Other books that might interest you

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  The Luck

  Jane Routh

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  A new collection from Jane Routh, author of Circumnavigation, shortlisted for the Forward Prize for Best First Collection, and Teach Yourself Mapmaking, a Poetry Book Society Recommendation.
  After lockdowns have swept calendars clear, leaf-fall, early sunrise and gales are Jane Routh's measures of time, as she goes about her tasks in the hill pasture and woodlands where she has the luck to live.
  With sharp, lyrical description and down-to earth understanding, her poems consider the flora and fauna around her, formative moments and lifespans – as well as the dead who won't be forgotten. Her elegant and informed writing conveys a sense of belonging in a particular place and the care for its future, carrying a universal resonance.

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  Crime and Punishment

  Fyodor Dostoyevsky

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  A desperate man commits a terrible crime and convinces himself he is above guilt. But his mind refuses to stay silent. As fear, paranoia, and shame begin to close in, he is forced to confront the weight of his actions. 
  In Crime and Punishment, Fyodor Dostoyevsky delivers a powerful psychological journey into the human soul. This is not just a story about crime, but about conscience, redemption, and the quiet battle between pride and morality. 
  Dark, intense, and deeply human, this timeless classic pulls you into a world where every thought matters and every choice has a cost.

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  Ballad of Reading Gaol The...

  Oscar Wilde

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  In 1895, Oscar Wilde was sentenced to 2 years of hard labor for acts of ‘gross indecency’. During his time at Reading Gaol, he witnessed a rare hanging, and in the three years between his release and his untimely death in 1900, was inspired to write the following poem, a meditation on the death penalty and the importance of forgiveness, even for (and especially for) something as heinous as murdering one’s spouse; for even the murderer, Wilde argues, is human and suffers more so for being the cause of his own pain, for ‘having killed the thing he loved’; for everyone is the cause of someone else’s suffering and suffers at the hands of another. It is this that Jesus Christ could see; he could continue to see the beauty of our humanity, despite all that we may do to each other, and encouraged us to love each other just the same. 
   “The Ballad of Reading Gaol” was published in 1898 and would gain Wilde greater recognition as a poet (in addition to being a great playwright); although his only other volume of poetry, one of his earliest works that he’d published, was also well-received. Sadly, ‘The Ballad’ would be his last. 
  (Summary by Linda Leu).

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  Psychonatural

  Kaleb Willow William Patrick Rolph

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  The year is 1912. Beginning at the halfway point of a journey from London to Brighton, the protagonist Cleric Celait has been contracted through the help of his friend Thomas to work as a stenographer. Cleric slowly comes into his own, finally writing again. He is inspired by a new love and lulled into security by his new home. Yet, he is slowly being manipulated into staying at Dalmra Manor, orchestrated by those now closest to him, he begins to lose his grip on reality, having only his journal to chronicle his strange isolation.

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  Beauty Making

  Ella Wheeler Wilcox

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  Ella Wheeler was born in 1850 on a farm in Johnstown, Wisconsin, east of Janesville, the youngest of four children. The family soon moved north of Madison. She started writing poetry at a very early age, and was well known as a poet in her own state by the time she graduated from high school.Her best-known work was Poems of Passion. Her most enduring work was "Solitude", which contains the lines, "Laugh, and the world laughs with you; weep, and you weep alone". Her autobiography, The Worlds and I, was published in 1918, a year before her death. (Summary from Wikipedia)

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  The Hunchback of Notre-Dame - A...

  Victor Hugo

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  The Hunchback of Notre-Dame (Notre-Dame de Paris) by Victor Hugo is an iconic tale set against the backdrop of 15th-century Paris, centered around the majestic Notre-Dame Cathedral. At its heart is the tragic story of Quasimodo, the deformed and isolated bell-ringer, and his deep, unrequited love for the beautiful gypsy Esmeralda. Through the lives of these unforgettable characters, Hugo weaves themes of love, fate, compassion, and the duality of beauty and monstrosity—both in the human form and in society. 
  What sets this translation apart from all others is its modern, reader-friendly approach. Previous versions of The Hunchback of Notre-Dame often rely on formal, archaic English that can create distance between the reader and the text. This new translation, however, brings Hugo’s vibrant prose to life with contemporary language while staying faithful to his original intent. The goal is to make this classic novel more accessible, without losing the depth, emotion, or complexity that have captivated readers for nearly two centuries. 
  By focusing on smooth, engaging storytelling, this version invites a new generation of readers into Hugo’s world—one filled with passion, tragedy, and social critique—while still honoring the timeless power of his words. Whether you are encountering The Hunchback of Notre-Dame for the first time or returning to it, this translation ensures that Hugo’s masterpiece resonates just as strongly today as it did when it was first published.

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