Best of
Fiction

1920

Charlotte and Emily Brontë: The Complete Novels


Charlotte Brontë - 1920
    Jane Eyre, Shirley, Villette, and The Professor by Charlotte Brontë and Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë are included in this new addition to the Library of Literary Classics.

The Short Stories


F. Scott Fitzgerald - 1920
    Scott Fitzgerald is known for his novels, but in his lifetime, his fame stemmed from his prolific achievement as one of America's most gifted (and best-paid) writers of stories and novellas. In 'The Short Stories of F. Scott Fitzgerald', Matthew J. Bruccoli, the country's premier Fitzgerald scholar and biographer, assembles a sparkling collection that encompasses the full scope of Fitzgerald's short fiction. The forty-three masterpieces range from early stories that capture the fashion of the times to later ones written after the author's fabled crack-up, which are sober reflections on his own youthful excesses. Included are classic novellas, such as "The Rich Boy," "May Day," and "The Diamond as Big as the Ritz," as well as a remarkable body of work he wrote for the Saturday Evening Post and its sister "slicks." These stories can be read as an autobiographical journal of a great writer's career, an experience deepened by the illuminating introductory headnotes that Matthew Bruccoli has written for each story, placing it in its literary and biographical context.Together, these forty-three stories compose a vivid picture of a lost era, but their brilliance is timeless. This essential collection is a monument to the genius of one of the great voices in the history of American literature.

The Mysterious Affair at Styles and The Secret Adversary (Complete Mystery Novel Collection of Agatha Christie Vol. 1)


Agatha Christie - 1920
    "The Mysterious Affair at Styles," which features the introduction of one of Christie's most beloved characters, Hercule Poirot"The Secret Adversary," which features the introduction of Tommy and Tuppence, who were featured in three other Christie works.

The House of Mirth / The Reef / The Custom of the Country / The Age of Innocence


Edith Wharton - 1920
    Born in 1862 into an exclusive New York society against whose rigid codes of behavior she often rebelled, she lived to regret the passing of that stable if old-fashioned community and to appreciate the sense of personal identity its definitions provided. She became a prolific professional writer, author of more than forty published volumes, including novels, short stories (many of them tales of the supernatural), poetry, war reportage, travel writing, and books on gardens and house decoration. An expatriate in France for three decades before her death in 1937, she included among her many distinguished friends men as various as Henry James, Theodore Roosevelt, Kenneth Clark, and André Gide.The four novels in this Library of America volume show Wharton at the height of her powers as a social observer and critic, examining American and European lives with a vision rich in detail, satire, and tragedy. In all of them her strong and autobiographical impulse is disciplined by her writer’s craft and her unfailing regard for her audience.The House of Mirth (1905), Wharton’s tenth book and her first novel of contemporary life, was an immediate runaway bestseller, with 140,000 copies in print within three months of publication. The story of young Lily Bart and her tragic sojourn among the upper class of turn-of-the-century New York, it touches on the insidious effects of social convention and upon the sexual and financial aggression to which women of independent spirit were exposed.The Reef (1912) is the story of two couples whose marriage plans are upset by the revelation of a past affair between George Darrow (a mature bachelor) and Sophy Vener, who happens to be the fiancée of his future wife’s stepson. Henry James called the novel “a triumph of method,” and it shares the rich nuance of his own The Golden Bowl.The Custom of the Country (1913) is the amatory saga of Undine Spragg of Apex City—beautiful, spoiled, and ambitious—whose charms conquer New York and European society. Vulgar and voracious, she presides over a series of men, representing the old and new aristocracies of both continents, in a comedy drawn unmistakably from life.The Age of Innocence (1920) is set in the New York of Wharton’s youth, when the rules and taboos of her social “tribe” held as-yet unchallenged sway. A quasi-anthropological study of a remembered culture and its curious conventions, it tells the story of the Countess Olenska (formerly Ellen Mingott), refugee from a disastrous European marriage, and Newland Archer, heir to a tradition of respectability and family honor, as they struggle uneasily against their sexual attraction.

The Doom That Came to Sarnath and Other Stories


H.P. Lovecraft - 1920
    Wild ravings from an insane man turn to prophecy when the Truth is revealed.Cover illustration: Michael WhelanContents:"Introduction" (Lin Carter) "The Other Gods" (1921) "The Tree" (1920) "The Doom That Came to Sarnath" (1919) "The Tomb" (1917) "Polaris" (1918) "Beyond the Wall of Sleep" (1919) "Memory" (1919) "What the Moon Brings" (1923) "Nyarlathotep" (1920) "Ex Oblivione" (1921) "The Cats of Ulthar" (1920) "Hypnos" (1922) "Nathicana" (1927) "From Beyond" (1920) "The Festival" (1923) "The Nameless City" (1921) "The Quest of Iranon" (1921) "The Crawling Chaos" (1920) "In the Walls of Eryx" (1935) "Imprisoned with the Pharaohs" (1924)

Stories


Katherine Mansfield - 1920
    Lawrence and something of a rival of Virginia Woolf, her stories suggest someone writing in a different era and in a vastly different English. Her language is as transparent as clean glass, yet hovers on the edge of poetry. Her characters are passionate men and women swaddled in English reserve -- and sometimes briefly breaking through. And her genius is to pinpoint those unacknowledged and almost imperceptible moments in which those people's relationships -- with one another and themselves -- change forever. This collection [of 28 stories] includes such masterpieces as "Prelude," "At the Bay" "Bliss," "The Man Without a Temperament" and "The Garden Party" and has a new introduction by Jeffrey Meyers.Introduction / Jeffrey Meyers --Tiredness of Rosabell (written 1908; published 1924) --Baron (1910) --Modern (1911) --Woman at the store (1912) --Ole underwood (1913) --Little governess (1915) --Prelude (1918) --At the bay (1922) --Psychology (1920) --Bliss (1918) --Je ne Parle Pas Francais (1920) --Sun and moon (1920) --This flower (1924) --Man with a temperament (1920) --Revelations (1920) --Young girl (1920) --Stranger (1921) --Daughters of the late Colonel (1921) --Life of Ma parker 91921) --Singing lesson (1921) --Voyage(1921) --Garden-party (1922) --Miss Brill(1920) --Marriage a la mode (1921) --Doll's house (1922) --Doves' nest t(1923) --Six years after (1923) --Fly (1923).

The Man of the Forest


Zane Grey - 1920
    The Man of the Forest isn't about to let a tough guy kill Helen to get his hands on her uncle's ranch.

Cloudy Jewel


Grace Livingston Hill - 1920
    Now, after her invalid mother's death, she is without the financial means to live on her own. But she dreaded accepting her selfish younger sister's offer to come and live with her and take care of her demanding children.Then, just when Julia resigns herself to a bleak future as a servant in her sister's home, something amazing happens! Julia's lively young niece and nephew, her deceased brother's children, turn up on her doorstep with a thrilling proposition. Suddenly Julia is thrown into an exciting adventure--and she discovers more happiness and love than she ever dreamed she could have!

The Wizard of Oz and Other Wonderful Books of Oz: The Emerald City of Oz and Glinda of Oz


L. Frank Baum - 1920
    Penguin's award-winning art director Paul Buckley presents Penguin Threads, a series of Penguin Classics Deluxe Editions inspired by the aesthetic of handmade crafts with specially commissioned cover art. Jillian Tamaki's embroidered artwork appears on The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett, Emma by Jane Austen, and Black Beauty by Anna Sewell. This latest set features three beloved classics for both adults and children with cover art by painter and illustrator Rachell Sumpter. Sketched in a traditional illustrative manner, the final covers are sculpt embossed and present full front and reverse hand-stitched designs. Through story, style and texture, the Penguin Threads is an exciting chapter in Penguin's long history of excellence in book design, for true lovers of the book, design, and handcrafted beauty.This fully annotated volume collects three of Baum's fourteen Oz novels in which he developed his utopian vision and which garnered an immense and loyal following. The Wizard of Oz (1900) introduces Dorothy, who arrives from Kansas and meets the Scarecrow, the Tin Woodman, the Cowardly Lion, and a host of other characters. The Emerald City of Oz (1910) finds Dorothy, Aunt Em, and Uncle Henry coming to Oz just as the wicked Nome King is plotting to conquer its people. In Baum's final novel, Glinda of Oz (1920), Dorothy and Princess Ozma try to prevent a battle between the Skeezers and the Flatheads. Tapping into a deeply rooted desire in himself and his loyal readers to live in a peaceful country which values the sharing of talents and gifts, Baum's imaginative creation, like all great utopian literature, holds out the possibility for change. Also included is a selection of the original illustrations by W. W. Denslow and John R. Neill.For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

The Wreath


Sigrid Undset - 1920
    Undset re-creates the historical backdrop in vivid detail, immersing readers in the day-to-day life, social conventions, and political undercurrents of the period. Her prose combines the sounds and style of Nordic ballads, European courtly poetry, and religious literature.But the story Undset tells is a modern one; it mirrors post-World War I political and religious anxieties, and introduces a heroine who has long captivated contemporary readers. Defying her parents and stubbornly pursuing her own happiness, Kristin emerges as a woman who not only loves with power and passion but intrepidly confronts her sexuality.

Jill the Reckless


P.G. Wodehouse - 1920
    First published in 1920, Jill the Reckless commences in the better circles of London society. Jill Mariner is engaged to Derek Underhill. Both of these young people are well to do and Derek has a title to boot! What better match could be made? Unfortunately matches made in heaven are generally between just two people. This match depended, alas to a certain extent to the will of Lady Underhill, Derek’s mother.

Wandering


Hermann Hesse - 1920
    Now I am about to go to Ticino once again, to live for a while as a hermit in nature and in my work." In 1920, after settling in the Ticino mountain village of Montagnola, he published Wandering, a love letter to this magic-garden world that can be read as a meditation on his attempt to begin a new life. His pure prose, his heartfelt lyricism, and his love for the old earth, for its blessings that renew themselves, all sing in this serene book. The first German edition of Wandering included facsimiles of fourteen watercolor landscapes. Hesse's painting had blossomed in the southern countryside and he even toyed with the idea "that I might still succeed in escaping literature entirely and making a living at the more appealing trade of painter." Unfortunately, his original pictures for Wandering have disappeared; this edition reproduces in black-and-white the full-color reproductions of the 1920 edition.

Exit Betty


Grace Livingston Hill - 1920
    A beautiful young heiress flees into the night, running from her oppressive bridegroom, to a fate that might be even worse than marriage to the wrong man.

Old Granny Fox


Thornton W. Burgess - 1920
    Reddy, of course, is full of reckless ideas, such as getting into Farmer Brown's chicken house in daylight.Using the wisdom she's acquired over the years, Granny overrules many of Reddy's foolhardy suggestions, taking the conceit out of a youngster who thinks he knows more than anyone else. Granny also teaches Reddy quite a bit about patience, common sense, and resourcefulness.A timeless fable by master storyteller Thornton W. Burgess, Old Granny Fox will delight youngsters with an entertaining story while teaching important lessons — in a painless and enjoyable way — about wildlife, the environment, and personal conduct.

Bowser the Hound


Thornton W. Burgess - 1920
    Actually, he'll go without eating just for the pleasure of chasing Reddy and Granny Fox or Old Man Coyote.One day, Bowser gets more than he bargained for when Old Man Coyote decides to lead him on a long chase, just for fun, and make Bowser run and run. In fact, Bowser runs out of the forest and the old pasture until he's so far from home, he feels as if he is in another country. But with the help of Blacky the Crow and other friends, Bowser finally gets even with the old coyote.Young readers and nature lovers of all ages will love this appealing story of exciting animal life in the Green Forest.

The Mysterious Affair at Styles


Agatha Christie - 1920
    A refugee of the Great War, Poirot has settled in England near Styles Court, the country estate of his wealthy benefactor, the elderly Emily Inglethorp. When Emily is poisoned and the authorities are baffled, Poirot puts his prodigious sleuthing skills to work. Suspects are plentiful, including the victim’s much younger husband, her resentful stepsons, her longtime hired companion, a young family friend working as a nurse, and a London specialist on poisons who just happens to be visiting the nearby village. All of them have secrets they are desperate to keep, but none can outwit Poirot as he navigates the ingenious red herrings and plot twists that contribute to Agatha Christie's well-deserved reputation as the queen of mystery.Librarian's note: the first 5 Christie mysteries featuring Poirot are: 1) The Mysterious Affair at Styles, 1920; 2) The Murder on the Links, 1923; 3) The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, 1926; 4) The Big Four, 1927; and 5) The Mystery of the Blue Train, 1928. There are many short stories and a collection featuring Poirot in this period as well. Each novel and short story has its own entry on Goodreads.

George Orwell's 1984: A Guide to Understanding the Classics


Ralph A. Ranald - 1920
    

Flappers and Philosophers


F. Scott Fitzgerald - 1920
    He was the self-styled spokesman of the "Lost Generation" and author of The Great Gatsby (1925). His debut novel, This Side of Paradise (1920) examines the lives and morality of post-World War I youth. Flappers and Philosophers (1920) was his first collection of short stories. His second novel, The Beautiful and Damned (1922), demonstrates an evolution and maturity in his writing, and provides an excellent portrait of America during the Jazz Age, as does Tales of the Jazz Age (1922).

The Eternal Smile: Three Stories


Pär Lagerkvist - 1920
    

The Marquis Of Bolibar (Der Marques De Bolibar)


Leo Perutz - 1920
    The Marquis of Bolibar promises to deliver the town as well as settle his own score, and he sets in train an ingenious series of traps for the enemy.

The Children of Odin: The Book of Northern Myths


Padraic Colum - 1920
    Odin All Father crossed the Rainbow Bridge to walk among men in Midgard. Thor defended Asgard with his mighty hammer. Mischievous Loki was constantly getting into trouble with the other gods, and dragons and giants walked free. This collection of Norse sagas retold by author Padraic Colum gives us a sense of that magical time when the world was filled with powers and wonders we can hardly imagine.

The Offshore Pirate


F. Scott Fitzgerald - 1920
    Round them flowed the smell of the night sea, bringing with it an infinite languor.

The Age of Innocence / The House of Mirth / Ethan Frome


Edith Wharton - 1920
    

The Black Buccaneer


Stephen W. Meader - 1920
    Two young men are kidnapped by pirates in 1718.

Donogoo-Tonka or the Miracles of Science: A Cinematographic Tale


Jules Romains - 1920
    It was first published in book form in 1920, and has never been translated into English. The satirical plot concerns a famous geographer whose academic career is about to be derailed by the revelation that he has invented a city in South America. Through a hilarious sequence of events, a suicidal young man finds a new mission in life by undertaking to found the fictional city, thereby redeeming the error and reputation of the absentminded professor.

The Big-Town Round-Up


William MacLeod Raine - 1920
    Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone!

The Story of a New Zealand River


Jane Mander - 1920
    She is joining her husband there, a reunion that is far from warm, but this remote place is to mark Alice's long and steady growth towards shared love, a new awareness of life and a sense of personal liberation. First published in New York in 1920, this is the first New Zealand novel to confront convincingly many of the twentieth century's major political, religious, moral and social issues - most significantly women's rights. Daring for its time in its exploration of sexual, emotional and intellectual freedom, the New Zealand Herald found the ending 'too early for good public morality'. It is the most celebrated of Jane Mander's six novels, and is believed by many to be the inspiration of Jane Campion's film The Piano.

When Buffalo Ran


George Bird Grinnell - 1920
    He was born in Brooklyn, New York, and graduated from Yale University with a B. A. in 1870 and a Ph. D. in 1880. Originally specializing in zoology, he became a prominent early conservationist and student of Native American life. He has been recognized for his influence on public opinion and legislation which ultimately led to the preservation of the American buffalo. Grinnell's books and publications reflect his lifelong study of the northern American plains and the Plains tribes. He was a historian of the buffalo and their relationship with Plains tribal culture. His best-known works are on the Cheyenne, including The Fighting Cheyennes, published in 1915, and a two-volume work on The Cheyenne Indians (1923). In 1928, he presented the story of Frank Joshua North and Luther North in Two Great Scouts and their Pawnee Battalion. Other works on the Plains culture area focusing on the Pawnee and Blackfeet people include: Pawnee Hero Stories (1889), and The Story of the Indian (1895).

Partners Of The Tide


Joseph Crosby Lincoln - 1920
    Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment for protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature in affordable, high quality, modern editions that are true to the original work.

Rick and Ruddy The Story of a Boy and His Dog


Howard R. Garis - 1920
    You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.

Second through Brain


Melchior Vischer - 1920
    With its boldly idiosyncratic technique, Vischer’s novel is a major document of the Zürich-Prague-Berlin Dada axis. Largely forgotten after World War II, Sekunde durch Hirn is an important rediscovered landmark of the inter-war European avant-garde, here translated into English for the first time.

Six Micmac Stories


Ruth Holmes Whitehead - 1920
    They have their roots firmly planted in the collective life of a people who had made Nova Scotia their home for centuries before the arrival of the Europeans. They offer us a rare and valuable insight into the powerful relationship between the Mi'kmaq and the often surprising world in which they lived.

The Story of Doctor Dolittle


Hugh Lofting - 1920
    He loves them so much that his home and office overflow with animals of every description. When Polynesia the parrot teaches him the language of the animals, Doctor Dolittle becomes a world-famous doctor, traveling even as far away as Africa to help his friends. This edition of the beloved children's classic contains black-and-white illustrations by Michael Hague and has been edited by award-winning authors Patricia and Fredrick McKissack for modern audiences.

Five Novels: The House of Mirth, Ethan Frome, The Custom of the Country, Summer, and The Age of Innocence


Edith Wharton - 1920
    The titles collected in this literary omnibus - IThe House of Mirth/I IEthan Frome/I, IThe Custom of the Country/I, ISummer/I, and IThe Age of Innocence/I - represent the best of her novel-length fiction.pWharton wrote with empathy for her characters, endowing them with a dignity that makes their moral dilemmas worthy of our attention. Each of these novels speaks to the reader with elegance and clarity that was her unique gift.PIEdith Wharton: Five Novels/I is part of Barnes Noble's Library of Essential Writers. Each title in the series presents the finest works - complete and unabridged - from one of the greatest writers in literature in magnificent, elegantly designed hard-back editions. Every volume also includes an original introduction that provides the reader with enlightening information on the writer's life and works.

Penny Plain


O. Douglas - 1920
    until a mysterious stranger asks for her hospitality. Part romance, part family story, and part small town semi-satire.

Rachel, a Play in Three Acts


Angelina Weld Grimké - 1920
    Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. To ensure a quality reading experience, this work has been proofread and republished using a format that seamlessly blends the original graphical elements with text in an easy-to-read typeface.We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

Youth and the Bright Medusa


Willa Cather - 1920
    It was to be worse than jail, even; the tepid waters of Cordelia Street were to close over him finally and forever. The grey monotony stretched before him in hopeless, unrelieved years; Sabbath-school, Young People's Meeting, the yellow-papered room, the damp dish-towels; it all rushed back upon him with sickening vividness. Excerpt fr "Paul's Case," one of eight poetic stories in this memorable collection.

The Boy Apprenticed to an Enchanter


Padraic Colum - 1920
    He was one of the leading figures of the Celtic Revival. At the age of seventeen, he passed an exam for and was awarded a clerkship in the Irish Railway Clearing House. He stayed in this job until 1903. During this period, Colum started to write and met a number of the leading Irish writers of the time. His earliest published poems appeared in The United Irishman. His first book, Wild Earth (1907) collected many of these poems. In 1911 he founded the short-lived literary journal The Irish Review. In 1914, Colum travelled to the USA where he took up children's writing and published a number of collections of stories for children, beginning with The King of Ireland's Son (1916). In 1922 he started writing novels. Amongst his other works are Three Plays (1916), The Boy Who Knew What the Birds Said (1918), The Children of Odin: The Book of Northern Myths (1920) and The Golden Fleece and the Heroes Who Lived Before Achilles (1921).

A Prairie-Schooner Princess


Mary Katherine Maule - 1920
    Excerpt from A Prairie-Schooner PrincessFather, he called, with a note of anxiety in his voice, look back there to the northeast! What is that against the horizon? It looks like a cloud of dust or smoke.In a second prairie schooner, just ahead of the one the boy was driving, a man with a brown, bearded face looked out hastily, then continued to scan the horizon with anxious gaze.

Peggy's Last Term


Ethel Talbot - 1920
    To her surprise not only is the news of her impending expulsion not public knowledge, she is made head of her dormitory and Patrol Leader of the Beeches. She is determined to prove worthy of Miss Dale's trust but with the 'kiddiest' new girl and a jealous old girl, Peggy's resolve is tested to the limits.

Roy Blakeley


Percy Keese Fitzhugh - 1920
    Right away I have trouble with Pee-wee Harris. He's about as easy to keep down as a balloon full of gas. We call him the young dirigible because he's always going up in the air. Even at the start he must stick in his chapter heading about a conclave.

Daisy Ashford: Her Book


Daisy Ashford - 1920
    Daisy Ashford was something of a juvenile prodigy. She dictated and wrote lengthy, detailed stories (using somewhat creative spelling) from the time she was four, and finished her last opus when she was fourteen. The Young Visitors, her first novel was described as a "classic story of life and love in Victorian England as seen through the nursery window" was completed in 1890, when Ashford was about nine. It lay forgotten until 1917, when it was rediscovered and was published in 1919, compete with a preface by J M Barrie (the author of Peter Pan) and became an instant best seller.

They Looked and Loved; or, Won by Faith


Mrs. Alex McVeigh Miller - 1920