Modern Classics

“The Tell-Tale Heart” is the Edgar Allan Poe gothic short story that continues to fascinate readers with its murder, beating heart, and insanity. -The language of over 170 years ago has been updated making Poe’s difficult language easily understood by today’s readers. -Every effort has been made to keep the story as close to the original as possible--only word order and difficult vocabulary have been changed. -End notes, interpretation, and discussion of major themes follow the text. -Biographical information on Edgar Allan Poe is included.-Accelerated Reader AR Quiz No. 7946 EN ...

Sun Tzu was a famous Chinese general whose mastery of strategy was so exceptional that he reportedly transformed 180 courtesans into skilled soldiers in a single training session. While that episode was likely exaggerated, historians agree that Sun Tzu defeated the Ch'u, Qi, and Chin states for King Ho-Lu, forging his empire. With methods so powerful they can conquer an adversary's spirit, you can use Master Tzu's strategies to overcome any challenge, from warfare to self-defense to business negotiations.

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.

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.

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

"Frankenstein o El moderno Prometeo, o simplemente Frankenstein, es una obra literaria de la escritora inglesa Mary Shelley. Publicado el 1 de enero de 1818 y enmarcado en la tradición de la novela gótica, el texto aborda temas como la moral científica, la creación y destrucción de vida, y el atrevimiento de la humanidad en su relación con Dios. De ahí el subtítulo de la obra: el protagonista intenta rivalizar en poder con Dios, como una suerte de Prometeo moderno que arrebata el fuego sagrado de la vida a la divinidad.

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

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

Piccadilly Circus tube station is an unlikely location for a pact with the Devil, but this is where Jonathan Fitch first meets Mr Rinyo-Clacton. Devastated after his girlfriend Serafina has left him, Jonathan agrees that this mysterious stranger will pay him a million pounds for a year, if he agrees to die at the end of it. What could possibly go wrong?

Rêveries oniriques lugubres, propos désabusés et pessimistes, bestiaires fantastiques : tout l'univers kafkaïen sur les thèmes de l'aliénation et de la persécution se retrouvent dans ces courts récits, scénarisant l'homme déraciné face au monde moderne ainsi que le combat de l'individu pour la propre responsabilité de ses choix.

Wenn der "beste Vorleser Deutschlands", Dieter Mann, "24 Stunden aus dem Leben einer Frau" von Stefan Zweig liest, ist das ein besonderes Hörerlebnis. Mann spricht die Geschichte der englischen Dame, die eine lebensverändernde Nacht mit einem Spieler verbringt, mit aller Wärme und Zurückhaltung. Er lässt den Ort und die Protagonisten vorm geistigen Auge lebendig werden.

"Fu in una lugubre notte di novembre che vidi la realizzazione delle mie fatiche. Preso da grande angoscia, raccolsi i miei speciali strumenti così da poter infondere una scintilla di vita nella cosa inanimata che giaceva ai miei piedi. Era già l'una di notte; la pioggia picchiettava ossessiva contro i vetri, e la mia candela era quasi consumata, quando, alla debole luce semi-estinta, scorsi l’occhio giallo, fermo, della creatura aprirsi; respirava a fatica e un moto convulso agitava le sue membra. [...]"

Gordon Comstock loathes dull, middle-class respectability and worship of money. He gives up a 'good job' in advertising to work part-time in a bookshop, giving him more time to write. But he slides instead into a self-induced poverty that destroys his creativity and his spirit. Only Rosemary, ever-faithful Rosemary, has the strength to challenge his commitment to his chosen way of life. Through the character of Gordon Comstock, Orwell reveals his own disaffection with the society he once himself renounced.

Each of these delightful interconnected tales is devoted to a family living in a fertile valley on the outskirts of Monterey, California, and the effects that one particular family has on them all. Steinbeck tackles two important literary traditions here: American naturalism, with its focus on the conflict between natural instincts and the demand to conform to society's norms, and the short story cycle. Set in the heart of 'Steinbeck land', the lush Californian valleys.

This audiobook dives deep into the true meaning of Original Sin as presented in the Bible and Christian theology. Explore how concupiscence stems from Adam and Eve’s disobedience, leaving humanity powerless to overcome this inherited flaw without divine intervention. Discover why no human effort alone can restore us to original holiness and how Christ’s sacrifice provides the only path to overcome our fallen nature.

At 31 Laura Valiant is a successful art historian who runs her own art advisory and acquisitions company. She and her husband, Douglas Casson, a Wall Street lawyer, have a happy marriage marred only by the fact that they are still childless. But Laura’s life changes radically in 1997, when her best friend from childhood, Claire Benson, tells her she is dying. Claire, who is divorced, begs Laura to become her daughter Natasha’s guardian upon her death. Laura agrees and brings the 15-year-old girl to live with them in New York City after Claire dies.

Steinbeck's only work of political satire turns the French Revolution on its head, as amateur astronomer Pippin Heristal is drafted in to rule the unruly French. Enchanting comedy ensues as Steinbeck creates the most hilarious royal court ever around the brief, bold reign of the corduroy-clad Pippin, his social-climbing wife, Maria, his star-struck daughter, Clotilde and her Californian beau, Todd.

Featuring 12 short stories where each one takes a well-known fairy tale and propels them into uncharted territories, creating surprising perspectives that challenge the very essence of the original tales.

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.

Em "Um suplício moderno", Monteiro Lobato tece uma crítica à máquina administra de seu tempo, à burocracia, bem como à política em sua totalidade. Nele, conta-se a tragicômica história do estafeta Izé Biriba, que a tudo e a todos "sim senhor!" dizia. Achava que um emprego público seria sua salvação, mas logo descobre que não.