Editorial: Jovian Press
In the novel, Siddhartha, a young man, leaves his family for a contemplative life, then, restless, discards it for one of the flesh. He conceives a son, but bored and sickened by lust and greed, moves on again. Near despair, Siddhartha comes to a river where he hears a unique sound. This sound signals the true beginning of his life - the beginning of suffering, rejection, peace, and, finally, wisdom.
After many days at sea, Edward Prendick is picked up by a schooner transporting exotic animals to an undisclosed location. On this secret island he is forced to disembark, catching faint glimpses of creatures born from nightmares.Ver libro
Wilkie Collins describes a traveller who has a magic mirror in his possession which enables him to recall scenes from his travels. In a series of amusing sketches he relives various travels in the Tyrol and the Alps before taking a decision about his next holiday destination.Ver libro
Mary Shelley began writing Frankenstein when she was only eighteen. At once a Gothic thriller, a passionate romance, and a cautionary tale about the dangers of science, Frankenstein tells the story of committed science student Victor Frankenstein and his creation. Obsessed with discovering the cause of generation and life and bestowing animation upon lifeless matter, Frankenstein assembles a human being from stolen body parts but; upon bringing it to life, he recoils in horror at the creature's hideousness. Tormented by isolation and loneliness, the once-innocent creature turns to evil and unleashes a campaign of murderous revenge against his creator, Frankenstein. Frankenstein, an instant bestseller and an important ancestor of both the horror and science fiction genres, not only tells a terrifying story, but also raises profound, disturbing questions about the very nature of life and the place of humankind within the cosmos: What does it mean to be human? What responsibilities do we have to each other? How far can we go in tampering with Nature? Questions which, in the twenty-first century, are more relevant than ever.Ver libro
The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby is closely modelled on the 18h-century novels that Charles Dickens loved as a child, such as Robinson Crusoe, in which the fortunes of a hero shape the plot. The likeable young Nicholas, left penniless on the death of his father, sets off in search of better prospects. His meandering route to happiness includes work as a teacher at Dotheboys Hall, where the brutal Wackford Squeers ill-treats his impoverished pupils, and a spell as an actor with the absurdly melodramatic Crummles troupe. Nicholas's many adventures give Dickens the freedom to follow the eccentricities of a vivid gallery of characters, exploring themes of class, love, and self-awareness with exuberant comedy and biting satireVer libro
The Machine Stops is a groundbreaking sci-fi short story by E.M. Forster. The story is set in a world where humanity lives underground and relies on a giant machine to provide its needs. The book is particularly notable for predicting new technologies such as instant messaging and the Internet. After initial publication in The Oxford and Cambridge Review in November 1909 the story was republished in Forster's The Eternal Moment and Other Stories in 1928. After being voted one of the best novellas up to 1965, it was included that same year in the populist anthology Modern Short Stories. In 1973 it was also included in The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Volume Two.Ver libro
This first novel in Henry Rider Haggard's Zulu trilogy depicts the tumultuous political era of the 1830s involving the trek-Boers, the French colonists, and the Zulu tribe in the Cape colony of South Africa. Hate and suspicion run high between the home government and the Dutch subjects. Allan Quatermain accompanies the ill-fated Pieter Retief and the Boer Commission on an embassy to the Zulu despot Dingaan. Along the way, villains attempt to kill Allan and rob him of his wife, the Dutch-born Marie Marais. The unfortunate mission ends in a blood-curdling massacre. Written at a time when slavery was widespread, Marie portrays characters and views reflective of its era.Ver libro
