The whole shelf
All free summaries — page 860
44,127 public-domain books, summarised. Page 860 of 920.
The Andersons
Agnes Giberne
A young brother and sister face the sudden disintegration of their family, finding themselves cast upon the charity of strangers while struggling to maintain their integrity and love in an unforgiving world.
The Bible, King James version, Book 62: 1 John
Anonymous
Witnessing the Word of life, an intimate voice addresses a community of believers to define the nature of divine love and the essential harmony between faith, righteousness, and truth.
The Big Headache
Jim Harmon
A brilliant, world-renowned mathematician is cured of his debilitating migraines by two desperate scientists, only for them to discover that eliminating the pain has come at a catastrophic cost to his genius.
The Book of the Little Past
Josephine Preston Peabody
The world is vast, but for those who look closely, the smallest corners—a trailing plume of chimney smoke, a bit of ribbon, or the pattern on a windowpane—hold the greatest secrets. This collection captures the sharp, shimmering intensity of childhood, where the line between reality and imagination is permanently…
The boy who never lost a chance
Annette Lyster
HOOK Driven by a grandfather’s dual command to "never lose a chance" and "earn your dinner before you eat it," a resilient orphan builds a life of industry and faith.
The Brochure Series of Architectural Illustration, Vol. 01, No. 01, January 1895: The Gothic Palaces of Venice
Various
The beauty of Venice is not merely in its history, but in the specific, daring architecture that allowed its palaces to open directly onto the water, defying the defensive norms of the medieval world.
The city in the sea
H. De Vere (Henry De Vere) Stacpoole
HOOK A young writer joins a ragtag nautical expedition to recover an ancient, submerged city from the Mediterranean floor, only to find that human greed and long-buried secrets are more treacherous than the sea itself.
The Fall of Ulysses: An Elephant Story
Charles Dwight Willard
A man attempts to educate an elephant, only to discover that his pupil’s intellectual ambition far exceeds his own. This cautionary tale explores the perils of playing Frankenstein to a creature that possesses a mind, but lacks a human soul.
The Fly Leaf, No. 4, Vol. 1, March 1896
Various
This periodical serves as a spirited, idiosyncratic manifesto for the independent literary mind, championing high ideals against the encroaching commercialism of the late nineteenth century. It is a defiant, intimate call to arms for readers who reject the "muck-heaps" of popular fiction in favor of wit, honesty,…
The French Twins
Lucy Fitch Perkins
A story of childhood resilience, this account follows two siblings navigating the upheaval of the Great War in their beloved France.
The Gentleman from Everywhere
James Henry Foss
This autobiography chronicles a life of relentless movement, tracing a journey from humble, rural beginnings through a career of teaching, preaching, and colonizing, ultimately seeking a vision of social harmony. It stands as a curious, earnest testament to the restless spirit of the nineteenth-century American…
The German Pioneers: A Tale of the Mohawk
Friedrich Spielhagen
A harrowing journey from the pestilence of a trans-Atlantic voyage to the bloody, frontier reality of the Mohawk Valley tests the souls of German immigrants striving for a new life.
The Girl's Own Paper, Vol. VIII: No. 353, October 2, 1886
Various
A charming glimpse into Victorian maidenhood, this magazine volume weaves serial fiction, household crafts, and stern advice into a complete guide for self-improvement.
The Hilltop Boys on the River
Cyril Burleigh
The Hilltop Boys on the River follows a group of students from a prestigious academy who spend their summer vacation in a river-side camp. The narrative focuses on the capable, self-reliant Jack Sheldon and his loyal friend Dick Percival as they contend with academic bullies, a mysterious found watch, and the…
The History of Thomas Hickathrift
Unknown
A colossal figure rises from the Fenlands, armed only with a cartwheel and an axletree to defend common rights against giants and rebels, transforming from a lazy youth into a legendary champion of the English soil.
The Hoplite
Richard Sheridan
The ultimate machine is a lethal extension of the man within, yet the warrior trapped inside finds that in gaining the power of a god, he has surrendered the possibility of being human.
The House Boat Boys
St. George Rathborne
Two boys set out on a makeshift shanty-boat, trading their precarious lives in Indiana for the promise of the open river. Navigating the Ohio and Mississippi, they encounter outlaws, extreme weather, and the quiet dignity of a forgotten quest.
The inalienable heritage, and other poems
Emily Lawless
A collection of late-life verses captures the rugged, melancholy beauty of Ireland, blending a deep intimacy with the natural landscape against the backdrop of history’s enduring, heavy shadows.
The Land of Darkness: Along with Some Further Chapters in the Experiences of the Little Pilgrim
Mrs. (Margaret) Oliphant
A solitary traveler navigates a harrowing, surreal afterlife where the landscape mirrors the internal state of the soul, grappling with the agonizing tension between divine respect for human will and the infinite persistence of love.
The Life of Col. James Gardiner
Religious Tract Society (Great Britain)
The soldier’s life often ends in the field, but here the most significant battle occurs in the silence of a midnight chamber. This record documents a transformation from a reckless life to one of disciplined devotion.
The Life of That Wonderful and Extraordinarily Heavy Man, Daniel Lambert: From His Birth to the Moment of His Dissolution
Anonymous
A gentle, inquisitive record of a man defined by his physical scale, this account observes a life lived in the public eye with surprising humanity and grace. It captures the quiet dignity of a person transformed into a spectacle.
The Little Gentleman
Eleanora H. Stooke
This is a story of a neglected child in a provincial English town who discovers the power of kindness and spiritual belonging. It serves as a gentle, earnest chronicle of a girl’s transformation from a lonely, defensive outcast into a hopeful, loving young person.
The Little Monsters Come
Ray Cummings
A Florida swamp-dweller finds his quiet life upended when he is abducted by miniature, highly advanced aliens who view him as a specimen for their desperate scientific experiments. He must navigate a world of tiny civilizations and lethal storms to survive, ultimately facing a choice between becoming a god-like…
The McBrides: A Romance of Arran
John Sillars
A boy steps out from an Island window, drawn into a web of smugglers, old mountain feuds, and fierce Scottish ties.
The Mirror of Literature, Amusement, and Instruction. Volume 12, No. 341, November 15, 1828
Various
This curated miscellany captures the restless intellectual curiosity of 1828, blending antiquarian discovery with the era’s burgeoning fascination for fine art, social philosophy, and the rapid pace of change.
The Mirror of Literature, Amusement, and Instruction. Volume 17, No. 485, April 16, 1831
Various
This collection serves as a Victorian-era scrapbook, offering a curious, eclectic mixture of geographical reports, historical inquiries, and lighthearted anecdotes designed to amuse and inform the inquisitive reader of 1831.
The Mirror of Literature, Amusement, and Instruction. Volume 20, No. 564, September 1, 1832
Various
A lively panoramic window into 1832, this periodical issue captures a society balancing architectural pride, scientific curiosity, and the cultural shifts of early industrial Britain.
The Missing Merchantman
Harry Collingwood
The sea-faring life demands not only technical mastery but an unshakable moral compass, particularly when the social order of a ship is violently upended by those who serve upon it. This narrative explores the resilience of the human spirit when cast into peril.
The Opinions of a Philosopher
Robert Grant
At forty, a man may fancy himself a serene spectator of life, only to find that raising children, buying houses, and entering politics will upend every quiet pretense.
The Pigeon Tale
Virginia Bennett
A young boy discovers that the sleepy, old farm he is visiting holds a secret world where animals speak, keep journals, and manage the weather. It is a gentle, imaginative journey into the heart of nature.
The Planetoid of Peril
Paul Ernst
A lone mining engineer buys a forbidden asteroid to build a home, only to discover it is already occupied by an invincible, living creature of stone.
The Real Question as to Altar Lights: Christ's Body Present by Consecration, and Offered in the Sacrament of the Altar: A Letter to the Rev. John W.H. Molyneux
Edward James Phipps
This urgent appeal argues that the physical symbols and rituals of the Church of England are essential vessels for profound, immutable theological truths. It serves as both a legal defense of traditional practice and a manifesto for reclaiming sacramental reverence.
The Red Saint
Warwick Deeping
Amid the brutal conflicts of the Barons’ War, a solitary woman finds her life inextricably bound to a fugitive knight and the shifting loyalties of a fractured England.
The Rover Boys out West
Edward Stratemeyer
Three brothers trade the comforts of their military academy for the rugged Colorado frontier, where they must outwit a pair of persistent, dangerous rivals to secure a long-lost family gold mine.
The second adventures of Uncle Wiggily
Howard Roger Garis
Uncle Wiggily Longears, a gentlemanly rabbit with a penchant for kindness and clever inventions, spends his days wandering the countryside in search of wholesome fun, inadvertently thwarting "bad chaps" along the way. Whether navigating the winter ice or exploring deep woods, he turns every mishap into a jolly outing.
The Settlers at Home
Harriet Martineau
When catastrophic flooding breaks the dykes of seventeenth-century Lincolnshire, four children and a loyal servant find themselves stranded on a shrinking patch of high ground, stripped of their homes and left to fight for survival.
The Submarine Boys' Trial Trip: "Making Good" as Young Experts
Victor G. Durham
The young crew of a cutting-edge submarine must navigate treacherous waters, both literal and professional, to prove their worth to the U.S. Navy and thwart a greedy rival.
The suppressed Gospels and Epistles of the original New Testament of Jesus the Christ, Volume 6, Clement
William Wake
This collection serves as a window into the formative anxieties of the early Christian community, capturing a voice of authority attempting to restore harmony to a fractured congregation. It remains a vital artifact for those interested in the transition of early religious thought from charismatic movement to…
The Talking Leaves: An Indian Story
William O. Stoddard
A stolen white captive, a long-lost father disguised as a warrior, and two young women torn between cultures collide across the nineteenth-century Southwest.
The True Ministers of Christ Accredited by the Holy Spirit: A Sermon
Philip Gell
Authentic spiritual authority is not found in human credentials or ecclesiastical status, but in the manifest presence and power of the Holy Spirit working through the preaching of the Gospel.
The Twilight Years
Kirk Drussai
In a chilling future where reaching age sixty makes one a target for state-sanctioned entertainment, a retired couple struggles to reconcile their survival with the society that demands their death.
The Unity of the Church Essential to the Conversion of the World: A Sermon, Preached Before the Directors and Friends of the London Missionary Society, During Their Anniversary in May, 1846, in the Church of St. Mary, Spital Square, London
James Henry Alexander Gwyther
A plea for Christian unity as the indispensable catalyst for global transformation, delivered as a stirring call to action before a nineteenth-century missionary assembly.
The Wandering Jew
Eugène Sue
A century-old inheritance worth a fortune hangs in the balance, hunted by a shadowy religious order and defended by a fractured, unsuspecting family.
The young pioneers of the North-west
C. H. (Charles Henry) Pearson
This frontier tale traces the struggle of a mother and her sons to survive and prosper in the Minnesota wilderness, where every hardship is met with steadfast faith and a watchful eye.
Thief of Mars
Henry Hasse
A desperate man infiltrates a pirate base to clear his brother’s name, only to find himself trapped in a high-stakes duel across the hull of a doomed spaceship.
Three Unpublished Poems
Louisa May Alcott
This collection offers a rare, intimate window into the bond between a visionary father and his devoted daughter, preserved through long-hidden verses found in an old Massachusetts home.
Top o' the World: A Once Upon a Time Tale
Mark Swan
A young girl embarks on a fantastical voyage to the North Pole, only to discover that the magic of childhood is a fragile, fleeting treasure. Through a series of whimsical encounters with legendary figures, she learns that growing up comes at a high emotional cost.
Transactions of the American Society of Civil Engineers, Vol. LXX, Dec. 1910: Locomotive Performance On Grades Of Various Lengths, Paper No. 1172
B. S. (Beverly S.) Randolph
This technical inquiry into railway mechanics provides a foundational look at how grade length dictates the efficiency and load-bearing capacity of steam-powered locomotives. It serves as a rigorous investigation into the limits of engine performance on uneven terrain.