Publisher: Interactive Media
The Unbearable Bassington offers an insight into peculiarities of Edwardian society. A novel of manners, an artistic symbol of a social order, and stylish satire often compared to that of Oscar Wilde.
Margaret Gabrielle Vere Campbell was born on 1st November 1885 on Hayling Island in Hampshire. Her childhood was fraught with problems, her alcoholic father left early in her life and was later found dead on a London Street. Life thereafter was poverty with an uncaring mother. However, her talents took her to the Slade School of Fine Art and later to study in Paris. Her first fiction, written at a mere 16, was a violent medieval historical novel, ‘The Viper of Milan’. Initially rejected by several publishers it went on to become a best-seller After this her prolific writings were the main financial support for the family. Her literary output numbered over 150 volumes, mainly under the pseudonym of Marjorie Bowen but she also used the names Joseph Shearing, George R Preedy, John Winch, Robert Paye and Margaret Campbell. Within this output she assigned the pseudonyms to the various genres she worked across, from Historical fiction to supernatural short stories. Perhaps her best known work is the 1909 book ‘Black Magic’, a Gothic horror novel about a medieval witch. Several of her works were also adapted into films. She was married twice. The first to Zefferino Emilio Constanza (they had two children), who died of tuberculosis, and then to Arthur L Long (and another two children) Marjorie Bowen died on 23rd December 1952 at St Charles Hospital in North Kensington, London after suffering serious concussion from a fall in her bedroom. She was 67.Show book
Charles Dickens’s moral tale of utilitarian values run amok The industrial burg of Coketown is dominated by the philosophy of utilitarianism. The mill is the center of commerce. Students in the school are instructed to recite rote facts and figures while repressing any creative instincts. Thomas Gradgrind, the school superintendent, is a strict devotee of practicality and has raised his children, Tom and Louisa, according to this philosophy. It is only Sissy Jupe, a circus girl taken in by the Gradgrinds, who possesses the vision and wonderment to see past the rigid boundaries of cold, hard facts. A paean to the human spirit, Hard Times is among Dickens’s most cutting works of social commentary. This ebook has been professionally proofread to ensure accuracy and readability on all devices.Show book
O. Henry was the pen name of William Sydney Porter (1862-1910), an American writer of outstanding short stories, known for their wit, wordplay, warm characterization, and surprise endings.The Clarion Call tells of the chance encounter between two old childhood friends. One, Kernan, is now a burglar who three weeks ago committed his first murder. The other, Woods, is a New York detective. Woods is faced with a terrible dilemma: How can he turn in his old childhood friend, who in the past lent him a thousand dollars that he has not yet repaid?Show book
William Collins Books and Decca Records are proud to present ARGO Classics, a historic catalogue of classic fiction read by some of the world’s most renowned voices. Originally released as vinyl records, these expertly remastered stories are now available to download for the first time. Is the world’s most famous detective on his deathbed? When Dr Watson finds Sherlock Holmes wasting away from a rare tropical disease, he must act fast if he is to save the life of his best friend. Sherlock Holmes, of course, may well have one more trick up his sleeve… Full of twists and turns, Arthur Conan Doyle’s atmospheric and gripping short story is brought vividly to life by Robert Hardy, known to many for playing Cornelius Fudge in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. In this top-notch traditional mystery, Sherlock Holmes, the world's most famous private investigator, battles not only the usual urban thrillers but also a rare tropical medical condition. The suspense is palpable as the clock ticks down, and the question remains - will Dr Watson be able to save his best friend in time? For fans of Jules Verne (Around the World in Eighty Days), Emily Brontë (Wuthering Heights), Cgp Books (GCSE English Shakespeare Text Guide), Jane Austen (Mansfield Park), and Mary Shelley (Frankenstein).Show book
Out for a walk in London one day, Gip and his father happen upon a magic shop. At Gip's urging, the two go in - and things grow more and more curious by the minute. Counters, store fixtures, and mirrors seem to move around the room, and the shopkeeper is most mysterious of all. Gip is thrilled by all he sees, and his father is at first amused, but when things become stranger and sinister father is no longer sure where reality ends and illusion begins. Fantastical illustrations underscore the macabre atmosphere of the tale, make this a perfect book read aloud together again and again.Show book
The Emerald City is built all of beautiful marbles in which are set a profusion of emeralds, every one exquisitely cut and of very great size. There are other jewels used in the decorations inside the houses and palaces, such as rubies, diamonds, sapphires, amethysts and turquoises. But in the streets and upon the outside of the buildings only emeralds appear, from which circumstance the place is named the Emerald City of Oz.Show book
