Showing results by narrator "Peter Coates" in All Categories

Three Gothic Novels is a compelling collection that brings together three quintessential works of Gothic literature: Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu's Carmilla, and Bram Stoker's Dracula. Each novel delves into the macabre and the supernatural, exploring themes of fear, horror, and the unknown, while also probing deeper questions about humanity, morality, and the boundaries of science and nature. In Frankenstein, Mary Shelley tells the haunting tale of Victor Frankenstein, a young scientist who defies natural laws to create life, only to be horrified by the monstrous being he brings into existence.

The Christmas Stories and Poetry by George MacDonald is a heartwarming and spiritually enriching collection of holiday tales and poems by the celebrated Scottish author George MacDonald. This anthology includes a selection of his most cherished works, such as "The Gifts of the Child Christ," "A Christmas Carol," "A Christmas Prayer," "Christmas Meditation," and more. George MacDonald's writings are known for their profound spiritual insights and the timeless moral lessons they convey. In this collection, he brings the magic and wonder of Christmas to life through his storytelling and poetry.

Odyssey is a classic poem written by Homer that consists of 12.110 verses. It is unique already in that it has reached our days in its original form. This poem is a genuine revelation of the poetic thought of ancient Hellas. ... After the Trojan War, most of the survived Greek leaders returned by sea to Troy. However, after numerous troubles, only the chosen ones could have stayed alive. One of them - the cunning king Odysseus – was wandering in the sea for almost ten years.

Death in Venice is a short story by German writer Thomas Mann, published in 1912. It tells the story of a noble writer who visits Venice and becomes liberated, inspired, and then increasingly obsessed by the sight of a boy from a family of Polish tourists - Tadzio, nicknamed Tadeusha. Tadzio was founded by the first boy named Vladzio, whom Mann observed during his visit to the city in 1911. In Death in Venice, Thomas Mann captures the essence of a once tranquil life plagued by a battle of morality and desires.

Reform or Revolution by Rosa Luxemburg is a seminal work in political theory that explores the fundamental question of whether social change is best achieved through gradual reforms or revolutionary upheavals. Luxemburg critically examines the limitations of reformist approaches within the capitalist system, arguing that true liberation requires a radical transformation of the existing socio-economic order. Through a nuanced analysis of class struggle, imperialism, and the dynamics of capitalism, Luxemburg presents a compelling argument that challenges prevailing notions of incremental change.

Pickman's Model is a short story by H. P. Lovecraft, written in September 1926 and first published in the October 1927 issue of Weird Tales. It was adapted for television in a 1971 episode of the Night Gallery anthology series, starring Bradford Dillman. The story revolves around a Bostonian painter named Richard Upton Pickman who creates horrifying images. His works are brilliantly executed, but so graphic that they result in the revocation of his membership in the Boston Art Club and he is shunned by his fellow artists.

The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath is a novella by H. P. Lovecraft (1890–1937) published by Arkham House posthumously in 1943 in the collection Beyond the Wall of Sleep. Begun probably in the autumn of 1926, it was completed on January 22, 1927 and was unpublished in his lifetime. It is both the longest of the stories that make up his Dream Cycle and the longest Lovecraft work to feature protagonist Randolph Carter. Along with his 1927 novel The Case of Charles Dexter Ward, it can be considered one of the significant achievements of that period of Lovecraft's writing.

The Power of the Spoken Word" by Florence Scovel Shinn is a transformative guide that explores the profound impact of language and affirmations on our lives. As a pioneering figure in the New Thought movement, Shinn unveils the secrets of harnessing the creative power of spoken words to manifest positive outcomes and spiritual growth.

"The Vindictive Story of the Footsteps that Ran" is a short story from Dorothy Sayers' book, Lord Peter Views the Body. The work tells about the detective Lord Peter Wimsey and his valet Bunter, who investigate a curious murder that occurred during a visit to friend. The story showcases Lord Peter's characteristic wit, charm, and acumen as the group questions the dubious story behind the murder.

"A Country Doctor" is a short story written in 1917 by Franz Kafka. It was first published in the collection of short stories of the same title. In the story, a country doctor makes an emergency visit to a sick patient on a winter night. The doctor faces absurd, surreal predicaments that pull him along and finally doom him. A Country Doctor is perhaps Kafka's most fantastical or surreal work. It takes its cue from Gothic literature – it has echoes of Edgar Allan Poe and Nathaniel Hawthorne – and analysing and identifying the core 'meaning' of the story has proved tricky

The God of His Fathers: Tales of The Klondyke. It was written by Jack London in the 1919 year. As a young man in the summer of 1897, Jack London joined the Klondike gold rush. From that seminal experience emerged these gripping, inimitable wilderness tales, which have endured as some of London's best and most defining work. With remarkable insight and unflinching realism, London describes the punishing adversity that awaited men in the brutal, frozen expanses of the Yukon, and the extreme tactics these adventurers and travelers adopted to survive.

In this short story first published by Ray Bradbury in the 1951 "Illustrated Man" collection, the game of "Invasion" has been sweeping the country. Children all across the nation pretend to have been enlisted by alien invaders, their job to overthrow their parents, and help their newfound friends take over the Earth. To Mrs. Morris, it's harmless fun — but to her daughter Mink, it's far from just a game.

Gusev is an 1890 short story by Anton Chekhov. Several discharged soldiers return home from the Far East by ship. Confined to the hospital cabin, they are all apparently dying of consumption and seemingly indifferent to their condition. Among them are Gusev, a mild, racist, slightly dim man, and the mysterious Pavel Ivanovich, an ardent "protester" who often goes on diatribes (many of which Gusev either misunderstands or ignores) about his lifelong commitment to telling people "the truth to their faces".

A Classic Collection of Philosophical Essays: Spinoza, Immanuel Kant, Schopenhauer, Herbert Spencer, Friedrich Nietzsche, Bertrand Russell and Many Others by Will Durant offers an insightful and comprehensive anthology of essays on some of the most influential philosophers in Western thought. This collection captures the essence of each thinker's contributions to philosophy, making complex ideas accessible and engaging for a broad audience. Spinoza: Durant explores Spinoza's pantheism and his view of a universe governed by natural laws, presenting his ideas on ethics, politics, and the nature of reality.

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The Apology of Socrates was written by Plato. In fact, it's a defensive speech of Socrates that he said in a court noted down by Plato. The main subject of the speech is a problem of the evil. Socrates insists that neither death nor death sentence is evil. We shouldn't be afraid of the death because we don't know anything about it. Socrates proved that the death shouldn't be taken as the evil with the following dilemma: the death is either a peace or a transit from this life to the next. Both can't be called evil. Consequently, the death shouldn't be treated as evil.

The Adventure of the Empty House, one of the 56 Sherlock Holmes short stories written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, is one of 13 stories in the cycle collected as The Return of Sherlock Holmes. Public pressure forced Conan Doyle to bring the sleuth back to life, and explain his apparently miraculous survival of a deadly struggle with Professor Moriarty. This is the first Holmes story set after his supposed death at the Reichenbach Falls, as recounted in "The Final Problem". The Hound of the Baskervilles had seen the return of a pre-Reichenbach Falls Sherlock Holmes, which only served to whet readers' appetites.

Finessing the King/The Gentleman Dressed in Newspaper is a short story written by Agatha Christie which was first published in The Sketch in October 1924. Agatha Christie's Tommy and Tuppence Beresford are Partners in Crime—or rather partners in crime solving—and must demonstrate their deductive skills in a wide range of confounding cases after agreeing to take over Blunt's International Detective Agency. Tommy and Tuppence Beresford are restless for adventure, so when they are asked to take over Blunt's International Detective Agency, they leap at the chance.

P. T. Barnum, the great American showman of the 19th century, wrote this short book about making and keeping money. He certainly had life experiences that qualify him for the subject--he started a small newspaper in his twenties, bought and transformed a museum into a showplace for curiosities, built a circus empire that gave performances in America and Europe, promoted a performing tour of a singer, fell into debt in the 1850s and pulled himself out by lecture tours, was a mayor, and founded a hospital.

The Adventure of the Dancing Men, a Sherlock Holmes story written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, is one of 13 stories in the cycle published as The Return of Sherlock Holmes in 1905.Doyle ranked The Adventure of the Dancing Men third in his list of his twelve favorite Holmes stories. This is one of only two Sherlock Holmes short stories where Holmes' client dies after seeking his help. The other is "The Five Orange Pips", part of The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes.