Modern Classics Literature

LES GRANDS TEXTES DU XIXe SIÈCLE. 16 juin 1816. L'orage gronde. Dans une ville cachée au milieu des arbres, sur les bords riants du lac de Genève, une petite société s'ennuie. Il y a deux poètes, Byron et Shelley, leurs compagnes, Claire et Mary, un médecin, Polidori. On se raconte d'horribles histoires, selon la mode du temps. On décide même d'en écrire. Dans la nuit, la jeune Mary – elle n'a pas encore 19 ans – ne peut dormir : elle rêve d'un hideux fantasme d'homme.

When the Countess Narona meets Agnes Lockwood, the woman jilted by her husband-to-be, she feels a great sense of foreboding. After the marriage, she moves with her husband, Lord Montbarry, to Venice. As much as Agnes tries to forget the episode of her broken engagement, her fate and that of the Countess seem to be inextricably woven. Both are relentlessly drawn to the Palace Hotel in Venice for a final and dramatic encounter, in the room where more than past emotions resurface to haunt them.

When Kino, a poor Indian pearl-diver, finds 'the Pearl of the world' he believes that his life will be magically transformed. He will marry Juana, and their son, Coyotito, will be able to attend school. Obsessed by his dreams, Kino is blind to the greed and even violence the pearl arouses in him and his neighbours. Written with lyrical simplicity, The Pearl sets the values of the civilised world against those of the primitive and finds them tragically inadequate.

Each of the best-selling writers represented in these selections from Legends II returns to the fantasy universe he or she made famous throughout the world. Whether set before or after events already recounted elsewhere, whether featuring beloved characters or compelling new creations, these masterful short novels are both mesmerizing standalones - perfect introductions to the work of their authors - and indispensable additions to the epics on which they are based.

This is a story from the Canterbury Tales II: Modern Verse Translation collection.

A Modern Cinderella is a collection of four short stories by Louisa May Alcott, the author of Little Women. Like her more famous novels, Alcott tells stories of young women interacting with people and events from the late 1800s. Louisa May Alcott bestows a truly amusing and thoroughly modern retelling of The Brothers Grimm's Cinderella. Alcott pokes fun throughout, describing a "cool blonde" as "having many cares those happy little housewives never know."

Mit "Also sprach Zarathustra" hat Nietzsche ein faszinierendes Hauptwerk geschaffen, einen Meilenstein der Weltliteratur. In drei zentralen Formeln fasst er seine Philosophie zusammen: der Wille zur Macht, die ewige Wiederkehr des Gleichen und der Übermensch. "Gott ist tot."

Originally appearing in 1922, The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams captured generations of hearts. But times have changed. In order to connect with a new generation, this beloved tale must change too. Not everything is different though. In this updated edition, we still learn about the magic of love as one little stuffed animal is transformed.

Cerca de la ratonera una gran roca ha surgido de la nada. «¿Cómo ha podido llegar hasta allí?», se pregunta el ratón curioso. Pero las cosas no son lo que parecen y nuestro pequeño amigo podrá conocer al animal que más admira. En esta fábula en verso moderno, los niños revisitarán el clásico relato de El león y el ratón y aprenderán a no subestimar a nadie por su tamaño, pues más vale maña que fuerza.

Victor Frankenstein, un jeune étudiant brillant, crée de toutes pièces un être à l'apparence humaine. Bien vite, il regrette son geste. En effet, la créature prend l'apparence d'un monstre sanguinaire qui ne pense qu'à semer la mort et le malheur sur son passage et qui persécute son créateur. Au travers de l'histoire de Victor Frankenstein et de son monstre, Mary W. Shelley nous pose la question de l'origine de la cruauté humaine. Le monstre de Frankenstein est rejeté par tous. Il aimerait avoir des relations avec les humains mais ceux-ci le fuient. Il devient alors violent et s'en prend aux personnes qu'il rencontre.

It all begins the night a leaflet comes through the door of unsuccessful novelist Herman Orff, promising a magical cure for writer's block. The strange treatment plunges him into a hallucinatory London dream world populated by figures mythical and real: a severed talking head, Vermeer's girl with a pearl earring, his lost love Luise and, beneath it all, the Kraken awaiting. As Herman will discover, creating art is a tough business.

EZ Reads: Alice in Wonderland Adapted by Jen Park Journey down the rabbit hole with "EZ Reads: Alice in Wonderland," a delightful adaptation of Lewis Carroll's timeless classic, rewritten by Jen Park to be accessible for young readers. This charming retelling preserves the whimsy and wonder of the original story while using simplified language and vibrant illustrations to engage and enchant children. Follow Alice as she encounters a host of quirky characters, from the mischievous Cheshire Cat to the eccentric Mad Hatter and the imperious Queen of Hearts. Each page of this beautifully ...

This is a story from the Canterbury Tales I: Modern Verse Translation collection. Chaucer's greatest work, written towards the end of the fourteenth century, paints a brilliant picture of medieval life, society and values. The stories range from the romantic, courtly idealism of "The Knight's Tale" to the joyous bawdy of the Miller's; all are told with a freshness and vigor in this modern verse translation that make them a delight to hear.

This is a story from the Canterbury Tales II: Modern Verse Translation collection.

Together with the Iliad, the Odyssey, The Divine Comedy and Paradise Lost, the Aeneid is one of the true monuments of world literature. Like all these great classics, over the centuries it has become stultified by academic formalism, and its true glory as a narrative of thrilling power and richness has become very much obscured. This new translation seeks to highlight the vigor and immediacy of Virgil's epic while still respecting the grandeur of the original language.

Mit "Also sprach Zarathustra" hat Nietzsche ein faszinierendes Hauptwerk geschaffen, einen Meilenstein der Weltliteratur. In drei zentralen Formeln fasst er seine Philosophie zusammen: der Wille zur Macht, die ewige Wiederkehr des Gleichen und der Übermensch. "Gott ist tot." Es ist eine Ironie des Schicksals, dass dieses Werk von den Nazis missbraucht wurde.

It is 1097, and a traveller arrives in the great, walled city of Antioch with a vision of a beautiful and mysterious geometric design that will change the lives of all those who see it. Pilgermann is a mesmerising recreation of the world of the Crusades, following its unlikely hero and those he meets on a journey of picaresque horror across a Europe of hatreds, visions and a desperate wish for salvation.

David Kelsey has an invincible conviction that life is going to work out just as he has planned it - if he can just fix 'the situation'. His one true love, the brilliant, beautiful Annabelle, has married another man. But that doesn't mean they can't still be friends. And even though she is pregnant with her husband Gerald's baby, that surely doesn't mean she won't one day get back together with David. She still loves him, of that he is certain. David is sure she'll take him back and, under an alias, is setting up a wonderful home for the two of them in a town close by.

This volume pays tribute to the work of 20 poets whose careers were profoundly influenced by the First World War - "the war to end all wars".

1960. The border between East and West Germany has closed. For Elisabeth - a young painter - the GDR is her generation's chance to build a glorious, egalitarian socialist future. For her brother Uli, it is a place of stricture and oppression. Separating them is the ever-wider chasm of the party line; over them loom the twin spectres of opportunity and fear, and the shadow of their defector brother Konrad. In prose as bold as a scarlet paint stroke, Brigitte Reimann battles with the clash of idealism and suppression, familial loyalty and desire.