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34,239 public-domain books, summarised. Page 699 of 714.

Introduction to the Study of Palæontological Botany
John Hutton Balfour
This foundational text offers a rigorous, scholarly guide to the plant life of ancient geological eras, bridging the gap between living botany and the fossilized remains of the deep past.

Israel Rank
Roy Horniman
A chillingly detached narrator navigates the rigid hierarchies of Edwardian society by methodically removing those standing between him and a noble inheritance. This dark, satirical confession explores the cold efficiency of a man who views murder as a mere administrative necessity.

Jan Vedder's Wife
Amelia E. Barr
The story follows the fragile marriage of a proud Shetland fisherman and his strong-willed wife, whose inability to communicate leads to a painful separation and a long, testing journey toward mutual understanding and ultimate peace.

Janet Hardy in Hollywood
Ruthe S. Wheeler
Two high school friends trade their quiet Midwestern lives for the high-stakes world of Hollywood, finding that film sets hold as much danger, mystery, and drama as the scripts they once performed on stage.

Jeremy and Hamlet: A Chronicle of Certain Incidents in the Lives of a Boy, a Dog, and a Country Town
Hugh Walpole
A small boy’s world is a vast territory where the mundane—a dog’s favorite window, a schoolyard scuffle, or a stolen moment with a book—takes on the weight of an epic journey. Through the eyes of a child, the ordinary becomes extraordinary.

King Henry VI, Part 2
William Shakespeare
A kingdom fractures as ambition and betrayal dismantle a fragile peace. This historical drama chronicles the slow, inevitable slide of a nation into the chaos of civil war.

Letters on International Copyright
Henry Charles Carey
A vigorous defense of open knowledge, this work argues that international copyright serves only to consolidate wealth among a few powerful publishers while restricting the intellectual growth of the reading public.

Little Citizens: The Humours of School Life
Myra Kelly
A young teacher navigates the vibrant, chaotic world of a lower East Side classroom, where immigrant children blend their unique cultural heritage with the challenges of early twentieth-century American life.

Little Jack Rabbit and Danny Fox
David Cory
The forest is a place of constant peril for a small, clever rabbit, but vigilance and a quick wit are often enough to outsmart the larger predators who lurk in the shadows.

Little Journey to Puerto Rico: For Intermediate and Upper Grades
Marian Minnie George
HOOK This guide invites readers to navigate the geography and culture of a Caribbean island through the lens of early twentieth-century American curiosity.

Little Man's family = Diné yázhí ba'áłchíní
J. B. (James Byron) Enochs
This bilingual pre-primer introduces the daily life and vocabulary of a Navajo family, serving as both a bridge for young learners and a cultural record of mid-century reservation life. It provides a foundational look at the relationships and domestic activities that define a child’s world within the community.

Memoirs of Louis XIV and His Court and of the Regency
Saint-Simon, Louis de Rouvroy, duc de
In the shadowed hallways of Versailles, a master observer meticulously records the erosion of an absolute monarch’s power and the fragile, frantic dance of those vying to inherit the remains of a sun-king’s legacy.

Miser Farebrother: A Novel (vol. 2 of 3)
B. L. (Benjamin Leopold) Farjeon
A desperate, lonely woman is trapped under the thumb of her miserly, manipulative father, while a conniving clerk plots to seize both her hand and her father’s fortune.

Miss Fairfax of Virginia: A Romance of Love and Adventure Under the Palmettos
St. George Rathborne
An American operative travels from Dublin to the Caribbean, entangled in a high-stakes rescue mission and a test of heart, where loyalties are as shifting as the tides.

Motor Boat Boys Down the Coast
Louis Arundel
The open sea beckons to a band of young friends as they navigate the Atlantic coast, testing their grit and their machinery against the unpredictable elements of a long-distance cruise to Florida.

Mr. Kris Kringle: A Christmas Tale
S. Weir (Silas Weir) Mitchell
This Christmas story portrays the quiet desperation of a mother facing financial ruin and the miraculous return of an estranged father who assumes the guise of the holiday spirit to save his family.

Mrs. Dot: A Farce
W. Somerset (William Somerset) Maugham
A wealthy widow orchestrates a sophisticated game of romantic musical chairs to secure the man she loves, all while navigating the rigid social expectations of the Edwardian elite.

Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch
Alice Caldwell Hegan Rice
A resilient woman living in a ramshackle neighborhood proves that even in the deepest poverty, a cheerful spirit can transform a scrap-filled life into something song-worthy.

My Dog Tray
Unknown
A loyal canine companion navigates the harsh streets of London to rescue his young mistress from poverty and betrayal. This narrative of devotion proves that true friendship can overcome even the most desperate circumstances.

My Trip Around the World: August, 1895-May, 1896
Eleonora Hunt
The journey of a lifetime begins with a heavy heart and concludes with a patriotic embrace of home, capturing the grandeur and the struggle of late nineteenth-century global travel.

Ned, Bob and Jerry at Boxwood Hall
Clarence Young
This story follows three inseparable friends who trade their restless, high-speed lifestyle for the rigid halls of academia, discovering that collegiate life offers its own set of challenges, rivalries, and triumphs. It remains a quintessential example of early 20th-century boys' fiction, emphasizing the transition…

Normandy
G. E. (Geraldine Edith) Mitton
This guide offers an intimate portrait of a storied region, blending historical inquiry with the practical observations of a traveler. It captures the essence of a landscape defined by both its architectural grandeur and its enduring peasant traditions.

Notes and Queries, Number 38, July 20, 1850
Various
A collaborative mosaic of Victorian intellectual inquiry, this collection captures a moment where mid-century scholars trade obscure lore, linguistic puzzles, and historical minutiae across the pages of a burgeoning weekly exchange.

Observations on the Effects of the Corn Laws, and of a Rise or Fall in the Price of Corn on the Agriculture and General Wealth of the Country
T. R. (Thomas Robert) Malthus
This work examines the economic tension between domestic agricultural protectionism and the benefits of free trade, arguing that the true impact of corn prices on national wealth is often misunderstood.

Old Broadbrim Into the Heart of Australia
St. George Rathborne
HOOK A determined Quaker detective pursues a cold-blooded murderer from the elegant parlors of Fifth Avenue into the rugged, dangerous heart of the Australian outback.

Old Rough the miser
Lily F. Wesselhoeft
A woodland tyrant's greed turns neighbor against neighbor until the smallest forest creatures unite to break a dark prophecy of unending war.

Old-Time Nautical Instruments
John Robinson
Navigators of the past ventured into uncharted oceans equipped only with rudimentary tools, often lacking even the basic sextants or charts considered essential for survival by modern standards.

Oscar in Africa
Harry Castlemon
A young American naturalist travels to the African wilderness to collect museum specimens, facing both the dangers of the veldt and the schemes of unscrupulous opportunists.

Our Fellows
Harry Castlemon
Twin brothers and their group of friends navigate the perils of the wilderness while outwitting a band of dangerous outlaws in this high-stakes frontier adventure.

Our Little Czecho-Slovak Cousin
Clara Vostrovsky Winlow
Set against the backdrop of a nation’s dramatic rebirth, this narrative follows a young boy’s journey from a repressed village to the heart of a newly independent state. It captures the resilient spirit of a people longing for sovereignty.

Outposts of Asia
Morilla Maria Norton
This travelogue captures the shifting landscape of East Asia at the dawn of the twentieth century, blending personal observation with the geopolitical anxieties of a changing world. It serves as both an intimate diary of a journey and a reflection on the rapid modernization of Japan, Korea, and Manchuria.

Pan and Æolus: Poems
Charles Hamilton Musgrove
HOOK This collection of verse grapples with the eternal weight of human mortality, finding in the silence of nature and the turbulence of modern life a search for divine purpose.

Passing By
Maurice Baring
The quiet tragedy of a hidden love unfolds through glimpses of diaries and letters, tracing a path from casual social acquaintance to an irreversible renunciation of the world.

Plutarch's essays and miscellanies, Vol. 5 (of 5)
Plutarch
To slaughter an animal merely to satisfy a pampered appetite is an act of unthinking cruelty. Flesh-eating clogs the mind, dulls the spirit, and brutally strips a feeling creature of its rightful time under the sun.

Point Lace and Diamonds
George Augustus Baker
HOOK This collection of light verse captures the glittering, hollow, and fiercely social world of New York’s late 19th-century elite.

Poisonous Snakes of Kansas
Robert F. (Robert Francis) Clarke
Knowing the difference between a dangerous serpent and a harmless garden visitor can transform a paralyzing fear of the outdoors into a manageable, informed curiosity. This guide demystifies the slithering inhabitants of the Kansas landscape.

Post mortem: Essays, historical and medical
C. (Charles) MacLaurin
Great figures of history are often framed by the myths they inspire, yet they were first and foremost physical beings governed by the frailties of the human body. This collection of essays examines the intersection of high-stakes historical events and the often-overlooked medical conditions that may have shaped the…

Psyche
Walter S. (Walter Samuel) Cramp
A innocent young family of Greek performers is drawn into the deadly, paranoid inner circles of Imperial Rome. Power, corruption, and fragile virtue collide as the court of Tiberius unravels.

Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. 98, June 14 1890
Various
This collection captures the frantic, witty, and deeply opinionated pulse of late-Victorian London. Through satire, verse, and parliamentary reporting, it offers a vivid look at a society caught between tradition and the relentless pace of change.

Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. CLVIII, January 7, 1920
Various
A quintessential snapshot of British life in 1920, this collection captures the post-war transition through biting satire, whimsical verse, and the weary, sharp-eyed observations of a society finding its footing in a "new world.

Punch, or the London Charivari, Volume 100, May 9, 1891
Various
This volume captures the irreverent pulse of late Victorian London, offering a satirical snapshot of a society obsessed with status, politics, and the theater. It serves as a lively, biting guide to the preoccupations of 1891.

Punch, or the London Charivari, Volume 153, September 19, 1917
Various
This collection of wit, satire, and commentary captures the distinct, embattled atmosphere of London during the autumn of 1917. It serves as a sharp-edged mirror to a society grappling with the fatigue of a prolonged, global conflict.

Question of Comfort
Les Cole
The Gravity Gang is a brilliant, ragtag team of experts unknowingly caught in the crosshairs of an interstellar manhunt. An undercover alien operative poses as a Disneyland PR man, using the construction of a “Tour of the Solar System” attraction to flush out a dangerous fugitive hiding among his staff.

Reminiscences of the Nineteenth Massachusetts Regiment
John G. B. (John Gregory Bishop) Adams
A raw, unvarnished account of four years spent in the shadow of war, this narrative captures the daily existence of the men who marched from Massachusetts to the heart of the Confederacy and back.

Representative British Orations Volume 1 (of 4): With Introductions and Explanatory Notes
Unknown
This collection of historical speeches preserves the pivotal moments when influential voices shaped the trajectory of a nation. It offers an intimate look at the power of rhetoric to define the boundaries between authority and liberty.

Ruby at School
Paull, George A., Mrs.
A spirited young girl discovers that character is built not by indulging one's own whims, but by learning the grace of self-discipline and the joy of serving others.

Sam's Ghost: Deep Waters, Part 4
W. W. (William Wymark) Jacobs
A night-watchman’s quiet vigil on a river wharf is shattered by the supposed haunting of a drowned mate, leading to a desperate scheme involving a disputed pocket watch and a very earthly deception.

San Salvador
Mary Agnes Tincker
Seeking a hidden sanctuary, a young woman discovers a remote, utopian society where the rigors of the world fall away, revealing both the beauty of communal living and the haunting, inescapable nature of human longing.