Tess of the d'urbervilles

Censored on its release in 1841, Tess of the d’Urbervilles challenged attitudes with its depiction of a woman forced into a chain of painful circumstances by her social status and by the often cruel treatment of friends, family and the men who loved her. At once a novel of character and a sharply...

The devil's paw

In the midst of World War I, the son of a British aristocrat and daughter of an English colonel are roped into a treasonous plot. They must navigate secret agents and spies who are convinced of their guilt. A chance meeting between Catherine Abbeway and Julian Orden leads to an intricate tale of ...

The time machine

A Victorian gentleman arrives late to a party and reveals he used a machine of his own invention to travel time and has returned from a journey that took him 100,000 years into the future and beyond to the fading of the sun. The Time Machine by H.G. Wells endures as a work of unprecedented imagin...

The fate of a crown

The Fate of a Crown (1905) is a novel by L. Frank Baum. Although he is more widely known as the author of the Land of Oz series, Baum also used several pseudonyms to make forays into more conventional fiction for adults. The Fate of a Crown, written under the pen name “Schuyler Staunton,” is a st...

The night-born

Written by the beloved author, Jack London, The Night-Born is a compelling collection of ten short works of fiction, each featuring an interesting protagonist. The Madness of John Harned is narrated by a wealthy Ecuadorian man who attends a bull fight with his cousin, Maria, and the American man...

Elements of criticism

Elements of Criticism (1762) is a philosophical work by Henry Home, Lord Kames. Published at the height of his career as a leading legal and cultural figure of the Scottish Enlightenment, Elements of Criticism has been credited as a crucial academic work in the development of modern English liter...

Ethiopia unbound

Considered the first pan-Africanist work of fiction and among the earliest English novels written by an African author, Ethiopia Unbound: Studies in Race Emancipation is a classic of Ghanaian literature that continues to resonate with modern readers today. “[T]he Nations were casting about for an...

Anne of avonlea

As a young woman, Anne Shirley is embracing adulthood by becoming a productive member of society making the transition from imaginative student to respected schoolteacher. In this classic coming of age story, Anne navigates various challenges that tempt old habits and test her new maturity. A no...

Azul

Azul… (1888) is a book of stories and poems by Rubén Darío. Written while the poet was living in Chile, Azul… has been recognized as a pioneering work of Hispanic Modernism that launched the career of a leading Latin American poet. Both experimental and traditional, Azul… blends Darío’s concern o...

The well at the world's end

The youngest son of King Peter, leaves his family home to explore the world, meet new people, and discover the Well at the World’s End. It’s an unconventional hero’s journey that takes the protagonist on a life-changing adventure. King Peter has four sons, all of whom are eager to leave home. He...

The grizzly king

James Langdon enjoys his practice of hunting bears in the forests of Canada, convinced that there are few greater thrills. However, as he sets out on a hunt for a towering grizzly bear, Langdon makes a stunning discovery. Different from the start, the hunt begins after the giant grizzly, who is n...

Love among the chickens

Jeremy Garnet is an author from England. In hopes of writing his work-in-progress in peace, Garnet attempts to leave town when he hears that his old friend, Ukridge visits with his new wife, Millie. However, his escape plan is unrealized when Ukridge and Millie quickly seek him out. Though Garnet...

Miss million's maid

Miss Million’s Maid (1913) is a romance novel by Berta Ruck. After a decade of publishing stories in literary magazines, Ruck began releasing romance novels to popular acclaim. Miss Million’s Maid is a satirical tale of love, work, and modern life that continues to entertain over a century after ...

The enchanted castle

Three children on holiday from school discover an old, seemingly abandoned estate set in the rural landscape of southwestern England. Convinced they’ve stumbled upon a castle, they embark on a fairy tale adventure, exploring its grounds and discovering, at the heart of its garden maze, a mystery ...

A strange manuscript found in a copper cylinder

A Strange Manuscript Found in a Copper Cylinder (1888) is a novel by James De Mille. Originally serialized in Harper’s Weekly, the novel was published posthumously and, at first, anonymously. Although De Mille’s work predated such popular Lost World novels as H. Rider Haggard’s She (1887) and Kin...

The reign of greed

The Reign of Greed (1891) is a novel by José Rizal. Published in Belgium, the novel was a sequel to Touch Me Not (1887), both of which were written in Spanish. Blending aspects of his own life story with his critique of Spanish imperialism in the Philippines, Rizal continues the journey of Crisós...

Doña perfecta

Doña Perfecta (1876) is a novel by Benito Pérez Galdós. Published toward the beginning of Pérez Galdós’ career, Doña Perfecta is a powerful story of romance and religion that raises timeless questions regarding the meaning of love and the restrictions placed on individual lives by the Catholic Ch...

The canterbury tales

A knight, a monk, a merchant, a summoner, and a wife all walk into an inn, and realize they are in the company of many others who intend to make the same pilgrimage to Canterbury. As a group of English people all gather at the Tabard inn, they learn that they will be travelling together. Usually...

Martin eden

“[Jack London was] a great gobbler-up of the world, physically and intellectually, the kind of writer who went to a place and wrote his dreams into it, the kind of writer who found an Idea and spun his psyche around it.”—E.L. DoctorowMartin Eden (1909) is a novel by American writer Jack London. T...

Esther waters

Esther Waters (1894) is a novel by George Moore. Considered his best novel, it was an immediate critical and commercial success, and has since been adapted several times for theater, film, and television. Like much of Moore’s work, Esther Waters shows the influence of French naturalist writer Émi...

Martin rivas

Martín Rivas (1862) is a novel by Alberto Blest Gana. Regarded as the first Chilean novel, Martín Rivas is a powerful story of romance, class, and national unity from an author who served for decades as a diplomat and ambassador for Chile. Inspired by the social realism of Honoré de Balzac, Blest...

Amalia

Amalia: A Romance of the Argentine (1851) is a novel by José Mármol. Originally serialized while Mármol lived in exile in Montevideo, the novel became a symbol of Argentine national identity following the defeat of brutal dictator Juan Manuel de Rosas in 1852. Mármol, a leading critic of the Rosi...

The place of dragons

The Place of Dragons (1916) is a mystery novel by Anglo-French writer William Le Queux. Published at the height of Le Queux’s career as a leading author of popular thrillers, The Place of Dragons is a story of mystery, murder, and suspicion. Using his own research and experience as a journalist a...

The heir

The Heir (1922) is a novel by Vita Sackville-West. While she is most widely recognized as the lover of English novelist Virginia Woolf, Sackville-West was a popular and gifted poet, playwright, and novelist in her own right. A prominent lesbian and bohemian figure, Sackville-West was also the dau...

The collected meditations of mrs. maria w. stewart

The Collected Meditations of Mrs. Maria W. Stewart (2021) compiles the speeches and writings of Maria W. Stewart. This groundbreaking collection includes some of the best works from across Stewart’s career as the first African American public lecturer, including Meditations from the Pen of Mrs. M...

Wreck of the pacific

Wreck of the Pacific (1841) is a novel by Frederick Marryat. Inspired by the author’s experience as a captain in the Royal Navy, Wreck of the Pacific is a tale of disaster and survival on the high seas. Responding to such novels as Robinson Crusoe (1719) and The Swiss Family Robinson (1812), Marr...

In a german pension

In a German Pension captures the youthful views of esteemed writer, Katherine Mansfield, who jumpstarted her illustrious career with a series of remarkable short stories. It showcases her growth and scope as a formidable nineteenth century writer.A captivating collection of short stories centerin...

The schoolmistress and other stories

The Schoolmistress and Other Stories (1920) is a collection of short stories by Russian writer Anton Chekhov. “The Schoolmistress” was written in 1897 and published in an issue of Moscow’s daily newspaper Russkiye Vedomosti. Even for Chekhov, whose work is characteristically bleak and noted for i...

Judith wynne

After the death of their patriarch, and a devastating fever that killed all but two of the children, the surviving Reece family, Mrs. Reece, Wolfgang, and Oscar, are left with just the vast property their family had owned for generations. Despite their poor financial situation, the family happily...

The interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano

A first-person narrative of Olaudah Equiano’s journey from his native Africa to the New World, that follows his capture, introduction to Christianity and eventual release. His story is an eye-opening depiction of personal resilience in the face of structural oppression. Olaudah Equiano’s origi...

The violet fairy book

Originally published in 1901, The Violet Fairy Book is a compilation of international fables from various locales including Japan, Romania, Portugal, Lithuania, Serbia and Africa. Andrew Lang delivers a comprehensive collection of some of the most beloved tales each region has to offer. The Viole...

The secret of the night

The Secret of the Night (1913) is a novel by French writer Gaston Leroux. The Secret of the Night marked the third appearance of popular character Joseph Rouletabille, a reporter and part-time sleuth who features in several of Leroux’s novels. Originally a journalist, Leroux turned to fiction aft...

Sword blades and poppy seed

Sword Blades and Poppy Seed (1914) is a poetry collection by Amy Lowell. Published at the beginning of her career as an influential imagist devoted to classical poetic themes and forms, Sword Blades and Poppy Seed is an agile and promising work from a pioneering poet of the early twentieth centur...

The fat and the thin

The Fat and the Thin (1873) is a novel by French author Émile Zola. The third of twenty volumes of Zola’s monumental Les Rougon-Macquart series is an epic story of family, politics, class, and history that traces the disparate paths of several French citizens raised by the same mother. Spanning t...

The mummy!

Set in 2126, The Mummy!: A Tale of the Twenty-Second Century explores a society led by advanced technology but driven by ego, greed and self-preservation. It’s a vivid clash of genres featuring an old tale with a new twist. In the distant future, society has become enthralled by technology. It’...

The "genius"

The “Genius” (1915) is a novel by Theodore Dreiser. Based partly on his own experience as an artist from the Midwest, The “Genius” examines the nature of talent, the difficulty of desire, and the meaning of faith itself. Although he had high hopes for the novel, reviews were mixed, and sales suff...

The bishop and other stories