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34,239 public-domain books, summarised. Page 503 of 714.

Cover of A Letter from Major Robert Carmichael-Smyth to His Friend, the Author of 'The Clockmaker'

A Letter from Major Robert Carmichael-Smyth to His Friend, the Author of 'The Clockmaker'

Robert Carmichael-Smyth

A visionary 1849 proposal outlines how a transcontinental railway across British North America could unite an empire, transform global commerce, and solve pressing domestic crises.

History - American5 min read
Cover of A Mediaeval Mystic: A Short Account of the Life and Writings of Blessed John Ruysbroeck, Canon Regular of Groenendael A.D. 1293-1381

A Mediaeval Mystic: A Short Account of the Life and Writings of Blessed John Ruysbroeck, Canon Regular of Groenendael A.D. 1293-1381

Vincent Scully

To enter the world of fourteenth-century Brabant is to step into a landscape of forested solitude, where intense spiritual longing meets the quiet rigor of monastic devotion.

Biographies6 min read
Cover of A Nest of Linnets

A Nest of Linnets

Frank Frankfort Moore

Love, artistic pride, and social scandal collide in Georgian Bath.

Novels6 min read
Cover of A Pair of Patient Lovers

A Pair of Patient Lovers

William Dean Howells

A long-delayed engagement, a mislaid piano, a crisis of faith, a courtship by mail, and a convict's return reveal the quiet turning points of American lives.

American Literature7 min read
Cover of A Review of the Middle American Tree Frogs of the Genus Ptychohyla

A Review of the Middle American Tree Frogs of the Genus Ptychohyla

William Edward Duellman

Deep within the cloud forests of Central America, isolated tree frog populations adapted to the torrential currents of mountain streams by evolving specialized mouthparts and distinct calls.

Nature/Gardening/Animals6 min read
Cover of A Russian Gentleman

A Russian Gentleman

S. T. (Sergei Timofeevich) Aksakov

In the vast, untamed steppes of eighteenth-century Russia, a fierce patriarch builds an empire out of wilderness while his family navigates the raw currents of love, power, and survival.

Biographies6 min read
Cover of A Simple Explanation of Modern Banking Customs

A Simple Explanation of Modern Banking Customs

Humphrey Robinson

A clear, practical guide to how financial institutions function and why depositors benefit when they understand the mechanics behind daily transactions.

Business/Management6 min read
Cover of A Twofold Life

A Twofold Life

Wilhelmine von Hillern

A young nobleman's divided nature tears his soul between worldly ambition and spiritual devotion until the steadfast love of an extraordinary woman shows him how to heal his split life.

German Literature6 min read
Cover of A Vindication of England's Policy with Regard to the Opium Trade

A Vindication of England's Policy with Regard to the Opium Trade

Charles Reginald Haines

A mid-Victorian defense of the British opium trade, arguing that the commerce was economically vital, medically justified, and falsely maligned by misinformed reformers.

History - British6 min read
Cover of Abraham Lincoln's Cardinal Traits;: A Study in Ethics, with an Epilogue Addressed to Theologians

Abraham Lincoln's Cardinal Traits;: A Study in Ethics, with an Epilogue Addressed to Theologians

Clark S. (Clark Smith) Beardslee

A soul forged in penury and tested by civil war reveals how absolute moral integrity can unite a nation and clarify the nature of God.

Biographies5 min read
Cover of Adam & Eve & Pinch Me

Adam & Eve & Pinch Me

A. E. (Alfred Edgar) Coppard

A woman sits by a windy wood, a wanderer roams the Cotswolds in search of a dry hedge, and a ghost watches his own children play in a sunlit garden.

Short Stories7 min read
Cover of American Lutheranism vindicated

American Lutheranism vindicated

S. S. (Samuel Simon) Schmucker

A nineteenth-century American theologian defends his modified Protestant creed, arguing that a church must prune historic human error to remain faithful to the living word of Scripture.

Religion/Spirituality5 min read
Cover of An awfully big adventure

An awfully big adventure

Bartimeus

The quiet courage of those who endure the sea’s perils often remains hidden, obscured by the rigid protocols of service and the crushing weight of duty. These accounts peel back the veil, revealing the humanity behind the uniform.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of An Outline of English Speech-craft

An Outline of English Speech-craft

William Barnes

A bold, native replacement for Latinized English grammar, built on the principle that a language is clearest when spoken in its own true voice.

Language & Communication5 min read
Cover of Balloons

Balloons

Elizabeth Bibesco

A vibrant collection of social vignettes exposes the hidden fractures, quiet ironies, and fleeting moments of self-discovery within high-society relationships.

British Literature7 min read
Cover of Blown to Bits: The Lonely Man of Rakata, the Malay Archipelago

Blown to Bits: The Lonely Man of Rakata, the Malay Archipelago

R. M. (Robert Michael) Ballantyne

An island hermit, a mysterious orphan, and a ferocious pirate collide beneath the shadow of Krakatoa just as history’s greatest volcanic explosion shatters the Sunda Straits.

Adventure6 min read
Cover of Broken Butterflies

Broken Butterflies

Henry W. (Henry Walsworth) Kinney

In early 1920s Tokyo, a returning American journalist discovers that Western progress comes at a devastating human cost to Japan's women.

Novels7 min read
Cover of By Blow and Kiss: The Love Story of a Man with a Bad Name.: (Published serially under the title Unstable as Water)

By Blow and Kiss: The Love Story of a Man with a Bad Name.: (Published serially under the title Unstable as Water)

Boyd Cable

An Australian drover accused of murder flees into the bush, leaving behind the woman who loves him until a dying woman’s confession clears his name.

Novels6 min read
Cover of Carving and Serving

Carving and Serving

Mary J. (Mary Johnson) Lincoln

A calm, methodical manual turns the chaos of the dining table into an exercise in domestic grace, precision, and quiet consideration for others.

Cooking & Drinking5 min read
Cover of Chambers's Edinburgh Journal, No. 438: Volume 17, New Series, May 22, 1852

Chambers's Edinburgh Journal, No. 438: Volume 17, New Series, May 22, 1852

Various

Across its tightly packed columns, this mid-nineteenth-century issue transforms everyday observation, personal history, and botanical science into an invitation to examine human nature.

Journals7 min read
Cover of Comparative Ecology of Pinyon Mice and Deer Mice in Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado

Comparative Ecology of Pinyon Mice and Deer Mice in Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado

Charles L. Douglas

Two closely related species of mice share the high, dry mesas of southwestern Colorado, relying on distinct behavioral and physiological survival strategies.

Environmental Issues6 min read
Cover of Complete Project Gutenberg William Dean Howells Literature Essays

Complete Project Gutenberg William Dean Howells Literature Essays

William Dean Howells

A young writer journeys from the Western frontier to New England's literary heartland, meeting the legends who shape American letters.

American Literature6 min read
Cover of Copper Work: A Text Book for Teachers and Students in the Manual Arts

Copper Work: A Text Book for Teachers and Students in the Manual Arts

Augustus F. (Augustus Foster) Rose

A student's hand drives a punch into a cool sheet of copper, hammering simple geometry into form.

Art5 min read
Cover of Creating Capital: Money-making as an aim in business

Creating Capital: Money-making as an aim in business

Frederick L. (Frederic Lockwood) Lipman

A thoughtful examination of wealth creation reveals that saving a surplus is not a selfish pursuit, but a foundational moral duty to society and oneself.

Business/Management5 min read
Cover of Critical Miscellanies (Vol 2 of 3), Essay 1: Vauvenargues

Critical Miscellanies (Vol 2 of 3), Essay 1: Vauvenargues

John Morley

A quiet, luminous life cuts through the harsh cynicism of eighteenth-century philosophy to restore faith in human nature.

Essays, Letters & Speeches5 min read
Cover of Dave Darrin After the Mine Layers

Dave Darrin After the Mine Layers

H. Irving (Harrie Irving) Hancock

Submarines creep through dark waters, leaving explosive mines in the wake of innocent ships, until a relentless American officer turns the tide.

Adventure6 min read
Cover of Diary of a Pedestrian in Cashmere and Thibet

Diary of a Pedestrian in Cashmere and Thibet

W. H. (William Henry) Knight

An officer’s crisp travel diary traces a summer’s trek through high Himalayan passes, detailing the rugged landscapes and isolated villages between the plains of India and the remote monasteries of Tibet.

Travel Writing6 min read
Cover of Dr. Hardhack's Prescription: A Play for Children in Four Acts

Dr. Hardhack's Prescription: A Play for Children in Four Acts

Harriet Beecher Stowe

When a wealthy city family faces their daughter’s failing health, a blunt doctor sweeps away fashionable remedies in favor of country air, honest work, and common sense.

Children & Young Adult Reading6 min read
Cover of Drawings of Old London

Drawings of Old London

Philip Norman

Gable roofs tilt against London skies, and timbered galleries look down onto empty yards where stagecoaches once pulled in. These urban scenes preserve the quiet domestic corners of a metropolis slowly replacing its timbered past with brick, stone, and iron.

Architecture5 min read
Cover of Dreams and delights

Dreams and delights

L. Adams (Lily Adams) Beck

Through stories set in mountain fastnesses, island sanctuaries, and shadowy imperial courts, the human soul seeks a single timeless truth—that earthly love and divine devotion are one and the same.

Short Stories5 min read
Cover of Dreamy Hollow

Dreamy Hollow

Sumner Charles Britton

A secluded Long Island mansion, a dead woman's voice calling across the dark, and a disgraced manager driven mad by greed converge in a melodrama of obsession, spiritualism, and justice.

American Literature6 min read
Cover of Droll Stories

Droll Stories

Honoré de Balzac

In sixteen-century France, a chorus of storytellers gathers over brimming goblets to trade indecent histories of lusty kings, rogue soldiers, and sly maidens, proving that human folly never changes.

French Literature7 min read
Cover of Earth's Enigmas: A Volume of Stories

Earth's Enigmas: A Volume of Stories

Roberts, Charles G. D., Sir

Deep within the wild Canadian wilderness, human ambition and raw nature clash in a series of haunting, sharply etched spectral tales.

Short Stories6 min read
Cover of Emergency Childbirth: A Reference Guide for Students of the Medical Self-help Training Course, Lesson No. 11

Emergency Childbirth: A Reference Guide for Students of the Medical Self-help Training Course, Lesson No. 11

United States. Office of Civil Defense

A calm hand in a dark hour, this cold-war manual strips obstetric care down to its barest essentials.

Health & Medicine6 min read
Cover of Encyclopedia of Diet: A Treatise on the Food Question, Vol. 2

Encyclopedia of Diet: A Treatise on the Food Question, Vol. 2

Eugene Christian

A pragmatic, early-twentieth-century guide to human nutrition argues that most common physical ailments are not random afflictions to be suppressed with pharmaceutical poisons, but direct consequences of improper fuel entering the digestive apparatus.

Health & Medicine6 min read
Cover of English Dialects From the Eighth Century to the Present Day

English Dialects From the Eighth Century to the Present Day

Walter W. (Walter William) Skeat

Centuries of shifting speech reveal how ancient regional tongues fractured, fused, and survived to shape modern English.

History - British5 min read
Cover of Essays in Natural History and Agriculture

Essays in Natural History and Agriculture

Thomas Garnett

Observation, meticulous measurement, and a deep love for the local countryside converge to show how practical inquiry can transform our understanding of the natural world.

Environmental Issues5 min read
Cover of Eve's Diary, Part 3

Eve's Diary, Part 3

Mark Twain

A playful yet deeply moving re-imagining of the Creation, this diary captures the wonder of discovery, the friction between two complementary minds, and the quiet weight of enduring love.

American Literature5 min read
Cover of Every Man for Himself

Every Man for Himself

Norman Duncan

Hard along the gale-swept rocks of Newfoundland, men haul their living from the gray sea, clinging to a stubborn, battered faith in each other and the unknown.

Novels7 min read
Cover of Faces and Places

Faces and Places

Lucy, Henry W. (Henry William), Sir

A seasoned London journalist crisscrosses Victorian Britain and the Continent, bringing a keen reporter’s eye and dry wit to balloon launches, parliamentary debates, mountain refuges, and evangelical revivals.

Adventure6 min read
Cover of Famous Firesides of French Canada

Famous Firesides of French Canada

Mary Wilson Alloway

A narrative tapestry woven from three centuries of Canadian history, this work explores how the hearths and forts of Quebec forged a resilient, unified nation.

History - European6 min read
Cover of Feminism and Sex-Extinction

Feminism and Sex-Extinction

Arabella Kenealy

A fierce anti-feminist tract from 1920 argues that women competing with men threatens biological evolution and risks driving the human species toward extinction.

Gender & Sexuality Studies5 min read
Cover of Florence on a Certain Night, and Other Poems

Florence on a Certain Night, and Other Poems

Coningsby Dawson

A restless soul wanders through ghost-haunted Florentine streets and quiet starlit heavens, seeking a permanent beauty to anchor the fleeting rush of youth.

Poetry5 min read
Cover of For Name and Fame

For Name and Fame

G. A. (George Alfred) Henty

An orphaned boy rises through the ranks of the British Army to find both honor on the battlefields of nineteenth-century Afghanistan and the long-lost identity stolen from him in infancy.

Adventure7 min read
Cover of Four American naval heroes : Paul Jones, Oliver H. Perry, Admiral Farragut, Admiral Dewey

Four American naval heroes : Paul Jones, Oliver H. Perry, Admiral Farragut, Admiral Dewey

Mabel Borton Beebe

A lineage of maritime duty connects the founding of the republic to its rise as a global power, forged through shipboard discipline, tactical daring, and quiet sacrifice.

Biographies6 min read
Cover of Frank Merriwell's Endurance

Frank Merriwell's Endurance

Burt L. Standish

High ideals meet relentless athleticism in a classic tale of clean living, competitive spirit, and unbeatable grit.

American Literature7 min read
Cover of Fun and Frolic

Fun and Frolic

Unknown

An idyllic collection of nineteenth-century rhymes and cautionary tales captures the gentle moral universe, domestic quietude, and innocent mischief of Victorian childhood.

Children & Young Adult Reading6 min read
Cover of Futuria Fantasia, Summer 1939

Futuria Fantasia, Summer 1939

Ray Bradbury

A passionate teenager gathers his friends, preaches economic revolution, and imagines the total collapse of civilization—all on a ten-cent mimeograph machine.

Journalism/Media/Writing7 min read
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