Bereft of family and friends, Lucy Snowe flees her empty life in England to seek independence and fulfillment. Her gambit takes her to the Belgian town of Villette, where she secures a job teaching En
Born in Dublin in 1854, Oscar Wilde dazzled the salons of his day with supremely witty conversation and his ardent championship of a philosophy of aestheticism. As a writer, he produced The Importance
Faulkner's prolific publication history began at the age of 16 with poems and sketches for the Ole Miss campus newspaper, The Mississippian. The author continued to contribute to the publication
"One of France's great Renaissance thinkers, Montaigne was remarkably modern in his views. These highly readable essays reflect his thoughts on poetry, philosophy, theology, law, literature, education
Philosopher, soldier, and historian, Xenophon was a former student of Socrates who composed The Memorabilia many years after his teacher's trial and execution in 399 B.C. This collection of
Even if James Boswell hadn't written the The Life of Johnson, he would be famous for this memoir of eighteenth-century London life. Boswell arrived in the great metropolis from his native Edi
Fictional series of letters from a popular baseball hero to his friend. Humorous collection showcases Lardner as a satirical master at the peak of his form.
In this follow-up to his tremendously successful first novel, This Side of Paradise, F. Scott Fitzgerald again recaptures the Jazz Age's darker side as well as its excitement and joie de vivre.The
Generally considered something of a departure for Dostoyevsky, The Landlady was first published in 1847, when most of the author's classic novels were still in his future. Set in Saint Peters
The Croatian-American inventor recounts the story of his life, from his schooling and work in Europe to his collaboration with Thomas Edison, discovery of the rotary magnetic field, and development of
Inspired by an actual court case that dragged on for more than 50 years, Dickens tale of the inheritance suit between Jarndyce and Jarndyce remains a standard metaphor for legal quagmires. The author
A revealing portrait of the hypocrisy and superficiality of high society, George Eliot's final novel also provides a glimpse of Jewish life in Victorian Britain. Daniel Deronda traces the intertwined
Mistakenly assumed to have drowned in the Thames, John Harmon assumes a new identity to get acquainted with Mr. and Mrs. Boffin, who are next in line for his inheritance, and with Bella Wilfer, whom h
The literary career of Henry James (1843–1916) ranks among the longest and most productive in American letters. The expatriate author, who ultimately adopted British citizenship, often portrayed
In his shorter fiction, Dickens felt free to investigate hitherto unexplored themes and to engage in experiments with narrative techniques. This collection presents some of the beloved storyteller's l
This lighthearted farce features an American under the spell of Britain's aristocracy and an English earl equally intrigued by American democracy. While eccentric inventor Colonel Mulberry Sellers
A scorching exposé of the Spanish government's corruption and abuses of power, this novel is famed as a catalyst to the Philippine Revolution. Noli Me Tángere was the first major artisti
A masterful work that recaptures the spirit of 18th-century English life, Tom Jones was an instant sensation upon its 1749 publication. The mock epic traces the adventures of its lusty, good-hearted h
Nearly a century before NASA, a visionary novelist wrote this adventure classic about an international space race. Jules Verne's eerily prophetic fantasy unfolds at the close of the Civil War, as
Acclaimed by critic Alfred Kazin as "a powerful, severe, and harshly comic portrayal of Irish immigrant life in lower New York," Stephen Crane's novel remains a classic of American literar
