Publisher: Charles River Editors
H.G. Wells was a legendary British author who wrote in many genres. Wells’ most famous works were science fiction novels such as The War of the Worlds, The Time Machine, and The Invisible Man. This edition of Wells’ The Wheels of Chance includes a table of contents.
The Oval Portrait is a short horror story written by Edgar Allan Poe and first published in 1842. Our protagonist takes refuge in an abandoned castle and discovers a room with a series of paintings accompanied by a small book describing them. His attention is attracted by an oval portrait depicting a young woman of rare beauty.Show book
This collection includes: "The Cat-hood of Maurice", "The Mixed Mine", "Accidental Magic", "The Princess and the Hedge-Pig", "Septimus Septimusson", "The White Cat", "Belinda and Bellamant", "Justnowland", "The Related Muff", "The Aunt and Anabel, "Kenneth and the Carp", "The Magician's Heart".Show book
The Dream of the Red Chamber (also known as The Story of the Stone) is one of the Four Great Classical Novels of China, and considered the greatest of them all. Almost 40 main characters and some 500 minor characters tell the fortunes of the Chia family; the book details mainly the life of Chia Pao-yü, the heir apparent, who is described as very intelligent, but also as carefree and self-indulging. The already wealthy Chia family rises to new heights when Pao-yü's elder sister becomes an imperial consort. On her first visit home, a lush garden is built, where much of the rest of the story takes place. The intrigues surrounding Pao-yü and his cousins, especially Lin Tai-yü who he loves, and Hsüeh Pao-ch'ai who he is finally tricked into marrying, make up a large part of the story. The decline of the Chia family begins with the death of the imperial consort, and when they fall into disfavour with the emperor, their mansions and the garden are eventually destroyed. The whole book has 120 chapters, only 80 of which were written by Cao Xueqin before his death in 1764. Cheng Weiyuan and Gao E claimed to have access to Cao's papers, and published what is now known as the Cheng-Gao version in 1791. Henry Bencraft Joly translated only part of the book written by Cao. Book I contains the first 24 chapters, Book II ends abruptly with chapter 56; a Book III was never published.Show book
Basil Murray (1902 - 1937) was a prominent British journalist and prominent anti fascist during the Spanish civil war. Alongside his short stories, he was well known for his radio broadcasts from Valencia. He died in Spain, officially of pneumonia. According to a memoir by journalist Claud Cockburn, however, Murray was bitten to death by his pet ape while lying in a drunken stupor in a Valencia hotel.'Three Pennyworth of Luck' is the story of a superstitious man who puts three coins in a penny in the slot fortune telling machine and becomes increasingly alarmed at the pronouncements of the mechanical soothsayer. But subsequent events start to shed terrifying light on the true meaning of the warnings....Show book
Charles Dickens was a writer and social critic who created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded as the greatest novelist of the Victorian era. His works enjoyed unprecedented popularity during his lifetime, and by the twentieth century critics and scholars had recognised him as a literary genius. His novels and short stories enjoy lasting popularity.THE CALAIS NIGHT MAIL: It is an unsettled question with me whether I shall leave Calaissomething handsome in my will, or whether I shall leave it my malediction.Show book
"Candide, or Optimism" is a satirical novella written by the French philosopher Voltaire, first published in 1759. It follows the adventures of the young Candide, who is raised in a utopian world and taught that “all is for the best.” The narrative takes him through a series of misfortunes, exposing him to the harsh realities of the world, ultimately leading him to question his optimistic beliefs. Voltaire uses Candide’s journey to satirize religion, governments, the military, and the philosophy of optimism, particularly as espoused by Leibniz. "Candide" is considered one of the greatest achievements of Western literatureShow book
