When Gertrude Coppard, a refined young woman, meets Walter Morel, a rough coalminer, at a Christmas party dance, they feel immediately drawn to each other. After a short romance defined by physical attraction, the couple decide to marry. However, Gertrude soon realizes the financial difficulties of trying to survive off of Walter's measly salary. These troubles quickly cause the two to fight and grow apart. Walter begins to drink the little money...

The Bridge of San Luis Rey by Thornton Wilder is a profound exploration of fate, love, and the interconnectedness of human lives, set in 18th-century Peru. The novel opens with a catastrophic event-a bridge collapses, sending five people to their deaths. Brother Juniper, a Franciscan monk, witnesses the tragedy and becomes determined to understand why these particular individuals perished, seeking answers to whether their lives held any greater significance...

"Ernest Hemingway famously said that he rewrote the ending to A Farewell to Arms thirty-nine times to get the words right. This edition collects all of the alternative endings together for the first time, along with early drafts of other essential passages, offering new insight into Hemingway's craft and creative process and the evolution of one of the greatest novels of the twentieth century. Featuring Hemingway's own 1948 introduction to an illustrated...

A blow on the head transports a Yankee to 528 A.D. where he proceeds to modernize King Arthur's kingdom by organizing a school system, constructing telephone lines, and inventing the printing press.

Sister Carrie (1900) is a novel by Theodore Dreiser. Controversial for its honest depiction of work, desire, and urban life, Sister Carrie has endured as a classic of naturalist fiction and remains a powerful example of social critique over a century after its publication. Despite poor reviews upon publication, the novel is now considered a landmark of American literature. Tired of the countryside, Carrie Meeber moves to Chicago to live with her older...

Love and loyalty, hatred and revenge, fear, deprivation, and political ambition drive the characters portrayed ... It is striking that Antigone and Electra both have a woman as their intransigent 'hero'. Antigone dies rather than neglect her family duty, Oedipus' determination to save his city results in the horrific discovery that he has committed both incest and patricide, and Electra's unremitting anger at her mother and her lover keeps her in...

First performed in 1882, "Ghosts" is the controversial and tragic play by the famed Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen. It is the story of Helen Alving, a wealthy widow who was unhappily married to her unfaithful husband. Helen has tried to shelter her son, Oswald, from the corrupting influence of his father's immoral behavior and has sent him away only to discover that he is suffering from syphilis inherited from his father. Oswald has also unfortunately...

"A Doll's House" by Henrik Ibsen is a groundbreaking and thought-provoking masterpiece that challenges societal norms and explores the complex dynamics of marriage and identity. Set in 19th-century Norway, the play revolves around Nora Helmer, a seemingly content wife and mother, and her husband Torvald. As the plot unfolds, the audience is drawn into a web of secrets, lies, and personal revelations. Nora's journey from a docile, doll-like existence...

Darkly fascinating short novel depicts the struggles of a doubting, supremely alienated protagonist in a world of relative values. Seminal work introduced moral, religious, political and social themes that dominated Dostoyevsky's later masterworks. Constance Garnett's authoritative translation is reprinted here, with a new introduction. A minor official brutally scrutinizes himself and decides to go "underground," away from society. This is a strange...

One of the most powerful and enduring of Greek tragedies, Euripides' masterwork centers on the myth of Jason, leader of the Argonauts, who has won the dragon-guarded treasure of the Golden Fleece with the help of the sorceress Medea - whom he marries and eventually abandons. Authoritative Rex Warner translation.