'It was the best of times, it was the the worst of times,' we are told at the outset, but it is mostly brutality on display in this richly-woven and moving tale, set against the bloody and fearsome events of the French Revolution. Two men, one a French aristocrat, one a dissipated English barrister, both love the same woman. Their rivalry takes them through cobblestone alleys thick with filth and violence, into the company of the revolution's most...

For generations, children around the world have come of age with Louisa May Alcott's March girls: hardworking eldest sister Meg, headstrong, impulsive Jo, timid Beth, and precocious Amy. With their father away at war, and their loving mother Marmee working to support the family, the four sisters have to rely on one another for support as they endure the hardships of wartime and poverty. We witness the sisters growing up and figuring out what role...

David Copperfield is a novel in the bildungsroman genre by Charles Dickens, narrated by the eponymous David Copperfield, detailing his adventures in his journey from infancy to maturity. It was first published as a serial in 1849 and 1850 and as a book in 1850. David Copperfield is also an autobiographical novel: "a very complicated weaving of truth and invention", with events following Dickens's own life. Of the books he wrote, it was his favourite....

A mysterious visitor to his parent’s inn precipitates a chain of events that plunges Jim Hawkins into an unforgettable adventure among ruthless pirates seeking a fabulous treasure hidden on a desert island. Initially serialized in a magazine, Treasure Island first appeared as a book in 1883. Narrated primarily by young Jim Hawkins, the book can be seen as a coming of age story or a thriller for younger readers, but it is a swashbuckling delight...

Presents the adventures of a boy and a runaway slave as they travel down the Mississippi River on a raft. Universally acclaimed as one of the greatest creations of American fiction, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is one of those few books that are read over and over again, with ever increasing enjoyment.

When Black Beauty was born, he could not have imagined the life ahead of him. Following his mother's advice to always try his best, he enjoys the adventures of country and city life, makes new friends and suffers from the cruelty and greed of human masters. But Beauty faces each challenge with bravery and kindness. This enchanting story about the life of a horse in Victorian England has captivated and enthralled generations of readers. Step back...

H.G. Wells' late nineteenth-century novel in which an intellectually superior race from Mars invades Earth with plans to take over the planet.

Venture back in time to Victorian London to join literature's greatest detective team, the brilliant Sherlock Holmes and his devoted assistant, Dr. Watson, as they investigate a dozen of their best-known cases. Originally published in 1892, this is the first and best collection of stories about the legendary sleuth. The collection includes one of the author's personal favorites: "A Scandal in Bohemia," in which a king is blackmailed by a former lover...