O. Henry, the pen name of William Sydney Porter, is one of the most famous short story writers of all time, whose stories are known for their wit, wordplay, warm characterization and clever twist endings. O. Henry is so acknowledged as a great short…
"A Study in Scarlet" is the first published story of one of the most famous literary detectives of all time, Sherlock Holmes. Here Dr. Watson, who has just returned from a war in Afghanistan, meets Sherlock Holmes for the first time when they become…
First published in 1887, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's "A Study in Scarlet" marks the first appearance of Sherlock Holmes. At the outset of the story we encounter Sherlock Holmes' sidekick Dr. Watson who has just returned to London from the Second Anglo-…
First published in 1912, Jean Webster's "Daddy-Long-Legs" is the tale of Jerusha "Judy" Abbott, raised in the John Grier House, a bleak orphanage, and left as a baby without even a name from her parents. Told in a series of letters, this modern girl…
St. Teresa of Avila's 16th century work "The Way of Perfection" is a classic of Christian literature which was written for the nuns of the order she founded. Encouraged by her religious counselors, she sought to give advice and guidance to other nun…
"The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man" is James Weldon's Johnson fictional account of a light-skinned mulatto who can pass for white. The anonymous narrator is the son of a black mother and a white father living in the early part of the 20th centu…
"George Washington's Rules of Civility" by Moncure D. Conway, first published in 1890, is a study of the history of the 110 principles or maxims which were written out by hand by George Washington as a young man and preserved in the Washington archi…
Boethius's "Consolation of Philosophy" is considered as one of the most important and influential works of medieval times. Written during Boethius's year-long imprisonment for treason which would ultimately lead to his tortuous execution, "Consolati…
Nathaniel Hawthorne's works are staples in the canon of American literature. The author drew upon the early Puritan influences that played a major role in the country's history and exploited them through mystery, creativity, science, and witchcraft.…
First published in 1889, "Three Men in a Boat" by Jerome K. Jerome is the humorous story of three Englishman who find themselves in need of a vacation and decide to take a holiday boating on the Thames. The three friends, Jerome (referred to as "J")…
"Three Men in a Boat" is the story of three Englishman who pile into a boat with food, clothes, and a fox terrier named Montmorency and set off on the Thames to see the English countryside. "Three Men in a Boat" is a first-class comic masterpiece. A…
One of Hilaire Belloc's most famous works, "Cautionary Tales for Children" satirizes a genre of admonitory children's literature popular in England in the 19th century. The seven stories contained in this work are macabre parodies of childhood lesso…
One of the middle or transitional dialogues of the ancient Greek philosopher Plato, "Gorgias" depicts a dinner gathering attended by Socrates and a group of sophists. Gorgias, a foreigner, has been drawn to Athens by its cultural and intellectual so…
Set amidst the real world events which occurred following the Jacobite rising of 1745, Robert Louis Stevenson's 1886 novel "Kidnapped" is the story of David Balfour, who travels to meet his uncle and collect his inheritance following the death of hi…
First published in 1907, "The Iron Heel" is Jack London's dystopian novel about the rise of an oligarchic tyranny in the United States. Displaying the socialist views that were held by London himself and that were prevalent at the beginning of the 2…
Lewis Carroll's inventive style of poetry is brought to life in this collection of his verse "Jabberwocky and Other Poems." As most famously illustrated in "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland," Carroll used his mastery of gibberish to form inventive r…
Written in 1712 by Saint Louis de Montfort, this influential Catholic treatise remained virtually unknown until it was discovered in France in 1842. Finally published in 1843 in its original French, the work became an instant success and would later…
German philosopher, Friedrich Nietzsche was one the most controversial figures of the 19th century. His evocative writings on religion, morality, culture, philosophy, and science were often polemic attacks against the established views of his time.…
