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All free summaries — page 648
34,239 public-domain books, summarised. Page 648 of 714.
Denis Dent: A Novel
E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung
A shipwreck survivor risks everything in the Australian gold fields, only to return home and find his beloved married to his greatest rival.
Elves and Heroes
Donald A. (Donald Alexander) Mackenzie
This collection of poems and tales breathes life into the vanishing folklore of the Scottish Highlands, blending the ethereal world of spirits with the tragic grandeur of ancient heroes.
English and Scottish Ballads, Volume VII
Unknown
This collection preserves the rugged, visceral pulse of centuries of conflict, capturing the shifting loyalties and brutal directness of the borderlands. It serves as a vital archive for anyone seeking the raw, unvarnished spirit of an age where historical memory was forged in song and steel.
Five Little Peppers Midway
Margaret Sidney
The Pepper family grows, learns, and navigates the complicated dynamics of a larger world, finding that kindness and integrity are the truest measures of wealth.
Frank Armstrong at College
Matthew M. Colton
This chronicle of collegiate ambition follows a young man’s journey through the rigorous traditions of early 20th-century Yale, where character is forged on the playing field and tested by the unpredictability of youth.
From Veldt Camp Fires
H. A. (Henry Anderson) Bryden
Out on the vast, unforgiving plains of the nineteenth-century African interior, the line between sudden fortune and a lonely death is often drawn by a single campfire.
Get out of our skies!
Henry Slesar
This story follows a cynical public relations operative who discovers that his corporate masters are not merely greedy, but extraterrestrial refugees attempting to sabotage humanity's expansion into the stars to secure a private sanctuary.
Getting to know Spain
Dee Day
Spain, once thought to be the edge of the world, reveals a rich, complex heritage of conquest, art, and endurance. This guide invites readers to explore the many faces of a nation defined by its mountainous landscape.
Given in Marriage
B. M. (Bithia Mary) Croker
A sudden death in the Indian hills leaves a young woman bound in a secret marriage to a man she barely knows, triggering a years-long struggle to navigate duty, social expectation, and an unspoken bond.
Gleams of Sunshine: Optimistic Poems
Joseph Horatio Chant
The poet finds beauty in the ordinary, turning his gaze toward the divine order of nature and the quiet triumphs of faith.
Gurre Kamilaroi
William Ridley
This foundational text serves as a primer for the Kamilaroi language, bridging the gap between missionary objectives and linguistic documentation through a collection of moral narratives. It stands as a historical artifact of colonial-era efforts to formalize indigenous languages for the purpose of religious…
Hand made furniture and how to make it
Albert G. Glidden
HOOK This practical guide invites the reader to bypass mass-produced goods, instead equipping them with the fundamental skills to build enduring, hand-crafted furniture through honest, traditional joinery.
Hawk Eye
David Cory
HOOK Two young Sioux hunters embark on a perilous river journey to trade their winter pelts, only to be stalked by a vengeful rival who threatens their lives and their honor.
Heart of the Sunset
Rex Beach
The borderlands of the early twentieth century are a powder keg, and for one woman, the explosion finally shatters the prison of a hollow marriage. Amidst the chaos of the Mexican Revolution, the personal becomes political, and the price of freedom is a perilous journey into the unknown.
History of the Eighty-sixth Regiment, Illinois Volunteer Infantry, during its term of service
John R. Kinnear
This chronicle follows the Eighty-sixth Illinois Infantry from its 1862 formation through the grueling campaigns of the American Civil War, ending in the triumphant, solemn journey home.
Homestead on the Hillside
Mary Jane Holmes
This collection of short stories captures the trials and social maneuvers of mid-19th-century New England life, where domestic virtue and vanity frequently collide. These tales navigate the shifting fortunes of families and the quiet triumphs of the humble over the proud.
How? or, Spare Hours Made Profitable for Boys and Girls
Kennedy Holbrook
A creative guide for the industrious, this work transforms rainy afternoons into opportunities for scientific discovery and mechanical skill. It remains a charming manual for turning simple materials into lifelong hobbies.
Idonia: A Romance of Old London
Arthur Frederick Wallis
A young man is thrust into a dangerous London intrigue involving his imprisoned uncle, a beautiful woman, and a web of shifting loyalties.
Ilka on the Hill-Top and Other Stories
Hjalmar Hjorth Boyesen
This collection of short stories captures the quiet, often melancholy tensions of lives caught between traditional European roots and the modern, skeptical world. It explores the fragility of human connection with grace and a sharp, observational eye.
Isis very much unveiled, being the story of the great Mahatma hoax
Fydell Edmund Garrett
This investigation tracks the internal collapse of a high-profile mystical society, tracing how religious leaders used fraudulent "Mahatma" correspondence to control their followers and consolidate personal power.
Journal of the Life and Religious Labours of Elias Hicks
Elias Hicks
A persistent traveler records a lifetime of quiet, rigorous spiritual inquiry, documenting his relentless pursuit of inward truth across the American landscape.
Killarney
Mary Gorges
The region of Killarney acts as both a physical destination and a gateway to a realm of legend, where the rugged peaks of Ireland meet a landscape steeped in folklore. This evocative account navigates the famous lakes and mountains of Kerry, capturing a world where natural beauty and ancient history are inseparable.
King Cole
John Masefield
The life of an artist is a wandering one, paved with hardship and the constant threat of failure. Yet, even in the deepest rain and coldest despair, the spirit can be lifted by a song.
King Henry VI, Part 1
William Shakespeare
As the English empire in France begins to crumble, internal rivalries and dynastic ambitions threaten to dismantle the kingdom from within.
Lausanne
Francis Henry Gribble
This account of a classic Swiss resort paints a vivid portrait of a town shaped by centuries of religious fervor, intellectual giants, and an enduring community of curious expatriates.
Letters of Edward FitzGerald to Fanny Kemble (1871-1883)
Edward FitzGerald
Letters of this caliber offer a rare window into the quiet, ruminative life of a nineteenth-century intellectual. They capture a decade-long exchange between two old friends, finding beauty in the routine of reading, gardening, and long-standing affection.
Life in the Red Brigade: London Fire Brigade
R. M. (Robert Michael) Ballantyne
This account follows the daring lives of London’s Victorian firemen, documenting their breathless response to urban peril and the personal struggles that burn just as fiercely as the fires they fight.
Lippincott's Magazine of Popular Literature and Science, Vol. 26, November, 1880
Various
This wide-ranging collection of nineteenth-century thought captures the intellectual pulse of 1880 through a blend of travelogues, scientific inquiry, domestic fiction, and cultural critique.
Lippincott's Magazine of Popular Literature and Science, Volume 15, No. 89, May, 1875
Various
This volume captures the diverse intellectual curiosity of 1875, blending travelogues, political biography, and literary analysis. It serves as a window into the Victorian era’s appetite for global discovery and rigorous self-improvement.
Make Mine Homogenized
Rick Raphael
A quiet Nevada ranch becomes the unlikely epicenter of the space race when a common Guernsey cow begins producing high-octane rocket fuel.
Marie Gourdon: A Romance of the Lower St. Lawrence
Maud Ogilvy
A young man abandons his true love and his humble roots for the promise of inheritance, only to find that prosperity offers no shelter from the ghosts of his past.
Mary S. Peake: The Colored Teacher at Fortress Monroe
Lewis C. (Lewis Conger) Lockwood
The life of a devout teacher illuminates the dawn of freedom for the formerly enslaved, revealing a spirit that triumphed over systemic cruelty through faith and the pursuit of knowledge.
Memoirs of Louis XIV and His Court and of the Regency
Saint-Simon, Louis de Rouvroy, duc de
A sharp-eyed witness chronicles the golden cage of Versailles, exposing the petty rivalries, fragile hierarchies, and hidden scandals that defined a monarch’s absolute rule.
Memories of the Civil War
Henry B. James
A young soldier’s unvarnished account of four years spent in the ranks, capturing the exhaustion, the camaraderie, and the heavy toll of the American Civil War.
Miss Pat at School
Pemberton Ginther
Two sisters navigate the rigorous, paint-smeared world of a professional art academy, finding that friendship, rivalry, and sudden creative breakthroughs are just as essential as technical skill.
Morag: A Tale of the Highlands of Scotland
Janet Milne Rae
A high-born girl and a mountain-dwelling shepherd’s daughter bridge the divide between their worlds through an unlikely friendship forged in the wild, rugged landscapes of the Scottish Highlands.
Mr. Punch in the Hunting Field
Unknown
The hunting field is a treacherous stage where the ambitious, the incompetent, and the perpetually bruised collide in pursuit of a fox that is rarely, if ever, actually caught.
Notes and Queries, Number 14, February 2, 1850
Various
A Victorian clearinghouse for the curious, this periodical bridges the gap between private scholarship and public discovery, inviting readers to untangle literary mysteries and historical riddles through collaborative investigation.
Notes and Queries, Number 31, June 1, 1850
Various
This collection of mid-nineteenth-century correspondence serves as a vibrant, communal archive, bridging the gap between scholarly curiosity and the intimate, often superstitious, habits of the Victorian public.
Notes and Queries, Number 56, November 23, 1850
Various
This nineteenth-century periodical serves as a communal gathering place for the curious, where scholars and amateurs trade specialized knowledge on everything from ancient etymology to the resting places of forgotten kings.
Old Jabe's Marital Experiments: 1908
Thomas Nelson Page
A shrewd and irrepressible man treats marriage with the casual pragmatism of a business transaction, outlasting his many wives while maintaining a humorous, parasitic reliance on his former mistress.
Patience Wins: War in the Works
George Manville Fenn
HO0K: A young man navigates the escalating dangers of a strike at his family’s new steel works. Through steadfast resolve and courageous action, he gradually transforms a hostile workforce into a loyal community.
Paul Gosslett's Confessions in Love, Law, and The Civil Service
Charles Lever
This picaresque memoir follows an unlucky, romantic, and perpetually adrift Englishman as he stumbles through a series of absurd, high-stakes misadventures across Europe and Ireland. It is a lighthearted look at failure, vanity, and the delusions of the minor gentleman.
Phrenology Examined
P. (Pierre) Flourens
In an era obsessed with reading the human mind through the topography of the skull, one scientist stands firm against the tide of popular pseudoscience. This precise, surgical takedown exposes the fundamental errors behind the belief that intellect can be measured by lumps on a head.
Poems
John L. (John Lawson) Stoddard
A collection of verse traversing the landscapes of the human heart, this work finds profound, quiet significance in the fleeting moments of a life spent wandering the globe.
Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. 104, April 1, 1893
Various
This collection captures the sharp, satirical heartbeat of late-Victorian London, offering a witty tour through the drawing rooms, political halls, and crowded tearooms of 1893.
Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. 146, April 15, 1914
Various
The world of the early twentieth century is captured here in a brisk, kaleidoscopic series of satirical sketches, news snippets, and lighthearted commentary. This collection offers a vibrant snapshot of the cultural and political preoccupations of April 1914.
Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. 147, August 19th, 1914
Various
As the shadow of the Great War falls across the British summer of 1914, this collection captures a nation’s collective spirit through a lens of sharp, resilient, and occasionally surreal satire.