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34,239 public-domain books, summarised. Page 55 of 714.

Cover of The Range Boss

The Range Boss

Charles Alden Seltzer

The range boss is a man of quiet competence and hidden depths, while the new owner of the Flying W is a woman of spirit. Together, they navigate a raw, untamed land that tests their mettle and their hearts.

Adventure6 min read
Cover of McGuffey's First Eclectic Reader, Revised Edition

McGuffey's First Eclectic Reader, Revised Edition

William Holmes McGuffey

Children learn to read by matching simple sounds to letters, gradually building confidence through repetition, observation of nature, and the practice of kindness toward animals and elders.

Children & Young Adult Reading6 min read
Cover of Stavrogin's Confession and The Plan of The Life of a Great Sinner: With Introductory and Explanatory Notes

Stavrogin's Confession and The Plan of The Life of a Great Sinner: With Introductory and Explanatory Notes

Fyodor Dostoyevsky

This volume offers a rare, intimate look at the engine of a literary master, presenting the raw, haunting fragments of a vision that never reached full completion. It is a profound meditation on the dark corners of the human conscience.

Novels7 min read
Cover of Father Goriot

Father Goriot

Honoré de Balzac

In the boarding houses and ballrooms of 1819 Paris, the pursuit of social standing exacts a devastating price. This relentless study of ambition and parental ruin captures the collision between hollow prestige and the raw, sacrificial heart.

Classics of Literature6 min read
Cover of Some Principles of Maritime Strategy

Some Principles of Maritime Strategy

Julian Stafford Corbett

This foundational text explores the complex relationship between political objectives and naval operations. It systematically defines how maritime power is secured, disputed, and exercised in the service of national interest.

History - Warfare6 min read
Cover of The Young Oarsmen of Lakeview

The Young Oarsmen of Lakeview

Edward Stratemeyer

Young oarsmen navigate the choppy waters of adolescence, testing their mettle in competitive racing and thwarting the schemes of local bullies. Through steady grit and honest effort, they secure their own futures and uncover long-hidden family secrets.

Adventure6 min read
Cover of Girl Scouts in the Adirondacks

Girl Scouts in the Adirondacks

Lillian Elizabeth Roy

HOOK A group of spirited Girl Scouts embarks on an Adirondack adventure, balancing the practical demands of wilderness survival with the discovery of their own courage during a life-altering summer.

Adventure5 min read
Cover of Piccadilly Jim

Piccadilly Jim

P. G. (Pelham Grenville) Wodehouse

A young man of leisure finds himself entangled in a chaotic, farcical scheme to win his father’s social standing and his own heart in this high-spirited tale of transatlantic mischief.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of Plotinos: Complete Works, v. 4: In Chronological Order, Grouped in Four Periods

Plotinos: Complete Works, v. 4: In Chronological Order, Grouped in Four Periods

Plotinus

True happiness remains a persistent inquiry into the nature of the soul, seeking to resolve whether human existence is merely a fragment of a larger, harmonious, and divinely ordered cosmic drama.

Philosophy & Ethics7 min read
Cover of Stories from Tagore

Stories from Tagore

Rabindranath Tagore

These tales capture the quiet ache of human longing, exploring the profound connections between parents, children, and the strangers we encounter in the fleeting moments of everyday life.

Short Stories6 min read
Cover of The Japanese Empire

The Japanese Empire

Harry Alverson Franck

This geographical reader provides an intimate, on-the-ground survey of the Japanese Empire during the 1920s. It serves as an accessible, observation-heavy travelogue, capturing the social customs, geography, and industrial modernization of a nation in transition.

History6 min read
Cover of Ocean Steam Navigation and the Ocean Post

Ocean Steam Navigation and the Ocean Post

Thomas Rainey

The mid-19th century was a period of intense maritime competition where steamship technology determined which nations would rule the waves and dictate the flow of global commerce. This technical and political treatise argues that government-subsidized mail lines are essential for national sovereignty, economic…

Engineering & Technology6 min read
Cover of A Prisoner of Morro

A Prisoner of Morro

Upton Sinclair

Clifford Faraday, a spirited young naval cadet, finds himself in the thick of the Spanish-American War, where courage and quick thinking become his only allies against a web of enemy traps.

Adventure6 min read
Cover of A Woman's Will

A Woman's Will

Anne Warner

HOOK A headstrong American widow travels solo through Europe, only to find her fiercely guarded independence challenged by an intense, enigmatic musician who believes he can tame her spirit.

Novels5 min read
Cover of The Mysterious Stranger, and Other Stories

The Mysterious Stranger, and Other Stories

Mark Twain

The Austrian village of Eseldorf, isolated by forest and time, serves as the stage for a profound encounter between the innocent, superstitious villagers and a visitor who claims to be an angel. What begins as a curiosity of youthful wonder quickly devolves into a dark, philosophical inquiry into the nature of…

American Literature5 min read
Cover of The Masque of the Red Death

The Masque of the Red Death

Edgar Allan Poe

When a lethal plague ravages the land, a prince attempts to cheat fate by walling himself and his court within a secure, opulent abbey, only to discover that no fortification can withstand the inevitability of death.

American Literature7 min read
Cover of The tale of Nimble Deer

The tale of Nimble Deer

Arthur Scott Bailey

A young deer learns the ways of the forest, braves the threats of the farm, and discovers his place among the animal community.

Children & Young Adult Reading6 min read
Cover of Space Platform

Space Platform

Murray Leinster

Humanity stands on the precipice of the final frontier, yet the greatest threat to its ascent lies not in the stars, but in the shadows of the very men building the way. This is a story of grit, engineering, and the desperate struggle to protect a fragile hope from those who would see it destroyed.

Adventure6 min read
Cover of The Rover Boys on Treasure Isle

The Rover Boys on Treasure Isle

Edward Stratemeyer

The Rover brothers embark on an ambitious sea voyage to locate a hidden fortune, pitting their ingenuity against deceptive rivals and the unpredictable forces of nature. This classic installment of a long-running series captures the spirit of early twentieth-century juvenile adventure.

Adventure6 min read
Cover of Sun Tzŭ on the Art of War: The Oldest Military Treatise in the World

Sun Tzŭ on the Art of War: The Oldest Military Treatise in the World

active 6th century B.C. Sunzi

True victory is not won on the battlefield, but by creating conditions where the enemy is already defeated before the first strike occurs.

History - Ancient6 min read
Cover of The Attempted Assassination of ex-President Theodore Roosevelt

The Attempted Assassination of ex-President Theodore Roosevelt

Oliver E. Remey

A bullet destined for the heart of a former president strikes a manuscript and a spectacle case instead, sparking an extraordinary collision between political fervor and individual delusion in the heart of Milwaukee.

History - American6 min read
Cover of Winning His Way

Winning His Way

Charles Carleton Coffin

Duty and devotion define a young man's journey from a humble village childhood through the harrowing crucible of the American Civil War to an eventual, hard-won homecoming.

Adventure6 min read
Cover of A Boswell of Baghdad

A Boswell of Baghdad

E. V. (Edward Verrall) Lucas

This collection of essays offers a window into the rich, forgotten lives of ancient Baghdad’s scholars and poets, alongside a series of charming, observant meditations on early twentieth-century life.

Biographies6 min read
Cover of Fred Fenton on the Track

Fred Fenton on the Track

Allen Chapman

This story follows a dedicated school athlete whose commitment to fair play and physical fitness guides him through a series of local mysteries and high-stakes competitions. It is an earnest portrait of turn-of-the-century American youth culture.

Adventure6 min read
Cover of Pan-Islam

Pan-Islam

G. Wyman (George Wyman) Bury

The colonial administrator and observer offers an unvarnished, firsthand look at the tensions between Islamic identity and Western influence in the twilight of the Ottoman Empire. This bracingly direct account dissects the mechanics of power, propaganda, and faith in the Middle East.

History - Modern (1750+)6 min read
Cover of Boy Life: Stories and Readings Selected From The Works of William Dean Howells

Boy Life: Stories and Readings Selected From The Works of William Dean Howells

William Dean Howells

The world of childhood is a distinct country, governed by its own laws, secret signs, and intense, fleeting allegiances. This collection captures the lived reality of growing up, where the thrill of a circus visit outweighs the weight of the adult world.

American Literature6 min read
Cover of The Form of Perfect Living and Other Prose Treatises

The Form of Perfect Living and Other Prose Treatises

Rolle, Richard, of Hampole

A fourteenth-century hermit offers a timeless, radical invitation to strip away the distractions of the world and find the transformative, burning joy of divine love.

Religion/Spirituality6 min read
Cover of The lavender dragon

The lavender dragon

Eden Phillpotts

A naive knight sets out to slay a legendary beast, only to find that the creature is a philosopher-king who has built a utopian society in the wilderness.

Novels6 min read
Cover of Kim

Kim

Rudyard Kipling

The orphan of an Irish soldier, Kim survives the teeming streets of colonial India by playing the "Friend of all the World," only to find his identity fractured between two clashing lives.

Adventure6 min read
Cover of Cape Cod

Cape Cod

Henry Crocker Kittredge

The sandy arm of Massachusetts holds a history as turbulent as the Atlantic gales that have shaped its coastline for centuries. This account traces the evolution of a region built on grit, faith, and a relentless maritime spirit.

History7 min read
Cover of Mediaeval Tales

Mediaeval Tales

Unknown

The past does not merely offer us stories; it preserves the echoes of how our ancestors understood power, peril, and the thin veil between the earthly and the eternal. These pages hold the remnants of a world where faith and folklore collide in the imagination.

Historical Novels8 min read
Cover of A Treatise on the Tactical Use of the Three Arms: Infantry, Artillery, and Cavalry

A Treatise on the Tactical Use of the Three Arms: Infantry, Artillery, and Cavalry

Francis J. (Francis James) Lippitt

HOOK This manual distills the fundamental mechanics of 19th-century warfare, explaining how infantry, artillery, and cavalry must coordinate to survive and succeed on the battlefield.

History - Warfare6 min read
Cover of The Four Million

The Four Million

O. Henry

New York is a city of four million people, yet each soul navigates a private, often lonely, labyrinth of aspiration and small-scale tragedy. These stories capture the fleeting, bittersweet intersections of those lives.

American Literature6 min read
Cover of Last and first men

Last and first men

Olaf Stapledon

A cosmic chronicle of humanity, this narrative traces the species from its present-day origins through billions of years of biological and cultural evolution toward an eventual, inevitable extinction.

Science-Fiction & Fantasy5 min read
Cover of The Life, Public Services and Select Speeches of Rutherford B. Hayes

The Life, Public Services and Select Speeches of Rutherford B. Hayes

J. Q. (James Quay) Howard

This profile of a nineteenth-century statesman traces the evolution of a man defined by his rigorous service in the Civil War and his subsequent commitment to public duty and civil service reform.

Biographies6 min read
Cover of The Return of the Native

The Return of the Native

Thomas Hardy

On the vast, brooding landscape of Egdon Heath, human lives are shaped and shattered by the collision of ancient local traditions and the restless, modern desires of those who yearn to escape them.

British Literature7 min read
Cover of Songs of the cattle trail and cow camp

Songs of the cattle trail and cow camp

Unknown

The West is a landscape of myth and hard labor, captured here in the songs and stories of the men who lived in the saddle.

American Literature6 min read
Cover of How to become mentally superior

How to become mentally superior

Henri Le Chatelier

Ambition is a mechanical process, not a mystical gift. By cultivating four distinct mental habits, anyone can elevate their output and join the ranks of the intellectual elite.

General6 min read
Cover of The Basis of Morality

The Basis of Morality

Arthur Schopenhauer

Founding morality is difficult; preaching it is easy. By looking past social convention to the bedrock of human nature, this treatise seeks to uncover the true, singular source of our moral life.

Philosophy & Ethics6 min read
Cover of Hindu gods and heroes

Hindu gods and heroes

Lionel D. (Lionel David) Barnett

The evolution of the divine in India reveals how ancient heroic sagas and nature spirits were transformed by priests and poets into the complex, enduring gods of the Hindu pantheon.

History - Religious6 min read
Cover of The Rime of the Ancient Mariner

The Rime of the Ancient Mariner

Samuel Taylor Coleridge

An ancient sailor accosts a wedding guest, compelling him to hear a harrowing tale of transgression and redemption upon the high seas. This seminal work remains a cornerstone of English literature for its haunting, rhythmic power.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of Historical Essays

Historical Essays

James Ford Rhodes

This collection of essays serves as a scholarly guide for those who seek to understand the historian’s craft through the lens of nineteenth-century political experience. It bridges the gap between grand historical narrative and the practical, often messy realities of governance and public life.

Essays, Letters & Speeches6 min read
Cover of The hero of the Filipinos

The hero of the Filipinos

Charles Edward Russell

The life of José Rizal stands as a testament to the power of a single, resolute mind to awaken a nation from the long, enforced slumber of colonial rule. This account traces the journey of a brilliant young Filipino who challenged the absolute authority of the Spanish friars through intellect, art, and an…

Biographies6 min read
Cover of Evangeline: with Notes and Plan of Study

Evangeline: with Notes and Plan of Study

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

In the quiet village of Grand-Pré, a young woman’s life is shattered by exile, setting her on a lifelong, continent-spanning journey to find her lost betrothed.

American Literature5 min read
Cover of The Tragedy of Pudd'nhead Wilson

The Tragedy of Pudd'nhead Wilson

Mark Twain

A single, careless remark labels a man a fool, setting the stage for a dark, tangled drama of stolen identity and racial injustice in a small Missouri river town.

American Literature6 min read
Cover of Lewis and Clark: Meriwether Lewis and William Clark

Lewis and Clark: Meriwether Lewis and William Clark

William R. (William Rheem) Lighton

The explorers who mapped the vast American wilderness from the Missouri to the Pacific were driven by an unyielding sense of duty, ultimately shaping the identity of a young nation through their quiet, collective heroism.

Adventure6 min read
Cover of The Wonder Island Boys: Treasures of the Islands

The Wonder Island Boys: Treasures of the Islands

Roger T. (Roger Thompson) Finlay

Marooned castaways apply ingenuity and colonial confidence to civilize neighboring tribes, uncovering long-lost shipwrecks and buried secrets in the South Seas.

Adventure6 min read
Cover of The Boy Scout Treasure Hunters

The Boy Scout Treasure Hunters

Charles Henry Lerrigo

HOOK Escaping a restrictive reformatory, a troubled youth seeks freedom in the wilderness, only to find himself entangled in a dangerous criminal conspiracy and a high-stakes search for hidden treasure.

Adventure6 min read
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