Wordsworth

Oscar Wilde, 2007

Wilde's works are suffused with his aestheticism, brilliant craftsmanship, legendary wit and, ultimately, his tragic muse. He wrote tender fairy stories for children employing all his grace, artistry and wit, of which the best-known is «The Happy Prince». Counterpoints to this were his novel «The Picture of Dorian Gray», which shocked and outraged many readers of his day, and his stories for adults which exhibited his fascination with the relations between serene art and decadent life. Wilde took London by storm with his plays, particularly his masterpiece «The Importance of Being Earnest». His essays — in particular «De Profundis» — and his «Ballad of Reading Gaol», both written after his release from prison, strikingly break the bounds of his usual expressive range. His other essays and poems are all included in this comprehensive collection of the works of one of the most exciting writers of the late nineteenth century. Подробнее

In a Glass Darkly

Sheridan Le Fanu, 2007

Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu (1814 – 1873) was one of the great masters of Victorian of mystery and horror fiction, and can be regarded as the father of the modern ghost story. «In a Glass Darkly» (1872), one of his most celebrated volumes, purports to be the casebook of Dr Hesselius, a pioneer psychologist. These five tales represent some of Le Fanu’s most accomplished work, which rises above the staid conventions of the age. Although drawing on Gothic conventions – the book features both ghosts and vampires – Le Fanu redefined the parameters of supernatural fiction. He had little interest in the crude depiction of other worldly phenomena in order to provide the reader with a pleasurable frisson of fear. Le Fanu concern rather lay in the examination of the results of supernatural experience on the psyche of his protagonist, in this he paved the way for the work of Henry James and M. R. James. This volume is an indispensable cornerstone of modern horror and remains one of the finest collections of unsettling fiction in the language. Подробнее

A Memoir of Jane Austen

James Edward Austen-Leigh, 2007

This book includes an introduction by J.H. Stape, St Mary's College, Strawberry Hill. Enormously influential on all later biographies of Jane Austen, the «Memoir of Jane Austen» (1869) by her nephew James Edward Austen — Leigh enjoys the privileged perspective of first-hand knowledge. It displays the deft touch of a man trained in the compassionate observation of human fallibility and virtue. Austen-Leigh's highly readable and affectionate account of his aunt offers a vividly compelling portrait of Jane Austen's habits and personality. Accompanied by the novella «Lady Susan» and the unfinished «The Watsons», this edition is simply essential reading for any admirer of a writer whom Virginia Woolf called 'the most perfect artist among women'. Подробнее

D: H. Lawrence (The Savage Pilgrimage)

Catherine Carswell, 2008

Catherine Carswell was one of the most loyal and dependable of D. H. Lawrence's friends. When he died in 1930, with the controversy over «Lady Chatterley's Lover» still raging, the abuse heaped on him prompted her into writing this warm and intimate account of his life. «The Savage Pilgrimage» traces Lawrence's troubled existence back to his working-class origins and gives a particularly moving and intimate description of his life during the First World War after «The Rainbow» had been banned, no-one would publish his work, and he became desperately poor. This is an essential book for anyone interested in the life of one of Britain's greatest and most controversial writers and includes details of Lawrence's everyday behaviour, and insights into his character, which could only have been provided by someone who was as close to him as its author. Подробнее

The Mirror of the Sea and A Personal Record

Joseph Conrad, 2008

'I have tried with an almost filial regard to render the vibration of life in the great world of waters, in the hearts of simple men who have traversed its solitudes, and also that something sentient which seems to dwell in ships — the creatures of their hands and the objects of their care' — Joseph Conrad on «The Mirror of the Sea». 'An imaginative and exact rendering of authentic memories may serve worthily that spirit of piety towards all things human which sanctions the conceptions of a writer of tales, and the emotions of a man reviewing his own experience' — «A Personal Record».These two autobiographical works differ greatly in scope and form. In «The Mirror» (1906) Conrad draws upon his career as a mariner in France and then in the British Merchant Service to consider and dramatise the relationships between men, ships and the sea in an era when his beloved sailing ships gave way to the age of steam. «A Personal Record» (1912) pivots on two crucial turning points in Conrad's amazing life: his decision as a sixteen year old to leave Poland for the 'call' of the sea, and his decision fifteen years later to begin his first novel, «Almayer's Folly», in English, his third language. «The Mirror» has been called 'the epic of the sailing ship' and 'The Bible of the Sea'. «A Personal Record» is a humorous, moving account of a young man's struggle, against all the odds, to create 'a coherent, justifiable personality both in its origin and its action'. Подробнее

Couching at the Door

D.K. Broster, 2007

Dorothy Kathleen Broster (1877-1950) is best known for her historical novels. But there is a darker side to her writing, glimpsed in her early poems — 'The Second of September 1792' is a fine example — and finding full expression in the stories she wrote after she had become a highly successful novelist. Sometimes — as in «The Window» or «The Pestering», or «All Soul's Day» — these are what we might call 'explainable' ghost stories: apparitions or hauntings whose origin is to be found in some violent or unjust action in the past. Other stories, «Couching at the Door» and «From the Abyss», have little or no explanation, even in supernatural terms. Add to these an elegant reworking of the «Persephone» myth, «The Taste of Pomegranates», the downright bloodthirsty «Clairvoyance», and the psychological studies, «The Promised Land» and «The Pavement» which so well merit the heading «Madness and Obsession», and you have a collection to disturb and unsettle the strongest nerves. Подробнее

The Beetle

Richard Marsh, 2007

'I saw him take a different shape before my eyes. His loose draperies fell about him...and there issued out of them a monstrous creature of the beetle tribe...' From out of the dark and mystic Egypt come The Beetle, a creature of horror, 'born of neither God nor man', which can change its form at will. It is bent on revenge for a crime committed against the devotees of an ancient religion. At large in London, it pursues its victims without mercy and no one, it seems, is safe from its gruesome clutches. Richard Marsh's weird, compelling and highly original novel, which once outsold «Dracula», is both a horror masterpiece and a fin de siecle melodrama embracing the fears and concerns of late Victorian society. Long out of print, The Beetle is now available in this Wordsworth edition, ready to chill you to the marrow and give you nightmares. Подробнее

The Shadow on the Blind

Louisa Baldwin, 2007

The late Victorians had an insatiable appetite for the macabre and sensational: stories of murder and suspense, ghosts, the supernatural and the inexplicable were the stuff of life to them. The two writers in this volume well represent the last decade of the nineteenth century, and are of interest in themselves as well as for their contribution to the chilling of the Victorian spine. Mrs. Alfred Baldwin attempted as a child to contact her dead sister through a séance, and took to writing when stricken by a mysterious illness six weeks after marriage. She was also the mother of the Prime Minister, Stanley Baldwin. Lettice Galbraith is herself no less mysterious than the stories she wrote. She appeared on the literary scene in 1893, published a novel and two collections of stories in that year, a further story (‘The Blue Room’) in 1897, and then nothing more. Readers of 'The Empty Picture Frame', 'The Case of Sir Nigel Otterburne', 'The Trainer's Ghost' and 'The Seance Room' will recognise the Victorian spirit at its finest. Подробнее

The Heart of the Antarctic and South

Ernest Henry Shackleton, 2008

This title comes with an Introduction by Dr Beau Riffenburgh, Scott Polar Research Institute. Ernest Shackleton led two Antarctic expeditions, and died shortly after the beginning of the third. His first expedition was not a total success (they did not reach the South Pole), and the second was, in some senses, a total failure (they never reached the Antarctic mainland at all). Yet it is the second for which he is remembered. His expedition ship Endurance was trapped, then crushed in the ice, before his party could be landed, leaving his men in a hopeless situation. For months Shackleton held his party together before taking to boats and bringing everyone to safety to Elephant Island. His open-boat journey to South Georgia, and the eventual rescue of the party left behind, are now legendary.Visitors to Shackleton's grave in South Georgia, stepping over the lounging elephant seals that keep the dead company, pay homage to the man who had the vision, bravery and strength to open up Antarctica for all who followed. Shackleton showed the flame of leadership as few in the history of exploration have done, and nowhere does this come through more clearly than in the two accounts in this volume. Подробнее

Germinal

Emile Zola, 2007

»Germinal» (1885) is the thirteenth in Émile Zola’s cycle of twenty novels about the Rougon-Macquart dynasty. It tells the story of Étienne Lantier, from the illegitimate Macquart branch of the family, who arrives in the mining settlement of Montsou, and witnesses at first hand the appalling conditions in which miners live and work. Gradually becoming embroiled in a bitter dispute between the miners and their employers, he eventually leads the strike which is the centrepiece of the novel. But this is more than the struggle of labour against capital. It is also the struggle of the hungry against the well-fed, against the passivity and resignation passed down over generations of starving people, and ultimately against hunger itself, represented by the fantastical devouring monster of the mine, which swallows up men, just as the beast of the modern industrial economy relentlessly swallows up capital. This apparent pessimism about society is offset by the possibility of rebirth and regeneration. For all the inherited misery of the downtrodden, the old order may some day be overturned. Подробнее

Tess of the d'Urbervilles

Thomas Hardy, 1992

This title includes introduction and notes by Michael Irwin, Professor of English Literature, University of Kent at Canterbury. Set in Hardy's Wessex, «Tess» is a moving novel of hypocrisy and double standards. Its challenging sub-title, «A Pure Woman», infuriated critics when the book was first published in 1891, and it was condemned as immoral and pessimistic. It tells of Tess Durbeyfield, the daughter of a poor and dissipated villager, who learns that she may be descended from the ancient family of d'Urbeville. In her search for respectability her fortunes fluctuate wildly, and the story assumes the proportions of a Greek tragedy. It explores Tess' relationships with two very different men, her struggle against the social mores of the rural Victorian world which she inhabits and the hypocrisy of the age. Подробнее

Tender is the Night

F.Scott Fitzgerald, 1994

This book is with an introduction and notes by Henry Claridge, Senior Lecturer, School of English, University of Kent at Canterbury. «Tender is the Night» is a story set in the hedonistic high society of Europe during the «Roaring Twenties». A wealthy schizophrenic, Nicole Warren, falls in love with Dick Diver — her psychiatrist. The resulting saga of the Diver's troubled marriage and their circle of friends, includes a cast of aristocratic and beautiful people, unhappy love affairs, a duel, incest, and the problems inherent in the possession of great wealth. Despite cataloging a maelstrom of interpersonal conflict, «Tender is the Night» has a poignancy and warmth which springs from the quality of F Scott Fitzgerald's writing and the tragic personal experiences on which the book is based. Подробнее

The Wind in the Willows

Kenneth Grahame, 1992

Far from fading with time, Kenneth Grahame's classic tale of fantasy has attracted a growing audience in each generation. Rat, Mole, Badger and the preposterous Mr Toad, have brought delight to many through the years with their odd adventures on and by the river, and at the imposing residence of Toad Hall. Подробнее

Our Mutual Friend

Charles Dickens, 1998

With an Introduction and Notes by Deborah Wynne, Chester College. Illustrated by Marcus Stone. «Our Mutual Friend», Dickens' last complete novel, gives one of his most comprehensive and penetrating accounts of Victorian society. Its vision of a culture stifled by materialistic values emerges not just through its central narratives, but through its apparently incidental characters and scenes. The chief of its several plots centres on John Harmon who returns to England as his father's heir. He is believed drowned under suspicious circumstances — a situation convenient to his wish for anonymity until he can evaluate Bella Wilfer whom he must marry to secure his inheritance. The story is filled with colourful characters and incidents — the faded aristocrats and parvenus gathered at the Veneering's dinner table, Betty Higden and her terror of the workhouse and the greedy plottings of Silas Wegg. Подробнее

The Poems and Sonnets of William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare, 1994

Shakespeare's sonnets have an intensity of both feeling and meaning unmatched in English sonnet form. They divide into two parts; the first 126 sonnets are addressed to a fair youth for whom the poet has an obsessive love and the second chronicles his love for the notorious 'Dark Lady'. In addition to the sonnets, this volume includes Shakespeare's two lengthy narrative poems on classical themes, 'The Rape of Lucrece' which looks forward to the dark imagery of Macbeth, and 'Venus and Adonis' which mixes ribaldry and tragedy in unique Shakespearean manner. 'The Phoenix and the Turtle' is a beautiful metaphysical and allegorical short elegy, and takes its place with Shakespeare's better-known poetry. Подробнее

The Selected Poems of Emily Dickinson

Emily Dickinson, 1994

Initially a vivacious, outgoing person, Emily Dickinson (1830-1886) progressively withdrew into a reclusive existence. An undiscovered genius during her lifetime, only seven out of her total of 1,775 poems were published prior to her death. She had an immense breadth of vision and a passionate intensity and awe for life, love, nature, time and eternity. Originally branded an eccentric, Emily Dickinson is now recognised as a major poet of great depth. Подробнее

Australian Ghost Stories

Various, 2010

Murderous ghosts, horrific curses and monstrous beings haunt an unforgiving landscape into which travellers stray at their peril. Journey through the dark byways of Australia's Gothic past in the rare stories gathered in this memorable new collection. Work by acclaimed Australian writers such as Marcus Clarke, Henry Lawson and Edward Dyson appears alongside many lesser-known authors such as Beatrice Grimshaw, Mary Fortune and Ernest Favenc. Many of the stories collected here have never been reprinted since their first publication in 19th and early 20th century periodicals, and showcase the richness and variety of the Australian ghost and horror story. James Doig provides an authoritative introduction full of fresh insights into Australian Gothic fiction with detailed biographical notes on the authors represented. Подробнее

Castle of Otranto

Variuous, 2009

»The Castle of Otranto» tells the story of Manfred, lord of the castle and his family. «Nightmare Abbey» follows the fortunes of Christopher Glowry, a morose widower who lives with his only son Scythrop in his semi-dilapidated family mansion Nightmare Abbey. «Vathek» tells the story of the ruthless Caliph Vathek's journey to damnation. Подробнее

A Charlie Chan Omnibus

Earl Derr Biggers, 2008

'He was very fat indeed, yet he walked with the light dainty step of a woman. His cheeks were as chubby as a baby's, his skin ivory tinted, his black hair close-cropped, his amber eyes slanting.' A family secret leads to murder in a house without locks... Someone is prepared to kill to procure a valuable set of pearls, and a parrot fluent in Chinese knows too much... A Scotland Yard Inspector is about to close his final case, but someone is prepared to kill to keep the mystery unsolved... Three very different crimes, with one thing in common... He's Honolulu's greatest detective — prepare to savour the wisdom of Charlie Chan. From Hawaii to San Francisco, no crime is too baffling, no clue too insignificant for Charlie. Long out of print, Charlie Chan's first three cases, «The House Without a Key», «The Chinese Parrot», and «Behind That Curtain», have been collected in one volume for your entertainment and bafflement. Подробнее

The Collected Stories of Katherine Mansfield

Katherine Mansfield, 2006

This title comes with an introduction and notes by Professor Stephen Arkin, San Francisco State University. Katherine Mansfield is widely regarded as a writer who helped create the modern short story. Born in Wellinton, New Zealand in 1888, she came to London in 1903 to attend Queen's College and returned permanently in 1908. Her first book of stories, «In a German Pension», appeared in 1911, and she went on to write and publish an extraordinary body of work. This edition of «The Collected Stories» brings together all of the stories that Mansfield had written up until her death in January of 1923. With an introduction and head-notes, this volume allows the reader to become familiar with the complete range of Mansfield's work from the early, satirical stories set in Bavaria, through the luminous recollections of her childhood in New Zealand, and through the mature, deeply felt stories of her last years. Admired by Virginia Woolf in her lifetime and by many writers since her death, Katherine Mansfield is one of the great literary artists of the twentieth century. Подробнее

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