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34,239 public-domain books, summarised. Page 49 of 714.
Usury
Calvin Elliott
This critique of the charging of interest argues that the practice is a fundamental moral and economic error that drains the vitality of nations and enslaves the poor. It serves as a fervent manifesto for a return to ancient prohibitions against usury.
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland: Illustrated by Arthur Rackham. With a Proem by Austin Dobson
Lewis Carroll
A young girl follows a frantic rabbit into a world where logic dissolves and the impossible becomes routine. This journey remains a cornerstone of literature for its enduring ability to capture the surreal, shifting landscape of a child's imagination.
Margaret of Anjou: Makers of History
Jacob Abbott
A resilient queen faces the collapse of her kingdom and the loss of everyone she loves in this somber account of the Wars of the Roses. It is a portrait of a woman defined by her extraordinary tenacity amidst the ruins of a crown.
The Dead Command: From the Spanish Los Muertos Mandan
Vicente Blasco Ibáñez
The weight of history is a suffocating inheritance, yet liberation remains possible for those who dare to defy the ghosts of their ancestry. This narrative explores the tension between tradition and the urgent, living present.
Chips from a German Workshop, Volume 3: Essays on Literature, Biography, and Antiquities
F. Max (Friedrich Max) Müller
HOOK This collection of essays explores the deep intellectual and cultural currents linking Germany and England, bridging the gap between ancient folklore and modern critical inquiry.
Macaria
Augusta J. (Augusta Jane) Evans
A story of duty, heartbreak, and the quiet resilience of the human spirit amidst the crumbling foundations of a world at war.
Hilaire Belloc, the man and his work
C. Creighton Mandell
HOOK A critical exploration of a prolific twentieth-century intellectual, examining how his singular, forceful prose transformed military analysis, history, and political polemic into a coherent, if controversial, worldview.
Mary Queen of Scots: Makers of History
Jacob Abbott
A life caught between the grandeur of crowns and the fragility of human impulse, this narrative traces the ascent and tragic descent of a queen whose ambition survived even her own execution.
A Little Girl in Old New York
Amanda M. Douglas
This chronicle of a sheltered childhood in mid-19th-century New York captures the quiet, rhythmic transformation of a young girl’s world. It serves as a gentle, domestic mirror to a city shedding its provincial skin for the bustle of modern life.
Cab and Caboose: The Story of a Railroad Boy
Kirk Munroe
A young man, wrongly accused of wrongdoing at home, leaves his comfortable life behind to seek his fortune and prove his character among the grit and danger of the railroad.
"De Bello Gallico" and Other Commentaries
Julius Caesar
These records offer a stark, unvarnished look at the expansion of Roman power, written by the man who commanded the legions. They remain essential reading for anyone seeking to understand the mechanics of ancient empire and the singular personality of a world-shaping leader.
The life of Friedrich Nietzsche
Daniel Halévy
This narrative traces the trajectory of a mind that sought to shatter all established laws, only to be dismantled by the very intensity of its own isolation. It follows the transformation of a brilliant young philologist into a solitary prophet of the "Superman," charting his rise, his rupture with his idols, and…
Poems
Victor Hugo
This collection gathers the lyrical and narrative voice of a titan of letters, offering a panoramic view of a life spent wrestling with history, god, and the intimate agonies of the human heart. It is a vast, polyphonic bridge spanning the arc of a century’s most turbulent imagination.
Jude the Obscure
Thomas Hardy
The life of a gifted, impoverished stonemason is dismantled by social rigidities and the cruel collision of intellectual aspiration with unforgiving human passion.
A Handful of Stars: Texts That Have Moved Great Minds
Frank Boreham
A collection of meditations on the power of Scripture, this work traces how specific verses have acted as spiritual anchors for historical figures and characters of literature alike. It suggests that the most profound human experiences are often crystallized by a single, recurring line of text.
The Adventures of Buster Bear
Thornton W. (Thornton Waldo) Burgess
A displaced forest giant finds himself the subject of intense gossip, unexpected fear, and a comical battle of wits with a curious boy.
The Story of Leather
Sara Ware Bassett
The industrial landscape of the early twentieth century serves as the crucible for a privileged, failing student who finds his character through the manual labor of a family tannery.
Eyebright: A Story
Susan Coolidge
A young girl’s vivid imagination serves as both an escape and a lifeline as she faces the stark, quiet hardships of life in rural Maine.
The Love Affairs of an Old Maid
Lilian Bell
A sharp-witted observer of social manners navigates the romantic entanglements and fragile illusions of her peers, finding that the status of an "old maid" provides the perfect vantage point for witnessing the truths of others.
Walking
Henry David Thoreau
To saunter is to reclaim one's status as a part of the natural world, transforming a simple walk into a sacred journey that defies the stifling constraints of modern civilization.
From a Terrace in Prague
B. Granville (Bernard Granville) Baker
The ancient spires of Prague hold centuries of triumph and tragedy, waiting for a patient observer to read their story from a quiet vantage point above the Vltava.
A Lecture on the Study of History
Acton, John Emerich Edward Dalberg Acton, Baron
History is the continuous, unfolding record of human progress toward freedom, demanding that we judge the past not by our own shifting prejudices, but by the exacting, objective standards of critical inquiry.
Outdoor Sketching: Four Talks Given before the Art Institute of Chicago
Francis Hopkinson Smith
The pursuit of the outdoor sketch requires more than mere technical skill; it demands a vital, fleeting connection with nature that must be captured with the urgency of a secret shared between old friends.
Diaries of Sir Moses and Lady Montefiore, Volume 1 (of 2): Comprising Their Life and Work as Recorded in Their Diaries, from 1812 to 1883
Montefiore, Judith Cohen, Lady
A life defined by faith and public service unfolds through the meticulous records of a Victorian couple, whose private devotions and global humanitarian missions reveal a world of shifting political landscapes and profound religious conviction.
Venus in Furs
Sacher-Masoch, Leopold, Ritter von
The desire to be conquered by a beautiful, cold, and despotic woman is the central obsession that drives this narrative toward its unsettling and transformative conclusion.
The Story of a Cannoneer Under Stonewall Jackson: In Which is Told the Part Taken by the Rockbridge Artillery in the Army of Northern Virginia
Edward Alexander Moore
A witness to the chaos of war, an artilleryman chronicles the daily grit, sudden violence, and enduring brotherhood found within the ranks of a storied Confederate battery.
The Yellow Horde
Hal G. (Hal George) Evarts
A singular wolf, born of coyote blood, leads a growing pack in a relentless struggle to survive the encroaching expansion of humanity.
The Story of Russia
R. (Robert) Van Bergen
This historical survey traces Russia’s development from its mythic beginnings to its early twentieth-century struggles, examining how autocracy and expansionism shaped a vast, complex nation.
Tom Slade on a Transport
Percy Keese Fitzhugh
A determined scout seeking to serve his country finds himself entangled in a web of wartime espionage and a shocking family betrayal aboard an American troop transport.
Classic French Course in English
William Cleaver Wilkinson
This instructional guide navigates the vast landscape of French literary history, serving as a structured compass for readers who wish to understand the evolution of a language and culture through its most significant voices. It provides a curated tour of representative texts, balancing historical context with…
The House of the Wolfings: A Tale of the House of the Wolfings and All the Kindreds of the Mark Written in Prose and in Verse
William Morris
The Markmen of the woodland, a free and iron-forging folk, stand against the encroaching shadow of a disciplined, imperial Roman army. It is a tale of ancient, heroic loyalty, where love and duty collide on the eve of a war that will define the survival of a people.
Fairy Book
Sophie May
A collection of moral tales woven with the ethereal threads of folklore, this book explores the trials of the heart, the weight of conscience, and the redemptive power of forgiveness.
Woodland Tales
Ernest Thompson Seton
Nature is a classroom where the smallest detail, from a butterfly’s wing to the behavior of a dog, holds a secret waiting to be decoded.
Little Lost Sister
Virginia Brooks
HOOK Driven by the desperate need for companionship, young women are easily ensnared by those who profit from human misery. This story follows one woman's crusade to rescue the vulnerable from a predatory underworld.
Sea urchins
W. W. (William Wymark) Jacobs
A collection of humorous, salt-sprayed vignettes, this work captures the wily exploits of English sailors and the domestic entanglements they desperately try to outmaneuver.
The Huntress
Hulbert Footner
The wilderness is a mirror, and for those who wander into its depths, the reflection is often a brutal and beautiful revelation of the self.
Northern Nut Growers Association Report of the Proceedings at the 44th Annual Meeting: Rochester, N.Y. August 31 and September 1, 1953
Unknown
The persistent, quiet labor of hobbyists and scientists, gathered in Rochester in 1953, reveals the decades-long struggle to bring hardy, productive nut trees to the diverse climates of the American North. This collection of proceedings serves as both a technical manual for the dedicated orchardist and a time…
Uncle Vanya: Scenes from Country Life in Four Acts
Anton Pavlovich Chekhov
This portrait of a Russian country estate captures the quiet, crushing weight of missed opportunities and the fragile, repetitive nature of human endurance. It is a work of profound empathy that finds tragedy in the mundane.
The Dragon of Wantley: His Tale
Owen Wister
A young knight arrives at a beleaguered village to face a legendary dragon, only to discover that the monster is a mere facade for a band of corrupt monks masking their illicit wine-drinking.
A Young Mutineer
L. T. Meade
The story follows a young girl’s fierce, protective devotion to her older sister and the inevitable, painful transition that occurs when a marriage threatens to tear their bond apart. It is a quiet study of love, jealousy, and the difficult process of letting go.
The Privateer's-Man, One hundred Years Ago
Frederick Marryat
The life of a sailor is rarely quiet, and this account follows a man whose days at sea are defined by capture, high-stakes escapes, and the relentless pursuit of his own fortune. It is a portrait of a man who survives by his wits, his audacity, and a stubborn refusal to be broken by the whims of fortune or the…
Stingaree
E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung
A notorious bushranger haunts the Australian bush, trading bullets for wit and criminality for a strange, chivalrous code of conduct.
Adrift in the Wilds
Edward Sylvester Ellis
The ocean claims a steamer, leaving two cousins and their companion stranded on the Pacific coast. They must navigate a dangerous wilderness, relying on wits and a mysterious local guide to survive the journey home.
Elements of Plumbing
Samuel Edward Dibble
Mastering the intricate art of plumbing requires a blend of physical dexterity, chemical understanding, and a rigid adherence to safety standards. This guide serves as a foundational manual for those seeking to transition from novice to proficient mechanic.
Early Theories of Translation
Flora Ross Amos
Early theories of translation were rarely codified as rigid laws, but rather emerged as shifting, incidental reflections of the translator's struggle to balance fidelity with the limitations of the English language. This study examines how those evolving perspectives shaped the way classics were brought into the…
Fern Vale
Colin Munro
This Victorian-era colonial novel follows the struggles of a young squatter carving a life in the Australian bush, where the harshness of the frontier collides with the stifling constraints of romantic duty and social expectation.
Progress and History
Unknown
The story of human advancement is not a linear march toward perfection, but a complex, often stumbling effort to harmonize our knowledge, our moral nature, and our creative will. This volume explores how humanity builds upon its past, not by erasing it, but by integrating it into a more conscious, unified future.
Goethe's Theory of Colours
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Color is a sensory experience, not merely a mathematical abstraction. This treatise argues that light and shadow interact to generate the full spectrum, challenging established Newtonian optics with a focus on human perception and artistic practice.