Author: Charles Dickens A Tale of Two Cities: ‘Liberty, equality, fraternity, or death; — the last, much the easiest to bestow, O Guillotine!’ After eighteen years as a political prisoner in the Bastille, the ageing Doctor Manette is finally released and reunited with his daughter in England. There the lives of two very different men,…
Author: Arthur Conan Doyle A Study in Scarlet: “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 flat-mates at the…
Author: James Joyce A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man: The portrayal of Stephen Dedalus’s Dublin childhood and youth, his quest for identity through art and his gradual emancipation from the claims of family, religion and Ireland itself, is also an oblique self-portrait of the young James Joyce and a universal testament to…
Author: Agatha Christie A Pocket Full of Rye (Miss Marple #7): A handful of grain is found in the pocket of a murdered businessman! Rex Fortescue, king of a financial empire, was sipping tea in his ‘counting house’ when he suffered an agonising and sudden death. On later inspection, the pockets of the deceased were…
Author: Agatha Christie A Murder Is Announced (Miss Marple #5): A Murder is Announced in a small-town newspaper advertisement—and Miss Marple must unravel the fiendish puzzle when a crime does indeed occur. The villagers of Chipping Cleghorn are agog with curiosity when the Gazette advertises “A murder is announced and will take place on Friday,…
Author: William Shakespeare A Midsummer Night’s Dream: Shakespeare’s intertwined love polygons begin to get complicated from the start–Demetrius and Lysander both want Hermia but she only has eyes for Lysander. Bad news is, Hermia’s father wants Demetrius for a son-in-law. On the outside is Helena, whose unreturned love burns hot for Demetrius. Hermia and Lysander…
Author: Frances Hodgson Burnett A Little Princess: Sara Crewe, an exceptionally intelligent and imaginative student at Miss Minchin’s Select Seminary for Young Ladies, is devastated when her adored, indulgent father dies. Now penniless and banished to a room in the attic, Sara is demeaned, abused, and forced to work as a servant. How this resourceful…
Author: Charles Dickens A Christmas Carol: ‘If I had my way, every idiot who goes around with Merry Christmas on his lips, would be boiled with his own pudding, and buried with a stake of holly through his heart. Merry Christmas? Bah humbug!’ Introduction and Afterword by Joe WheelerTo bitter, miserly Ebenezer Scrooge, Christmas is…
Author: Agatha Christie 4:50 from Paddington (Miss Marple #8): For an instant the two trains ran together, side by side. In that frozen moment, Elspeth McGillicuddy witnessed a murder. Helplessly, she stared out of her carriage window as a man remorselessly tightened his grip around a woman’s throat. The body crumpled. Then the other train…
Author: George Orwell 1984:’It was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen.’ Winston Smith works for the Ministry of truth in London, chief city of Airstrip One. Big Brother stares out from every poster, the Thought Police uncover every act of betrayal. When Winston finds love with Julia, he discovers…
