Frederica


Georgette Heyer - 1965
    Until a distant connection, ignorant of his selfishness, applies to him for help. When Frederica Merriville brings her three younger siblings to London determined to secure a brilliant marriage for her beautiful sister, Charis, she seeks out their distant cousin the Marquis of Alverstoke. Lovely, competent, and refreshingly straightforward, Frederica makes such a strong impression that to his own amazement, the Marquis agrees to help launch them all into society. Lord Alverstoke can't resist wanting to help her Normally wary of his family, which includes two overbearing sisters and innumerable favor-seekers, Lord Alverstoke does his best to keep his distance but he finally finds himself far from bored.

The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie


Muriel Spark - 1961
    She is passionate in the application of her unorthodox teaching methods and strives to bring out the best in each one of her students. Determined to instill in them independence, passion, and ambition, Miss Brodie advises them, "Safety does not come first. Goodness, Truth, and Beauty come first. Follow me." And they do--but one of them will betray her.

How to Build a Girl


Caitlin Moran - 2014
    Johanna Morrigan, fourteen, has shamed herself so badly on local TV that she decides that there’s no point in being Johanna anymore and reinvents herself as Dolly Wilde—fast-talking, hard-drinking Gothic hero and full-time Lady Sex Adventurer. She will save her poverty-stricken Bohemian family by becoming a writer—like Jo in Little Women, or the Bröntes—but without the dying young bit.By sixteen, she’s smoking cigarettes, getting drunk and working for a music paper. She’s writing pornographic letters to rock-stars, having all the kinds of sex with all kinds of men, and eviscerating bands in reviews of 600 words or less.But what happens when Johanna realizes she’s built Dolly with a fatal flaw? Is a box full of records, a wall full of posters, and a head full of paperbacks, enough to build a girl after all?Imagine The Bell Jar written by Rizzo from Grease. How to Build a Girl is a funny, poignant, and heartbreakingly evocative story of self-discovery and invention, as only Caitlin Moran could tell it.

Atlas Shrugged


Ayn Rand - 1957
    Was he a destroyer or the greatest of liberators?Why did he have to fight his battle, not against his enemies, but against those who needed him most, and his hardest battle against the woman he loved? What is the world’s motor — and the motive power of every man? You will know the answer to these questions when you discover the reason behind the baffling events that play havoc with the lives of the characters in this story. Tremendous in its scope, this novel presents an astounding panorama of human life — from the productive genius who becomes a worthless playboy — to the great steel industrialist who does not know that he is working for his own destruction — to the philosopher who becomes a pirate — to the composer who gives up his career on the night of his triumph — to the woman who runs a transcontinental railroad — to the lowest track worker in her Terminal tunnels. You must be prepared, when you read this novel, to check every premise at the root of your convictions.This is a mystery story, not about the murder — and rebirth — of man’s spirit. It is a philosophical revolution, told in the form of an action thriller of violent events, a ruthlessly brilliant plot structure and an irresistible suspense. Do you say this is impossible? Well, that is the first of your premises to check.

The Poets' Corner: The One-and-Only Poetry Book for the Whole Family


John Lithgow - 1994
    Ever since, John has been an enthusiastic seeker of poetic experience, whether reading, reciting, or listening to great poems. The wide variety of carefully selected poems in this book provides the perfect introduction to appeal to readers new to poetry, and for poetry lovers to experience beloved verses in a fresh, vivid way. William Blake, Emily Dickinson, Edgar Allan Poe, and Dylan Thomas are just a few names among Lithgow's comprehensive list of poetry masters. His essential criterion is that "each poem's light shines more brightly when read aloud." This unique package provides a multimedia poetry experience with a bonus MP3 CD of revelatory poetry readings by John and the familiar voices of such notable performers as Eileen Atkins, Kathy Bates, Glenn Close, Billy Connolly, Jodie Foster, Morgan Freeman, Helen Mirren, Lynn Redgrave, Susan Sarandon, Gary Sinise, and Sam Waterston. Every reader will enjoy reciting or listening to these poems with the entire family, appreciating how each one comes to life through the spoken word in this superlative poetry collection.

The Complete Sherlock Holmes and Tales of Terror and Mystery


Arthur Conan Doyle - 1908
    THE COMPLETE SHERLOCK HOLMESA STUDY IN SCARLETPART IPART 2THE SIGN OF FOURTHE ADVENTURES OF SHERLOCK HOLMESA SCANDAL IN BOHEMIATHE RED-HEADED LEAGUEA CASE OF IDENTITYTHE BOSCOMBE VALLEY MYSTERYTHE FIVE ORANGE PIPSTHE MAN WITH THE TWISTED LIPTHE ADVENTURE OF THE BLUE CARBUNCLETHE ADVENTURE OF THE SPECKLED BANDTHE ADVENTURE OF THE ENGINEER’S THUMBTHE ADVENTURE OF THE NOBLE BACHELORTHE ADVENTURE OF THE BERYL CORONETTHE ADVENTURE OF THE COPPER BEECHESTHE MEMOIRS OF SHERLOCK HOLMESSILVER BLAZETHE YELLOW FACETHE STOCK-BROKER’S CLERKTHE “GLORIA SCOTT”THE MUSGRAVE RITUALTHE REIGATE PUZZLETHE CROOKED MANTHE RESIDENT PATIENTTHE GREEK INTERPRETERTHE NAVAL TREATYTHE FINAL PROBLEMTHE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLESMR. SHERLOCK HOLMESTHE CURSE OF THE BASKERVILLESTHE PROBLEMSIR HENRY BASKERVILLETHREE BROKEN THREADSBASKERVILLE HALLTHE STAPLETONS OF MERRIPIT HOUSEFIRST REPORT OF DR. WATSONSECOND REPORT OF DR. WATSONEXTRACT FROM THE DIARY OF DR. WATSONTHE MAN ON THE TORDEATH ON THE MOORFIXING THE NETSTHE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLESA RETROSPECTIONTHE RETURN OF SHERLOCK HOLMESTHE ADVENTURE OF THE ABBEY GRANGETHE ADVENTURE OF BLACK PETERTHE ADVENTURE OF CHARLES AUGUSTUS MILVERTONTHE ADVENTURE OF THE DANCING MENTHE ADVENTURE OF THE EMPTY HOUSETHE ADVENTURE OF THE GOLDEN PINCE-NEZTHE ADVENTURE OF THE MISSING THREE-QUARTERTHE ADVENTURE OF THE NORWOOD BUILDERTHE ADVENTURE OF THE PRIORY SCHOOLTHE ADVENTURE OF THE SECOND STAINTHE ADVENTURE OF THE SIX NAPOLEONSTHE ADVENTURE OF THE SOLITARY CYCLISTTHE ADVENTURE OF THE THREE STUDENTSTHE VALLEY OF FEARHIS LAST BOWTHE CASE BOOK OF SHERLOCK HOLMES2. TALES OF TERROR AND MYSTERYTHE HORROR OF THE HEIGHTSTHE LEATHER FUNNELTHE NEW CATACOMBTHE CASE OF LADY SANNOXTHE TERROR OF BLUE JOHN GAPTHE BRAZILIAN CATTHE LOST SPECIALTHE BEETLE-HUNTERTHE MAN WITH THE WATCHESTHE JAPANNED BOXTHE BLACK DOCTORTHE JEW’S BREASTPLATEWHY BUY BOOKS FROM THE COMPLETE WORKS COLLECTION FOR NOOK EDITION?1. All COMPLETE WORKS COLLECTION Nook Books are priced as low as possible in order to offer unbelievable value and hours of reading pleasure for Nook readers. All COMPLETE WORKS COLLECTION Nook Books bring together ALL the complete works of a classic literary author, character or series in a single, extremely low priced volume in a single download, thereby freeing up valuable space and visual clutter on your Nook device.2. All COMPLETE WORKS COLLECTION Nook Books contain a FULLY INTERACTIVE table of contents DIRECTLY ACCESSIBLE and Nook Free Lending Technology3. All COMPLETE WORKS COLLECTION Nook Books come with additional material including photo(s) of the author, and/or critical commentary, and/or biographical or historical background information.THE CASEBOOK OF SHERLOCK HOLMES IS PROTECTED BY COPYRIGHT IN THE UNITED STATES AND IS PUBLISHED AS PART OF THIS COLLECTION IN ARRANGEMENT WITH THE CONAN DOYLE ESTATE, LTD.

A Room with a View


E.M. Forster - 1908
    "You love the boy body and soul, plainly, directly, as he loves you, and no other word expresses it ..."Lucy has her rigid, middle-class life mapped out for her, until she visits Florence with her uptight cousin Charlotte, and finds her neatly ordered existence thrown off balance. Her eyes are opened by the unconventional characters she meets at the Pension Bertolini: flamboyant romantic novelist Eleanor Lavish, the Cockney Signora, curious Mr Emerson and, most of all, his passionate son George.Lucy finds herself torn between the intensity of life in Italy and the repressed morals of Edwardian England, personified in her terminally dull fiancé Cecil Vyse. Will she ever learn to follow her own heart?

Girl, Woman, Other


Bernardine Evaristo - 2019
    Mostly women, black and British, they tell the stories of their families, friends and lovers, across the country and through the years.Joyfully polyphonic and vibrantly contemporary, this is a gloriously new kind of history, a novel of our times: celebratory, ever-dynamic and utterly irresistible.

Go Set a Watchman


Harper Lee - 2015
    Maycomb, Alabama. Twenty-six-year-old Jean Louise Finch—"Scout"—returns home from New York City to visit her aging father, Atticus. Set against the backdrop of the civil rights tensions and political turmoil that were transforming the South, Jean Louise's homecoming turns bittersweet when she learns disturbing truths about her close-knit family, the town and the people dearest to her. Memories from her childhood flood back, and her values and assumptions are thrown into doubt. Featuring many of the iconic characters from To Kill a Mockingbird, Go Set a Watchman perfectly captures a young woman, and a world, in a painful yet necessary transition out of the illusions of the past—a journey that can be guided only by one's conscience. Written in the mid-1950s, Go Set a Watchman imparts a fuller, richer understanding and appreciation of Harper Lee. Here is an unforgettable novel of wisdom, humanity, passion, humor and effortless precision—a profoundly affecting work of art that is both wonderfully evocative of another era and relevant to our own times. It not only confirms the enduring brilliance of To Kill a Mockingbird, but also serves as its essential companion, adding depth, context and new meaning to an American classic.

little scratch


Rebecca Watson - 2020
    Must she really drink eight glasses of water a day to stay hydrated? Does the word "rape" apply to what happened to her? Why is the etiquette of the women's bathroom so fraught? Does the colleague who keeps offering to make her tea know something? And why can't she stop scratching?Fiercely moving and slyly profound, little scratch is a fearless and defiantly playful look at how our minds function in-- and survive--the darkest moments.

The Glass Hotel


Emily St. John Mandel - 2020
    On the night she meets Jonathan Alkaitis, a hooded figure scrawls a message on the lobby’s glass wall: Why don’t you swallow broken glass. High above Manhattan, a greater crime is committed: Alkaitis is running an international Ponzi scheme, moving imaginary sums of money through clients’ accounts. When the financial empire collapses, it obliterates countless fortunes and devastates lives. Vincent, who had been posing as Jonathan’s wife, walks away into the night. Years later, a victim of the fraud is hired to investigate a strange occurrence: a woman has seemingly vanished from the deck of a container ship between ports of call. In this captivating story of crisis and survival, Emily St. John Mandel takes readers through often hidden landscapes: campgrounds for the near-homeless, underground electronica clubs, the business of international shipping, service in luxury hotels, and life in a federal prison. Rife with unexpected beauty, The Glass Hotel is a captivating portrait of greed and guilt, love and delusion, ghosts and unintended consequences, and the infinite ways we search for meaning in our lives.

The Diary of a Bookseller


Shaun Bythell - 2017
    It contains 100,000 books, spread over a mile of shelving, with twisting corridors and roaring fires, and all set in a beautiful, rural town by the edge of the sea. A book-lover's paradise? Well, almost ... In these wry and hilarious diaries, Shaun provides an inside look at the trials and tribulations of life in the book trade, from struggles with eccentric customers to wrangles with his own staff, who include the ski-suit-wearing, bin-foraging Nicky. He takes us with him on buying trips to old estates and auction houses, recommends books (both lost classics and new discoveries), introduces us to the thrill of the unexpected find, and evokes the rhythms and charms of small-town life, always with a sharp and sympathetic eye.

The Essex Serpent


Sarah Perry - 2016
    At the same time, the novel explores the boundaries of love and friendship and the allegiances that we have to one another. The depth of feeling that the inhabitants of Aldwinter share are matched by their city counterparts as they strive to find the courage to express and understand their deepest desires, and strongest fears.

Spoon River Anthology


Edgar Lee Masters - 1915
    Unconventional in both style and content, it shattered the myths of small town American life. A collection of epitaphs of residents of a small town, a full understanding of Spoon River requires the reader to piece together narratives from fragments contained in individual poems."

Mere Christianity


C.S. Lewis - 1942
    Lewis's forceful and accessible doctrine of Christian belief. First heard as informal radio broadcasts and then published as three separate books - The Case for Christianity, Christian Behavior, and Beyond Personality - Mere Christianity brings together what Lewis saw as the fundamental truths of the religion. Rejecting the boundaries that divide Christianity's many denominations, C.S. Lewis finds a common ground on which all those who have Christian faith can stand together, proving that "at the centre of each there is something, or a Someone, who against all divergences of belief, all differences of temperament, all memories of mutual persecution, speaks the same voice."