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47,382 public-domain books, summarised. Page 171 of 988.

Cover of The Wheels of Chance: A Bicycling Idyll

The Wheels of Chance: A Bicycling Idyll

H. G. (Herbert George) Wells

A timid draper’s assistant trades the shop counter for a two-week bicycle holiday across southern England, only to find himself unexpectedly acting as knight-errant to a runaway young woman escaping a deceitful companion.

Adventure7 min read
Cover of Warriors of Old Japan, and Other Stories

Warriors of Old Japan, and Other Stories

Yei Theodora Ozaki

Mighty archers, vanquished lords, phantom armies, and hidden princesses leap to life across a legendary tapestry of medieval Japanese heroic tales and gentle domestic wonder.

Mythology, Legends & Folklore7 min read
Cover of Clairvoyance

Clairvoyance

C. W. (Charles Webster) Leadbeater

Perception extends beyond the physical eye to reveal hidden dimensions, distant scenes, and forgotten history. True "clear-seeing" requires systematic discipline to unlock higher planes of existence where unseen forces govern everyday reality.

Philosophy & Ethics6 min read
Cover of Letters of a Woman Homesteader

Letters of a Woman Homesteader

Elinore Pruitt Stewart

Life on a Wyoming claim requires grit, but here it yields a sparkling, bone-deep joy in every meal caught, cabin built, and neighbor welcomed.

Biographies6 min read
Cover of Of All Things

Of All Things

Robert Benchley

Modern life is a constant series of small humiliations, and surviving them requires equal parts cynicism and self-deprecation.

American Literature6 min read
Cover of Practical Training for Running, Walking, Rowing, Wrestling, Boxing, Jumping, and All Kinds of Athletic Feats: Together with tables of proportional measurement for height and weight of men in and out of condition

Practical Training for Running, Walking, Rowing, Wrestling, Boxing, Jumping, and All Kinds of Athletic Feats: Together with tables of proportional measurement for height and weight of men in and out of condition

Ed. James

A nineteenth-century manual of athletic conditioning offers a rigorous, no-nonsense look at how Victorian competitors prepared their bodies for footraces, rowing matches, and physical feats long before modern sports science.

How To ...5 min read
Cover of The Customs of Old England

The Customs of Old England

F. J. (Frederick John) Snell

Middle English society comes alive not through its grand dynastic wars, but through the strict, curious rituals that governed its medieval churches, classrooms, and courtrooms.

History - British5 min read
Cover of The Expeditions of Zebulon Montgomery Pike, Volume 1 (of 3): To Headwaters of the Mississippi River Through Louisiana Territory, and in New Spain, During the Years 1805-6-7

The Expeditions of Zebulon Montgomery Pike, Volume 1 (of 3): To Headwaters of the Mississippi River Through Louisiana Territory, and in New Spain, During the Years 1805-6-7

Zebulon Montgomery Pike

A single officer leading twenty men into frozen wilderness must rely on discipline, diplomacy, and absolute resolve to keep his company alive.

Biographies10 min read
Cover of The Hindu-Yogi Science of Breath

The Hindu-Yogi Science of Breath

William Walker Atkinson

Air carries more than invisible gases; it holds an energetic essence that, when directed through disciplined rhythm, bridges physical health, mental focus, and spiritual awakening.

Health & Medicine6 min read
Cover of The Rainy Day Railroad War

The Rainy Day Railroad War

Holman Day

Deep in the Maine woods, a headstrong young engineer discovers that laying six miles of narrow-gauge track takes far more than survey lines—it demands outwitting timber barons, surviving winter kidnappings, and taming the wild northern wilderness.

Adventure7 min read
Cover of The Seven Great Monarchies Of The Ancient Eastern World, Vol 1: Chaldaea: The History, Geography, And Antiquities Of Chaldaea, Assyria, Babylon, Media, Persia, Parthia, And Sassanian or New Persian Empire

The Seven Great Monarchies Of The Ancient Eastern World, Vol 1: Chaldaea: The History, Geography, And Antiquities Of Chaldaea, Assyria, Babylon, Media, Persia, Parthia, And Sassanian or New Persian Empire

George Rawlinson

Deep beneath the sun-baked mounds of Lower Mesopotamia lie the foundations of humanity's earliest urban civilizations, waiting for modern scholarship to uncover their long-buried voices and restore them to the global historical record.

History - Ancient7 min read
Cover of The story of my house

The story of my house

George H. (George Herman) Ellwanger

Creating a sanctuary of refined living requires blending architecture, personal taste, and nature into a single harmonious life.

Architecture6 min read
Cover of The Works of Aphra Behn, Volume III

The Works of Aphra Behn, Volume III

Aphra Behn

A wild, cynical flurry of forced marriages, cross-dressing revenges, Ottoman trickery, and farce shows Restoration comedy at its most rowdy and energetic.

British Literature7 min read
Cover of Henry Martyn, Saint and Scholar: First Modern Missionary to the Mohammedans, 1781-1812

Henry Martyn, Saint and Scholar: First Modern Missionary to the Mohammedans, 1781-1812

George Smith

Driven by an intense inner devotion and an unrelenting scholarly focus, a brilliant young Cambridge mathematician surrenders his academic prospects and personal happiness to bring Christian texts to the 19th-century Islamic world.

Biographies8 min read
Cover of Laxdæla Saga: Translated from the Icelandic

Laxdæla Saga: Translated from the Icelandic

Muriel A. C. Press

In the valleys of western Iceland, blood ties, ambition, and pride drive generations into boundlessly cruel feuds.

Historical Novels6 min read
Cover of Milton: Minor Poems

Milton: Minor Poems

John Milton

Where youthful joy once danced in the shadows of the forest, the soul must eventually confront loss, darkness, and its own mortal boundaries.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of PG Edition of Netherlands series

PG Edition of Netherlands series

John Lothrop Motley

An extraordinary eighty-year struggle pits a tiny strip of coastal marshes against the world’s most powerful empire, transforming a desperate rebellion for religious and political liberty into a global maritime republic.

History - European13 min read
Cover of Samuel F. B. Morse, His Letters and Journals: In Two Volumes, Volume II

Samuel F. B. Morse, His Letters and Journals: In Two Volumes, Volume II

Samuel Finley Breese Morse

A quiet genius conceives a revolutionary network on an ocean voyage, only to spend decades defending his right to be remembered as its true creator.

Biographies7 min read
Cover of Society in America, Volume 1 (of 2)

Society in America, Volume 1 (of 2)

Harriet Martineau

A sharp, perceptive traveler journeys through a young, bustling republic, dismantling European misconceptions while exposing the deep moral contradictions that threaten its democratic promise.

History - American6 min read
Cover of Stalky & Co

Stalky & Co

Rudyard Kipling

A trio of clever, rebellious schoolboys wages a relentless war of wits against overbearing masters and self-righteous peers at a Victorian military prep school, forging an unwritten code that ultimately prepares them for empire.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of The American Mind: The E. T. Earl Lectures

The American Mind: The E. T. Earl Lectures

Bliss Perry

To trace the true character of a country's literature, one must look beneath its surface arts to find the shared temper, democratic ideals, and moral habits of its people.

American Literature6 min read
Cover of The Empire of Russia: From the Remotest Periods to the Present Time

The Empire of Russia: From the Remotest Periods to the Present Time

John S. C. (John Stevens Cabot) Abbott

Centuries of chaotic warfare, autocratic ambition, and cultural transformation shape a vast northern empire from its early medieval origins through its nineteenth-century global prominence.

History - Ancient7 min read
Cover of The International Monthly, Volume 5, No. 3, March, 1852

The International Monthly, Volume 5, No. 3, March, 1852

Various

A vibrant microcosm of mid-nineteenth-century thought, this edition gathers high literary fiction, scientific breakthroughs, historical investigations, and international news into a single, kinetic portrait of an expanding intellectual world.

Journals7 min read
Cover of The Voiage and Travayle of Sir John Maundeville Knight: Which treateth of the way towards Hierusalem and of marvayles of Inde with other ilands and countreys

The Voiage and Travayle of Sir John Maundeville Knight: Which treateth of the way towards Hierusalem and of marvayles of Inde with other ilands and countreys

Mandeville, John, Sir

A quest across the known world dissolves into a vivid panorama of monstrous beasts, strange customs, and distant lands where sacred history and outrageous legend bleed into one another.

History - Medieval/Middle Ages6 min read
Cover of American Eloquence, Volume 1: Studies In American Political History (1896)

American Eloquence, Volume 1: Studies In American Political History (1896)

Unknown

When a young republic sets out to define its own powers, every debate becomes a foundational drama about the nature of freedom and authority.

Essays, Letters & Speeches5 min read
Cover of Chapters in the History of the Insane in the British Isles

Chapters in the History of the Insane in the British Isles

Daniel Hack Tuke

A historical journey across the British Isles uncovers a centuries-long evolution from brutal, superstitious confinement to scientific, compassionate mental healthcare reform.

Health & Medicine7 min read
Cover of Europe and the Faith: "Sine auctoritate nulla vita"

Europe and the Faith: "Sine auctoritate nulla vita"

Hilaire Belloc

Europe is not a mere collection of neighboring territories, but a single, continuous living organism whose central vital force has always been the Catholic Church.

History - European5 min read
Cover of Famous composers and their works, Vol. 2

Famous composers and their works, Vol. 2

Unknown

Artistic creation requires a delicate, perilous balance between untamed genius and the unyielding demands of patron, theater, and public taste.

Biographies6 min read
Cover of Homer and His Age

Homer and His Age

Andrew Lang

To read the ancient epics as a patchwork of competing fragments is to miss the vivid, unified world that brought them into being.

Classics of Literature5 min read
Cover of Indian Heroes and Great Chieftains

Indian Heroes and Great Chieftains

Charles A. Eastman

A rare, insider portrayal of North American Indian leaders, where personal honor meets the tragic force of a changing continent.

Biographies6 min read
Cover of London to Ladysmith via Pretoria

London to Ladysmith via Pretoria

Winston Churchill

A young war correspondent travels to South Africa, falls into enemy hands, escapes on foot through hostile territory, and returns to the front line to witness the costly, agonizing relief of a besieged British garrison.

Biographies7 min read
Cover of Modern Painters, Volume 5 (of 5)

Modern Painters, Volume 5 (of 5)

John Ruskin

The final movement of a monumental aesthetic project, this volume meditates on the growth of trees, the forms of clouds, and the moral character of the great painters.

Art7 min read
Cover of Slow Burn

Slow Burn

Henry Still

A sabotaged space station hurtles toward a fiery atmospheric death after a vindictive politician triggers a disaster. With no rescue rocket and limited options, ninety men must find a way to defy physics and survive.**

Novels6 min read
Cover of The International Auxiliary Language Esperanto: Grammar & Commentary

The International Auxiliary Language Esperanto: Grammar & Commentary

George Cox

This guide introduces a created tongue designed to connect people across national borders without displacing native speeches. It details a system structured for clarity, rapid learning, and logical order.

Language & Communication6 min read
Cover of The Scientific American Boy

The Scientific American Boy

A. Russell (Alexander Russell) Bond

A group of resourceful boys transforms an island summer into a masterclass in practical engineering, turning timber, rope, and raw determination into functional bridges, sails, and wilderness shelters. <Image alt="Original cover of The Scientific American Boy showing campers around a campfire with engineering…

Adventure6 min read
Cover of The Works of Charles and Mary Lamb

The Works of Charles and Mary Lamb

Charles Lamb

A varied collection of drama, poetry, and satirical epigrams reveals a quiet literary mind grappling with personal grief, domestic quietude, and the fickle nature of the public stage.

British Literature5 min read
Cover of Thomas Henry Huxley

Thomas Henry Huxley

Mitchell, P. Chalmers (Peter Chalmers), Sir

From a cramped surgeon’s berth aboard HMS Rattlesnake to the fierce intellectual battlegrounds of Victorian London, a self-taught naturalist transforms how humanity understands the living world, the origin of species, and the limits of human knowledge.

Biographies6 min read
Cover of Traditions of Lancashire, Volume 1

Traditions of Lancashire, Volume 1

John Roby

In high-ceilinged halls, damp mossy woods, and lonely stone chapels, the ancient ghosts, witches, and iron-willed barons of Lancashire play out their dark, forgotten destinies.

British Literature10 min read
Cover of A serious proposal to the Ladies, for the advancement of their true and greatest interest (In Two Parts)

A serious proposal to the Ladies, for the advancement of their true and greatest interest (In Two Parts)

Mary Astell

Instead of squandering energy on transient fashions and flatteries, women are invited to cultivate the mind—a lasting treasure that age cannot diminish nor opinion distort.

Essays, Letters & Speeches6 min read
Cover of Alexandria: A History and a Guide

Alexandria: A History and a Guide

E. M. (Edward Morgan) Forster

A coastal city built on a narrow limestone strip between sea and lake rises from a conqueror's design, flourishes through intellect and faith, decays into a silent landscape, and re-emerges into modernity.

History - Other6 min read
Cover of "And they thought we wouldn't fight"

"And they thought we wouldn't fight"

Floyd Phillips Gibbons

A wounded American war correspondent witnesses the United States military transform from an untested, scattered arrival into an independent frontline force that helps break the German offensive in France.

History - American6 min read
Cover of Believe it or not! [1929]

Believe it or not! [1929]

Robert L. (Robert LeRoy) Ripley

Across the globe, human history and nature conspire to produce realities far stranger than any fiction writer could credibly invent.

General7 min read
Cover of Cambridge Essays on Education

Cambridge Essays on Education

Unknown

A vision of learning that elevates the human spirit above mechanical drill, aiming to reshape both the individual and the future of society.

Essays, Letters & Speeches6 min read
Cover of Castes and Tribes of Southern India. Vol. 2 of 7

Castes and Tribes of Southern India. Vol. 2 of 7

Edgar Thurston

An expansive, highly detailed colonial survey maps the intricate social hierarchies, marriage customs, and ritual obligations of southern India’s castes and tribal communities.

Archaeology & Anthropology10 min read
Cover of China

China

Demetrius Charles Boulger

A long continuity of culture, broken by violent internal collapses and constant northern invasions, defines the oldest living empire.

History - Other9 min read
Cover of Constantinople: The Story of the Old Capital of the Empire

Constantinople: The Story of the Old Capital of the Empire

William Holden Hutton

A solitary bastion of Christian authority stands amid centuries of shifting empires, its stone walls bearing the scars of violent sieges and its magnificent sanctuaries slowly yielding to the domes and minarets of a conquering faith.

History - Ancient6 min read
Cover of Cousin Pons

Cousin Pons

Honoré de Balzac

A timid collector of art finds himself preyed upon by the very family that has long treated him as a social convenience. This is a devastating anatomy of greed, betrayal, and the cold indifference of nineteenth-century Parisian society.

French Literature6 min read
Cover of Essays of Michel de Montaigne

Essays of Michel de Montaigne

Michel de Montaigne

A retired French nobleman sits down in his tower library to examine his own mind, turning his doubts, habits, and private observations into a radical new form of literature.

Essays, Letters & Speeches6 min read