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  Beowulf

  Unknown Unknown

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  Beowulf is an Old English epic poem in the tradition of Germanic heroic legend consisting of 3,182 alliterative lines. It is one of the most important and most often translated works of Old English literature. The date of composition is a matter of contention among scholars; the only certain dating is for the manuscript, which was produced between 975 and 1025. Scholars call the anonymous author the "Beowulf poet". The story is set in pagan Scandinavia in the 6th century. Beowulf, a hero of the Geats, comes to the aid of Hrothgar, the king of the Danes, whose mead hall in Heorot has been under attack by the monster Grendel. After Beowulf slays him, Grendel's mother attacks the hall and is then defeated. Victorious, Beowulf goes home to Geatland and becomes king of the Geats. Fifty years later, Beowulf defeats a dragon but is mortally wounded in the battle. After his death, his attendants cremate his body and erect a tower on a headland in his memory. Scholars have debated whether Beowulf was transmitted orally, affecting its interpretation: if it was composed early, in pagan times, then the paganism is central and the Christian elements were added later, whereas if it was composed later, in writing, by a Christian. Beowulf is written mostly in the West Saxon dialect of Old English, but many other dialectal forms are present, suggesting that the poem may have had a long and complex transmission throughout the dialect areas of England.No definite sources or analogs of the poem can be proven, but many suggestions have been made, including the Icelandic Grettis saga, the Norse story of Hrolf Kraki and his bear-shapeshifting servant Bodvar Bjarki, the international folktale the Bear's Son Tale, and the Irish folktale of the Hand and the Child. Persistent attempts have been made to link Beowulf to tales from Homer's Odyssey or Virgil's Aeneid. More definite are Biblical parallels, with clear allusions to the books of Genesis, Exodus, and Daniel.

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  The Child's Story

  Charles Dickens

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  Everyone begins life's journey as a child. From one of the world's most beloved writers comes this memorable parable of life's transitions. Originally published by Charles Dickens in the mid-1800s, The Child's Story is a timeless account of the journey we all take, from carefree childhood and spontaneous youth, through adulthood and marriage, and into our golden years. Now, almost 150 years after its original publication, acclaimed artist Harvey Chan adds his stirring images to Dickens's classic words, creating a unique and powerful reading experience that's ideal for children of all ages.

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  Top 10 Short Stories The - The...

  H G Wells

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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. 
   
  The final decade of the Century.  Britain sits astride the world, her majesty and pomp everywhere. Her industrial might and military muscle the enforcers of her Imperial will.  Her authors too have talents that are the envy of all.  Mass market publishing are delivering these sparkling pieces to hungry senses everywhere.  Genius is written in their names. 
   
  1 - The Top 10 - The British - The 1890's - An Introduction 
  2 - The Fiddler of the Reels by Thomas Hardy 
  3 - The Magic Shop by H G Wells 
  4 - The Mark of the Beast by Rudyard Kipling 
  5 - Lost Hearts by M R James 
  6 - From the Dead by Edith Nesbit 
  7 - The Story of B 24 by Arthur Conan Doyle 
  8 - The Inconsiderate Waiter by J M Barrie 
  9 - N by Arthur Machen 
  10 - Passed by Charlotte Mew 
  11 - A Letter Home by Arnold Bennett

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  A Haunted House - From their...

  Virginia Woolf

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  Adeline Virginia Woolf was born on the 25th January 1882 in South Kensington in London. 
  Although lauded as a founder of modernist writing with such classics as ‘Orlando’, ‘Mrs Dalloway’ and ‘To the Lighthouse’ and, of course, many classic short stories, her background is filled with elements of tragedy that she somehow overcame to become such a revered writer.   Her mother died when she was 13, her half-sister Stella two years later and with it her first of several nervous breakdowns.  Appallingly it was later found that three of her half-brothers had sexually abused her so darkness must have seemed ever present.   
  She began writing professionally at age 20 but her father’s death two years later brought a complete mental collapse and she was briefly institutionalised.  Somehow she found within herself a literary career and with it great innovations in writing; she was a pioneer of “stream of consciousness”.    
  Her tight circle of friends were the founders of the Bloomsbury Group, a movement whose legacy still influences across the arts and society in many way to this day.   
  Whilst the dark periods continued to interrupt her emotional state her rate of work never ceased.  Until, on 28th March 1941, Woolf put on her overcoat, filled up its pockets with stones, and walked into the River Ouse, in Lewes, East Sussex and drowned herself.  Her body was not recovered until the 18th April.  She was 59. 
  She left behind a note which read in part “Dearest, I feel certain that I am going mad again.  I feel we can't go through another of those terrible times.  And I shan't recover this time.  I begin to hear voices, and I can't concentrate.  So I am doing what seems the best thing to do”.

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  The Adventure Of The Speckled band

  Arthur Conan Doyle

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  The Adventure Of The Speckled band is the eighth short story and tenth (after A Study in Scarlet and The Sign Of Four) Sherlock Holmes story by British author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. It is the eighth story in the collection Adventures Of Sherlock Holmes, it was published in Strand Magazine in February of 1892. The story tells of Helen Stoner, a soon to be married young woman who suspects her father may be trying to kill her in order to retain control of her inheritance. Convinced of her father's intentions, Helen turns to Holmes for help.Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson rise unusually early one morning to meet a young woman named Helen Stoner who fears that her life is being threatened by her stepfather, Dr. Grimesby Roylott. Roylott is a doctor who practiced in Calcutta, India and was married to Helen's late mother when she was a widow living there. He is also the impoverished last survivor of what was once a wealthy but violent, ill-tempered and amoral Anglo-Saxon aristocratic family of Surrey, and has already served a jail sentence for killing his Indian butler in a rage.Helen's twin sister had died almost two years earlier, shortly before she was to be married. Helen had heard her sister's dying words, "The speckled band!" but was unable to decode their meaning. Helen herself, troubled by the perplexing death of her sister, is now engaged, and she has begun to hear strange noises and observe strange activities around Stoke Moran, the impoverished and heavily mortgaged estate where she and her stepfather live.Famous works of the author Arthur Conan Doyle's: "A Study in Scarlet", "Silver Blaze", "The Hound of the Baskervilles", "The Yellow Face", "A Scandal in Bohemia", "The Red-Headed League", A Case of Identity", "The Boscombe Valley Mystery", "The Five Orange Pips", "The Man with the Twisted Lip", "The Blue Carbuncle", "The Speckled Band", "The Engineer's Thumb", "The Noble Bachelor", "The Beryl Coronet", "The Copper Beeches" and many more.

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  Karl Ludwig Sand

  Alexandre Dumas

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  "Karl Ludwig Sand" by Alexandre Dumas is a gripping tale based on the true story of a young idealist entangled in political conspiracy. Karl, a fervent nationalist and student, becomes consumed by his desire to rid Germany of perceived tyranny. His obsession leads him to assassinate August von Kotzebue, a conservative writer, believing it will spark revolutionary change. Dumas delves into Karl’s ideological fervor, moral dilemmas, and the consequences of his actions, exploring themes of justice, fanaticism, and societal upheaval. Set against the backdrop of early 19th-century Europe, the novel captures the tension between youthful idealism and harsh reality. A thought-provoking blend of history and drama, it reflects on the cost of extremism and the complexities of human conviction.

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