Publisher: Sovereign
A son was born to a poor peasant. He rejoiced and went to a neighbour to ask him to stand as godfather to the boy. The neighbour refused. He did not want to be godfather to a poor man’s son. So the peasant went to another neighbour and he, too, refused. He walked from house to house, but could find no one who would be godfather to his son, so he set out to another village.
"East of the Sun and West of the Moon" is a fairy tale from Norway. A poor family is visited one night by a white bear who promises to make them rich if they will give him their youngest daughter. At first the girl refuses, but over several days she is persuaded to go with the bear. She is carried away on his back to a marvelous castle, where she learns that the bear turns into a prince at night. Growing lonely at the castle, she persuades the bear to let her visit her family. The bear warns her not to let her Mother speak to her alone. But the girl is not able to resist her mother. The mother declares the bear must be a troll and gives her daughter a tallow candle with which to observe him at night—but on no account to spill any of the tallow. The girl waits until the prince is asleep and lights the candle. The prince is so handsome that she falls in love with him... but accidentally spills three drops of tallow on his shirt. The prince wakes up and is horrified at what she has done. Now he must return to his stepmother's castle which lies east of the sun and west of the moon and marry the troll princess who has a nose three ells long. The girl, devastated, determines to follow him, if only she can find the way...Show book
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Princess Ozma is missing! When Dorothy awakens one morning to discover that the beloved ruler of the Land of Oz has disappeared, all of the Emerald City's most celebrated citizens join in the search for the lost princess.Show book
A Study in Scarlet was the career-starting, first Sherlock Holmes story published by Arthur Conan Doyle. Set in 19th-century London, it follows Dr. John Watson, a war veteran, and the enigmatic young Sherlock Holmes, a uniquely gifted detective. Two murders in London have Scotland Yard confounded, and the solution Holmes illuminates transports the reader to America’s Wild West of the 1850's, and beyond. A Study in Scarlet is a seminal work, and one that has transformed the mystery and crime genres. This Essential Classics edition includes a new introduction by Professor Vivian Heller, Ph.D. in literature and modern studies from Yale University.Arthur Conan Doyle was a writer and physician born in Edinburgh. Doyle is best known for his detective fiction featuring Sherlock Holmes.Vivian Heller received her Ph.D. in English Literature and Modern Studies from Yale University. She is author of Joyce, Decadence, and Emancipation(University of Illinois Press) and of The City Beneath Us (W.W. Norton & Company), a history of the building of the New York City subway system. She is an associate at Columbia’s School of Professional Studies and is the writing tutor for the Center for Curatorial Studies at Bard College. She is also a long-standing member of the non-fiction committee of the PEN Prison-Writing Committee, which awards prizes to inmates from across the country.Essential Classics publishes the most crucial literary works throughout history, with a unique introduction to each, making them the perfect treasure for any reader’s shelf.Show book
The Dark Mile – the final instalment of D.K. Broster’s Jacobite trilogy – a sequel to The Flight of the Heron and The Gleam in the North.Two years have passed since the tragic events of The Gleam in the North and Ewen Cameron’s wife Alison is awaiting the birth of their third child in Ardroy while Ewen visits his cousin Ian Stewart at his great Uncle Alexander’s home at Ivernacree.Ian is now heir to the estate, having lost his older brother Alan at Culloden, where they were betrayed by their archenemy, Campbell of Cairns. Ian is under pressure from his father to marry and secure an heir. But he can’t forget the old prophecy from a spae-woman about how he will fall in love with “a woman who is not what she seemed”.Fate intervenes when Ian comes to the rescue of an elderly man and his beautiful daughter, Olivia, who has been injured in a coaching accident. Ian offers them a warm welcome at his home while Olivia recuperates. Captivated by the girl, Ian is distraught when he discovers her true identity: Beautiful, charming Olivia is a Campbell, daughter of the despised traitor, Campbell of Cairns - which means she can never be his.Back at Ardroy, Ewen has problems of his own as the mendacious Finlay MacPhair is back in the Highlands and intent on wreaking revenge and making mischief for Ewen in return for more English gold. The Dark Mile is a gripping, romantic tale of star-crossed lovers, deceit, treachery, vengeance and – ultimately - redemption. It brings the thrilling tales from The Flight of the Heron and The Gleam in the North to a satisfying and gripping conclusion.With action, historical adventure and lyrical descriptions of the Scottish Highlands, The Dark Mile, the final book in the trilogy is sure to appeal to fans of Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander series and Peter May’s Lewis trilogy.Show book
This adaptation of Dickens' much loved “Ghost Story of Christmas” is subtitled "Scrooge and the Three Spirits” and concentrates on the miserly Ebeneezer Scrooge's dealings with the spirits that visit him on Christmas Eve to bring about his redemption.Show book
“Men at some time are masters of their fates. The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, but in ourselves, that we are underlings.”Julius Caesar is at the height of his power. He has just defeated his top rival and is basking in the glory of his triumph. Some believe that he is abusing his power, though, and behind his back, a conspiracy is developing to assassinate him. Even his close advisor Brutus is swayed to participate in the murder plot.Once Caesar is murdered, the conspirators are forced to explain themselves to Rome’s citizens and explain their intentions, and attempt to convince them that this murder was necessary to create peace. While many people understand their reasoning and agree that the murder was a tragic necessity, Caesar’s death exacerbates the conflicts and power struggles, and the rest of the tragedy demonstrates the bloody aftermath of the conspirators’ act of violence.Julius Caesar is one of Shakespeare’s most well-known history plays and is revered for its profound writing and thought-provoking perspective on this famous historical event. Shakespeare’s humanization of these real-life characters gives listeners a peek into both sides of the story in an unforgettable way.Show book
