Altri libri che potrebbero interessarti

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  The Legend of Sleepy Hollow -...

  Washington Irving

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  Washington Irving was born on 3rd April, 1783, the youngest of 11, in New York. 
    
  Irving found his real interests away from school in literature and the theatre.  An outbreak of yellow fever at 15 moved him away from Manhattan and into the surrounding countryside providing valuable settings for later works such as ‘The Legend of Sleepy Hollow’. 
   
  By 19 Irving was writing regularly to the New York Morning Chronicle, commenting on the theatrical and social scenes.  When his health began to fail, he was sent on the Grand Tour of Europe.  Bizarrely he ignored most of the great sights on offer to concentrate on developing his social and conversational powers.  His health, though, did improve.  
   
  In 1806, back in New York to study law, he scraped a pass at the bar and then founded with several others the literary magazine Salmagundi. Irving nicknamed the city ‘Gotham City’, a name still in use today.  Moderately successful, the magazine spread Irving’s reputation beyond New York. 
   
  In 1809 while mourning the death of his teenage fiancée Irving finished his first significant book, ‘A History of New-York from the Beginning of the World to the End of the Dutch Dynsasty, by Diedrich Knickerbocker’.  It satirised local history, local historians and politics.  It received great critical acclaim. 
   
  Unfortunately his family’s established trading company was now facing great upheavals and Irving was dispatched to England to try to sort it out.  After two years he could see no way out but bankruptcy.  This left him in England with no real employment prospects, and so he returned to writing.  
   
  He sent some short stories back to New York to be published as ‘The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent’.  The first part included ‘Rip Van Winkle’ and was extremely successful.  The sixth part contained ‘The Legend of Sleepy Hollow’.  
   
  Beset by literary piracy, with no copyright law at the time, he set about publishing legitimate copies in England to outwit the bootleggers.  From now on Irving published concurrently in America and England in order to render piracy obsolete.  
   
  In August 1824, he published ‘Tales of a Traveller’, which included the famed ‘The Devil and Tom Walker’.  
   
  In 1826, the American Minister to Spain, invited him to Madrid where he could examine the many historical documents that he had access to.  Irving reveled in both the size of the libraries he was granted access to and their rich quality.  Historical works flowed from his pen further enhancing his reputation and fortune.   
   
  Following the completion of ‘Tales of the Alhambra’ in 1832, Irving returned to America after 17 years abroad. He was now a figurehead of American literature and dispensed advice to Edgar Allan Poe amongst others.  Irving also became an advocate for American copyright legislation.  
   
  A later appointment as Minister to Spain in 1842 left him disheartened at the antics of the various political factions he encountered.  It also afforded him no time to write as he had hoped.  
   
  On his return home he began an ‘Author’s Revised Edition’ of his works agreeing an unprecedented deal for 12 per cent of the retail profits.  
   
  Washington Irving died of a heart attack at his ‘Sunnyside’ home on the 28th November 1859 at the age of 76, a few months after completing his five volume George Washington biography, in whose honour he had been named.  
   
  ‘The Legend of Sleepy Hollow’ is a story almost everyone has encountered.  An enormous success at the time it is now an undeniable American Spooky classic.

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  Clairvoyance - From their pens...

  D K Broster

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  Dorothy Kathleen Broster was born on 2nd September 1877 at Devon Lodge in Grassendale Park, Garston, Liverpool. 
  At 16, the family moved to Cheltenham, where she attended Cheltenham Ladies' College and then on to St Hilda’s College, Oxford to read history, where she was one of the first female students, although at this time women were not awarded degrees. 
  Broster served as secretary to Charles Harding Firth, a Professor of History for several years, and collaborated on several of his works. Her first two novels were co-written with a college friend, Gertrude Winifred Taylor. 
  With the Great War interrupting her literary ambitions she served as a Red Cross nurse at a Franco-American hospital, but returned to England with a knee infection in 1916.  
  After the war, she moved near to Battle in East Sussex and took up writing full-time.  
  In 1920 she at last received her Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts from Oxford. 
  Her novels, mainly historical fiction, peaked in popularity with ‘The Flight of the Heron’, in 1925, a best-seller followed up by two sequels. 
  As well as poetry and various articles she also wrote several short stories, the best known of which is a classic of weird fiction ‘The Couching at the Door’ in which an artist appears to be haunted by a mysterious entity. 
  An intensely private individual many readers deduced from her name that she was both a man and Scottish. 
  D K Broster died in Bexhill Hospital on 7th February 1950.  She was 73.

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  Villette

  Charlotte Brontë

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  A woman alone in a foreign city. A school filled with secrets. A quiet heart carrying storms no one else can see.
  After losing everything familiar, Lucy Snowe travels to the city of Villette to rebuild her life. There she steps into a world of mystery, unspoken affections, strict classrooms, and shadows that stir with memory and longing. As she forms fragile connections and faces the ache of solitude, Lucy confronts truths about love, identity, and the strength required to stand alone.
  
  Praised as "Charlotte Brontë's most psychological and daring novel," this masterpiece captivates readers with its emotional depth, gothic tension, and unforgettable exploration of a woman's inner world. Lucy Snowe remains one of literature's most complex, quietly powerful heroines.
  
  If you crave introspective storytelling, subtle romance, and a haunting atmosphere that lingers, this novel will stay with you long after the final page.
  
  Step into Villette—and discover a story of resilience, longing, and the courage to live on one's own terms.

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  The Secret Garden

  Frances Hodgson Burnett

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  "The Secret Garden," written by Frances Hodgson Burnett in the late 19th century, tells the story of Mary Lennox, a spoiled and unhappy child who becomes orphaned and is sent to live with her reclusive uncle at the mysterious Misselthwaite Manor. As Mary explores the manor's enchanting yet neglected gardens, including a hidden garden that has been locked away for years, she begins a journey of self-discovery, healing, and friendship. 
  At the beginning of the book, we meet Mary Lennox, who is left alone in a foreign land after a cholera outbreak claims her parents' lives. Sent to England to live with her uncle, Mary soon realizes she is largely forgotten and left to her own devices. The opening chapters illustrate her initial experiences with the manor, highlighting her disdain for her new environment and her feelings of loneliness. This sets the stage for her growth and the adventures that lie ahead as she uncovers the garden's hidden beauty and forms connections with others, ultimately transforming her character and outlook on life.

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  incident at the apartment of...

  Alexander Grin

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  It is difficult to combine mysticism with humor, but Alexander Grin takes on the challenge and comes out with flying colors. For all its mystical and mythical references, An incident at the apartment of Madam Cerize, is quite a heartwarming story, giving all of us some hope that, sometimes, powers that be do care.

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  The Three Musketeers

  Alexandre Dumas

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  The first in Alexandre Dumas' The D'Artagnan Romances, The Three Musketeers is a classic swashbuckler and a seminal action-adventure story that has become a cornerstone of the genre since its publication in 1844. Set in the fifteenth century, it follows a young D'Artagnan leaving home for Paris with hopes of joining the King's Musketeers. He meets the titular three musketeers—Athos, Porthos, Aramis—and finds himself quickly wrapped up in matters of both court and state.

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