bearing but his mother was a passionate story-teller, a subject Chekhov warmed to. As he later said; ‘our talents we got from our father, but our soul from our mother’.  
  At school Chekhov was distinctly average. At 16 his father mis-managed his finances and was declared bankrupt. His family fled to Moscow. Chekhov remained and eked out a living by various means, including writing and selling short sketches to newspapers, to finish his schooling. That completed and with a scholarship to Moscow University obtained he rejoined his family. 
  He was able to help support them by selling satirical sketches and vignettes of Russian lifestyles and gradually obtained further commissions. In 1884, he qualified as a physician and, although it earned him little, he often treated the poor for free, he was fond of saying ‘Medicine is my lawful wife, and literature is my mistress.’ 
  His own health was now an issue as he began to cough up blood, a symptom of tuberculosis.  Despite this his writing success enabled him to move the family into more comfortable accommodation.  
  Chekhov wrote over 500 short stories which included many, many classics including ‘The Kiss’ and ‘The Lady with a Dog’.  His collection ‘At Dusk’ won him the coveted Pushkin Prize when was only 26.  
  He was also a major playwright beginning with the huge success of ‘Ivanov’ in 1887.   
  In 1892 Chekhov bought a country estate north of Moscow. Here his medical skills and money helped the peasants tackle outbreaks of cholera and bouts of famine. He also built three schools, a fire station and a clinic.  It left him with less time for writing but the interactions with real people gained him detailed knowledge about the peasantry and their living conditions for his stories.  
  His most famous work, ‘The Seagull’ was received disastrously at its premiere in St Petersburg. It was later restaged in Moscow to highlight its psychological aspects and was a huge success. It led to ‘Uncle Vanya’, ‘The Three Sisters’ and ‘The Cherry Orchard’.  
  Chekhov suffered a major lung hemorrhage in 1897 while visiting Moscow. A formal diagnosis confirmed tuberculosis and the doctors ordered changes to his lifestyle.  
  Despite a dread of weddings the elusive literary bachelor quietly married the actress Olga Knipper, whom he had met at rehearsals for ‘The Seagull’, on 25th May 1901. 
  By May 1904 with his tuberculosis worsening and death imminent he set off for the German town of Badenweiler writing cheerful, witty letters to his family and assuring them his health was improving.  
  On 15th July 1904 Anton Chekhov died at Badenweiler.  He was 44.

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