The Moon - Sappho
Read "The Moon," by Sappho: "The stars about the lovely moon / Fade back and vanish very soon..."

Cleis - Sappho
Read "Cleis," by Sappho: "Sleep, darling / I have a small / daughter called / Cleis, who is / like a golden / flower..."

The Thibaults
Duchan Caudill writes, "Written between 1922 and 1929, this 800-page chronicle of a Parisian family is a rewarding work for readers interested primarily in psychological motivations of complex, life-like characters."

The Meeting - Katherine Mansfield
Read "The Meeting," by Katherine Mansfield: "We started speaking, / Looked at each other, then turned away. / The tears kept rising to my eyes. / But I could not weep."

She, to Him - Thomas Hardy
Read "She, to Him," by Thomas Hardy: "Perhaps, long hence, when I have pass'd away, / Some other's feature, accent, thought like mine, / Will carry you back to what I used to say, / And bring some memory of your love's decline."

A Brief Biography: Roger Martin du Gard
As Duchan Caudill writes, "R.M. du Gard was born into a prominent upper-class family. Throughout his writing career, du Gard would document the values, expectations and conflicts of members of this class." Read more about the life and works of Roger Martin du Gard

C.S. Lewis: A Biography
In this biography, A.N. Wilson explores the life and works of C.S. Lewis, from his early childhood, through years of fighting in World War I, his relationships, his books, and his friendships.

To little or no purpose - Sir George Etherege
Read "To little or no purpose," by Sir George Etherege: "To little or no purpose I spent many days / In ranging the park, the Exchange and the plays, / For ne'er in my rambles till now did I prove / So lucky to meet with the man I could love."

My Last Duchess - Robert Browning
Read "My Last Duchess," by Robert Browning: "That's my last Duchess painted on the wall, / Looking as if she were alive..."

Candide
In his review, Duchan Caudill says, "In 1759, a vitriolic Frenchman known as Voltaire (1694-1778) wrote 'Candide.' It was written in retaliation against the tenets of the then-eminent German philosopher Leibniz, who claimed that mankind lives in the best of possible worlds. Voltaire tried to dismantle this notion, and thus created his most widely read book. The Bantam Classic edition offers a highly informative forward by Andre Maurois, with caustic wit and hyperbole."

The Bhagavad-Gita
In his review, Duchan Caudill writes, "Perhaps the most profound text in the canon of Hindu literature is 'The Bhagavad-Gita,' a sacred text, which most translators call 'Song of the Lord.' It's a philosophical discourse between a warrior named Arjuna and the god Krishna."

Candide
Wenkai Tay writes that "'Candide' attempts what many of the world's great religions have failed to do: address the existence of evil in our world."

Hotel Savoy
Duchan Caudill writes, "In his second novel, 'Hotel Savoy' (1924), Joseph Roth skillfully depicts a string of events in the life of his Gabriel Dan. Roth was intent on portraying in prose the psychology of uprooted, hopeless, and hopeful."

Moll Flanders
As Duchan Caudill writes, "Defoe presents 'Moll Flanders' in the guise of an autobiography, written by a woman of advanced years. Defoe was adroit at creating a narrative, relaying the details of this life from a woman's point of view."

O. Henry: A Brief Chronology
O. Henry (pseudonym for William Sydney Porter) was born in on September 11, 1862 in Greensboro, North Carolina. O. Henry became famous for his many short stories (some 600 in all), which include: "The Last of the Troubadours," "The Gift of the Magi," and "The Ransom of Red Chief." Read more about his life and works with this brief chronology...

Emily Dickinson: A Brief Chronology
Emily Dickinson was born on December 10, 1830, in Amherst, Massachusetts; and she would spend most of the rest of her life there. She had no wish to travel or find adventure. Instead she kept to the "room of her own," writing her poems.

The Gift of the Magi
I still remember the first time I heard "The Gift of the Magi" read. There's something about the story that comes off great when it's being told to you -- a certain timelessness, or transcendence. I don't remember if it was before or after I heard "The Ransom of Red Chief" ... I know it was before I had read either one. And my mother loved to continue the storytelling, jumping from one story to another.

Mark Twain: A Brief Chronology
Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens) was born on November 30, 1835 when Halley's comet was in the sky. It was an important date for American literary history. Read about the other days in Mark Twain's life.

First Impressions: Antarctica
Antarctica is still a place of mystery after all these years. It still exists in almost completely pristine condition, but there are many stories to tell about the people who have ventured there...

A Whimsical Sort of Masque
On December 17th of 1843, Charles Dickens published "A Christmas Carol." It was the first of his Christmas books, but it wasn't his last. Though this first work was his most popular, he followed the work with "The Chimes," "The Cricket and the Hearth," and other works.

The Professor and the Madman: A Tale of Murder, Insanity...
The "Oxford English Dictionary" is one of the greatest achievements in English literature, but it didn't happen overnight. In "Professor and the Madman," Simon Winchester delves into the mysterious history of this great text. Along the way, he highlights several of the major contributors. It's really their story...

Remember - Christina Rossetti
Read "Remember," by Christina Rossetti (1830-1894). Rossetti writes: "Remember me when I am gone away..."

The Singular Mark Twain
Mark Twain is one of the most popular names in American literature, even as the name was a product of his imagination. With "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn," Twain created one of the most controversial works in literary history, which is spiced with humor and resonating with tragedy. Ernest Hemingway once said, "All modern literature comes from one book by Mark Twain called 'Huckleberry Finn.'"

City Upon a Hill: Colonial American Literature
John Winthrop used the phrase "City upon a Hill" to describe the new settlement, with "the eies of all people" upon them. And with those words, he laid a foundation for a new world. These new settlers certainly represented a new destiny for this land.

Three Vampire Tales
In "Three Vampire Tales," a new collection edited by Anne Williams, famous vampire works: Bram Stoker's "Dracula," Sheridan Le Fanu's "Carmilla," and John Polidori's "The Vampyre." This anthology also features Lord Byron's "The Giaiour," Samuel Taylor Coleridge's "Christabel," James Malcom Rhymer's "Varney the Vampire," and Bram Stoker's story, "Dracula's Guest."