Editora: BookRix
A materialistic biologist is confronted with one of his worst nightmares, which he did not believe to be true, until he comes face to face with a dogman so feirce, that it shakes not only his world view but his whole psyche. Please review this book, if you liked it!
Henri René Albert Guy de Maupassant was born on August 5th, 1850 near Dieppe in France. Maupassant’s early life was badly torn when at age 11 (his younger brother Hervé was then five) his mother, Laure, a headstrong and independent-minded woman, risked social disgrace in order to obtain a legal separation from her husband. After the separation, Laure kept custody of her two boys. With the father now forcibly absent, Laure became the most influential and important figure in the young boy's life. Maupassant’s education was such that he rebelled against religion and other societal norms but a developing friendship with Gustave Flaubert began to turn his mind towards creativity and writing. After graduation he volunteered for the Franco-Prussian war. With its end he moved to Paris to work as a clerk in the Navy Department. Gustave Flaubert now took him under his wing. Acting as a literary guardian to him, he guided the eager Maupassant to debuts in journalism and literature. For Maupassant these were exciting times and the awakening of his creative talents and ambitions. In 1880 he published what is considered his first great work, ‘Boule de Suif’, (translated as as ‘Dumpling’, ‘Butterball’, ‘Ball of Fat’, or ‘Ball of Lard’) which met with a success that was both instant and overwhelming. Flaubert at once acknowledged that it was ‘a masterpiece that will endure.’ Maupassant had used his talents and experiences in the war to create something unique. This decade from 1880 to 1891 was to be the most pivotal of his career. With an audience now made available by the success of ‘Boule de Suif’ Maupassant organised himself to work methodically and relentlessly to produce between two and four volumes of work a year. The melding of his talents and business sense and the continual hunger of sources for his works made him wealthy. In his later years he developed a desire for solitude, an obsession for self-preservation, and a fear of death as well as a paranoia of persecution caused by the syphilis he had contracted in his youth. On January 2nd, 1892, Maupassant tried to commit suicide by cutting his throat. Unsuccessful he was committed to the private asylum of Esprit Blanche at Passy, in Paris. It was here on July 6th, 1893 that Henri René Albert Guy de Maupassant died at the age of only 42.Ver livro
Katherine O'Flaherty was born on the 8th February 1850 in St Louis, Missouri to parents of French and Irish descent. At age 5, she was sent to the Sacred Heart Academy and, apart from a 2 year period at home when her father died, remained there until graduating in 1868. Whilst there she began writing and became an avid reader of almost anything that crossed her path. Kate married Oscar Chopin in 1870 and the couple moved to New Orleans, and later to the rural setting of Cloutierville, Louisiana to raise their 6 children. In 1882 her husband died leaving her in a deep trench of debt. Despite her best efforts to turn the businesses around they were sold, and she moved the family back to St Louis and the financial help of her mother. Sadly, her mother died within the year. Kate, now struggling with depression, pushed herself to write and gained a local reputation as a writer of short stories that captured the local color and vibrancy of her surroundings. By the early 1890’s her short stories were published nationally. With this widespread audience also came negative reviews, controversy, and cries of immorality as themes such as interracial relationships, the rights of women and other burning issues of the day were written about. Despite the criticism, which unnerved her, she continued to write though in the main her works, around 100 short stories and two novels, were not attributed with any literary worth. Kate Chopin died from a brain haemorrhage in St Louis Missouri on the 22nd of August 1904. She was 54. For much of the 20th Century her work was forgotten and out of print. It was only in early 1970’s, with the rise of feminism and the call for a more just society that she was given the status her works had long described and shone a literary light at. She is now safely revered as one of America’s great authors.Ver livro
A Will to Power follows Caroline as she seeks to obtain power in her return to the Hill Country. The orphan girl who was stolen onto the plains of West Texas grows into a leader of men, bent on destroying her nightmares and everyone in them.Ver livro
This book portrays a closely-knit group of people living in the north Tipperary hills during the early 20th century - a community largely made up of small farmers, whose lives were far different from today. The book's inspiration comes from writers such as Thomas Hardy and attempts to pass on to readers the lyrical and rich phrasings of Tipperary's old hill folk and capture the spiritual wealth of an age that remained unchanged for several centuries. Tales of . . . brotherly love and hate, a rogue's return from across the sea and his efforts to reform, an unexpected first-love at the harvest-time dance-in-the-fields, persecution of two old saints at the hands of misguided youth, sports-day activities for adults and children alike following the arduous channelling of a new stream, two adventurous toddlers getting lost in the wilderness but saved by a witch, and more. 'Lovers of literature will find themselves engrossed in the lives of a past hillside community.' Addison & ColeVer livro
Arthur Llewelyn Jones was born in Caerleon, Monmouthshire on the 3rd March 1863. Machen came from a long line of clergymen, and when he was two, his father became vicar of a small parish about five miles north of Caerleon, and Machen was brought up at the rectory there. In his early years he received an excellent classical education, but family poverty ruled out university, and he was sent to London to sit exams to attend medical school but failed the exams. He did show literary promise with the publication of the poem ‘Eleusinia’ in 1821. But life in London was difficult and it was only in 1884 that he published again and was taken on to translate several French works which thereafter became the standard editions for many years. In 1887, his father died. That same year he married Amelia Hogg, a maverick music teacher with a passion for the theatre. He also began to receive legacies from Scottish relatives which allowed him to devote more time to writing. After publishing in literary magazines in 1894 he published his first book ‘The Great God Pan’. Its sexual and horrific content very much helped sales. Over the next decade or so he wrote some of his best work but was unable to find a publisher mainly due to the collapse of the decadent market over Oscar Wilde’s scandalous trial. In 1899, his wife died and during his long recovery he took up acting and travelled around the country as part of a travelling company. Three years later he was publishing again and had remarried. Re-publishing of earlier works helped anchor both his reputation and his income. By the time the Great War opened Europe’s wounds he returned to the public eye with ‘The Bowmen’ helped by the publicity around the ‘Angel of Mons’ episode. However, by the late 20’s new works had dried up and his back catalogue was no longer a source of regular income. In 1932 he received a Civil List pension of ₤100 per annum but other work was not forthcoming. His finances finally stabilised with a literary appeal in 1943 for his eightieth birthday and allowed him to live his remaining years in relative comfort. Arthur Machen died on 15th December 1947 in Beaconsfield. He was 84.Ver livro
There is something about the number 3. The Ancient Greeks believed 3 was the perfect number, and in China 3 has always been a lucky number, and they know a thing or two. Most religions also have 3 this and 3 that and, of course, in these more modern times, three’s a crowd may be too many, except when it’s a ménage à trois. It seems good things usually come in threes. Whatever history and culture says WE think 3, a hat-trick of stories, is a great number to explore themes and literary avenues that classic authors were so adept at creating. From their pens to your your ears. 01 - 3 Stories - Stream of Consciousness 02 - The Tell Tale Heart by Edgar Allan Poe 03 - The Mark on the Wall by Virginia Woolf 04 - An Occurrence At Owl Creek Bridge by Ambrose BierceVer livro
