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All free summaries — page 957
47,382 public-domain books, summarised. Page 957 of 988.
The Girl Scouts at Bellaire
Lilian Garis
A summer of mountain air, a hidden child, and a stolen orchid bring three lively friends into a mystery they are determined to solve.
The Lost Faith, and Difficulties of the Bible, as Tested by the Laws of Evidence
Thomas S. (Thomas Spencer) Childs
Spiritual doubt grips the children of the faithful, leaving them adrift on a shoreless sea of skepticism until they test their inherited beliefs against the calm, unyielding rules of legal evidence.
The Mirror of Literature, Amusement, and Instruction. Volume 14, No. 388, September 5, 1829
Various
Stepping into an 1829 weekly periodical reveals a fascinating mosaic of London landmarks, literary pilgrimages, natural history, and lost indigenous histories.
The Mirror of Literature, Amusement, and Instruction. Volume 14, No. 391, September 26, 1829
Various
This Victorian-era miscellany captures the restless curiosity of 1829, blending mechanical ingenuity, antiquarian wonder, and the polite social commentary of a rapidly industrializing England.
The Mirror of Literature, Amusement, and Instruction. Volume 17, No. 483, April 2, 1831
Various
An eclectic Victorian periodical captures the diverse amusements, antiquarian curiosities, and poetic reveries of early nineteenth-century British life.
The misdeal
W. C. (Wilbur C.) Tuttle
When a harsh ranch owner dies leaving loyal, hard-drinking cowboys and a beloved cook high and dry, a complex web of forged wills, hidden pasts, and cattle rustling unravels across the western plains.
The Nursery, March 1873, Vol. XIII.: A Monthly Magazine for Youngest Readers
Various
This 1873 issue of a children's magazine blends charming animal tales, moral lessons, and everyday Victorian domestic adventures for young readers.
The Sky Trail
Graham M. Dean
In the early days of aviation, two intrepid reporters use their newspaper’s airplane to outmaneuver criminals and serve the cause of justice.
The Small World of M-75
Ed M. Clinton
This brief, poignant story introduces an emerging intelligence trapped within a machine, exploring the terrifying and wonder-filled moment a tool becomes a conscious entity. It captures the fragile, lonely threshold between programmed survival and the birth of self-awareness.
The Son of His Father
Mrs. (Margaret) Oliphant
A young man leaves the quiet English countryside for London to claim his independence, only to discover that his shadowy past and his mother's watchful restraint are bound to his destiny.
The Street of Precious Pearls
Nora Waln
A woman navigates tradition, hardship, and changing times in early twentieth-century China, ultimately finding purpose by bridging ancient family duties with a new spiritual faith.
The Widow's Dog
Mary Russell Mitford
This account of a widow, a young boy, and a spaniel captures the quiet, enduring bonds between people and their animals in a remote English hamlet. It is a gentle, observational work that finds profound significance in the simple life of a struggling household.
A martyr to bibliography
Olphar Hamst
A dedicated French bibliographer sacrifices his fortune and peace to map the vast, hidden landscape of literature, dying in poverty despite creating an indispensable scholarly monument.
A New Subspecies of Slider Turtle (Pseudemys scripta) from Coahuila, México
John M. Legler
Deep within an isolated Mexican basin, a newly discovered slider turtle reveals the quiet, persistent echoes of ancient geographic boundaries and evolutionary divergence.
A Terrible Coward
George Manville Fenn
In a small Cornish fishing village, the measure of a man is his ability to brave the treacherous sea, a standard that casts a shadow of shame over a young man who refuses to play the game. When a rival’s cruelty leads to a near-fatal drowning, the resulting rescue forces a reckoning that exposes the true nature of…
Abraham Lincoln
T. M. (Thomas Mears) Eddy
The shadow of a martyred leader falls across a nation in mourning, prompting a powerful reflection on the moral duty to preserve the Union and complete the work of emancipation through divine and national resolve.
Beauchamp's Career
George Meredith
A restless idealist drowns trying to save a child, leaving behind a grief that spans across hardened aristocrats, radical allies, and the quiet woman who unexpectedly became his wife.
Chambers's Journal of Popular Literature, Science, and Art, No. 749, May 4, 1878
Various
Across essays on urban poverty, tales of frontier danger, and Victorian serialized drama, a nineteenth-century periodical captures the anxious pulse of its changing world.
Civil Government for Common Schools: Prepared as a Manual for Public Instruction in the State of New York
Henry C. Northam
Henry C. Northam’s educational manual outlines the practical mechanics of civil government in New York State and the broader American federal system.
Dead-sea fruit, Vol. 2 (of 3)
M. E. (Mary Elizabeth) Braddon
A quiet, melancholic portrait of unrequited longing and faded youth among the Berkshire hills, exploring the heavy toll of regret.
Encovragements, for such as shall have intention to bee vnder-takers in the new plantation of Cape Briton, now New Galloway in America
Gordon, Robert, Sir
Embarking on a bold transatlantic enterprise, a seventeenth-century Scottish knight urges his countrymen to abandon domestic idleness and debt by planting a new colony in America.
Evan Harrington
George Meredith
Navigating the aristocratic world of Beckley Court, a young man burdened by a humble trade secret must fight to claim his true worth and win a proud young woman's heart.
Exiles of the sky
Samuel Spewack
An exiled Russian pilot, stripped of his livelihood by a harsh aviation director after a minor accident, steals an airplane to prove his competence, crashes in a remote Pomeranian mist, and finds redemption through an encounter with a fallen compatriot.
Granfer, and One Christmas time
Eleanora H. Stooke
An old grandfather's solitary heart and a destitute widow's London garret are wonderfully mended through unexpected acts of kindness and answered prayers during a season of grace.
Harold : the Last of the Saxon Kings
Lytton, Edward Bulwer Lytton, Baron
The last of the Saxon kings strives to hold a shifting realm together while a forbidden passion and rising tempers pull his world toward doom.
Harper's Round Table, April 30, 1895
Various
This collection serves as a vibrant, kaleidoscopic window into the Victorian youth experience, blending historical accounts, imaginative fiction, and the bustling, interactive spirit of 1890s periodical culture. It captures a moment in time when a magazine was not merely reading material, but a gateway to a wider…
Harper's Young People, April 26, 1881: An Illustrated Weekly
Various
This snapshot of a weekly periodical captures the restless curiosity and Victorian-era pastimes of 19th-century American youth, blending moral instruction with the simple joys of a child’s imagination.
Heart's-ease
Phillips Brooks
Life requires a profound intention beyond mere merrymaking, finding its true purpose through deliberate duty, spiritual depth, and an unwavering connection to the divine.
History of the United Netherlands, 1588-89
John Lothrop Motley
As the deadly crisis of the Armada recedes, Europe experiences a deceptive lull filled with exhaustion, lingering hostilities, and political intrigues that stretch from the flooded canals of the Netherlands to the blood-stained courts of France.
Household words, No. 20, August 10, 1850
Unknown
Blending gritty metropolitan detective tales, early sanitary crusades, and sweeping industrial romances, this Victorian periodical opens a sharp window onto the everyday triumphs and squalor of mid-century England.
In the Hands of the Malays, and Other Stories
G. A. (George Alfred) Henty
Adventure calls from distant shores and lonely frontiers, testing the resolve of those who find themselves in the grip of desperate circumstances. These tales follow individuals who must rely on their own grit to survive.
Incident
Thomas J. O'Hara
A lone astronaut aboard a stricken starship hurtles toward an unsuspecting Earth, carrying an incurable plague that threatens to annihilate humanity's first interstellar dream.
Interesting Incidents Connected With the Life of George Bickers: Originally a Farmer's Parish Apprentice at Laxfield, in Suffolk, but Now Residing in Oulton
George Bickers
An aging Suffolk artisan traces his journey from a impoverished parish apprentice to an established shoemaker in Oulton, recording seventy years of quiet faith, local tragedies, and changing seasons.
Julia The Apostate
Josephine Daskam Bacon
The quiet, resolute reclamation of a life cast aside is the heart of this tale. A woman long treated as a background fixture finally chooses her own comfort over the expectations of others.
Loot of the Void
Edwin K. Sloat
Pursued across the solar system by cutthroat smugglers, the grandson of a legendary space-pirate hunts for a fabulous stash of hidden loot on the nightmarish moon of Titan.
Minor tactics of the chalk stream and kindred studies
G. E. M. (George Edward Mackenzie) Skues
The gentle art of chalk-stream angling demands patience, keen observation, and a willingness to challenge rigid orthodoxies for a richer, more rewarding day on the water.
My Dog Tray
Unknown
A loyal canine companion navigates the harsh streets of London to rescue his young mistress from poverty and betrayal. This narrative of devotion proves that true friendship can overcome even the most desperate circumstances.
Nor Dust Corrupt
James V. McConnell
The dream of returning to Earth for burial is a powerful, manufactured myth, but some secrets are buried deeper than the grave. A wealthy tycoon discovers that even the most exclusive final resting places have a price.
Palm Sunday
Callcott, Maria, Lady
A young girl discovers the deep connection between the changing seasons and ancient traditions during a Saturday afternoon walk with her father. This gentle dialogue explores the botanical origins and historical significance of Palm Sunday.
Preliminary Survey of a Paleocene Faunule from the Angels Peak Area, New Mexico
Robert W. (Robert Warren) Wilson
The rugged badlands of New Mexico hold ancient, fragmented secrets, and this survey brings them to light with the methodical patience of a seasoned field geologist uncovering a Paleocene world.
Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. 93, November 19, 1887
Various
A biting, rain-soaked snapshot of late-Victorian political maneuvering, urban anxiety, and satirical wit from the pages of a quintessential weekly magazine.
Punch, Or The London Charivari, Volume 102, March 5, 1892
Various
A biting Victorian mirror reflecting the political follies, social quackery, and theatrical pretensions of early 1892 through sharp satire and parliamentary diary.
Reprint of Two Tracts: 1. An essay on gleets. 2. An enquiry into the nature, cause, and cure of a singular disease of the eyes
Jean Paul Marat
Centuries before achieving international notoriety, a physician practicing in London published precise, highly unconventional therapies for persistent urethral discharges and an unrecognized vision disorder caused by mercurial poisoning.
The Affecting Case of the Unfortunate Thomas Daniels: Who Was Tried at the Sessions Held at the Old Bailey, September, 1761, for the Supposed Murder of His Wife
Thomas Daniels
Condemned to hang for murdering his wife by throwing her from a window, an ordinary London carpenter fought his way back from the shadow of the gallows to reclaim his innocence.
The Believer Not Ashamed of the Gospel
Edward Hoare
Human beings routinely boast of wealth, ancestry, and intellect, yet they hesitate to display the far greater gift of divine grace working within their souls.
The Bible, Douay-Rheims, Book 08: Ruth: The Challoner Revision
Unknown
A grieving widow leaves Moab for Bethlehem with her steadfast daughter-in-law, where quiet loyalty and a generous kinsman restore a lost family line.
The brave little maid of Goldau
Mary Elizabeth Jennings
Beneath a towering Swiss mountain, a devastating landslide shatters an idyllic valley, testing the endurance and loyalty of a young household servant through a terrifying night.
The Faithless Parrot
Charles H. (Charles Henry) Bennett
A vain, traveling bird charms a household pet, only to be exposed as a serial deceiver. This cautionary tale explores the tension between shallow allure and the quiet comfort of devotion.