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32,123 public-domain books, summarised. Page 77 of 670.

Cover of The Erotic Motive in Literature

The Erotic Motive in Literature

Albert Mordell

A daring attempt to decode the hidden lives of authors through the lens of early psychoanalysis, this work argues that every poem, novel, and play is a secret diary of its creator’s unconscious desires.

Essays, Letters & Speeches6 min read
Cover of Songs of Childhood

Songs of Childhood

Walter De la Mare

This collection of verse captures the elusive threshold between the waking world of childhood and the shimmering, often unsettling realm of the imagination. It is a work of quiet intensity, lingering in the memory like a half-remembered dream.

Children & Young Adult Reading6 min read
Cover of Christmas Light

Christmas Light

Ethel Calvert Phillips

HOOK A young girl in ancient Bethlehem discovers the true meaning of hope after a miraculous encounter with the Holy Family.

Children & Young Adult Reading5 min read
Cover of Americanism

Americanism

Theodore Roosevelt

This collection of addresses serves as a forceful, urgent manifesto on the nature of American identity and the responsibilities of citizenship. It argues that a successful republic requires a unified national spirit, undivided loyalty, and a commitment to duty over individual rights.

Essays, Letters & Speeches7 min read
Cover of My man Jeeves

My man Jeeves

P. G. (Pelham Grenville) Wodehouse

A well-meaning, dim-witted bachelor survives the tribulations of high society and his own poor judgment solely through the quiet, omniscient intervention of his incomparable valet.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of Psychology for beginners

Psychology for beginners

Hereward Carrington

Psychology is a vast, evolving science that reaches far beyond the simple study of consciousness to investigate the hidden mechanisms of the human mind. This primer serves as an accessible map to the complex terrain of mental life.

General6 min read
Cover of The Malay Archipelago, Volume 1: The Land of the Orang-utan and the Bird of Paradise

The Malay Archipelago, Volume 1: The Land of the Orang-utan and the Bird of Paradise

Alfred Russel Wallace

A naturalist’s meticulous, multi-year survey of the East Indies, charting the staggering biological diversity of the islands while uncovering the shifting boundaries of nature’s grand design.

Archaeology & Anthropology6 min read
Cover of Translations of Shakuntala and Other Works

Translations of Shakuntala and Other Works

Kālidāsa

These enduring Sanskrit masterpieces capture the heartbeat of human emotion, weaving tales of love, loss, and restoration that resonate across centuries with singular, crystalline beauty. Through poetry and drama, they map the vast landscape of the human heart.

Mythology, Legends & Folklore6 min read
Cover of U.S. Copyright Renewals, 1967 July - December

U.S. Copyright Renewals, 1967 July - December

Library of Congress. Copyright Office

A ledger of intellectual property, this document captures the precise moment in 1967 when authors and heirs claimed continued ownership over works originally published decades prior. It serves as a bureaucratic snapshot of the American literary landscape during the middle of the twentieth century.

Encyclopedias/Dictionaries/Reference6 min read
Cover of Something Else Again

Something Else Again

Franklin P. (Franklin Pierce) Adams

This collection of verse captures the sharp, playful spirit of a legendary newspaper columnist at the height of his powers. It offers a witty, rhythmic lens through which to view the anxieties and absurdities of early twentieth-century life.

Humour6 min read
Cover of The Happy Prince, and Other Tales

The Happy Prince, and Other Tales

Oscar Wilde

Beauty and cruelty walk hand in hand through these pages, where the smallest acts of sacrifice are met with either profound grace or complete indifference. These stories remain as sharp and haunting as the day they were written.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of Home Geography for Primary Grades

Home Geography for Primary Grades

C. C. Long

HOOK The world is a classroom waiting to be observed, and this guide invites young students to look beneath their feet and above their heads to understand the earth’s mechanisms.

Children & Young Adult Reading6 min read
Cover of Oscar Wilde, Art and Morality: A Defence of "The Picture of Dorian Gray"

Oscar Wilde, Art and Morality: A Defence of "The Picture of Dorian Gray"

Unknown

Art is a mirror, not a moral compass, yet the world often mistakes the reflection for the observer’s own soul. This collection examines the firestorm ignited by a single novel, tracing the collision between a writer’s uncompromising vision and a public’s hunger for censorship.

Art6 min read
Cover of Crowd-horror

Crowd-horror

Robert E. (Robert Ervin) Howard

A naturally gifted but psychologically fragile heavyweight boxer struggles to overcome a debilitating, trance-like obsession with the crowd's roar until the love of a devoted woman becomes his ultimate, stabilizing anchor.

Short Stories6 min read
Cover of The White Company

The White Company

Arthur Conan Doyle

A young monk leaves his cloister to seek the world, only to find himself entangled in the perilous, chivalric quest of a veteran knight during the Hundred Years' War.

Adventure7 min read
Cover of The Man Who Knew Too Much

The Man Who Knew Too Much

G. K. (Gilbert Keith) Chesterton

A man burdened by the terrible clarity of his own political insight moves through a world of shadows, secrets, and high-stakes intrigue. He is the quiet observer of a collapsing social order, witnessing the hidden rot behind the pageantry of power.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of Murder at the vicarage

Murder at the vicarage

Agatha Christie

The quiet, claustrophobic atmosphere of an English village proves a deadly setting when a local magistrate is found shot dead in the vicar’s study. A seemingly mismatched pair of sleuths must cut through a tangle of false confessions and local gossip to uncover the truth.

Crime, Thrillers and Mystery6 min read
Cover of The Adventures of Jimmy Skunk

The Adventures of Jimmy Skunk

Thornton W. (Thornton Waldo) Burgess

The Imp of Mischief is a restless, whispering force that leads even the most cautious animals into trouble. Once a prank begins, it rolls forward with the unpredictable, bouncing momentum of a runaway barrel.

Children & Young Adult Reading5 min read
Cover of The Best of the World's Classics, Restricted to prose. Volume III (of X) - Great Britain and Ireland I

The Best of the World's Classics, Restricted to prose. Volume III (of X) - Great Britain and Ireland I

Unknown

This collection gathers the foundational voices of British literature, charting the evolution of prose from the medieval world to the dawn of the Enlightenment. It offers a panoramic view of how English writers have navigated the complexities of faith, politics, and the human spirit over five centuries.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of Crimes of Preachers in the United States and Canada

Crimes of Preachers in the United States and Canada

M. E. Billings

This collection gathers newspaper reports of clerical misconduct to challenge the moral exceptionalism often attributed to the clergy. It functions as a somber, encyclopedic record of human frailty within the ministry.

History - Religious6 min read
Cover of Glimpses into plant-life

Glimpses into plant-life

Mrs. (Eliza Elder) Brightwen

This guide invites young readers to step outdoors and observe the intricate, living mechanisms of the botanical world through simple, practical field study.

General6 min read
Cover of Lectures on the Science of Language

Lectures on the Science of Language

F. Max (Friedrich Max) Müller

Language is a natural, evolving organism rather than a static invention of human artifice. These lectures provide a foundational framework for understanding how words grow, branch, and reveal the history of the human intellect.

Language & Communication6 min read
Cover of The Continental Monthly, Vol. 6, No 4, August, 1864: Devoted To Literature And National Policy

The Continental Monthly, Vol. 6, No 4, August, 1864: Devoted To Literature And National Policy

Various

This mid-nineteenth-century periodical serves as a vibrant, immediate record of a nation in the throes of civil war, blending urgent political commentary with the literary sensibilities of its time. It acts as both a battlefield dispatch and a reflection on the soul of a democracy.

Essays, Letters & Speeches6 min read
Cover of The tale of Grumpy Weasel

The tale of Grumpy Weasel

Arthur Scott Bailey

Grumpy Weasel is a tale of a notoriously ill-tempered, slender rascal whose attempts to bully and outwit his neighbors in Pleasant Valley lead to a series of comedic, often narrow, escapes.

Children & Young Adult Reading6 min read
Cover of Can Such Things Be?

Can Such Things Be?

Ambrose Bierce

This collection explores the thin, terrifying veil between the rational world and the supernatural, where human obsession often invites the very haunting it seeks to escape.

American Literature5 min read
Cover of Magic, Stage Illusions and Scientific Diversions, Including Trick Photography

Magic, Stage Illusions and Scientific Diversions, Including Trick Photography

Albert A. (Albert Allis) Hopkins

The secrets of the stage are rarely found in the performance itself, but in the gears, mirrors, and hidden mechanisms that manufacture wonder for a captivated audience.

Art7 min read
Cover of The history of steam navigation

The history of steam navigation

John Kennedy

The evolution of the steamship represents one of the most transformative leaps in human industry and global travel. This work tracks the relentless ingenuity that bridged the divide between sail and engine.

Engineering & Technology6 min read
Cover of The Secrets of the Self (Asrar-i Khudi)

The Secrets of the Self (Asrar-i Khudi)

Iqbal, Muhammad, Sir

A philosophical manifesto in verse, this work serves as an urgent summons for the individual to cast off passivity and forge a powerful, self-directed identity. By blending theological rigor with a call to worldly action, it argues that true greatness—both for the person and the community—is found in the courageous…

Philosophy & Ethics6 min read
Cover of The Tales of Mother Goose: As First Collected by Charles Perrault in 1696

The Tales of Mother Goose: As First Collected by Charles Perrault in 1696

Charles Perrault

These foundational French fairy tales capture the archetypal struggle between virtue and vice, embedding moral lessons within a landscape of wonder that has captivated readers for over three centuries. They serve as an enduring mirror for the anxieties and aspirations of both children and the adults who guide them.

Children & Young Adult Reading6 min read
Cover of Shawn of Skarrow

Shawn of Skarrow

James Tandy Ellis

This narrative follows the coming-of-age of a young man in rural Kentucky, tracking his journey from a river-bound childhood to a life defined by professional purpose and the enduring bonds of his home community.

American Literature6 min read
Cover of Table Talk: Essays on Men and Manners

Table Talk: Essays on Men and Manners

William Hazlitt

These essays serve as a masterclass in the art of thinking aloud, capturing the fleeting sparks of human observation with the steady, unpretentious hand of a seasoned conversationalist. They turn the mundane details of daily life into profound meditations on the nature of character, ambition, and the quiet dignity…

Essays, Letters & Speeches7 min read
Cover of Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Chapters 01 to 05

Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Chapters 01 to 05

Mark Twain

This is the story of a boy caught between the suffocating expectations of "civilized" society and the violent, inescapable gravity of his own past. It is a work of wit, rebellion, and profound unease.

Adventure5 min read
Cover of The gunsmith's manual

The gunsmith's manual

J. Parish (James Parish) Stelle

A technical guide for the nineteenth-century artisan, this compendium offers an exhaustive look at the mechanics, maintenance, and fabrication of the firearms that defined an era of rapid industrial transition.

Engineering & Technology6 min read
Cover of News from Nowhere

News from Nowhere

William Morris

A weary man falls asleep in a gray, industrial London and wakes to find his city transformed into an agrarian paradise where labor is a joy, property is a forgotten concept, and fellowship has replaced the law.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of The Golden Asse

The Golden Asse

Apuleius

A young man’s obsession with the dark arts transforms him into a beast, forcing him to endure a long, humiliating odyssey before he can find redemption through divine intervention.

Classics of Literature5 min read
Cover of The Peterkin Papers

The Peterkin Papers

Lucretia P. (Lucretia Peabody) Hale

The Peterkins are a well-meaning family who possess every virtue except a grain of common sense, turning the most trivial daily tasks into monumental, hilarious disasters. They are the ultimate masters of the complicated solution to the simple problem.

American Literature6 min read
Cover of Beauty and the Beast

Beauty and the Beast

Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont

A young woman’s unwavering kindness transforms a monstrous recluse into a prince, proving that inner character far outweighs surface beauty. This enduring fairy tale explores the moral triumph of generosity over vanity.

French Literature6 min read
Cover of The Divine Comedy by Dante, Illustrated, Purgatory, Complete

The Divine Comedy by Dante, Illustrated, Purgatory, Complete

Dante Alighieri

Emerging from the shadows of hell, a traveler begins the arduous climb up a mountain of repentance, seeking to wash away his sins and find his way back to the light.

Classics of Literature6 min read
Cover of Love, and Other Stories

Love, and Other Stories

Anton Pavlovich Chekhov

A collection of brief, resonant sketches, these stories capture the quiet absurdity of human existence, where profound longings and petty social anxieties collide under the vast, uncaring Russian sky.

Russian Literature6 min read
Cover of The Writings of Thomas Paine

The Writings of Thomas Paine

Thomas Paine

A foundational defense of republican governance, this work argues that sovereignty resides inherently in the people rather than in hereditary institutions. It remains a cornerstone of political philosophy for its clarity, moral urgency, and vision of a society organized by reason.

Essays, Letters & Speeches7 min read
Cover of Songs Of The Road

Songs Of The Road

Arthur Conan Doyle

The hillocks define the hills and the rills define the rivers, just as small verses give shape to the larger themes of a life.

British Literature7 min read
Cover of A Practical Guide to Self-Hypnosis

A Practical Guide to Self-Hypnosis

Melvin Powers

Hypnosis is a skill rather than a magic spell, offering a practical, accessible bridge between the conscious mind and the hidden potential of the subconscious.

How To ...6 min read
Cover of Cobwebs from a Library Corner

Cobwebs from a Library Corner

John Kendrick Bangs

The life of the mind is often a messy, humorous business, best navigated with a sharp wit and a healthy dose of self-deprecation. This collection of verse serves as a gentle, satirical map of the literary landscape at the turn of the twentieth century.

Humour6 min read
Cover of Colonial facts and fictions: Humorous sketches

Colonial facts and fictions: Humorous sketches

John Milne

The wandering observer finds more truth in a half-remembered anecdote than a dry ledger of facts. This lighthearted collection of travel sketches captures the idiosyncrasies of colonial life with wit, skepticism, and a sharp eye for the absurd.

Humour5 min read
Cover of The Boy Patriot

The Boy Patriot

Edward Sylvester Ellis

Blair Robertson, a young patriot in a coastal Maine town, finds his devotion to country tested when he is abducted by a British man-of-war and forced to confront the harsh realities of war and morality.

American Literature6 min read
Cover of The Continental Monthly, Vol. 3, No. 1 January 1863: Devoted To Literature And National Policy

The Continental Monthly, Vol. 3, No. 1 January 1863: Devoted To Literature And National Policy

Various

This collection serves as a vital historical window into the mid-Civil War era, blending urgent political advocacy with the cultural preoccupations of 1863. It offers a unique synthesis of journalism, fiction, and scholarly analysis that defines the intellectual climate of the Union during its greatest test.

Essays, Letters & Speeches7 min read
Cover of Looking Backward, 2000 to 1887

Looking Backward, 2000 to 1887

Edward Bellamy

A man wakes from a century-long slumber to find his native city transformed into a socialist paradise. He must reconcile his memories of a competitive, unequal past with a present defined by total collective harmony.

American Literature6 min read
Cover of The Categories

The Categories

Aristotle

Logic is the study of how we organize our thoughts, and this foundational text serves as the primary map for categorizing the very nature of existence. It proposes a fundamental system for classifying everything that can be said about the world, creating a framework that has informed Western philosophy for over two…

History - Ancient6 min read
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