Altri libri che potrebbero interessarti

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  The Escape - A Classic...

  Katherine Mansfield

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  What does it mean to escape when love, obligation, and habit quietly close in? In “The Escape” by Katherine Mansfield, a quiet domestic moment becomes the stage for an unspoken emotional reckoning between a husband and wife. As they prepare for an evening out, small gestures, clipped remarks, and inner reflections reveal the tensions beneath their long-standing marriage. What appears outwardly calm is charged with resentment, fatigue, and the desire - felt by both - for freedom from roles that no longer bring comfort. Mansfield masterfully exposes the psychological strain of intimacy worn thin, where politeness replaces connection and routine conceals longing. The story unfolds through subtle shifts in thought and tone, showing how escape is imagined, resisted, and quietly negotiated within the confines of everyday life. Press play and step into one of her most quietly revealing short stories - where the longing to escape is felt not in action, but in silence.

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  Wuthering Heights

  Emily Brontë

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  Wuthering Heights is the only novel by the English author Emily Brontë, initially published in 1847 under her pen name "Ellis Bell". It concerns two families of the landed gentry living on the West Yorkshire moors, the Earnshaws and the Lintons, and their turbulent relationships with the Earnshaws' foster son, Heathcliff. The novel, influenced by Romanticism and Gothic fiction, is considered a classic of English literature. 
  Wuthering Heights was accepted by publisher Thomas Newby along with Anne Brontë's Agnes Grey before the success of their sister Charlotte Brontë's novel Jane Eyre, but they were published later. After Emily's death, Charlotte edited a second edition of Wuthering Heights, which was published in 1850. 
  Wuthering Heights is now widely considered to be one of the greatest novels ever written in English, but contemporaneous reviews were polarised. It was controversial for its depictions of mental and physical cruelty, including domestic abuse, and for its challenges to Victorian morality, religion, and the class system. 
  CREATED: 
  Narrated by Abigail Weir 
  Author: Emily Brontë 
  Date of original publication: 1847 
  Genre: novel 
  Language : English 
  Version : unabridged, full/complete 
  Without subtitles

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  A Chapel and a Hayhut Among the...

  D H Lawrence

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  'A Chapel and a Hayhut among the Mountains'. This piece of writing falls between the short story and travel writing but is presented here as a short story largely because it depicts the warm love between Lawrence and his wife Frieda (Anita in the story) as they begin their life of travel together.

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  A Man with Two Lives - From...

  Ambrose Bierce

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  Ambrose Gwinnett Bierce was born on 24th June 1842 at Horse Cave Creek in Meigs County, Ohio. His parents were poor but they introduced him to literature at an early age, instilling in him a deep appreciation of books, the written word and the elegance of language.  
  Growing up in Koscuisko County, Indiana poverty and religion were defining features of his childhood, and he would later describe his parents as “unwashed savages” and fanatically religious, showing him little affection but always quick to punish. He came to resent religion, and his introduction to literature appears to be their only positive effect. 
  At age 15 Bierce left home to become a printer’s devil, mixing ink and fetching type at The Northern Indian, a small Ohio paper. Falsely accused of theft he returned to his farm and spent time sending out work in the hopes of being published. 
  His Uncle Lucius advised he be sent to the Kentucky Military Institute. A year later he was commissioned as an Officer.  As the Civil War started Bierce enlisted in the 9th Indiana Infantry Regiment.  
  In April 1862 Bierce fought at the Battle of Shiloh, an experience which, though terrifying, became the source of several short stories. Two years later he sustained a serious head wound and was off duty for several months. He was discharged in early 1865.  
  A later expedition to inspect military outposts across the Great Plains took him all the way to San Francisco. He remained there to become involved with publishing and editing and to marry, Mary Ellen on Christmas Day 1871.  They had a child, Day, the following year.  
  In 1872 the family moved to England for 3 years where he wrote for Fun magazine. His son, Leigh, was born, and first book, ‘The Fiend’s Delight’, was published.  
  They returned to San Francisco and to work for a number of papers where he gained admiration for his crime reporting. In 1887 he began a column at the William Randolph Hearst’s San Francisco Examiner.  
  Bierce’s marriage fell apart when he discovered compromising letters to his wife from a secret admirer. The following year, 1889 his son Day committed suicide, depressed by romantic rejection. 
  In 1891 Bierce wrote and published the collection of 26 short stories which included ‘An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge’.  Success and further works including poetry followed.  
  Bierce with Hearst’s resources helped uncover a financial plot by a railroad to turn 130 million dollars of loans into a handout. Confronted by the railroad and asked to name his price Bierce answered “my price is $130 million dollars. If, when you are ready to pay, I happen to be out of town, you may hand it over to my friend, the Treasurer of the United States”.  
  He now began his first foray as a fabulist, publishing ‘Fantastic Fables’ in 1899.  But tragedy again struck two years later when his second son Leigh died of pneumonia relating to his alcoholism.  
  He continued to write short stories and poetry and also published ‘The Devil’s Dictionary’.  
  At the age of 71, in 1913 Bierce departed from Washington, D.C., for a tour of the battlefields where he had fought during the civil war. At the city of Chihuahua he wrote his last known communication, a letter to a friend. It’s closing words were “as to me, I leave here tomorrow for an unknown destination,” Ambrose Bierce then vanished without trace.

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  Northanger Abbey

  Jane Austen

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  "Northanger Abbey," penned by the esteemed Jane Austen in the early 19th century, unfolds the tale of Catherine Morland, a spirited young woman whose upbringing is as unremarkable as her appearance. Unlike the captivating heroines of traditional romantic fiction, Catherine stands apart, her allure rooted not in conventional beauty but in her thirst for adventure and the grandiose ideals spun by the novels she so eagerly consumes. These fantastical narratives foreshadow her entrance into the bustling world of society, particularly as she embarks on a promising journey to Bath. 
  The novel begins by painting a vivid contrast between Catherine’s ordinary life and her vivid aspirations. From her earliest days, she exhibits a preference for lively pursuits over the genteel amusements typically deemed suitable for young ladies, a spirited inclination that blossoms further into her teenage years as her fascination with the romantic tales ignites her imagination.  
  Her significant adventure begins when she receives an invitation to Bath, a place she envisions as a tapestry woven with excitement, friendship, and the tantalizing possibility of romance, especially with the dashing Mr. Tilney, who captures her imagination and stirs her heart. This narrative is rich with wit, offering a sharp commentary on societal norms and the journey of self-discovery. It elegantly explores the often jarring contrast between one’s dreams and reality, inviting readers into a world that delights in satirizing the very romantic tropes it portrays. This makes "Northanger Abbey" an engaging and insightful read for anyone who cherishes character-driven stories infused with humor and depth.

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  The Turn of the Screw

  Henry James

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  "The Turn of the Screw" by Henry James is a gothic novella written in the late 19th century. The story centers around a young governess who is assigned to care for two orphaned children at a remote English estate called Bly, where strange and unsettling events occur, raising questions about both the environment and the children themselves. 
  At the beginning of the novella, a group of friends gathers around a fire on Christmas Eve. During their conversation, they discuss ghostly experiences. One of the members, Douglas, hints at a chilling tale involving two children and a dreadful apparition that appeared to them. This sets the stage for the governess's recounting of her experiences at Bly. 
  Upon her arrival at the estate, she is captivated by the beauty of the children, Miles and Flora. However, beneath this charm lies an unsettling tension, particularly related to the previous governess, who died under mysterious circumstances. The opening sequence effectively builds an atmosphere of suspense, promising a haunting exploration of innocence, corrupted motives, and the supernatural.

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