Set in the heart of Central America, the adventure novel accounts an enthralling tale marked by zealous adventure, discovery of a lost civilization, and unconditional love. Published in 1895, Heart of the World presents a fusion of suspense, foreshadowing, legend, unforeseen twists, and endearing characters to create a piece highly valuable in the world of fiction. Narrated by an elderly Ignatio on his deathbed, the novel recounts his great escapade alongside Englishman James Strickland as they venture off in search of a lost civilization.
The novel opens with the introduction of Don Ignatio, a lineal descendant of the last Aztec emperor, who has been driven throughout...
An impoverished but loving young couple sacrifices their most precious possessions to buy Christmas gifts for each other. A tramp who is desperate to be sent to prison so he can escape the winter cold. Two depressed laborers get their palms read by a Coney Island mountebank. A yellow dog who relates the story of a fat lady and her hen pecked husband. These and other unforgettable characters form part of absolutely delightful and unforgettable short story collection, The Four Million by O Henry.
As the master of the “twist in the tail/tale” and the completely unexpected endings, O. Henry is unrivaled. His penchant for word-play, creating utterly charming characters, the...
Epictetus (Greek: Επίκτητος; c.55–c.135) was a Greek Stoic philosopher. The name given by his parents, if one was given, is not known – the word epiktetos in Greek simply means “acquired.”
Epictetus spent his youth as a slave in Rome to Epaphroditos, a very wealthy freedman of Nero. Even as a slave, Epictetus used his time productively, studying Stoic Philosophy under Musonius Rufus. He was eventually freed and lived a relatively hard life in ill health in Rome.
So far as is known, Epictetus himself wrote nothing. All that we have of his work was transcribed by his pupil Arrian. The main work is The Discourses, four books of which have been preserved (out of an original...
The story of a plucky, optimistic newsboy, Michael O’Halloran, who has been orphaned from a young age and asks nothing of the world but to “Be Square!” This is a warm and joyous story of how Michael makes life sunnier for those around him, bringing joy to all who know him.
Helena Nyblom (1843-1926) was born in Denmark. But in 1864 she Married University Doctor Carl Rupert Nyblom and moved to Uppsala, Sweden. Her debut as a story- and fairytale writer was in 1897, when she was 54 years old. She was a very productive and popular author around 1900 and in the early 20th Century. Alienation, lack of understanding, appreciation and sympathy, and the conflict between doing ones duty and freedom were often underlying themes of her stories. This collection of Fairy tales under the name “Ja och Nej” (Yes and No) were published in the “Barnbiliotket Saga” (Childrens Story Library) series in 1908 consisting of 8 Stories / Fairytales and are a good example of her wr...