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Herland is a utopian novel from 1915, written by feminist Charlotte Perkins Gilman. The book describes an isolated society comprised entirely of Aryan women who reproduce via parthenogenesis (asexual reproduction). The result is an ideal social order, free of war, conflict and domination. It first appeared as a serial in Perkin's monthly magazine Forerunner . (Summary from Wikipedia)...

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Science fiction, Philosophy

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The Mysteries of Paris (French: Les Mystères de Paris) is a novel by Eugène Sue which was published serially in Journal des débats from June 19, 1842 until October 15, 1843. Les Mystères de Paris singlehandedly increased the circulation of Journal des débats. There has been lots of talk on the origins of the French novel of the 19th century: Stendhal, Balzac, Dumas, Gautier, Sand or Hugo. One often forgets Eugène Sue. Still, The Mysteries of Paris occupies a unique space in the birth of this literary genre: it entranced thousands of readers for more than a year (even illiterates who had episodes read to them) and was also a major work in the formation of a certain form of social consciousness. One often hears that the 1848 revolution was partly born in the pages of the Mysteries of Paris or, more appropriately, that the Mysteries of Paris helped create a climate which allowed the 1848 revolution to occur.The hero of the novel is the mysterious and distinguished Rodolphe, who is really the Grand Duke of Gérolstein (a fictional country) but is disguised as a Parisian worker. Rodolphe can speak in argot, is extremely strong and a good ...

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Mystery, Fantasy, Adventure

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Excerpt: Selected Writings by Guy de Maupassant: Short Stories of the Tragedy and Comedy of Life with a critical preface by Paul Bourget of the French Academy and an introduction by Robert Arnot, M.A....

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Contents INTRODUCTION...................................................................................................................................................... 15 MADEMOISELLE FIFI ............................................................................................................................................... 22 AN AFFAIR OF STATE............................................................................................................................................... 36 THE ARTIST ................................................................................................................................................................ 46 THE HORLA................................................................................................................................................................ 51 MISS HARRIET........................................................................................................................................................... 80 THE HOLE.........................................................................................................................

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Julie Le Breton enchants almost everyone around her with her smart, charm, and excellent manners. She almost belongs to the English highest nobility, but just almost… Her parents, 2 aristocrats who ran away from England in order to be together, could never marry - because her mother was married to someone else. Therefore, she is forced to work for the cruel Lady Henry Delafield, who hates her. She has a few good friends, amongst whom are 2 admirers… And that is only the beginning. This is a compelling drama, set mostly in England, among the English aristocracy. By turns smart, funny and moving, it's the story of a strong and good woman- just trying to survive and make the correct choices. But sometimes, doing what is right doesn't make you happy. Only by giving up the man she loves, can Julie get the honorable place she deserves- beside a man whos strong love for her saved her. This novel has been adapted for a play in Broadway in 1903 (the year in which it was published), and a silent film in 1920. Summary by Stav Nisser....

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Fiction

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The Moon and Sixpence is a 1919 short novel by William Somerset Maugham based on the life of the painter Paul Gauguin. The story is told in episodic form by the first-person narrator as a series of glimpses into the mind and soul of the central character, Charles Strickland, a middle aged English stock broker who abandons his wife and children abruptly to pursue his desire to become an artist....

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Fiction

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Most times, especially in the time when this book was written (1895), it is just as nature and society would wish: a man and woman fall in love and get married. But it is not so for Herminia Barton and Alan Merrick. They do indeed fall in love, but Herminia has a deeply held belief in freedom for women, and she holds immutable views against what she perceives as the slavery of marriage. Alan unwillingly agrees to her strong wish to remain unmarried and to live together as close and dear friends. When the birth of their child is imminent, they go to his beloved Italy to avoid the condemnation of English society. From this point on, many questions are raised: is marriage indeed so important? Is strong will always good? Is it right to go against society? And if it is, when should we stop and consider the effects on other people? What should a child do when she is raised to be what her mother dreams and develops her own dreams in the process? And, finally, how much should parents sacrifice for their children? (Summary by Stav Nisser and Ruth Golding)...

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Fiction

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George Gissing's 1893 novel takes on the 19th century Woman Question by looking at themes of feminism, marriage, and love. The novel raises these issues through the lives of several contrasting women: Mary Barfoot, a feminist philanthropist who helps train women for careers; her close friend Rhoda Nunn, who believes marriage is a disastrous choice for women; and Monica Madden, who starts out as one of their protegees but chooses to marry a seemingly kind older man. As Monica experiences the challenges of married life, Rhoda finds herself drawn to Mary's cousin, the charming but apparently profligate Everard. (Summary by Elizabeth Klett)...

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Fiction

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This book is the second in Bennett’s four books about life in the Five Towns (the real life Potteries in Staffordshire). It tells the story of Hilda before her marriage to Edwin Clayhanger (from the first book). Bennett explores Hilda's ambition to make a career for herself, her coming of age and her working experiences as a shorthand clerk and keeper of a lodging house in London and Brighton. He also shows her intensifying relationship with the enigmatic George Cannon that ends in her disastrous bigamous marriage and pregnancy, and finally her reconciliation with Edwin Clayhanger (Summary by Simon Evers)...

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Fiction

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The Damnation of Theron Ware (published in England as Illumination) is an 1896 novel by American author Harold Frederic. It is widely considered a classic of American realism. The novel reveals a great deal about turn-of-the-century provincial America, religious life, and the depressed state of intellectual and artistic culture in small towns. The novel centers on the life of a Methodist pastor named Theron Ware who has recently moved to a fictional small town in the Adirondack Mountains of upstate New York, which Frederic modeled after Utica, New York. A promising young pastor recently married, Theron has a number of experiences that cause him to begin to question the Methodist religion, his role as a priest and even the very existence of God. His moral decline (or illumination) is heightened through his dealings with Father Forbes, the town's Catholic priest; Dr. Ledsmar, a local atheist, philosopher, and man of science; and Celia, a local Irish Catholic girl, a species of aesthete, with whom Theron becomes hopelessly infatuated....

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Fiction

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When Belinda was published in 1801, it became both controversial and popular. Controversial because of the inter-racial marriage presented in the novel, and popular because it's a very good comedy of manners, like Evelina by Fanny Burney. Belinda, like Evelina, is a soft and loving girl of 17, is coming to London with her aunt who directs her action in order to make sure that she'll find a good match. But what will happen if Belinda will fall in love? Will Clarence Hervey, the man she loves, be able to marry her? It seems almost impossible, as he is secretly bringing up another woman to be a perfect wife to him and now, in all honor, he thinks he must marry her. These social novels about young women trying to find good husbands were admired by Jane Austen who referred to Belinda, among other novels, in her own novel Northanger Abbey: “'And what are you reading, Miss — ?' 'Oh! It is only a novel!' replies the young lady, while she lays down her book with affected indifference, or momentary shame. 'It is only Cecilia, or Camilla, or Belinda'; or, in short, only some work in which the greatest powers of the mind are displayed, in which...

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Fiction

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Have you ever wondered what happened to Cinderella after she married the prince? Have you ever asked yourself if it was really happy ever after? Actually, in this Victorian melodrama, it's not. 35-years-old Emily Fox-Seton, quite penniless and a little lonely, saves herself from becoming an old maid by agreeing to a marriage proposal from the marquess of Walderhurst, thus becoming one of the richest Marchionesses in England. She is naïve, kind and good. She doesn't believe that people are really willing to hurt her, but why are all these strange accidents happening? This novel is divided into 2 parts. The first, The Making Of A Marchioness tells about the odd courtship of Emily and lord Walderhurst. The second part, The Methods of Lady Walderhurst, most of the book, tells what happens after… This adult fairy tale, which, by mistakes, becomes a realistic novel, is a captivating book. I wish you all a wonderful reading. (Summary by Stav Nisser)...

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Fiction

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The author, Ben Hecht, was a prolific writer as well as a renowned screenwriter, producer, and director of films. His screenwriting skills include some of the most popular films of Hollywood's golden era, including Gone With the Wind, Wuthering Heights, Spellbound, and Scarface, to name but a few. Hecht had already established himself as a novelist and an author of short stories when Gargoyles was published. Gargoyles delves deep into the psyches of individuals and of their relationships within social classes, revealing both the darker sides and the sentimental sides. Sometimes the characteristics, values and ethics of his characters are altered over time, as they (sometimes unwittingly) look within themselves and acknowledge what they valued most, how their egos affect their decisions and ethics, yet not always understanding the reasons those values are so crucial to them. What we learn is the results of these changes, as we center on the lives of George Basine, his friends, and his family, and most importantly, the masks that each wore. (Summary by Roger Melin)...

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Fiction

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Clodagh, 18 years old, is the eldest daughter of Dennis Asshlin, an Irish gentleman who lives in an area of Ireland called Orristown. Dennis is passionate, proud and indebted to no one. But, Dennis has an obsession with gambling that is leading the family to ruin. When tragedy strikes, Clodagh finds herself in a situation where she must defend the family honor because “no Asshlin is ever obliged to anyone”. She marries a man she does not love who is many times her age and is thrust from adolescence to adulthood literally overnight. Clodagh travels to Europe and mingles with people of society and fashion which through her immaturity, she believes is her right. She finds instead uncertainty, despondency, and deceit. Her emotions are constantly in battle with reality as she discovers her society acquaintances are not the “friends” she believes them to be. During her visit to Europe, Clodagh discovers that she too is burdened with the Asshlin curse for gambling which eventually leads to more heartbreak. A chance encounter seems to change her life and she returns to Ireland, only once again to be thwarted by the Asshlin curse. A surprise...

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Fiction

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Anna Karenina tells of the doomed love affair between the sensuous and rebellious Anna and the dashing officer, Count Vronsky. Tragedy unfolds as Anna rejects her passionless marriage to follow her heart and must endure the hypocrisies of society. (Summary by Mary Anderson) In Book 5 we see the new life begun by Levin and Kitty contrasted with that of Anna and Vronsky. The seeds of Anna's and Vronsky's discontent are sown....

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Fiction

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“Thy Soul shall bear Witness” (Körkarlen) by the Swedish Nobel Laureate Selma Lagerlöf is a kind of spooky Novel. It was first published in 1912 and in English in 1922, the same year as the international release of the Silent Movie “The Phantom Carriage”, today considered a classic movie, and one that strongly influenced the Swedish Director Ingmar Bergman. A second Movie based on the Novel was made again in 1958. In English the Novel is today very rare, very few copies are said to exist. - It is New Years Eve. David Holm who has become a depraved drunkard is sitting with some comrades in a Church-Yard, drinking, and telling a story he has heard some years earlier from a friend, George, about the Death-Cart, and how a person who dies on New-Years eve when the clock strikes Midnight will have to take over the Death-Cart as driver. The Death-Cart is a beaten-down horse-drawn carriage, drawn by a very old, one eyed horse, which travels the earth to pick up the souls of the dead and take them to heaven or hell. And as it happens, after a brawl, David is dying in the Church-Yard just as the clock strikes midnight, and a cart, moving clos...

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Fiction

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The book is a social novel, dealing with Victorian views about sin and illegitimacy. It is a surprisingly compassionate portrayal of a 'fallen woman', a type of person normally outcast from respectable society. The title of the novel refers to the main character Ruth Hilton, an orphaned young seamstress who is seduced and then abandoned by gentleman Henry Bellingham. Ruth, pregnant and alone, is taken in by a minister and his sister. They conceal her single status under the pretence of widowhood in order to protect her child from the social stigma of illegitimacy. Ruth goes on to gain a respectable position in society as a governess, which is threatened by the return of Bellingham and the revelation of her secret. (Wikipedia)...

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Fiction

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The Job' is an early work by American novelist Sinclair Lewis. It is considered an early declaration of the rights of working women. The focus is on the main character, Una Golden, who desires to establish herself in a legitimate occupation while balancing the eventual need for marriage. The story takes place in the early 1900-1920's and takes Una from a small Pennsylvania town to New York. Forced to work due to family illness, Una shows a talent for the traditional male bastion of commercial real estate and, while valued by her company, she struggles to achieve the same status of her male coworkers. On a parallel track, her quest for traditional romance and love is important but her unique role as a working woman... makes it tough to find an appropriate suitor....

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Fiction

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Ellen Wood (1814-1887) was an English novelist, better known as Mrs. Henry Wood. She wrote over 30 novels, many of which (especially East Lynne which was a Victorian best seller and is still sometimes performed as a drama) enjoyed remarkable popularity. Lady Isabel Carlyle, a beautiful and refined young woman, leaves her hard-working but neglectful lawyer-husband and her infant children to elope with an aristocratic suitor. After he deserts her, and she bears their illegitimate child, Lady Isabel disguises herself and takes the position of governess in the household of her husband and his new wife. Summary by Wikipedia...

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Fiction

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Mary Augusta Ward was a very popular author at the end of the 19th century. The arrival of Marcella was discussed a lot in the London news papers. This popular novel tells about Marcella Boyce, a beauty of the 1880s, who thinks she truly believes in the values of socialism. A 21-year-old art student, she lives in a boarding house in Kensington until her father inherits Mellor Park, the family estate which is located in the Midlands. She unwillingly leaving her studies, all the things she loves and wants to do, and her friends, and starts her new life at Mellor Park, determined to help the poor people she sees around her. Then Aldous Raeburn, Tory candidate for Parliament and heir to Lord Maxwell's estate, falls in love with her. But Marcella is torn between her love of power and her power to love. But she'll have to learn in the hard way that high morals are apt to clash with reality. (Summary by Stav Nisser)...

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Fiction

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On Christmas Eve, two children, a brother and sister, leave their grandmother's house in an Alpine village and get lost in the mountain snow. They become trapped among the rock crystals of the frozen glacier. This short and gripping novel, by 19th century Austrian master Adalbert Stifter, influenced Thomas Mann and others with its suspenseful, simple, myth-like story and majestic depictions of nature. Poet W.H. Auden called the work a quiet and beautiful parable about the relation of people to places, of man to nature.(Introduction by Greg W.)...

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Fiction