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  The Legend of Saint Julian the...

  Gustave Flaubert

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  Gustave Flaubert was born on 12th December 1821 in Rouen, in Normandy, France.  
   
  A gifted child he began writing as early as eight. 
   
  He was educated at the Lycée Pierre-Corneille in Rouen until 1840 and thence to Paris to study law, a city he disliked. He studied little, made few friends and preferred to spend his time writing. His first finished work was ‘November’, a novella, completed in 1842. By 1846 after an attack of epilepsy, he left Paris and abandoned his law studies. 
   
  That same year he began a relationship with the poet Louise Colet which lasted eight years.  His politics developed in these years of revolutions throughout Europe as stridently against despotism, and as one who celebrated protest against the elite and the establishment. 
   
  In September 1849, Flaubert completed ‘The Temptation of Saint Anthony’. After 4 days reading it aloud to two friends, they advised him to destroy it and to focus his writing on day-to-day life rather than the fantastic. 
   
  A long journey to the Middle East brought encounters with both female and male prostitutes and a case of syphilis caught in Beirut.  On his return he began ‘Madame Bovary’ a work he would take 5 years to complete. When it was serialized in the Revue de Paris in 1856 the government brought an immorality action against both publisher and author, but both were acquitted. This was the birth of French Realism and Flaubert, fastidious with every word, was becoming regarded as a literary genius. He wrote in sullen solitude, sometimes spending a week on a single page, avoiding the inexact, the abstract and the vague.   
   
  He visited Carthage in 1858 to conduct research for ‘Salammbô’, which took 4 years to complete.  ‘Sentimental Education’ took a further 7 and published only in 1869.  The next few years were difficult.  Prussian soldiers occupied his house during the War and his mother died pushing him into financial difficulty and this, together with failing health, especially venereal diseases, shortened his life. 
   
  He toiled on his unfinished ‘Bouvard et Pécuchet’ but did complete ‘Three Tales’ in 1877 from which ‘The Legend of Saint Julian the Hospitaller’ is taken.  
   
  Gustave Flaubert died at Croisset from a cerebral hemorrhage on 8th May 1880. He was 58.

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  Top 10 Short Stories The - 1920s...

  Franz Kafka, Ryunosuke...

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  Short stories have always been a sort of instant access into an author’s brain, their soul and heart.  A few pages can lift our lives into locations, people and experiences with a sweep of landscape, narration, feelings and emotions that is difficult to achieve elsewhere. 
   
  In this series we try to offer up tried and trusted ‘Top Tens’ across many different themes and authors. But any anthology will immediately throw up the questions – Why that story? Why that author?  
   
  The theme itself will form the boundaries for our stories which range from well-known classics, newly told, to stories that modern times have overlooked but perfectly exemplify the theme.  Throughout the volume our authors whether of instant recognition or new to you are all leviathans of literature. 
   
  Some you may disagree with but they will get you thinking; about our choices and about those you would have made.  If this volume takes you on a path to discover more of these miniature masterpieces then we have all gained something. 
   
  In this one decade the post-war period brings us the Jazz Age and the beginnings of the Great Depression, two ends of a human race in turmoil as the elite are confronted with the masses in a great social surge that will being further problems that stain humanity.  Authors here begin to make a literary sense of what has happened and how their characters and narratives are dealing with questions that need answers.>  
  1 - The Top 10 - The 1920's - An Introduction 
  2 - In A Grove by Ryunosuke Akutagawa 
  3 - The Other Woman by Sherwood Anderson 
  4 - The Most Dangerous Game by Richard Connell 
  5 - Bernice Bobs Her Hair by F Scott Fitzgerald 
  6 - A Jury of Her Peers by Susan Glaspell 
  7 - A Hunger Artist by Franz Kafka 
  8 - The Rocking Horse Winner by D H Lawrence 
  9 - The Color Out of Space by H P Lovecraft 
  10 - The Garden Party by Katherine Mansfield 
  11 - The String Quartet by Virginia Woolf

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  The Adventure of the Blue...

  Sir Aarthur Conan Doyl, John Scott

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  In The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle, Sherlock Holmes is presented with a mysterious case involving a stolen gem. It all starts when Mr. Henry Baker arrives at 221b Baker Street to ask for help from Holmes and Watson. After hearing his story, they quickly set out on an adventure to figure out the mystery of who stole the precious blue jewel from the Countess of Morcar. Along the way, they discover a series of clues that lead them to the culprit in this winter classic! 
  Embark on a literary journey like no other and experience Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's classic adventure, 'The Blue Carbuncle,' in a unique audiobook format. Relax as you are immersed in a rich background environment of sound that transports you right into the heart of London and puts you at the center of the action. Listen as our experienced narrator reads at a steady pace, allowing you to take in every detail and savor every moment of this timeless classic. Get comfy in your armchair, clasping a warm cup of tea as Sherlock Holmes, aided by Dr. John Watson, delves deep into the mysteries of yet another complex case. Follow their journey as they unravel the mystery of who stole one of the world's most expensive jewel's. 
  The Lullify Audiobook is a unique listening experience that immerses you in the story through background environments and foley sounds. By bringing narration to life with these elements, we transport you directly into the heart of the tale. Designed for a more calming experience this is the perfect new way to take in classic stories. The original story has been altered and modernized for today's world. While the story remains true to the original tale, some details and events have been updated to make sense if this story were to take place today!

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  Sevastopol Sketches

  Leo Tolstoy

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  In the winter of 1854 Tolstoy, then an officer in the Russian army, arranged to be transferred to the besieged town of Sebastopol. Wishing to see at first hand the action of what would become known as the Crimean War, he was spurred on by a fierce patriotism, but also by an equally fierce desire to alert the authorities to appalling conditions in the army.
  
  The three Sebastopol Sketches - 'December', 'May' and 'August' - re-create what happened during different phases of the siege and its effect on the ordinary men around him. Writing with the truth as his utmost aim, he brought home to Russia's entire literate public the atrocities of war. In doing so, he realized his own vocation as a writer and established his literary reputation.

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  Emma

  Jane Austen

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  Experience the charming world of Highbury with Jane Austen's "Emma." Meet Emma Woodhouse, a lively and headstrong young woman who revels in matchmaking, despite her own romantic disinterest. Her well-intentioned meddling leads to misadventures and heartache, especially involving her friend Harriet. Through a series of social intrigues and personal revelations, guided by the perceptive Mr. Knightley, Emma matures and discovers the true nature of love and humility. This beloved classic explores friendship and self-discovery with Austen's signature wit and insight.

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  The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

  F. Scott Fitzgerald

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  This story was inspired by a remark of Mark Twain's to the effect that it was a pity that the best part of life came at the beginning and the worst part at the end. By trying the experiment upon only one man in a perfectly normal world I have scarcely given his idea a fair trial. Several weeks after completing it, I discovered an almost identical plot in Samuel Butler's "Note-books."

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