From the author of The Jungle Book comes a magical fantasy story, rich in historical detail and filled with intrigue and excitementUna and Dan, reciting Shakespeare on a summer's evening in rural Sussex, unwittingly summon the elf Puck. They are taken on a fantastic journey through Britain's past, their magical companion plucking from history an array of fascinating characters for them to meet: Parnesius, a Roman centurion who manned Hadrian's wall;...

Much adapted for television and film, Oscar Wilde's The Canterville Ghost tells the story of the Otises, a modern American family, who are looking to buy a house in the English countryside. 'Canterville Chase' possesses all of the trappings of a standard haunted country house - including large suits of armour and Gothic panelled library walls. However, it soon becomes difficult to ignore the spooky signs that 'Sir Simon' is haunting the house - the...

Newton Booth Tarkington (1869—1946) was an American dramatist and Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist. Among only three other novelists to have won the Pulitzer Prize more than once, Tarkington was one of the greatest authors of the 1910s and 1920s who helped usher in Indiana's Golden Age of literature. In his 1914 work "Penrod", Tarkington presents a series of sketches that depict the adventures of an eleven-year-old boy called Penrod Schofield living...

Presents sixteen short fiction stories by nineteenth-century American author O. Henry, including the title work about the Christmas sacrifices of a young married couple.

A representation of the American humorist's works features an eclectic mix of writings, including "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County, " "The Stolen White Elephant, " and the novella The Mysterious Stranger.

The Monster and Other Stories (1899) is a collection of short fiction by American writer Stephen Crane. "The Monster," a novella, was originally published in 1898 in Harper's Magazine and has since been recognized as one of Crane's most important works, a story which critiques the racism prevalent in American society. In 1899, it was published alongside "The Blue Hotel" and "His New Mittens" in The Monster and Other Stories, which was the last work...

This classic short story of a Southern plantation owner facing execution by Union soldiers is "a flawless example of American genius" (Kurt Vonnegut). Alabama planter Peyton Farquhar was loyal to the Confederate cause. Now, as the Union Army overtakes the South, he is brought to the edge of a railroad bridge-hands tied behind his back-sentenced to hang for attempting to burn down the bridge on which he stands. As he ponders the events both large...

"The Complete Fairy Tales" is a collection of whimsical, fantastical, and deeply moral tales by Oscar Wilde, the renowned nineteenth century Irish poet and playwright. Though best known for his plays and the novel "The Picture of Dorian Gray", Wilde was an accomplished and talented author of children's stories and fairy tales. This collection includes many of his most enduring short stories: the sad and beautiful "The Happy Prince", where a lonely...

The Red Room is a short Gothic story written by H. G. Wells in 1894. It was first published in the March 1896 edition of The Idler magazine. An unnamed protagonist chooses to spend the night in an allegedly haunted room, coloured bright red in Lorraine Castle. He intends to disprove the legends surrounding it. Despite vague warnings from the three infirm custodians who reside in the castle, the narrator ascends to "the Red Room" to begin his night's...

Among only three other novelists to have won the Pulitzer Prize more than once, Tarkington was one of the greatest authors of the 1910s and 1920s who helped usher in Indiana's Golden Age of literature. First published in 1916, Tarkington's novel "Penrod and Sam" is the second installment to "The Penrod Series" and concentrates on the relationship between Penrod Schofield and his best friend, Sam Williams. A charming tale of youth reminiscent of Mark...