Publisher: Mark Twain
Mark Twain - I have committed sins, of course; but I have not committed enough of them to entitle me to the punishment of reduction to the bread and water of ordinary literature during six years when I might have been living on the fat diet spread for the righteous in Professor Dowdens Life of Shelley.
Lucy Maud Montgomery (November 30, 1874 - April 24, 1942), published as L. M. Montgomery, was a Canadian author best known for a series of novels beginning in 1908 with Anne of Green Gables. The book was an immediate success. The title character, orphan Anne Shirley, made Montgomery famous in her lifetime and gave her an international following.The Girl Who Drove the Cows: "I wonder who that pleasant-looking girl who drives cows down the beech lane every morning and evening is," said Pauline Palmer, at the tea table of the country farmhouse where she and her aunt were spending the summer.Show book
First published in 1850, David Copperfield begins with avid the tragedy of David's brother dying when David is just a boy. After this episode, he is sent by his step-father to work in London for a wine merchant. When conditions worsen he decides to run away and embarks on a journey by foot from London to Dover. On his arrival, he finds his eccentric aunt, Betsey Trotwood who becomes his new guardian. Being witness to the formation of David's character is quite fascinating. David begins as a strong child whose only aspiration is a better life. On the way to his adulthood, David sees how people enter and leave his life. Romanticism takes its place in David’s life as he gets married to Dora Spenlow who is not long for this world. Will David ever find stability and happiness? And what of his wife? Dickens proves to be a master in creating an autobiographical work that is a captivating page-turner.Show book
The Palliser family comes to the forefront in a classic novel of politics and propriety from the series that inspired the BBC serial The Pallisers. With the Whigs and Tories at a standstill in attempts to form a working government, a compromise is finally reached, and the hardworking—and hardheaded—Plantagenet Palliser is installed as prime minister. But even as he gets used to the power and privilege of the high office, Palliser slowly and distressingly realizes that the government he leads is too fragile and disparate to actually accomplish anything. His own obstinate nature does not help matters. At home, Palliser’s wife, Glencora, causes more chaos as she attempts to support her husband in any way, going as far as to suggest that her daughter’s dubious suitor attempt to stand for Parliament. Subject to political embarrassment and personal turmoil, the Palliser family will have to decide on whose side they stand if they are to survive major scandal. In the penultimate installment of his epic Victorian saga, Anthony Trollope interweaves every last thread in anticipation of a truly climactic dénouement. The Prime Minister is the 5th book in the Palliser Novels, but you may enjoy reading the series in any order. This ebook has been professionally proofread to ensure accuracy and readability on all devices.Show book
War and Peace is a literary work mixed with chapters on history and philosophy by the Russian author Leo Tolstoy. It was first published serially, then published in its entirety in 1869. It is regarded as one of Tolstoy's finest literary achievements and remains an internationally praised classic of world literature.Book 7: 1810-11: The Bible legend tells us that the absence of labor idleness was a condition of the first man's blessedness before the Fall. Fallen man has retained a love of idleness, but the curse weighs on the race not only because we have to seek our bread in the sweat of our brows, but because our moral nature is such that we cannot be both idle and at ease.Show book
Originally published in 1866 under the pseudonym "A. M. Barnard." Louisa May Alcott's novel of romance and sexual intrigue is one of her lesser-known gems. Its tone and characterizations strike a markedly different chord from her best-known works, such as "Little Women" and "Little Men," and it remains a popular addition to her oeuvre.Show book
A quartet of short stories by Britain’s raconteur supreme, Hector Hugh Munro, better known under his pseudonym “Saki”. This collection brings together four of his most curious and amusing tales, all of which involve animals. Saki’s satirical take on the morals and eccentricities of Edwardian society, combined with a compelling narrative and an unexpected ending draw keep the reader hanging on until the very last word. 'Mrs. Packletide’s Tiger': Mrs. Packletide is determined to shoot a tiger in order to get one up on her arch rival Loona Bimberton. In a comical and at times ironic sequence of events, Mrs. Packletide finds herself at the mercy of another rival, just when she had least expected it. 'Tobermory': When Mr. Cornelius Appin announces that he has succeeded in teaching the cat, Tobermory, to speak, nobody in the house party believes him. But when Tobermory makes his entrance and begins to reveal the kind of personal secrets only a cat can know about the assembled company, chaos breaks out. Tobermory must be destroyed at all costs. 'The Mouse': When Theodoric Voler boards a train he finds he is not alone in the compartment. Not only is there a female companion asleep in one corner, there is a mouse that has hidden itself inside his clothes. Can the sensitive and prudish young man manage to undress and extricate the mouse without his female companion waking up? 'Esme': The Baroness recounts a hunting story with a twist. Instead of a fox, the quarry turns out to be an escaped hyena, which adopts her and Constance Broddle and leads them to cover up a heinous killing.Show book
