Altri libri che potrebbero interessarti

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  Candide

  Voltaire

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  Candide is a French satire first published in 1759 by Voltaire, a philosopher of the Age of Enlightenment. It begins with a young man, Candide, who is living a sheltered life in an Edenic paradise and being indoctrinated with Leibnizian optimism by his mentor, Professor Pangloss. The work describes the abrupt cessation of this lifestyle, followed by Candide's slow and painful disillusionment as he witnesses and experiences great hardships in the world. Voltaire concludes Candide with, if not rejecting Leibnizian optimism outright, advocating a deeply practical precept, "we must cultivate our garden", in lieu of the Leibnizian mantra of Pangloss, "all is for the best" in the "best of all possible worlds". 
  Candide is characterized by its tone as well as by its erratic, fantastical, and fast-moving plot. A picaresque novel with a story similar to that of a more serious coming-of-age narrative (Bildungsroman), it parodies many adventure and romance clichés, the struggles of which are caricatured in a tone that is bitter and matter-of-fact. Still, the events discussed are often based on historical happenings, such as the Seven Years' War and the 1755 Lisbon earthquake. As philosophers of Voltaire's day contended with the problem of evil, so does Candide in this short theological novel, albeit more directly and humorously. Voltaire ridicules religion, theologians, governments, armies, philosophies, and philosophers. Through Candide, he assaults Leibniz and his optimism. 
  Candide has enjoyed both great success and great scandal. Immediately after its secretive publication, the book was widely banned to the public because it contained religious blasphemy, political sedition, and intellectual hostility hidden under a thin veil of naïveté. Today, Candide is recognized as Voltaire's magnum opus and is often listed as part of the Western canon. It is among the most frequently taught works of French literature.

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  When the Green Woods Laugh

  H.E. Bates

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  A year has passed and in this third novel of the Pop Larkin series, Pop Larkin is preparing to build the bungalow he promised Charley and Mariette upon their engagement. He buys a country home slated for demolition, intending to convert it for the two, but it is not long before a London couple persuade him to sell it. Pop, ever the trickster, sells it for an extortionate price as the two social climbers know little about country life. Party-throwing and cocktail-mixing abound until a rocky boat and a misplaced pair of hands have Pop before the local magistrate…

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  The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll...

  Robert Louis Stevenson

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  Robert Louis Stevenson's classic tale of science and madness brought to life. 
  Mr Utterson suspects something is wrong with his friend, Henry Jekyll. Ever since Dr. Jekyll made out a will giving everything to an utter unknown- one Mr. Edward Hyde- Mr. Utterson has had suspicions. Now, stories are starting to circulate about Edward Hyde, and Mr. Utterson sets out to discover the truth behind this strange character who roams foggy London streets.

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  Personal Recollections of Joan...

  Mark Twain

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  Mark Twain's work on Joan of Arc is titled in full "Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc, by the Sieur Louis de Conte." De Conte is identified as Joan's page and secretary. For those who've always wanted to "get behind" the Joan of Arc story and to better understand just what happened, Twain's narrative makes the story personal and very accessible. The work is fictionally presented as a translation from the manuscript by Jean Francois Alden, or, in the words of the published book, "Freely Translated out of the Ancient French into Modern English from the Original Unpublished Manuscript in the National Archives of France.

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  Birthday Girl

  Maria Krestovskaya

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  An everyday tragedy brought into stark relief and elevated to high drama by the skilled pen of Maria Krestovskaya, as she focuses her readers' attention on someone, whose life would have otherwise gone unnoticed.

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  Strychinne for Dogs - Gask was...

  Arthur Gask

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  Arthur Cecil Gask was born on 10th July 1869 in Marylebone, London. 
   
  He began his career as an author late in life.  It was only in 1920 when he and his second wife and family emigrated to Adelaide, South Australia to set up a dental practice that writing took its hold. 
   
  Gask paid for the publication of his first work, ‘The Secret of the Sandhills’, which was an immediate success, both commercially and critically.  
   
  Over the next 3 decades Gask wrote over thirty books, usually featuring his detective invention Gilbert Larose, as well as short stories.  Many of his works were translated, serialised and even broadcast on the radio.  HG Wells and Bertrand Russell were avid fans. 
   
  In the last years of his life he was still writing, usually two novels a year. 
   
  Arthur Gask died on 25th June 1951, in Adelaide, Australia.  He was 81 
   
  In this story we meet his most popular character, Detective Gilbert Larose, who, whilst on holiday, is drawn into a case of dogs being poisoned.  But why would anyone do that?

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