Free summaries
Humour — page 2
65 public-domain humour books, summarised. Page 2 of 2.
The Pirates of Ersatz
Murray Leinster
An ambitious young electronic engineer uses cleverness, stolen tech, and opportunistic piracy to outwit feudal lords and galactic authorities.
The New Book of Nonsense: Contribution to the Great Central Fair in Aid of the Sanitary Commission
Anonymous
The absurdities of the human condition are captured here in a collection of verse that laughs at the eccentric, the vain, and the foolish. These glimpses of Victorian whimsy serve as a mirror for a society navigating the turbulence of a nation divided by war.
Law and Laughter
George A. (George Alexander) Morton
The courtroom is rarely viewed as a theater of comedy, yet beneath the heavy robes and rigid statutes of the law, human absurdity frequently takes center stage. This collection offers a glimpse into that tradition of professional levity.
Cornish Saints & Sinners
J. Henry Harris
Three friends trade the bustle of London for the rugged charm of the Cornish coast, discovering a land where ancient folklore and local character hold more truth than any library.
Wit, Character, Folklore & Customs of the North Riding of Yorkshire: With a Glossary of over 4,000 Words and Idioms Now in Use
Richard Blakeborough
This collection captures the vanishing spirit of the North Riding, preserving the unique vernacular and social rhythms of a people deeply rooted in their landscape. It serves as a comprehensive bridge to a bygone era of rural Yorkshire life.
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.
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.
Imperfectly Proper
Peter Donovan
A witty Canadian essayist skewers the pretensions of the early 20th century.
Further Foolishness
Stephen Leacock
A collection of satirical sketches that mocks the frantic trends, literary clichés, and social pretensions of the early twentieth century. It offers a sharp-witted mirror to a world obsessed with brevity, celebrity, and performative seriousness.
The Book of Noodles: Stories of Simpletons
W. A. (William Alexander) Clouston
Across centuries and continents, these tales of blunderers and simpletons reveal how human absurdity remains a constant, shared language of laughter.
Nature and Human Nature
Thomas Chandler Haliburton
A sharp-witted Yankee clockmaker sails the coast of Nova Scotia, observing the quirks of his fellow travelers and the stubborn realities of human nature. This observant wanderer navigates both the physical waters and the complex currents of the heart with a blend of dry humor and practical wisdom.
The Slim Princess
George Ade
A young woman’s struggle against the stifling traditions of her homeland takes a turn for the absurd when she discovers that the very trait she is mocked for—her slimness—is the key to her ultimate liberation. A spirited comedy of errors, this tale pits the rigid customs of a fictionalized East against the…
Handy Andy: A Tale of Irish Life. Volume 2
Samuel Lover
Mistaken identities, subterranean hideouts, and furious feuds drive this sprawling comedic tale of nineteenth-century Irish society.
A Satire Anthology
Unknown
A razor-sharp edge cuts through centuries of pretension, exposing the timeless absurdities of human vanity, greed, and cultural folly.
Moonbeams from the Larger Lunacy
Stephen Leacock
A gentle satirical lens transforms everyday human absurdities and the overblown conventions of early twentieth-century life into a quiet, enduring delight.
Saunterings in and about London
Max Schlesinger
An observant foreigner strolls through Victorian London, capturing the relentless pulse of its streets, its political grandiosity, and the quirky habits of its people.
Mr. Punch's Railway Book
Unknown
A chaotic iron track stretches across Victorian Britain, binding highborn snobs, nervous commuters, and pugilistic strangers in shared, noisy, and perpetually delayed compartments.