When James Boswell persuaded Samuel Johnson to embark on a tour of Boswell's native Scotland in 1773, the adventure resulted in two magnificent books, Johnson's Journey to the Western Islands of Scotl
Mulliner has an endless supply of brothers, nephews and cousins who feature in the tales with which he entertains the regulars in his favourite pub. There is George, the stammerer, who finds the coura
Presents a collection of stories in which familiar characters and places are reintroduced in unfamiliar circumstances. This volume includes longest and shorter fictions.
In the opening volume of Proust's great novel, the narrator travels backwards in time in order to tell the story of a love affair that had taken place before his own birth. All Proust's great themes -
In The Guermantes Way Proust's narrator recalls his initiation into the dazzling world of Parisian high society. Looking back over his time in the glamorous salons of the aristocracy, he satirises thi
Closely linked to the Arthurian legends - King Arthur himself appears in one of the stories - they summon up a world of mystery and magic which is still evoked by the landscape so vividly described in
It has been said that, after the Bible, Plato's dialogues are the most influential books in Western culture. In both dialogues, Socrates plays the leading role, by turns teasing, arguing, analyzing, j
Gussie Fink-Nottle simply must marry Madeline Bassett or Bertrand Wooster will be obliged to proffer the ring in his stead. In a daring attempt at securing the engagement, Jeeves and Bertie visit a ru
Celebrating the beauty of the world in poems about love, wine and poetry itself, or telling anecdotes of everyday life, this book set these themes in the wider religious and philosophical context of I
For Bertie Wooster's old friend has fallen in love with Madeline Bassett and, as usual, makes a hash of the affair until Jeeves comes to the rescue. In the meantime, Jeeves must also solve the mystery
Dumas' most popular novel, The Three Musketeers, has long been a favourite with children, and its heroes are well-known from many a film and TV adaption. Set in France in the seventeenth century, it f
The single most important book in the history of all Christian literature is presented here in the Authorized Version which has exerted such a profound influence on both spiritual life and the literar
Begun as a parody of Richardson's moralistic and sentimental novel "Pamela", Joseph Andrews grew under Fielding's hand into a satirical fiction in its own right. In the story, the virtuous hero is ove
In the comic masterpiece which established him one of the greatest writers in the English language, Naipaul follows the fortunes of Mr Biswas, the outsider who refuses to conform to the customs of his
A burlesque epic in the tradition of The Good Soldier Schweik, this title exposes the absurdity of war by applying its own demented logic to America's involvement in Korea. The 'catch' is that soldier
In a book which put South America on the map, Marquez tells the story of a community lost in the depths of that mighty continent where time passes slowly. The book's magic realism is its distinguishin
Each of the 21 chapters in this autobiography takes its title and starting point from one of the elements in the periodic table. Mingling fact and fiction, science and personal record, history and ane
Originally published as a serial in the children's monthly magazine ST NICHOLAS, LITTLE LORD FAUNTLEROY was Frances Hodgson Burnett's first children's novel and on its publication in book form in Octo
First published as a serial in YOUNG FOLKS between May and July 1886 and now reprinted in an Everyman edition on the centenary of Stevenson's death. KIDNAPPED is an adventure story that has become the
First published in 1852, this collection of Greek myths and legends was adapted by Hawthorne in a romantic and readable style, to remove the classical tales from what he called "cold moonshine".
Among the best loved of all classics for children are the tales of Mowgli, the boy who learned the law of the jungle as he grew up among a pack of wolves in India's Seeonee Hills. First published in 1
Written in six weeks, and at first thought by its editor to be 'dull', this story of an American family - four sisters and their mother living through the months while father is away in the Civil War
Thomas Paine, though an Englishman by birth, was a distinguished public figure in both 18th-century France and the United States. The two books presented in this volume elaborate upon his political an
A romantic story with descriptions of working people and their lives, as the author encountered them in northern mills. Despite this grim setting, the book has the power to involve the reader in the l
This account of the Roman Empire was in its time a landmark in classical and historiographical scholarship and remains a powerful contribution to the interpretation of Roman history.
This novel renews the Victorian family saga in a modern setting, tracing the history of the Brangwens through several generations. The book was banned when it first appeared in 1915 for its sensuous i
Young Nanda Brookenham fights to preserve her honesty in the brilliant but corrupt world of her parents, in a story of innocence betrayed but preserved. Its scene construction and dialogue point to Ja
ON WAR is the most significant attempt in Western history to understand war, both in its internal dynamics and as an instrument of policy. Since the work's first appearance in 1832 it has been read th
Set in Yorkshire, and first published in 1911, this is the story of two spoilt and lonely children who regain happiness by restoring a neglected garden. It was inspired by the rose garden in Great May
First published in 1912, this is a modern version of "Cinderella", told in the form of letters. It is the love-story of an orphan and her unknown benefactor, written and illustrated by the great-niece
This most beloved of all fairy tales is told in many versions and found in many different cultures - from the Italian CENERANTOLA to the Russian CHERNUSHKA For this edition, first published in 1919, C
First published in 1925, this traces a day in the life of society hostess, Clarissa Dalloway. It is Woolf's first complete rendering of her "stream of consciousness" mode, which displays the inner wor
In this classic of American literature, Thoreau gives an account of his two years' experience of the 'simple life' in the woods, telling how he sought and found material and spiritual sustenance in th
First published in 1922, and modelled on Homer's "Odyssey", this is Joyce's account of one day in 1904 in the life of Dublin. It is an earthy story which focuses on the humble Lionel Bloom and his sen
An account of a man haunted by the Devil in the form of his own evil double. Hogg's 1824 novel, set in 17th century Scotland, anticipates Dostoevsky's great dramas of sin, self-accusation and damnatio
Aesop is believed to have lived in the sixth century B.C., a slave on the Greek island of Samos. His ability to teach lessons in morality through story has made his name synonymous with the genre of '
Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tales originally appeared in batches each Christmas in the mid-19th century, and Spink's English translation was first published in 1960. This edition has Heath Robinso
First published in Germany in 1812, these tales were collected by the two brothers Grimm from neighbouring villages and spinning rooms, and include Hansel and Gretel, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs a
Kipling began these stories in Vermont, to amuse his daughter when they were living in his wife's home town. The comic explanations, such as how the camel got his hump and how the whale got his throat
