First published in 1904, Betty Wales Freshman is the first book in an 8 volume series that follows Betty and her classmates throughout college and beyond. It takes place at Harding in New England (NOT to be confused with the Arkansas university) based on the author's time at Smith College in Massachusetts. Some humour and frivolity ensue as well as interpersonal drama among Betty and her many peers. And of course, the usual fascination with basketball that tends to run the gamut in the bountiful supply of books about most boarding school girls. (The popularity of this series inspired product placement by a dressmakers company.) (Summary by Daryl Wor)...

Fiction, Teen/Young adult

When Miss Billy closed, Miss Billy and Bertram were happily engaged. In this first sequel to Miss Billy will the path to wedded bliss run smooth or will misunderstandings and heartache cross their path? Find out in Miss Billy’s Decision ! (Summary by Maria Therese)...

Teen/Young adult

Excerpt: Verse by Edith Wharton.

Contents BOTTICELLI?S MADONNA ......................................................................................................... 4 IN THE LOUVRE ............................................................................................................................. 4 THE TOMB OF ILARIA GIUNIGI ............................................................................................... 4 THE SONNET ................................................................................................................................. 5 TWO BACKGROUNDS .................................................................................................................. 5 EXPERIENCE ................................................................................................................................. 6 CHARTRES...................................................................................................................................... 7 LIFE................................................................................................................................................... 8 AN AUTUMN SUNSET .............

This novel is based on the plot that describes the life of a young lady having worked as Assistant Professor at the University level. These days, she is engaged by a Trust, interested in promoting `mental illumination through peace of mind and self-confidence. She is going places to deliver lectures, keep in mind the aims of the organization as well as the composition of the audiences. In fact, since her infancy she is on the move from one part of India to another, even having no idea of the identity of the couple who parented her. Having been reared up by a domestic maid, she was obliged to inherit this type of job to earn for her livelihood. The onset of puberty in the proximity of unrelated men was to be withstood with caution and care for her chastity. These tours of lecturing around, once make her find a known lady in her audience in Delhi. This incident opens her the way to meet many people in this big city and take her to the person who fathered her. Here, she also gets the truthful information about her mother....

Dear Madhu Ji, On my way back home I recapitulated, as my routine exercise, the discussions at the Coffee House. Can you recall the reaction of Mr Malik to Lal's outburst against the final outcome of Dhananjay Chakrovarty's legal battle to ward off the Capital punishment pronounced on him for rape and murder of a minor girl, when he himself was just 21 years? ……………..." I suppose Mr. Malik came out with some amusing retort, which made almost the entire group at the table giggle and I could not make out anything but only observe Mr. Malik move towards the toilets. Respected Sir, I clearly heard your `Guruji`, I mean Mr Malik, murmur aloud, “Is there any punishment available to your civilized society to punish an errant woman who voluntarily and actively seduces and commits rape on an innocent, uninitiated and in the prime of his youth?” “Do you mean a rape amongst a Lesbian fraternity?” Mr. Lal Singh speaks out smilingly. Mr. Malik simply hung his head down and spoke in his normal pitch, “I mean, on a companion belonging to the opposite sex.” Having uttered these words Guruji peacefully got up and moved in a gentle pace towards pu...

This story whirls around plot that opens up when two ex-classmates happen to meet inadvertently, one on his official duty, while the other on past-time, enjoying holiday touring alone. Their next meeting, brings a female classfellow of theirs at the hill-station to make them enjoy one another’s company. This re-union continues to grow further during the years that follow. The author portrays just an account of certain events taking shape in the social sectors of these persons, making, breaking or remaking a marriage based on the choice of the persons involved into matrimony. ...

Hemant's intention in going to the H.P.T.D.C. hotel was, at the moment, influenced by the desire to meet Mr. Manmeet Malhotra, the manager. He also wanted thereby to express his gratitude to Mr. Malhotra who had arranged accommodation for him last night. Hemant was already under obligation of Mr Malhotra for his kind and affectionate treatment of Hemant when three years ago Hemant happened to meet him at the H.P.T.D.C. hotel at Manali where Manmeet Malhotra was working as an Astt Manager, those days. They were seeing each other after almost a decade since their graduation as students of S.R.C.C., Delhi. …………………….. "Well, how is `Bhabhiji`?" Hemant asked. For a few moments Manmeet held up his tongue tightly and only stared at Hemant with a smile on his face. Hemant thought that he had made a mistake. Perhaps, Triplem is still a bachelor like him. "But when I met him in Manali, he had told me that he had got married only three months before.” But Manmeet was quick enough to read the signs of perplexity in his friend's face and lost no time in explaining his position. ……………. He was not interested in knowing more about Ma...

Set during the Napoleonic Wars, this story features two French Hussar officers, D'Hubert and Feraud. Their quarrel over an initially minor incident turns into a bitter, long-drawn out struggle over the following fifteen years, interwoven with the larger conflict that provides its backdrop. At the beginning, Feraud is the one who jealously guards his honor and repeatedly demands satisfaction anew when a duelling encounter ends inconclusively; he aggressively pursues every opportunity to locate and duel his foe. As the story progresses, D'Hubert also finds himself caught up in the contest, unable to back down or walk away. This Conrad short story evidently has its genesis in the real duels that two French Hussar officers fought in the Napoleonic era. Their names were Dupont and Fournier, which Conrad disguised slightly, changing Dupont into D'Hubert and Fournier into Feraud. In 1977, it was turned into a movie, The Duellists, starring Keith Carradine and Harvey Keitel. (summary adapted from Wikipedia)...

Short stories, Historical Fiction

Poetry

The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman (or, more briefly, Tristram Shandy ) is a novel by Laurence Sterne. It was published in nine volumes, the first two appearing in 1759, and seven others following over the next 10 years. It was not always held in high esteem by other writers (Samuel Johnson responded that, Nothing odd can last), but its bawdy humour was popular with London society, and it has come to be seen as one of the greatest comic novels in English, as well as a forerunner for many modern narrative devices. (Summary from Wikipedia)...

Fiction, Literature

Apollonius of Tyre is the subject of an ancient short novella, popular during medieval times. Existing in numerous forms in many languages, the text is thought to be translated from an ancient Greek manuscript, now lost. The earliest manuscripts of the tale, in a Latin version, date from the 9th or 10th century; the most widespread Latin versions are those of Gottfried von Viterbo, who incorporated it into his Pantheon of 1185 as if it were actual history, and a version in the Gesta Romanorum. Shakespeare's play Pericles, Prince of Tyre was based in part on Gower's version, with the change of name probably inspired by Philip Sidney's Arcadia. Apollonius of Tyre was also a source for his plays Twelfth Night and The Comedy of Errors....

Humor, Historical Fiction

Excerpt: The Pickwick Papers, Volume Two by Charles Dickens.

Messieurs les ronds-de-cuir, de Georges Courteline, parut, pour la première fois, en feuilleton, dans l'Echo de Paris, au cours des années 1891-1892. Une version légèrement remaniée fut éditée, sous forme de livre, par Flammarion, en 1893. Le livre, constitué d'une suite de cinq tableaux, narre la vie de quelques employés d'un service administratif - celui des Dons et Legs - dont l'activité, suivie pendant quelques jours, dresse, sous le mode de la comédie, une satire féroce du monde des employés de bureau. (par Aldor)...

Het boek vertelt over de lotgevallen van een aantal slaven in en om een plantage in de Amerikaanse staat Kentucky. Onder hen zijn Eliza en vooral Oom Tom, slaven van de vriendelijke plantagebezitter Shelbey. Het verhaal begint op het moment dat hun leven ruw verstoord wordt door de financiële situatie van Shelbey, die zich gedwongen ziet Oom Tom en Eliza's zoontje te verkopen. Het boek beschrijft de poging van Eliza om met haar zoontje te vluchten. Intussen vlucht Eliza's man George ook - hij is slaaf van een andere eigenaar en wordt door zijn meester mishandeld. Oom Tom verzet zich niet tegen de verkoop. Hij wordt de Mississippi af gescheept, in de richting van de gevreesde katoenplantages en komt uiteindelijk in handen van de bullebak Simon Legree. (Samenvatting van Wikipedia)...

Fiction, Literature

Excerpt: Songs of Travel and other verses by Robert Louis Stevenson.

Contents* I - THE VAGABOND (To an air of Schubert) ........................................................................................................... 5 II - YOUTH AND LOVE - I ....................................................................................................................................... 6 III - YOUTH AND LOVE - II .................................................................................................................................... 6 XII - WE HAVE LOVED OF YORE (To an air of Diabelli) .................................................................................. 10 XIII - MATER TRIUMPHANS ............................................................................................................................... 10 XVI (To the tune of Wandering Willie) .................................................................................................................... 12 XVII - WINTER ........................................................................................................................................................ 12 XIX ? TO DR. HAKE (On receiving a Copy of Ver...

Once in a generation, a man is born with a heightened sense of empathy. Brion Brandd used this gift to win the Twenties, an annual physical and mental competition among the best and smartest people on Anvhar. But scarcely able to enjoy his victory, Brandd is swept off to the hellish planet Dis where he must use his heightened sense of empathy to help avert a global nuclear holocaust by negotiating with the blockading fleet, traversing the Disan underworld, and cracking the mystery of the savagely ruthless magter. Summary by Great Plains....

Science fiction

Gulliver's reizen is een satirisch boek uit 1726 van de Ierse schrijver Jonathan Swift. Het oorspronkelijke boek bevatte vier reisbeschrijvingen, waarvan alleen de eerste, over het land Lilliput, nu nog grote bekendheid geniet. In deze uitgave zijn alleen de eerste twee delen van het oorspronkelijke werk opgenomen. Het tweede deel heet ‘Een reis naar Brobdingnag’. (Samenvatting door Wikipedia en Bart de Leeuw) Tijdens de productie schreef Marcel Coenders, die de tekstcontrole van dit boek verzorgde: Een mooi boek. Uiteraard kennen we allemaal de een-regel-samenvatting van dit boek: Gulliver gaat op reis in Liliputterland en in Reuzenland. Goed om het verhaal nu eens in een vollere omvang te beluisteren. Zeker geen kinderboekje....

Adventure, Fiction, Humor, Travel, Satire

Just sixty miles from ground zero in Nevada there lies Circle T Ranch run by Hetty Thompson the owner, Barney Hatfield the farmhand, and Johnny Culpepper the assistant manager. It was just another ordinary ranch until, that is, the two cows and the rooster hit the nuclear jackpot. (Introduction by Jeanie1914)...

Science fiction

I Fästmön, andra delen av En Nyckfull kvinna, lämnar bruksförvalteren Helmer Dagby under en tid för att kunna vara hos sin döende mor. Under hans frånvaro dyker en ny person upp på Dagby, ryttmästaren Abbe Linden, kallad kusin Abbe, en levnadsglad man beredd till allt slags upptåg, och med en egen agenda. Han blir en rival till såväl greve Herman som herr Helmer. Den nyckfulla Edith Sternfelt kämpar med sina känslor för bruksförvaltaren. När han väl återkommit till Dagby efter modern död anar de båda vilka känslor de innerst inne har för varandra, men ändå söker dölja. Till slut fattar Edith i hastigt mod och desperation, efter ett meningsutbyte med modern, beslutet att till slut ge sitt jag till greven, och Edit är plötsligt förlovad och fästmö, till moderns stora glädje. Men det blir inte så enkelt. (Sammanfattning: Lars Rolander)...

Fiction, Literature

Alaska has only been a state since 1959, and the breathtaking terrain remains mostly unspoiled and natural. In modern times, many of us have had the pleasure of visiting Alaska via a luxurious cruise ship, where we enjoyed gourmet meals, amazing entertainment, and a climate-controlled environment. It's easy to also book a land package that enables you to see more of the country by train. Imagine what it was like to visit the same wild, untamed countryside in 1899. Instead of boarding a sleek, stylish cruise ship, you travel for weeks on a steamer. You wait 2 weeks for the open, flat cars of the new railrod just to assure yourself it can travel safely through the dangerous mountain pass. No stately cabin or grand hotel awaits you at the end of your journey; you'll spend your time in rough mining camps. Such is the case in May Kellogg Sullivan's spellbinding and vivid account of her Alaskan adventures, which occurred over 18 months during 2 solo trips covering 12,000 miles. This is the perfect travel narrative to enjoy on your Alaskan cruise or in the comfort of your own home. (Introduction by Karen Commins)...

Adventure, Memoirs, Nature, Travel

Excerpt: Persuasion by Jane Austen.

Excerpt: The school at which young Charley Hexam had first learned from a book--the streets being, for pupils of his degree, the great Preparatory Establishment in which very much that is never unlearned is learned without and before book--was a miserable loft in an unsavoury yard. Its atmosphere was oppressive and disagreeable; it was crowded, noisy, and confusing; half the pupils dropped asleep, or fell into a state of waking stupefaction; the other half kept them in either condition by maintaining a monotonous droning noise, as if they were performing, out of time and tune, on a ruder sort of bagpipe. The teachers, animated solely by good intentions, had no idea of execution, and a lamentable jumble was the upshot of their kind endeavours....