Publisher: Bu Classics Books
Step into the humid, evocative atmosphere of Louisiana where the complexities of the human heart are laid bare. These stories capture the subtle defiance and quiet passions of women navigating the rigid social structures of the South. Every encounter is steeped in rich regional detail and the longing for personal liberation.
Hailed as one of the world's supreme masterpieces on the subject of death and dying, The Death of Ivan Ilyich is the story of a worldly careerist, a high court judge who has never given the inevitability of his dying so much as a passing thought. But one day, death announces itself to him, and to his shocked surprise, he is brought face to face with his own mortality. How, Tolstoy asks, does an unreflective man confront his one and only moment of truth? This short novel was an artistic culmination of a profound spiritual crisis in Tolstoy's life, a nine-year period following the publication of Anna Karenina during which he wrote not a word of fiction. A thoroughly absorbing, and, at times, terrifying glimpse into the abyss of death, it is also a strong testament to the possibility of finding spiritual salvation. This audiobook is expertly read by Constantine Gregory, with audio engineering by Austin Conway. It was produced and published by Echo Point Books & Media, LLC, an independent bookseller in Brattleboro, Vermont.Show book
Edgar Poe was born in Boston Massachusetts on 19th January 1809. His father abandoned his family the following year and within a year his mother had died leaving him an orphan. He was taken in by the Allan family but never formally adopted although he now referred to himself as Edgar Allan Poe. His father alternatively spoiled or chastised him and tension was frequent over gambling debts and monies for his education. His university years to study ancient and modern languages was cut short by lack of money and he enlisted as a private in the army claiming he was 22, it is more probable he was 18. After 2 years he obtained a discharge in order to take up an appointment at the military academy, West Point, where he failed to become an officer. Poe had released his 1st poetry volume in 1827 and after his 3rd turned to prose and placing short stories in several magazines and journals. At age 26 he obtained a licence to marry his cousin. She was a mere 13 but they stayed together until her death from tuberculosis 11 years after. In January 1845 ‘The Raven’ was published and became an instant classic. Thereafter followed the prose works for which he is now so rightly famed as a master of the mysterious and the macabre. Edgar Allan Poe died at the tragically early age of 40 on 7th October 1849 in Baltimore, Maryland. Newspapers at the time reported Poe's death as ‘congestion of the brain’ or ‘cerebral inflammation’, common euphemisms for death from disreputable causes such as alcoholism but the actual cause of death remains a mystery. Poe is also one of a number of authors credited with inventing the detective genre with his Parisian sleuth C. Auguste Dupin. He featured in three stories including the legendary ‘Murders in the Rue Morgue’ and by sheer deduction, logic and a touch of Gallic arrogance revealed what was hidden to the rest of us.Show book
Rowan and his small team of mercenaries have been plucked from obscurity by the now-disgraced Lord Kael D'Alquid. Through his leadership, the group has risen into one of the most sought after teams in Tyr. Their latest mission seemed straight forward enough, plunder a caravan of its gold from the crazed Cult of Yuanti; worshippers of disease and rot. But when the promise of vast wealth turns up empty, Rowan learns that their leader Kael may not have told them the whole truth behind the mission...Show book
Nathaniel Hawthorne was born on 4th July 1804 in Salem, Massachusetts, a town synonymous with the earlier Salem Witch Trials. It was instrumental in Hawthorne’s later use of American Gothic and dark romanticism in his writing. He was a mere four years old when his father died and his mother took him and his two sisters to live with her family and then on to their own home in Raymond, Maine. The young Hawthorne had a passion for fiction and poetry and voraciously read the works of Ann Radcliffe, Henry Fielding and Lord Byron. He was sent to college at his maternal uncle’s insistence. During these years he met and befriended Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and future U S president Franklin Pierce. These friendships were lifelong and to have a crucial impact on his writings and career. At college Hawthorne had made attempts at writing short stories and essays but without opportunities to publish. It was only in 1828 that he finally published his novel ‘Franshawe’ to little success and so he began work as editor for the American Magazine of Useful and Entertaining Knowledge. Hawthorne’s short stories were first published in magazines but in 1837 were collected and published as ‘Twice-Told Tales’. A steady literary career still did not come his way and so he worked in a good position at Salem’s port and married the love of his life Sophia Peabody. They moved to live in ‘The Old Manse’ at Concord, Massachusetts. Finally. in 1850 came spectacular literary and commercial success with ‘The Scarlet Letter’ followed by ‘The House of the Seven Gables’ the following year. In 1852, Hawthorne published a biography of presidential candidate Franklin Pierce. After Pierce’s victory he was appointed consul in Liverpool, a position that offered prestige, money and fame. At the end of this appointment he returned several times to Europe before settling in Massachusetts and resuming writing and publication. During the early 1860’s his health declined and on 19th May 1864 during a trip to Plymouth, New Hampshire. He was 59 and was buried in Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in Concord, Massachusetts.Show book
A delightful love-story, genuinely American in feeling and treatment. The story is stirring, the heroine is ideal. (Summary by the Chicago Tribune, from time of publishing)Show book
Mark Twain (Samuel L. Clemens) is called sometimes “the father of American literature”. He was a journalist, lecturer, boat pilot, inventor and, of course, writer. His wide life experience allowed him to depict different aspects of life very realistically. The most famous writings are The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. This book became a national treasure. But there are also many worthwhile tales by Twain. One of them is "My Watch". The plot is very witty and amusing - the hero speaks at length about his precious watch. It had been working for months without gaining or losing, but one day something went wrong and he had to bring it to the watchmaker. Then it happened many times. Eventually the hero killed the next watchmaker. Everything is described in such a funny way you can’t help laughing. This story makes you smile even when you read it for the tenth time. All the experiences of the poor guy with almost broken watch are depicted very expressively and caustically. The ending is tricky in its best Twain’s style. Spend some minutes to get to know with this fascinating tale and you won’t regret it.A SmartTouch Media production.Show book
