Emma Woodhouse is a beautiful, privileged and headstrong young woman living in Regency England who constantly meddles in her friends' lives. Jane Austen's witty and powerful storytelling is at play in this masterful romance classic.
A visiting engineer meets on odd, limping man by the name of Ethan Frome. He wants to know more of him but nobody, not even Ethan is willing to cooperate. So the engineer hires Ethan as his driver for week. Unexpectedly, during a heavy winter storm, the truth about the limping man is revealed.
Ralph Waldo Emerson's Essays are an American classic. These essays explore Emerson's thoughts about transcendentalism and romanticism. Some of the most famous essays in this collection are Self-Reliance, Compensation, The Over-Soul, Circles, The Poet, Experience, and Politics.
In E.W. Hornung's Dead Men Tell No Tales, Mr. Cole falls in love with Eva Denison, a beautiful and accomplished young woman, while traveling to England. As the story takes a twisted turn, the events lead to the discovery of a horrible conspiracy and then to an adventure that may cost Cole his greatest love.
Cytherea Graye is left penniless with her younger brother, Owen, after her father died in a terrible accident. So she must look for work. She becomes the lady’s maid to Mrs. Aldclyffe and falls in love with the wrong person, Edward Springrove. She finds out Edward’s secret and decides to marry Aeneas Manston instead, Mrs. Aldclyffe’s steward. However, she soon learns Aeneas has a dark secret too.
In this historical romance, a young woman flees a marriage she never wanted and a life she wished she had never lived. Dawn of the Morning tells the story of Dawn Rensselaer's journey to find love on her own terms.
Don Juan is an epic poem by Lord Byron about a womanizing Spaniard who is sent away for dishonoring his family. His adventures lead him through slave markets and royal courts until he grows into a man who can be admired.
This compilation of stories about children from Charles Dickens' classic books have been modified to be easier to read. These stories will make the readers fall in love with the charming children and are a great introduction to classic novels like Great Expectations, Oliver Twist and more.
Both comic and tragic, Cranford is a novel set in a fictional rural town of 19th-century England where time seems to stand still. Neither character wants to change and all of them are feverishly trying to preserve the old customs and norms. However, a series of comings and goings disrupts the town’s balance and force the leading women in Cranford to leave their comfort zone.
Civil Disobedience was Thoreau's first published book and continues to transform American discourse. It is unusual for its symbolism and structure, its criticism of Christian institutions, and its many-layered storytelling.
This classic Western tale from B.M. Bower is a story about Bud Bernie, the son of a wealthy ranger, who goes through a lot of unexpected happenings while trying to make his own money with three horses.
Mistreated by her selfish sister and in danger of becoming a mere servant, Julia Cloud is saved by her niece and nephew. Both are in college and both are in need of a guiding mother. Julia succeeds in undertaking this role and soon becomes known as ‘Cloudy Jewel.’
A collection of short stories from prominent Russian author A. S. Pushkin.
Although it was first published in 1922, Babbitt reveals the flaws of our modern society. Are money going to make us happy? Is social status such an important aspect in our lives? Can’t we just live in the moment? Asked some 90 odd years ago, these same questions haunt the Western society to this day. Can George F. Babbitt find the answer?
What are you thinking right now? Is it moving you forward or holding you back? In James Allen's classic text, As a Man Thinketh, you'll learn the skills needed to change the way you think, and in doing so change the direction of your life. Read the book that has inspired millions to take control of destructive thought patterns and revolutionize the way they think. This self-improvement book is a must-read and is filled with insights into the human mind.
This American short story is now one of the most famous of American short stories and has been adapted into many variations.
One of the most influential books of the 20th century, this is Nietzsche's provocative and thought-provoking work of philosophy questioning centuries of Western tradition, thought and morality. Building on Nietzsche's, Thus Spoke Zarathustra, Beyond Good and Evil is a critical response to religion and other systems of moral conventions.
A rich nephew from the West is coming to town, and Carrie and her daughter Luella are desperate to make a lasting impression. Ashamed with their own modest lifestyle, they flee hoping to find new riches and impress Donald and leave Aunt Crete - a modest old lady treated by Carrier and Luella as a slave - to greet the guest. Donald ends up impressed with Aunt Crete and treats her kingly, but what will Carrie and Luella have to say about it?
Candide is a French satire by Voltaire, a philosopher of the Age of Enlightenment. It begins with a young man, Candide, who is living a sheltered life in an Edenic paradise and being indoctrinated with Leibnizian optimism (or simply Optimism) by his mentor, Pangloss. The work describes the abrupt cessation of this lifestyle, followed by Candide's slow, painful disillusionment as he witnesses and experiences great hardships in the world. Voltaire concludes with Candide, if not rejecting optimism outright, advocating a deeply practical precept, "we must cultivate our garden", in lieu of the Leibnizian mantra of Pangloss, "all is for the best in the best of all possible worlds".
When the young Montgomery Brewster inherits one million dollars from his grandfather, his luck is only about to get better. His rich and eccentric uncle dies just a short time later, and Brewster finds some very interesting conditions in his uncle's will. He stands to inherit seven million dollars as long as he spends every dime of his grandfather's money in the course of a year. Originally written in 1902, Brewster's Millions is a charming story of wealth and responsibility.
Ian McLaren's Beside the Bonnie Brier Bush became a manifesto of non-violent protest used by Gandhi and Martin Luther King about how the individuals shouldn't permit governments to revoke their consciences.
An original account of the speech Socrates makes at the trial in which he is charged with not recognizing the gods recognized by the state, inventing new deities, and corrupting the youth of Athens.
Dutch Kaspar Almayer, a trader married to a native Malayan and father of one daughter Nina, is obsessed with wealth. He seeks in vain the lost treasure of Borneo and waits for the British conquerors in his unfinished house named by a fellow seaman ‘Almayer’s Folly.’ A local prince in love with Nina swears to help the Dutch find the gold but can he be trusted?
This second novel from Conrad details the undoing of Peter Willems, a disreputable, immoral man who, on the run from a scandal in Makassar, finds refuge in a hidden native village, only to betray his benefactors over lust for the tribal chief's daughter.
This short story with a twist by American author, Ambrose Bierce is set during the American Civil War. It's the story of Peyton Farquhar, a Confederate sympathizer condemned to death by hanging from Owl Creek Bridge. This story has been hailed as an early pioneer in "stream of consciousness" storytelling.
