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47,382 public-domain books, summarised. Page 584 of 988.

Cover of Maori folk-tales of the Port Hills, Canterbury, New Zealand

Maori folk-tales of the Port Hills, Canterbury, New Zealand

James Cowan

The Port Hills of New Zealand are not merely volcanic ridges, but ancient, living archives where every crag and gully preserves the echoes of Māori legends and the history of those who claimed this rugged landscape.

Mythology, Legends & Folklore6 min read
Cover of Mark Manning's Mission: The Story of a Shoe Factory Boy

Mark Manning's Mission: The Story of a Shoe Factory Boy

Alger, Horatio, Jr.

An honest factory boy finds his path to success blocked by small-town vanity and a scheming relative, only to discover that integrity is his most valuable currency in a world of uncertainty.

Adventure5 min read
Cover of Mary Wollaston

Mary Wollaston

Henry Kitchell Webster

The quiet struggles of an unconventional woman and a struggling musician collide within a high-society Chicago family, revealing the fragile, often invisible, barriers between duty and desire.

American Literature6 min read
Cover of Memoir of a Brother

Memoir of a Brother

Thomas Hughes

A portrait of an unassuming country gentleman, this work serves as an affectionate testament to the quiet, reliable strength of the English character. It captures the essence of a life defined by duty rather than ambition.

Biographies6 min read
Cover of More Tales of the Birds

More Tales of the Birds

W. Warde (William Warde) Fowler

This collection of avian narratives bridges the gap between natural history and human sentiment, offering a series of vignettes where birds serve as both protagonists and mirrors to our own fleeting lives.

Nature/Gardening/Animals6 min read
Cover of Motor Matt's Close Call

Motor Matt's Close Call

Stanley R. Matthews

A resourceful young mechanic and his friends find their submarine hijacked by a duplicitous diplomat, forcing them to fight for control of their own vessel while navigating the turbulent waters of a Central American revolution.

Adventure6 min read
Cover of Nacogdoches

Nacogdoches

Robert Bruce Blake

Nacogdoches serves as the storied gateway to Texas, a town whose history is defined by the shifting flags of empires, the indomitable spirit of its pioneers, and the enduring legacy of its frontier roots.

History - American6 min read
Cover of Philistine and genius

Philistine and genius

Boris Sidis

The tragedy of modern childhood is that society treats brilliance as an illness, systematically training children to be fearful, obedient machines rather than free-thinking individuals.

Philosophy & Ethics6 min read
Cover of Poseidon's paradise: the romance of Atlantis

Poseidon's paradise: the romance of Atlantis

Elizabeth G. Birkmaier

The legend of the lost continent finds new life in this sweeping tale of ancient hubris, where the inevitable sinking of an island becomes the backdrop for a story of love and moral awakening.

Mythology, Legends & Folklore6 min read
Cover of Remarks upon the proposed destruction of the tower of the Parish Church of St. John, Hampstead

Remarks upon the proposed destruction of the tower of the Parish Church of St. John, Hampstead

Scott, George Gilbert, Sir

This focused architectural plea argues that a historic parish tower should be preserved, challenging the belief that the structure is dangerously unstable and urging a more thoughtful approach to church restoration.

Architecture6 min read
Cover of Renaissance Fancies and Studies: Being a Sequel to Euphorion

Renaissance Fancies and Studies: Being a Sequel to Euphorion

Vernon Lee

This collection of essays offers an intimate, erudite exploration of the Italian Renaissance, treating art not as a dry academic subject, but as a living, breathing testament to the human imagination.

Art6 min read
Cover of Richard Richard

Richard Richard

Hughes Mearns

A wandering, penniless intellectual finds himself drawn into the tangled emotional life of a wealthy, fractured family. This story explores whether deep-seated neuroses and broken spirits can be mended through the power of human connection.

Novels6 min read
Cover of Steve Brown's Bunyip, and Other Stories

Steve Brown's Bunyip, and Other Stories

John Arthur Barry

The sea and the outback are not merely settings in these tales, but volatile characters that test the limits of human endurance, morality, and survival in the harsh, expansive landscape of nineteenth-century Australia.

Humour6 min read
Cover of Sweated industry and the minimum wage

Sweated industry and the minimum wage

Clementina Black

Poverty is often dismissed as a mere superstition of the sentimental, yet for the laborer, it is a relentless, crushing fact of daily existence. This study exposes the mechanics of that struggle.

History - British6 min read
Cover of The Atlantic Monthly, Volume 14, No. 86, December, 1864: A Magazine of Literature, Art, and Politics

The Atlantic Monthly, Volume 14, No. 86, December, 1864: A Magazine of Literature, Art, and Politics

Various

This volume captures the urgency of a nation in conflict, blending topographical observation with the fevered political discourse of the mid-nineteenth century. It stands as a vivid, diverse archive of a society grappling with its own survival.

Essays, Letters & Speeches6 min read
Cover of The Books of Chilan Balam: The Prophetic and Historic Records of the Mayas of Yucatan

The Books of Chilan Balam: The Prophetic and Historic Records of the Mayas of Yucatan

Daniel G. (Daniel Garrison) Brinton

The Books of Chilan Balam represent a vital, vanishing bridge to the ancient Maya intellect, preserving sacred indigenous history and prophecy through the transformative lens of the post-Conquest era. These manuscripts offer an unparalleled, if fragmented, glimpse into a civilization that once recorded its world in…

Archaeology & Anthropology6 min read
Cover of The Butterflies and Moths of Teneriffe

The Butterflies and Moths of Teneriffe

A. E. Holt White

This guide to the Lepidoptera of Tenerife offers both a practical manual for amateur naturalists and a vivid glimpse into the island’s rugged, sun-drenched landscapes at the end of the nineteenth century.

How To ...6 min read
Cover of The Chicago Massacre of 1812: With Illustrations and Historical Documents

The Chicago Massacre of 1812: With Illustrations and Historical Documents

Joseph Kirkland

The Fort Dearborn Massacre of 1812 stands as a singular, harrowing point of origin for one of the world’s greatest cities, a moment where the frontier’s brutal uncertainty gave way to modern history. This work serves as an essential, meticulously assembled archive of that tragedy, sifting through the layers of myth…

History - American7 min read
Cover of The Escape

The Escape

William Wells Brown

The pursuit of liberty transforms an intimate, domestic struggle into a desperate race toward the Canadian border. Through a series of harrowing confrontations, those bound by iron and law gamble everything to reach a place where they are finally recognized as human.

American Literature6 min read
Cover of The Fashionable Adventures of Joshua Craig: A Novel

The Fashionable Adventures of Joshua Craig: A Novel

David Graham Phillips

A whirlwind of political ambition and social collision, this story traces the turbulent courtship and marriage of a man who possesses raw, unstoppable power and a woman who prides herself on her refined, impenetrable poise.

American Literature6 min read
Cover of The first American King

The first American King

George Gordon Hastings

The American experiment dissolves into a gilded autocracy, leaving two men to awaken in a future where their lost Republic has been traded for the crushing weight of imperial chains.

American Literature6 min read
Cover of The Gospel of Evolution: From "The Atheistic Platform", Twelve Lectures

The Gospel of Evolution: From "The Atheistic Platform", Twelve Lectures

Edward B. Aveling

A new and better Gospel is now preached to men, founded not on supernatural faith, but on the enduring, demonstrable realities of the natural world. This scientific shift offers a path to universal human brotherhood that ancient creeds have failed to provide.

Philosophy & Ethics6 min read
Cover of The Innocents Abroad

The Innocents Abroad

Mark Twain

This chronicle of a grand excursion captures the collision between romanticized expectations of the Old World and the gritty, often absurd reality of nineteenth-century travel. It offers a skeptical, irreverent, and deeply human look at the cradle of Western civilization.

American Literature7 min read
Cover of The King of Alsander

The King of Alsander

James Elroy Flecker

A young English grocer abandons his mundane life to claim a throne in a sun-drenched, imaginary land. This whimsical yet melancholic romance explores the heavy cost of trading reality for a dream.

Adventure6 min read
Cover of The Little Spanish Dancer

The Little Spanish Dancer

Madeline Brandeis

A young girl in Seville struggles to support her ailing grandfather by selling her mother's cherished keepsakes, only to find that some treasures hold a power beyond their monetary value.

Children & Young Adult Reading6 min read
Cover of The Livestock Producer and Armour

The Livestock Producer and Armour

Unknown

The modern meat industry is a complex machine, and its survival relies entirely on a delicate, often misunderstood partnership between the farmer and the processor.

Business/Management6 min read
Cover of The man with the hoe, and other poems

The man with the hoe, and other poems

Edwin Markham

This collection of verse acts as a bridge between Victorian lyrical tradition and the awakening of American social conscience, framing the struggle of the laboring class as a fundamental spiritual crisis.

American Literature6 min read
Cover of The Missouri Archaeologist, Volume 34, No. 1 and 2, December 1972

The Missouri Archaeologist, Volume 34, No. 1 and 2, December 1972

Various

This collection of archaeological reports offers a meticulous, grounded look at the material lives of Missouri’s past, from 18th-century pipe manufacturing to the funerary practices of indigenous cultures. It is a vital record of regional history, preserved through the patient work of specialists and dedicated…

Archaeology & Anthropology6 min read
Cover of The Mystery Ship: A Story of the 'Q' Ships During the Great War

The Mystery Ship: A Story of the 'Q' Ships During the Great War

Percy F. (Percy Francis) Westerman

A tense drama of the high seas, this story follows the crews of British "Q-ships"—disguised merchant vessels hunting German submarines during the final, desperate years of the Great War.

Adventure6 min read
Cover of The Poetical Works of Oliver Wendell Holmes

The Poetical Works of Oliver Wendell Holmes

Oliver Wendell Holmes

This collection gathers the rhythmic, witty, and deeply contemplative verses of a quintessential nineteenth-century man of letters. It serves as a bridge between the structured formality of the era and the inquisitive, skeptical spirit of a modern mind.

American Literature6 min read
Cover of The Red Cross Girls with Pershing to Victory

The Red Cross Girls with Pershing to Victory

Margaret Vandercook

This chronicle follows a group of young American Red Cross nurses as they transition from the battlefields of France to the occupied territory of Germany, navigating the complex emotional aftermath of the Great War. It is a story of service, burgeoning independence, and the quiet, personal recalibrations required…

American Literature6 min read
Cover of The Silverton Story

The Silverton Story

Mary Ann Olsen

Silverton, Colorado, emerges from the rugged San Juan Mountains as a mining camp that refused to die. This chronicle of a high-altitude town captures the relentless spirit of pioneers battling snow, isolation, and the volatile economics of precious metals.

History - American6 min read
Cover of The Southern Literary Messenger, Vol. II., No. 4, March, 1836

The Southern Literary Messenger, Vol. II., No. 4, March, 1836

Various

This collection serves as a vibrant, kaleidoscopic window into the intellectual and social preoccupations of the mid-1830s American South. It captures a moment where high-minded classical pedagogy collides with the burgeoning regional identity of a young nation.

Essays, Letters & Speeches6 min read
Cover of The Squirrel Inn

The Squirrel Inn

Frank R. Stockton

A peaceful summer retreat becomes a stage for shifting social allegiances, where scholarly eccentricities and whispered reputations collide with the arrival of a mysterious, high-born nursemaid.

American Literature6 min read
Cover of The Story of My Mind

The Story of My Mind

M. M. (Mangasar Mugurditch) Mangasarian

The pursuit of truth demands the courage to discard inherited dogma, even when that dogma is the foundation of one’s own life and livelihood.

Biographies6 min read
Cover of The Unbidden Guest

The Unbidden Guest

E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung

HOOK A charismatic stranger descends upon an isolated Australian farm, masquerading as a long-lost friend’s daughter. Her presence sparks a quiet, desperate drama of identity, deception, and the struggle to belong.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of The Wine Press and the Cellar: A Manual for the Wine-Maker and the Cellar-Man

The Wine Press and the Cellar: A Manual for the Wine-Maker and the Cellar-Man

Emmet H. (Emmet Hawkins) Rixford

Cultivating fine wine in the untamed vineyards of 19th-century California required a marriage of pioneer grit and rigorous laboratory science. This technical manual remains a fascinating testament to that era’s transition from folk tradition to systematic viticulture.

Cooking & Drinking6 min read
Cover of The works of Richard Hurd, volume 6 (of 8)

The works of Richard Hurd, volume 6 (of 8)

Richard Hurd

This collection of sermons offers a rigorous, intellectual engagement with Christian doctrine, inviting the reader to weigh the moral claims of faith against the demands of human reason. It serves as a window into the thoughtful, structured pulpit oratory of the eighteenth-century Church of England.

Essays, Letters & Speeches6 min read
Cover of The Writer, Volume VI, April 1892.: A Monthly Magazine to Interest and Help All Literary Workers

The Writer, Volume VI, April 1892.: A Monthly Magazine to Interest and Help All Literary Workers

Various

This collection of essays and columns offers a candid, professional window into the late nineteenth-century literary marketplace, serving as a practical handbook for those navigating the transition from creative ambition to commercial reality.

Journalism/Media/Writing6 min read
Cover of The Youngest Sister: A Tale of Manitoba

The Youngest Sister: A Tale of Manitoba

Bessie Marchant

In this spirited tale of pioneer resilience, a young woman finds her strength while navigating the punishing, isolated beauty of the Canadian frontier. It is a story of grit, self-discovery, and the bonds that sustain a family.

Children & Young Adult Reading6 min read
Cover of Through the mill: The life of a mill-boy

Through the mill: The life of a mill-boy

Frederic Kenyon Brown

This autobiography captures the suffocating reality of the American textile industry at the turn of the 20th century through the eyes of a boy who refuses to let the machinery grind his spirit down.

Biographies7 min read
Cover of Trooper 3809: A Private Soldier of the Third Republic

Trooper 3809: A Private Soldier of the Third Republic

Lionel Decle

A raw, firsthand account of the brutal realities facing a private soldier in the French cavalry, this narrative exposes a system where institutional cruelty and arbitrary punishment effectively dismantle the spirit of the rank-and-file.

Biographies6 min read
Cover of Under the Ocean to the South Pole

Under the Ocean to the South Pole

Roy Rockwood

A crew of explorers ventures into the unknown reaches of the deep, piloting a cutting-edge submarine toward the South Pole to confront monstrous sea life and the mysteries of the frozen frontier.

Adventure6 min read
Cover of Wilson's Tales of the Borders and of Scotland, Volume 18

Wilson's Tales of the Borders and of Scotland, Volume 18

Unknown

This volume gathers a diverse collection of tales set against the rugged backdrop of the Scottish Borders, weaving together threads of folklore, historical tragedy, and the domestic struggles of the nineteenth century.

Historical Novels6 min read
Cover of York

York

George Benson

York serves as a vivid, living portal into England’s medieval past, where ancient stone walls and towering cathedrals guard the secrets of kings, rebels, and saints.

Archaeology & Anthropology7 min read
Cover of A Cabinet Secret

A Cabinet Secret

Guy Boothby

A gripping tale of political intrigue and high-stakes kidnapping, this thriller follows a British cabinet minister’s desperate struggle against a secret conspiracy threatening the heart of the Empire during the South African War.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of A Catalogue of Books Published by Methuen and Company, November 1907

A Catalogue of Books Published by Methuen and Company, November 1907

Methuen & Co.

This volume serves as a deliberate portrait of the Edwardian intellectual and commercial landscape, preserving a meticulously organized snapshot of the books and ideas that shaped the reading habits of the early twentieth century.

Encyclopedias/Dictionaries/Reference6 min read
Cover of A Child of the Sea

A Child of the Sea

Elizabeth Whitney Williams

HOOK A child’s perspective anchors this vivid memoir of life in a nineteenth-century frontier settlement, where the wild beauty of the Great Lakes meets the encroaching influence of a controversial religious colony.

Biographies6 min read