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11,874 public-domain books, summarised. Page 236 of 248.

Cover of Those Extraordinary Twins

Those Extraordinary Twins

Mark Twain

A strange, unruly experiment in fiction, this work documents the author’s attempt to untangle two conflicting stories that collided in his imagination: a farce about conjoined twins and a dark tragedy concerning switched identities.

American Literature6 min read
Cover of To Herat and Cabul: A Story of the First Afghan War

To Herat and Cabul: A Story of the First Afghan War

G. A. (George Alfred) Henty

A young man’s daring survival through the First Afghan War captures the high stakes and historical gravity of a disastrous imperial conflict. It is an immersive account of duty, espionage, and the harrowing reality of total defeat.

Adventure6 min read
Cover of With the British Legion: A Story of the Carlist Wars

With the British Legion: A Story of the Carlist Wars

G. A. (George Alfred) Henty

A young man leaves his home for the chaos of the Spanish Carlist Wars, finding that duty, swordplay, and personal honor demand more from him than any school-room lesson ever could.

Adventure7 min read
Cover of Woman's Institute Library of Cookery. Volume 1: Essentials of Cookery

Woman's Institute Library of Cookery. Volume 1: Essentials of Cookery

Woman's Institute of Domestic Arts and Sciences

This foundational guide transforms the kitchen into a laboratory of efficiency, teaching the home cook to master nutrition, fuel management, and the precise science of baking.

Cooking & Drinking6 min read
Cover of Aria da Capo

Aria da Capo

Edna St. Vincent Millay

A lighthearted harlequinade abruptly shifts into a haunting, circular tragedy about how easily human connection collapses into violence. This play exposes the fragility of peace and the terrifying speed at which casual games turn lethal.

Plays/Films/Dramas6 min read
Cover of Behind the Beyond, and Other Contributions to Human Knowledge

Behind the Beyond, and Other Contributions to Human Knowledge

Stephen Leacock

This collection of sketches and parodies offers a sharp, witty lens into the absurdities of early 20th-century life, from the pretenses of high-society theater to the frustrations of modern commerce.

Humour6 min read
Cover of Boon, The Mind of the Race, The Wild Asses of the Devil, and The Last Trump;: Being a First Selection from the Literary Remains of George Boon, Appropriate to the Times

Boon, The Mind of the Race, The Wild Asses of the Devil, and The Last Trump;: Being a First Selection from the Literary Remains of George Boon, Appropriate to the Times

H. G. (Herbert George) Wells

This satirical collage serves as a frantic, imaginative autopsy of the intellectual landscape during the First World War. It is a fragmented, meta-fictional experiment that blends literary criticism, dream-logic, and biting social commentary to examine how a society thinks, writes, and collapses under the weight of…

British Literature6 min read
Cover of Casanova's Homecoming

Casanova's Homecoming

Arthur Schnitzler

The aging libertine Giacomo Casanova, desperate to return from exile to his beloved Venice, finds his final years haunted by the agonizing collision between his fading virility and a younger generation’s cold, intellectual detachment.

German Literature5 min read
Cover of Child Life in Prose

Child Life in Prose

Unknown

Every child is a miracle of the All-working, carrying a spirit as vast as the history of humanity itself. This collection invites us to look closely at the small, fragile, and profound world of childhood.

Children & Young Adult Reading6 min read
Cover of Edward the Second

Edward the Second

Christopher Marlowe

HOOK A king’s infatuation with a commoner ignites a firestorm of rebellion, betrayal, and regicide, exposing the fragile boundary between royal power and human vulnerability.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of Immortal Memories

Immortal Memories

Clement King Shorter

A collection of spirited literary tributes and bibliophilic advice, these essays celebrate the enduring influence of great writers upon the modern mind.

Essays, Letters & Speeches6 min read
Cover of Index of the Project Gutenberg Works of Anthony Trollope

Index of the Project Gutenberg Works of Anthony Trollope

Anthony Trollope

This volume serves as a comprehensive bibliographic map to the vast, intricate fictional and historical landscape created by one of the nineteenth century’s most prolific and observant writers. It acts as a gateway to a world of manners, politics, and human frailty.

Encyclopedias/Dictionaries/Reference5 min read
Cover of Indo-China and its primitive people

Indo-China and its primitive people

Henry Baudesson

A colonial officer chronicles the vanishing lifeways of the Moï and Cham peoples, capturing a vanishing era through the lens of early twentieth-century ethnology and personal observation.

Archaeology & Anthropology6 min read
Cover of John Pettie, R.A., H.R.S.A.: Sixteen examples in colour of the artist's work

John Pettie, R.A., H.R.S.A.: Sixteen examples in colour of the artist's work

Martin Hardie

This study captures the life and vivid, dramatic work of John Pettie, a nineteenth-century Scottish painter who rose from humble beginnings to become a celebrated master of color and historical narrative.

Art6 min read
Cover of Naval songs and ballads

Naval songs and ballads

Unknown

These collected songs and ballads offer a visceral, unvarnished window into the lives, grievances, and fierce loyalties of British sailors from the seventeenth century through the Napoleonic era.

British Literature8 min read
Cover of Pioneers of Evolution from Thales to Huxley: With an Intermediate Chapter on the Causes of Arrest of the Movement

Pioneers of Evolution from Thales to Huxley: With an Intermediate Chapter on the Causes of Arrest of the Movement

Edward Clodd

This intellectual history traces the struggle for scientific truth, mapping the evolution of the idea of evolution from its ancient Ionian origins to its modern synthesis in the nineteenth century.

History - Other6 min read
Cover of Sons of the Morning

Sons of the Morning

Eden Phillpotts

The beauty of the moor is as vast as the human capacity for misunderstanding, and this story maps the wreckage left when two men and a woman lose their way in the fog of their own intentions.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of Tales of the Covenanters

Tales of the Covenanters

Ellen Emma Guthrie

The struggle for religious freedom in 17th-century Scotland unfolds through these evocative narratives, where the quiet faith of humble martyrs clashes against the iron-fisted authority of a state determined to crush dissent.

History - British6 min read
Cover of The Angel of the Revolution: A Tale of the Coming Terror

The Angel of the Revolution: A Tale of the Coming Terror

George Chetwynd Griffith

A brilliant, impoverished inventor crafts an invincible fleet of aerial warships, empowering a secretive revolutionary order to dismantle the corrupt empires of the old world and forcibly mandate global peace.

Novels7 min read
Cover of The Beginner's American History

The Beginner's American History

D. H. (David Henry) Montgomery

This chronicle offers a concise, accessible survey of the foundational figures and pivotal milestones that shaped the American landscape. It provides a narrative bridge for those seeking a clear entry point into the nation’s complex past.

Children & Young Adult Reading7 min read
Cover of The Complete Poems of Sir John Davies. Volume 1 of 2

The Complete Poems of Sir John Davies. Volume 1 of 2

Davies, John, Sir

These verses capture the intellectual fervor of the Elizabethan era, blending philosophical rigor with a rare, crystalline grace that explores the nature of the soul and the harmony of the universe.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of The doctor looks at biography

The doctor looks at biography

Joseph Collins

A discerning medical eye turns toward the literary record, examining how famous lives are captured, distorted, and understood through the pages of biography.

Biographies6 min read
Cover of The doings of Raffles Haw

The doings of Raffles Haw

Arthur Conan Doyle

A mysterious, wealthy recluse settles in a quiet English village, wielding the power to manufacture gold and transform lives, yet finding that his boundless fortune brings only misery and moral corruption to those around him.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of The Empire and the Papacy, 918-1273

The Empire and the Papacy, 918-1273

T. F. (Thomas Frederick) Tout

The central drama of the Middle Ages unfolds through the collision between two universal powers, the Papacy and the Holy Roman Empire, as they vie for supremacy over a rapidly changing Europe.

History - European8 min read
Cover of The Home Medical Library, Volume 5 (of 6)

The Home Medical Library, Volume 5 (of 6)

Unknown

This comprehensive guide provides an authoritative snapshot of early 20th-century domestic science, offering practical advice on managing home health, sanitation, and environmental safety. It serves as a bridge between professional medical expertise and the daily requirements of a well-maintained household.

Health & Medicine6 min read
Cover of The Hopi Indians

The Hopi Indians

Walter Hough

This study offers an intimate, observant window into the lives, rituals, and enduring traditions of the Hopi people as they navigated the transition toward modern American influence in the early twentieth century.

Archaeology & Anthropology6 min read
Cover of The humour of Ireland

The humour of Ireland

Unknown

This collection offers a spirited, sprawling treasury of Irish wit, ranging from the absurdity of folk tales and ballads to the biting satire of nineteenth-century literature. It captures the distinct, resilient character of a nation defined by its language and its laughter.

Humour6 min read
Cover of The Notting Hill Mystery

The Notting Hill Mystery

Charles Felix

An investigator pieces together a trail of life insurance policies, mysterious illnesses, and cold-blooded manipulation to expose a predator operating under the guise of scientific enlightenment.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of The Panama Canal: A history and description of the enterprise

The Panama Canal: A history and description of the enterprise

J. Saxon (John Saxon) Mills

This historical account chronicles the engineering triumph of the Panama Canal, framing the monumental construction project as a decisive shift in global commerce and geopolitical power. It captures the transition from failed dreams to technological mastery at the dawn of the twentieth century.

Engineering & Technology6 min read
Cover of The Runaway

The Runaway

Unknown

A young boy’s restless dream of adventure curdles into a nightmare of homelessness, crime, and incarceration. This sobering narrative serves as a stark warning to those who would trade the security of a loving home for the false promises of the wide world.

Adventure6 min read
Cover of The Tale of a Field Hospital

The Tale of a Field Hospital

Frederick Treves

War is often remembered through the lens of battlefield heroism, but this account focuses on the quiet, grim reality of the surgeons and nurses tasked with tending to the broken bodies left behind by the conflict.

Health & Medicine6 min read
Cover of The Virgin in Judgment

The Virgin in Judgment

Eden Phillpotts

Against the rugged, ancient silence of Dartmoor, a quiet domestic tragedy unfolds as a devoted husband and his sister find their bond inadvertently pushing his wife toward a lonely, irreversible end.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of A Handbook of Some South Indian Grasses

A Handbook of Some South Indian Grasses

K. Rangachari

The humble grass, often dismissed as mere background, is revealed here as the essential architect of the South Indian landscape and the silent partner to all agricultural prosperity.

Science - Biology6 min read
Cover of A Plea for Captain John Brown: Read to the citizens of Concord, Massachusetts on Sunday evening, October thirtieth, eighteen fifty-nine

A Plea for Captain John Brown: Read to the citizens of Concord, Massachusetts on Sunday evening, October thirtieth, eighteen fifty-nine

Henry David Thoreau

A fierce and urgent defense of a man branded a fanatic, this address demands that we weigh the moral courage of an individual against the hollow legality of a nation.

Essays, Letters & Speeches6 min read
Cover of A Study of Poetry

A Study of Poetry

Bliss Perry

Poetry is not merely the decoration of ideas, but the transformation of human experience into a rhythmic, resonant language that captures what we feel but cannot say. Understanding the mechanics of this transformation deepens our appreciation of the art itself.

Poetry7 min read
Cover of Aeroplanes and Dirigibles of War

Aeroplanes and Dirigibles of War

Frederick Arthur Ambrose Talbot

This survey explores the rapid, violent transformation of aviation during the early years of the First World War. It provides a technical and tactical overview of how dirigibles and aeroplanes became essential, if unpredictable, instruments of modern combat.

History - Modern (1750+)6 min read
Cover of Among the Farmyard People

Among the Farmyard People

Clara Dillingham Pierson

The farmyard is a bustling, hierarchical society where every creature, from the proud Peacock to the humble Mouse, learns that character is defined by how one treats a neighbor.

Children & Young Adult Reading6 min read
Cover of Analysis of Mr. Mill's System of Logic

Analysis of Mr. Mill's System of Logic

W. (William) Stebbing

This guide provides a rigorous distillation of an essential nineteenth-century inquiry into how we know what we know. It functions as both a map and a companion for navigating the complexities of structured reasoning.

Language & Communication6 min read
Cover of Ancestors: A Novel

Ancestors: A Novel

Gertrude Franklin Horn Atherton

A high-born Englishman seeking purpose in the American West meets a woman determined to carve her own path, their destinies colliding amid the flames of a city in collapse.

British Literature8 min read
Cover of Animal Ghosts

Animal Ghosts

Elliott O'Donnell

The silent, watchful gaze of a household pet may hold more than mere affection; it may be a bridge to an unseen world where the loyalties of the living persist long after death.

Essays, Letters & Speeches6 min read
Cover of Cow-Country

Cow-Country

B. M. Bower

This story follows an ambitious young man’s journey from a childhood of hardscrabble cattle-trailing to the independence of his own rugged life in the mountain West.

Adventure6 min read
Cover of English Hours

English Hours

Henry James

This collection of travel essays captures a vanishing England through the observant, wandering eye of a master of prose. It is a meditation on the beauty of the old world seen by a visitor who is perpetually caught between the role of a detached observer and a romantic pilgrim.

American Literature6 min read
Cover of Essays Upon Heredity and Kindred Biological Problems: Authorised Translation

Essays Upon Heredity and Kindred Biological Problems: Authorised Translation

August Weismann

Evolutionary biology stands at a crossroads, where the transmission of life’s blueprint is finally uncoupled from the habits and scars of the individual.

Science - Biology8 min read
Cover of Flagg's The Far West, 1836-1837, part 1

Flagg's The Far West, 1836-1837, part 1

Edmund Flagg

An inquisitive traveler traverses the burgeoning frontier of the 1830s, documenting the raw beauty of the American prairies and the transient lives of those carving out new settlements in the vast Mississippi Valley.

History - American7 min read
Cover of Gipsy Life: Being an account of our Gipsies and their children, with suggestions for their improvement

Gipsy Life: Being an account of our Gipsies and their children, with suggestions for their improvement

George Smith

This work serves as a Victorian-era call to action, demanding that the British state bring the lives of Romany families under the mandatory influence of schools and sanitary inspectors. It is an impassioned, polemical argument that seeks to replace public indifference with legislative oversight.

History - British6 min read
Cover of Langley Memoir on Mechanical Flight, Parts I and II: Smithsonian Contributions to Knowledge, Volume 27 Number 3, Publication 1948, 1911

Langley Memoir on Mechanical Flight, Parts I and II: Smithsonian Contributions to Knowledge, Volume 27 Number 3, Publication 1948, 1911

S. P. (Samuel Pierpont) Langley

Mechanical flight is a problem of physics, engineering, and sheer persistence, requiring the slow mastery of balance, power-to-weight ratios, and the unpredictable behavior of air. This record documents the arduous, decade-long transition from small, steam-powered model gliders to the ambitious development of a…

Engineering & Technology7 min read
Cover of Narrative of the Voyage of H.M.S. Rattlesnake, Commanded By the Late Captain Owen Stanley, R.N., F.R.S. Etc. During the Years 1846-1850

Narrative of the Voyage of H.M.S. Rattlesnake, Commanded By the Late Captain Owen Stanley, R.N., F.R.S. Etc. During the Years 1846-1850

John MacGillivray

A meticulous record of a mid-nineteenth-century survey expedition, this narrative balances the rigors of hydrographic charting with the wonder of documenting the natural world across the vast, then-mysterious reaches of the South Pacific.

Archaeology & Anthropology6 min read
Cover of Not George Washington

Not George Washington

P. G. (Pelham Grenville) Wodehouse

The young writer’s ambition to conquer London is a perilous game of masks, where the line between a carefully crafted persona and the man underneath dissolves into a dizzying, humorous struggle for survival.

British Literature6 min read
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