Translator Aylmer Maude, Louise Maude
Publisher: Charles River Editors
Skyros Publishing is dedicated to reproducing the finest books ever written and letting readers of all ages experience a classic for the first time or revisit a past favorite. Hadji Murad is a novel written by Leo Tolstoy about a rebel commander who forges an unlikely alliance with his Russian enemies for the sake of revenge.
Stories are one of mankind’s greatest artistic achievements. Whether written down or spoken they have an ability to capture our imagination and thoughts, and take us on incredible journeys in the space of a phrase and the turn of a page. Within a few words of text or speech, new worlds and characters form, propelling a narrative to a conclusion with intricate ease. Finely crafted, perfectly formed these Miniature Masterpieces, at first thought, seem remarkably easy to conjure up. But ask any writer and they will tell you that distilling the essence of narrative and characters into a short story is one of the hardest acts of their literary craft. Many attempt, but few achieve.Show book
In the mystical land of Arabia, there is secreted a magical door that opens with the command, “Open, Sesame!” Inside lays the plunder of a century of robbers and mercenaries. When Ali Baba witnesses 40 thieves open this door with the enchanted words, endless possibilities begin to unwind before him.Show book
Herbert George Wells (21 September 1866 - 13 August 1946) was an English writer. Prolific in many genres, he wrote dozens of novels, short stories, and works of social commentary, history, satire, biography and autobiography. His work also included two books on recreational war games. Wells is now best remembered for his science fiction novels and is often called the "father of science fiction", along with Jules Verne and the publisher Hugo Gernsback.THE TRUTH ABOUT PYECRAFT: He sits not a dozen yards away. If I glance over my shoulder I can see him. And if I catch his eye-and usually I catch his eye-it meets me with an expression.Show book
The brilliance of the story is how a normal bureaucrat, a judge in this case, has a small accident that winds up gradually taking his life. As he deals with this incident, with hope at first, and then despair, he comes to terms with his family, his life, and his mediocrities that we all suffer with except for the exceptional few. This story rings a particularly poignant note for those in early middle age facing the next part of their lives. Tolstoy's story is considered his best. Keywords: War and Peace, Anna Karenina, God Sees the Truth-but Waits, The Kreutzer Sonata, Dostoyevsky, Turgenev, Gogol.Show book
Locked in his desk for 25 years, What Is Man? was Twain's most serious, philosophical, and private work. The narrative appears in the form of a Socratic dialogue between a romantic young idealist and an elderly cynic. The pair debate issues of mankind, such as whether man is free to act or is more of a machine, whether personal merit is meaningless given how the environment shapes us, and if man truly has impulses other than to pursue pleasure and avoid pain. An unflinching critic of human affection, a bittersweet humorist, and a master of comic asides, Mark Twain speaks to us across time with verve and wisdom in this rare work. This recording is performed by comedy legend Carl Reiner, a recipient of the Kennedy Center's Mark Twain Prize for American Humor.Show book
Convinced of the worthiness of a giant, earthboring machine, David Innes becomes a willing participant in an experiment. On the machines maiden attempt at boring through the earth, David and inventor Perry are trapped in the control room as the machine turns into a runaway. It bores steadily down toward the center of the earth until finally it penetrates into a strange, subterranean world. The two travelers are immediately welcomed by a huge bearlike creature interested solely in having them for breakfast.Show book
