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44,127 public-domain books, summarised. Page 764 of 920.

Cover of Elsie Lindtner: A sequel to "The Dangerous Age"

Elsie Lindtner: A sequel to "The Dangerous Age"

Karin Michaëlis

Elsie Lindtner navigates the turbulent, often lonely landscape of middle age with a sharp, discerning wit. She seeks personal reinvention through travel, impulsive gambling, and the unconventional adoption of a troubled boy.

Novels6 min read
Cover of Eric's Book of Beasts

Eric's Book of Beasts

David Starr Jordan

A whimsical menagerie of creatures and curious rhymes, this collection invites young readers to explore a world where the ordinary meets the impossible through the eyes of a child.

Children & Young Adult Reading6 min read
Cover of Far above rubies (Vol. 1 of 3)

Far above rubies (Vol. 1 of 3)

Riddell, J. H., Mrs.

A faded estate and a family struggling to preserve their dignity against the encroaching tide of Victorian industrialism define this intricate portrait of social decline and moral fortitude.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of Fragments from the Journal of a Solitary Man: (From: "The Doliver Romance and Other Pieces: Tales and Sketches")

Fragments from the Journal of a Solitary Man: (From: "The Doliver Romance and Other Pieces: Tales and Sketches")

Nathaniel Hawthorne

A dying romantic faces the tragic irrelevance of a life spent avoiding real human bonds.

American Literature7 min read
Cover of Frank on the Lower Mississippi

Frank on the Lower Mississippi

Harry Castlemon

War on the great river is a matter of swift currents, murky shorelines, night patrols, and sudden close-quarters combat. A young Union naval officer tests his courage against riverine guerrillas, treacherous transports, and deep waters.

Adventure7 min read
Cover of G. A. Selwyn, D.D.: Bishop of New Zealand and Lichfield

G. A. Selwyn, D.D.: Bishop of New Zealand and Lichfield

Louise Creighton

A portrait of a visionary colonial administrator, this biography traces the life of the first Anglican Bishop of New Zealand, a man who dedicated his formidable intellect and physical endurance to the service of an emerging church.

Biographies6 min read
Cover of Game preserve

Game preserve

Rog Phillips

A bright, observant boy trapped in a world of intellectual decay desperately seeks connection with the mysterious "game wardens" who hunt his kind for sport.

Science-Fiction & Fantasy6 min read
Cover of Gay's year on Sunset Island

Gay's year on Sunset Island

Marguerite Aspinwall

Gay Annersley is a fifteen-year-old orphan living in a sleepy New England town, longing for the "story-book sort of things" that never seem to happen. Her life takes a dramatic turn when her uncle, a man of impulsive kindness, reveals he has purchased a mysterious tropical island as a winter refuge for the family.

Adventure6 min read
Cover of Grace Harlowe's Overland Riders Among the Kentucky Mountaineers

Grace Harlowe's Overland Riders Among the Kentucky Mountaineers

Josephine Chase

A group of adventurous young women and their companions find themselves caught in a dangerous mountain feud while exploring the Kentucky wilderness.

Adventure6 min read
Cover of Green Thursday

Green Thursday

Julia Peterkin

A vivid, atmospheric portrait of life in a sequestered South Carolina plantation, where the ancient rhythms of nature and the heavy, unyielding traditions of a rural community define the struggles of its black inhabitants.

Short Stories6 min read
Cover of Guy Harris, the Runaway

Guy Harris, the Runaway

Harry Castlemon

A young boy burdened by rigid parental expectations finds his life spiraling into a series of dangerous misadventures after he decides to run away from home.

Adventure6 min read
Cover of Harper's Round Table, December 3, 1895

Harper's Round Table, December 3, 1895

Various

A snapshot of late nineteenth-century youth culture, this collection gathers the diverse interests and anxieties of a bygone era into a single, vibrant miscellany.

Adventure6 min read
Cover of Harper's Round Table, February 11, 1896

Harper's Round Table, February 11, 1896

Various

This collection serves as a portal into the Victorian youth’s world, blending moral guidance, historical adventure, and the whimsical curiosities of the nineteenth century into a single, vibrant miscellany.

Adventure5 min read
Cover of Harper's Round Table, March 24, 1896

Harper's Round Table, March 24, 1896

Various

This collection serves as a vibrant time capsule of late 19th-century youth culture, capturing the intense, singular obsession with the bicycle alongside tales of adventure and early American history.

Adventure6 min read
Cover of Hearts and clubs

Hearts and clubs

Amy Ella Blanchard

This spirited comedy follows a group of seaside hotel guests whose social lives are transformed by the sudden, fad-driven popularity of physical culture. Through a series of misunderstandings and lighthearted deceptions, the characters navigate the rigid expectations of the late 19th century.

Humour6 min read
Cover of Hemp

Hemp

Brittain B. (Brittain Bragunier) Robinson

Cultivating a crop requires more than just fertile soil; it demands an intimate, rhythmic understanding of the natural processes that transform raw stalks into durable, industrial-grade fiber. This technical manual serves as an essential field guide for the mid-century American farmer, demystifying the…

How To ...6 min read
Cover of Henry Thoreau, bachelor of nature

Henry Thoreau, bachelor of nature

Léon Bazalgette

This portrait of an unconventional life captures the restlessness, the prickly intellect, and the profound, unsentimental love for nature that defined a seminal American voice. It is a study of a man who chose to define his own existence rather than be shaped by the machinery of society.

Biographies6 min read
Cover of History of the Eighty-sixth Regiment, Illinois Volunteer Infantry, during its term of service

History of the Eighty-sixth Regiment, Illinois Volunteer Infantry, during its term of service

J. R. (John R.) Kinnear

This chronicle follows the Eighty-sixth Illinois Infantry from its 1862 formation through the grueling campaigns of the American Civil War, ending in the triumphant, solemn journey home.

History - American7 min read
Cover of How She Felt in Her First Corset, and Other Poems

How She Felt in Her First Corset, and Other Poems

Matthew W. Alderson

The persistent pull of human affection defines this collection, where the modest routines of frontier life are elevated by a sincere, often humorous devotion to the domestic and the romantic.

Poetry6 min read
Cover of In the Rocky Mountains: A Tale of Adventure

In the Rocky Mountains: A Tale of Adventure

William Henry Giles Kingston

Driven across the American wilderness by calamity, a resilient pioneer family and a handful of soldiers struggle against hostile raiders, unforgiving terrain, and surprising mountain hazards in a quest to survive and rebuild their frontier home.

Adventure6 min read
Cover of Index of the Project Gutenberg Works of Ralph Connor

Index of the Project Gutenberg Works of Ralph Connor

Ralph Connor

Rugged landscapes and moral imperatives define these tales of the Canadian frontier, where individuals confront both the harshness of the wilderness and the demands of their own conscience.

Adventure6 min read
Cover of Journal of Entomology and Zoology, Vol. 09, No. 3, September 1917

Journal of Entomology and Zoology, Vol. 09, No. 3, September 1917

Various

This issue of an early twentieth-century academic serial captures a specific moment in the cataloging of the American West’s natural history. It functions as a record of regional biodiversity, documenting the insects, mammals, and mollusks of Southern California with the rigorous, objective focus of the era’s field…

Journals6 min read
Cover of Judy

Judy

Temple Bailey

A spirited girl discovers that the truest adventures are not found on the high seas, but in the quiet, formative bonds of family and friendship in a sun-drenched coastal town.

American Literature6 min read
Cover of Lady Lucy's secret

Lady Lucy's secret

Lucy Ellen Guernsey

HOOK A young girl trapped in a cold, fearful household learns the heavy weight of a lie and the quiet, steadying power of mercy.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of Le Coq d'Or (The Golden Cock): An Opera in Three Acts

Le Coq d'Or (The Golden Cock): An Opera in Three Acts

Unknown

This opera presents a dark, ironic fairy tale where a gluttonous king’s desire for an easy life leads to his undoing. It is a sharp, satirical fable about the folly of rulers and the danger of ignoring reality.

Mythology, Legends & Folklore6 min read
Cover of Legends of Vancouver

Legends of Vancouver

E. Pauline Johnson

These stories transform the modern skyline of Vancouver into a living map of Squamish heritage, where every mountain, inlet, and stone holds the echoes of an ancient and enduring past.

French Literature6 min read
Cover of Lill's travels in Santa Claus Land, and other stories

Lill's travels in Santa Claus Land, and other stories

Ellis Towne

This collection of tales explores the hidden moral landscapes of childhood, where imaginary lands, petty rivalries, and sudden transgressions test the boundaries of a young person’s character.

Children & Young Adult Reading7 min read
Cover of Little Hickory

Little Hickory

George Waldo Browne

A resilient, street-smart bootblack escapes the crushing poverty of New York City to lead a band of displaced families toward a new life and justice in the countryside.

Adventure6 min read
Cover of Little Prudy

Little Prudy

Sophie May

A young girl’s vivid imagination and restless energy keep her family in a constant state of suspense, as she navigates the small, high-stakes dramas of childhood in mid-19th-century Maine.

Children & Young Adult Reading6 min read
Cover of Love's crucifix

Love's crucifix

Francesco Petrarca

HOOK A lifetime of longing distilled into verse, this collection chronicles a poet’s devotion to a woman who remained, even after her death, his unreachable North Star.

Poetry6 min read
Cover of Marjorie's New Friend

Marjorie's New Friend

Carolyn Wells

Friendship is a fragile, demanding business, especially when childhood loyalties are tested by distance and the arrival of new, complicated personalities. This story captures the earnest, often clumsy, and deeply heartfelt attempts of young girls to navigate the shifting landscape of their social lives.

Children & Young Adult Reading6 min read
Cover of Mary Marie

Mary Marie

Eleanor H. (Eleanor Hodgman) Porter

A young girl’s diary chronicles her life between two households, offering a candid, often humorous, and ultimately moving portrait of her parents' divorce and the long, complicated process of reconciliation.

American Literature6 min read
Cover of Memoirs of the Courts of Louis XV and XVI

Memoirs of the Courts of Louis XV and XVI

Mme. Du Hausset

The inner chambers of Versailles become a theater of shadows, where the weight of a crumbling monarchy presses against the fragile lives of those who sustain it.

Biographies6 min read
Cover of Memoirs of the Lady Hester Stanhope, as related by herself in conversations with her physician, vol. 3 (of 3)

Memoirs of the Lady Hester Stanhope, as related by herself in conversations with her physician, vol. 3 (of 3)

Stanhope, Hester, Lady

HOOK Isolated in a crumbling Syrian mountain estate, an aristocratic exile navigates the twilight of her influence, holding court through sheer force of personality while the world she once knew fades into history.

Biographies6 min read
Cover of Messenger No. 48

Messenger No. 48

James Otis

A tenacious young messenger stumbles into a deadly criminal conspiracy and finds himself playing a high-stakes game of cat-and-mouse with hardened killers.

Adventure6 min read
Cover of Middy and Ensign

Middy and Ensign

George Manville Fenn

Two junior officers aboard a British gunboat navigate heat, hidden traitors, and sudden ambushes along a dense river in the Malay Peninsula.

Adventure6 min read
Cover of Mistake inside

Mistake inside

James Blish

HOOK A man intent on a violent confrontation finds himself abruptly transported to a surreal, shifting city where centuries collide and magic is a common, if unreliable, utility.

American Literature6 min read
Cover of Mrs. Turner's Cautionary Stories

Mrs. Turner's Cautionary Stories

Mrs. (Elizabeth) Turner

Moral instruction meets rhythmic, no-nonsense verse in this collection of cautionary tales. Designed to steer nineteenth-century children away from accidents, mischief, and gluttony, these stories promise swift consequences for every misstep.

Children & Young Adult Reading6 min read
Cover of My Lattice, and Other Poems

My Lattice, and Other Poems

Frederick George Scott

This collection of verse captures the quiet, contemplative spirit of a nineteenth-century observer who finds the infinite hidden within the small and the familiar.

Poetry6 min read
Cover of Nimble Ike, the Trick Ventriloquist: A Rousing Tale of Fun and Frolic

Nimble Ike, the Trick Ventriloquist: A Rousing Tale of Fun and Frolic

Old Sleuth

A penniless street boy uses extraordinary vocal deception and raw cunning to unmask a corporate fraud and rescue a kidnapped heir.

Adventure7 min read
Cover of Nina's peril

Nina's peril

Miller, Alex. McVeigh, Mrs.

A young bride stands falsely accused of a brutal murder, her survival hinging on a desperate, long-delayed reconciliation with an estranged husband who once saw her only as a mercenary convenience.

Novels6 min read
Cover of No Compromise with Slavery: An Address Delivered to the Broadway Tabernacle, New York

No Compromise with Slavery: An Address Delivered to the Broadway Tabernacle, New York

William Lloyd Garrison

No compromise with slavery is the only moral path for a nation claiming to hold liberty as its highest principle. This impassioned address demands an immediate and unconditional end to the bondage of human beings.

Essays, Letters & Speeches6 min read
Cover of Notes and Queries, Number 206, October 8, 1853: A Medium of Inter-communication for Literary Men, Artists, Antiquaries, Genealogists, etc

Notes and Queries, Number 206, October 8, 1853: A Medium of Inter-communication for Literary Men, Artists, Antiquaries, Genealogists, etc

Various

This modest periodical serves as a Victorian forum for the curious, connecting scholars and hobbyists through a shared dedication to historical discovery. It transforms the solitary pursuit of knowledge into a vibrant, collective conversation.

Encyclopedias/Dictionaries/Reference6 min read
Cover of Notes and Queries, Number 25, April 20, 1850

Notes and Queries, Number 25, April 20, 1850

Various

A curious gathering of mid-nineteenth-century literary detectives, this publication invites readers to trade long-forgotten facts and solve the persistent mysteries of history and language. It serves as a bustling, printed clearinghouse for the intellectually inquisitive.

History - British6 min read
Cover of Now or Never

Now or Never

Oliver Optic

A young boy’s unwavering devotion to his mother leads him from humble poverty to unexpected success. This tale of principle and perseverance follows a resilient hero who learns that integrity is the only true path.

Adventure6 min read
Cover of Obstipation

Obstipation

Thomas Charles Martin

This technical medical treatise serves as a rigorous, nineteenth-century defense of a controversial anatomical structure, arguing that the "rectal valve" is a primary cause of chronic obstruction. It provides a precise, clinical methodology for identifying and treating these internal folds through specialized…

General6 min read
Cover of Office call

Office call

Charles E. Fritch

Dr. Rawlings is a psychiatrist whose professional skepticism is tested by a mathematician who claims he can open doors to other dimensions. It is a sharp, brief exploration of the thin line between clinical delusion and cosmic reality.

Psychiatry/Psychology5 min read
Cover of Old Glory and Verdun, and other stories

Old Glory and Verdun, and other stories

Elizabeth Frazer

The Great War is a tragedy of machines and microbes, where the soul is as vulnerable as the body. This collection of accounts captures the immediate, visceral reality of life on the French front lines.

History - Warfare6 min read