On a drowsy afternoon by a riverbank, a young and distracted Alice follows a rabbit into a fantastical underground world that grows curiouser and curiouser. Dared, insulted, amused, and threatened by
Young midwesterner Amory Blaine is certain he is destined for greatness. On his quest, he enrolls in Princeton, finds an ephemeral first love, fulfills his duty in war, and becomes enraptured by debut
Frederick Douglass’s celebrated memoir is among the most influential works of the nineteenth-century abolitionist movement in the United States. Beginning with his birth on a Maryland plantation
The great drinking hall, Heorot, provides merriment for warriors and wenches alike. But it provokes only avenging rage from swamp creature Grendel. Now, in sixth-century Denmark’s darkest hour,
William Shakespeare (1564–1616) was born in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, to a middle-class glover and a landowner’s daughter. He married Anne Hathaway in 1582 and moved to London to
Festivities are underway in Athens as Duke Theseus prepares to marry Hippolyta, queen of the Amazons. But before the revelry can begin, four young lovers, a roving band of craftsmen, and the quarrelin
As war rages between Venice and Turkey, Othello, a Moorish general in the Venetian army, is determined to lead his men to victory with his trusted ensign, Iago. But, after being passed up for a promot
One night on the heath, the brave and respected general Macbeth encounters three witches who foretell that he will become king of Scotland. At first skeptical, he’s urged on by the ruthless, sin
For years, Prospero, sorcerer and overthrown Duke of Milan, and his daughter, Miranda, have been marooned on an island of magic, both good and evil. When a ship carrying his usurping brother sails wit
After his ships and money are lost at sea, Antonio, a prominent Venetian merchant, cannot repay a loan to Shylock, the Jewish moneylender and long-suffering target of his ridicule. Antonio must rely o
A portrait of Colonel Pyncheon looms over his family in the house of the seven gables—an ominous reminder of the curse he left behind over a century ago.The shadow still falls over the New Engla
Emma Bovary, daughter of an uneducated farmer and wife of a dull doctor in northern France, harbors a passion for everything beyond her grasp—sophistication, romance, love, and deliverance from
Fast-paced and suspenseful, The Last of the Mohicans follows an intrepid group of frontiersmen and Native Americans as they navigate the rugged terrain of both the landscape and their racial differenc
On vacation in Grand Isle, Louisiana, a married woman falls in love with a charming, attentive young man. The relationship spurs Edna Pontellier to explore her longing for independence and creative fu
Poor boy Tom Canty admires the royals who seem so far out of his reach in sixteenth-century English society, but when he meets young Prince Edward, he realizes they are very much alike. They share the
In this definitive collection of essays, including the poignant title essay “Self-Reliance,” Ralph Waldo Emerson expounds on the importance of trusting your soul, as well as divine provide
Lithuanian immigrant Jurgis Rudkus has invested every last hope in achieving a prosperous new start in a new country. But the only job open to him—in the appalling stockyards of Packingtown, Chi
John Clayton III, an orphan boy, comes of age in the western coastal jungles of Africa following the tragic deaths of his aristocratic parents. Raised in the ways of the apes by his adoptive mother, K
At Walden Pond, Henry David Thoreau reflected on simpler living in the natural world. By removing himself from the distractions of materialism, Thoreau hoped to not only improve his spiritual life but
Dr. Henry Jekyll, fascinated by the dichotomy of good and evil, no longer wants to inhibit his dark side. He concocts a potion to create the alter ego of Mr. Edward Hyde. With the burden of evil place
Orphaned at birth to labor in a workhouse, Oliver Twist is barely ten when he flees for London. There he befriends young Jack Dawkins, who educates the innocent Oliver in the ways of survival. When Ja
There’s only one way for Professor George Edward Challenger to prove that dinosaurs still roam the earth. He invites skeptical journalist Edward Malone to accompany him and a group of adventurer
Featured title in the 2018 PBS Great American ReadsAs a New England mother struggles to support her family in the wake of her husband’s service in the Civil War, her four daughters struggle, too
Featured title in the 2018 PBS Great American ReadsIn the wealthy and vain hedonist Dorian Gray, London painter Basil Hallward has found his muse. Only when the portrait of Dorian begins to age, while
Featured title in the 2018 PBS Great American ReadsRaised in squalor in the marsh country of Kent, the orphan Pip is taken under the wing of the eccentric and reclusive Miss Havisham—only to bli
Featured title in the 2018 PBS Great American ReadsLiving in a squalid room in St. Petersburg, the indigent but proud Rodion Raskolnikov believes he is above society. Obsessed with the idea of breakin
Wronged by human and beast alike, White Fang has endured through brazen ferocity. An enemy of his kind, he is sold to a dogfighter who pits him against other canines to the death—until a Yukon g
Featured title in the 2018 PBS Great American ReadsRiver steamboat captain Charles Marlow has set forth on the Congo in Africa to find the enigmatic European trader Mr. Kurtz. Preceded by his reputati
Direct and coldly pragmatic, Niccolò Machiavelli’s The Prince is the preeminent guide to winning and maintaining power at the highest levels, where deception and manipulation are necessary
Influenced by Ralph Waldo Emerson and the transcendentalist movement, Walt Whitman’s groundbreaking collection of poetry broke from the meditative traditions of the symbolic, the allegorical, an
In rural Victorian England, the willful Bathsheba Everdene is courted by three men: her repressed neighbor, a devoted shepherd, and a thriftless soldier. They cross and clash again and again in traged
Featured title in the 2018 PBS Great American ReadsIn this classic American adventure, Jack London explores the laws of civilization and wilderness—and the pull of instinct—through the eye
Featured title in the 2018 PBS Great American ReadsEleven-year-old orphan Anne Shirley has just arrived at Green Gables, and already her guardians want to send her back. First, she’s not the boy
In her moving account of how she came to understand the world around her despite being blind and deaf since childhood, Helen Keller confirms that no physical obstacle can hinder the achievements of th
What is justice? In Plato’s Socratic dialogue, The Republic, the citizens of ancient Greece explore the world’s most fundamental question.In search of an ideal civilization, Socrates leads
In exploring everyday life and its intersections with death, this enduring collection of stories offers a naturalistic depiction of the working class in early twentieth-century Dublin. Joyce masterful
Henry Fleming is a young private in the Union army during the American Civil War—a farm boy untested by battle.Faced with charging rebels, he flees. With his ideals shattered and his heart burde
After the death of their father, sisters Elinor and Marianne Dashwood face financial ruin. At the mercy of their half brother, John, and his greedy wife, their only hope is to make a good match. But r
