Book picks similar to
Inspirations: Selections from Classic Literature by Paulo Coelho
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American Indian Stories, Legends, and Other Writings
Zitkála-Šá - 2003
Raised on a Sioux reservation, she was educated at boarding schools that enforced assimilation and was witness to major events in white-Indian relations in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Tapping her troubled personal history, Zitkala-Sa created stories that illuminate the tragedy and complexity of the American Indian experience. In evocative prose laced with political savvy, she forces new thinking about the perceptions, assumptions, and customs of both Sioux and white cultures and raises issues of assimilation, identity, and race relations that remain compelling today.
Far from the Madding Crowd
Clare West - 2008
The tale of a passionate, independent woman and her three suitors, it explores Hardy's trademark themes: thwarted love, the inevitability of fate, and the encroachment of industrial society on rural life.
The Best Poems Ever: A Collection of Poetry's Greatest Voices
Edric S. Mesmer - 2001
Included are poems by:Emily DickinsonEdgar Allan PoeWilliam ShakespeareSylvia PlathWalt WhitmanPablo NerudaLucille CliftonElizabeth Barrett BrowningGwendolyn BrooksWallace Stevens Marianne MoorePercy Bysshe Shelley. . . and many more!
The Present: The Secret to Enjoying Your Work and Life, Now!
Spencer Johnson - 1981
As the young boy becomes a man, he grows disillusioned with his work and his life. So he returns to ask the old man to help him find The Present. The old man responds, “Only you have the power to find The Present for yourself.” Heeding the old man’s advice, the young man embarks on a worldwide search for this magical gift that remains unchanging in a changing world, and holds the secret to personal happiness and lifelong success. It is only after the young man has searched high and low and all but given up his relentless pursuit that he discovers The Present—and all of the promises it offers. Like the young man, you may find that it is the best gift you can ever give to yourself — and to those you care about.
The Bro Code
Matt Kuhn - 2008
Some call it morality. Others call it religion. But Bros in the know call this holy grail the Bro Code.Historically a spoken tradition passed from one generation to the next, the official code of conduct for Bros appears here in its published form for the first time ever. By upholding the tenets of this sacred and legendary document, any dude can learn to achieve Bro-dom.
The Kama Sutra of Vatsyayana
Mallanaga Vātsyāyana
Burton’s translation of The Kama Sutra remains one of the best English interpretations of this early Indian treatise on politics, social customs, love, and intimacy. Its crisp style set a new standard for Sanskrit translation.The Kama Sutra stands uniquely as a work of psychology, sociology, Hindu dogma, and sexology. It has been a celebrated classic of Indian literature for 1,700 years and a window for the West into the culture and mysticism of the East.This Modern Library Paperback Classic reprints the authoritative text of Sir Richard F. Burton’s 1883 translation.
The Collected Stories of Lydia Davis
Lydia Davis - 2009
She has been called “an American virtuoso of the short story form” (Salon) and “one of the quiet giants . . . of American fiction” (Los Angeles Times Book Review). Now, for the first time, Davis’s short stories will be collected in one volume, from the groundbreaking Break It Down (1986) to the 2007 National Book Award nominee Varieties of Disturbance. The Collected Stories of Lydia Davis is an event in American letters.
Metamorphoses
Ovid
Horace Gregory, in this modern translation, turns his poetic gifts toward a deft reconstruction of Ovid's ancient themes, using contemporary idiom to bring today's reader all the ageless drama and psychological truths vividly intact. --From the book jacket
The Steinbeck Centennial Collection: The Grapes of Wrath/Of Mice and Men/East of Eden/The Pearl/Cannery Row/Travels With Charley in Search of America (Boxed)
John Steinbeck - 2002
Born in 1902 in Salinas, California, Steinbeck attended Stanford University before working at a series of mostly blue-collar jobs and embarking on his literary career. Profoundly committed to social progress, he used his writing to raise issues of labor exploitation and the plight of the common man, penning some of the greatest American novels of the twentieth century and winning such prestigious awards as the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award. He received the Nobel Prize in 1962, "for his realistic and imaginative writings, combining as they do sympathetic humour and keen social perception." Today, more than thirty years after his death, he remains one of America's greatest writers and cultural figures. The boxed set, containing deluxe trade paperback editions with french flaps, is being released in honor of the Steinbeck centennial being celebrated throughout 2002. Penguin Putnam Inc, in partnership with the Steinbeck Foundation and the Great Books Foundation is sponsoring numerous events throught the year.
Forever, Erma
Erma Bombeck - 1996
Here is Erma's first column, "Children Cornering the Coin Market," which ran in January 1965, as well as her last one, "Let's Face It," from April 1996. I88 other columns are also collected here, on her favorite subjects, organized by topic.
The Arabian Nights
Henry William Dulcken - 1865
The tales themselves trace their roots back to ancient and medieval Arabic, Persian, Indian, Egyptian and Mesopotamian folklore and literature. In particular, many tales were originally folk stories from the Caliphate era, while others, especially the frame story, are most probably drawn from the Pahlavi Persian work Hazār Afsān. Though the oldest Arabic manuscript dates from the 14th century, scholarship generally dates the collection's genesis to around the 9th century.Some of the best-known stories of The Nights, particularly "Aladdin's Wonderful Lamp", "Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves" and "The Seven Voyages of Sinbad the Sailor", while almost certainly genuine Middle-Eastern folk tales, were not part of The Nights in Arabic versions, but were interpolated into the collection by its early European translators. (From wikipedia)
The Arabian Nights, by Anonymous, is part of the Barnes & Noble Classics series, which offers quality editions at affordable prices to the student and the general reader, including new scholarship, thoughtful design, and pages of carefully crafted extras. Here are some of the remarkable features of Barnes & Noble Classics: New introductions commissioned from today's top writers and scholars Biographies of the authors Chronologies of contemporary historical, biographical, and cultural events Footnotes and endnotes Selective discussions of imitations, parodies, poems, books, plays, paintings, operas, statuary, and films inspired by the work Comments by other famous authors Study questions to challenge the reader's viewpoints and expectations Bibliographies for further reading Indices & Glossaries, when appropriateAll editions are beautifully designed and are printed to superior specifications; some include illustrations of historical interest. Barnes & Noble Classics pulls together a constellation of influences—biographical, historical, and literary—to enrich each reader's understanding of these enduring works.
Once upon a time, the name Baghdad conjured up visions of the most magical, romantic city on earth, where flying carpets carried noble thieves off on wonderful adventures, and vicious viziers and beautiful princesses mingled with wily peasants and powerful genies. This is the world of the Arabian Nights, a magnificent collection of ancient tales from Arabia, India, and Persia. The tales—often stories within stories—are told by the sultana Scheherazade, who relates them as entertainments for her jealous and murderous husband, hoping to keep him amused and herself alive. In addition to the more fantastic tales which have appeared in countless bowdlerized editions for children and have been popularized by an entire genre of Hollywood films, this collection includes far more complex, meaningful, and erotic stories that deal with a wide range of moral, social, and political issues. Though early Islamic critics condemned the tales’ “vulgarity” and worldliness, the West has admired their robust, bawdy humor and endless inventiveness since the first translations appeared in Europe in the eighteenth century. Today these stories stand alongside the fables of Aesop, the fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm, and the folklore of Hans Christian Andersen as some of the Western literary tradition’s most-quoted touchstones.
Muhsin J. Al-Musawi is Professor of Arabic Studies at Columbia University in New York City and University Professor at the American University of Sharjah. He is the editor of the Journal of Arabic Literature and the author of twenty-seven books in Arabic and English. He was the recipient in 2002 of the Owais Award in literary criticism, the most prestigious nongovernmental literary award in the Arab World.
In God We Trust: All Others Pay Cash
Jean Shepherd - 1966
In God We Trust: All Others Pay Cash represents one of the peaks of his achievement, a compound of irony, affection, and perfect detail that speaks across generations.In God We Trust, Shepherd's wildly witty reunion with his Indiana hometown, disproves the adage "You can never go back." Bending the ear of Flick, his childhood-buddy-turned-bartender, Shepherd recalls passionately his genuine Red Ryder BB gun, confesses adolescent failure in the arms of Junie Jo Prewitt, and relives a story of man against fish that not even Hemingway could rival. From pop art to the World's Fair, Shepherd's subjects speak with a universal irony and are deeply and unabashedly grounded in American Midwestern life, together rendering a wonderfully nostalgic impression of a more innocent era when life was good, fun was clean, and station wagons roamed the earth.A comic genius who bridged the gap between James Thurber and David Sedaris, Shepherd may have accomplished for Holden, Indiana, what Mark Twain did for Hannibal, Missouri.
The 100 Best Love Poems of All Time
Leslie Pockell - 2003
Here in this portable treasury are the 100 most moving and memorable love poems of all time, each accompanied by an illuminating introduction. Revisit the Classics: "He Is More Than a Hero" by Sappho Sonnet 18 ("Let Me Not to the Marriage of True Minds") by William Shakespeare "She Walks in Beauty" by Lord Byron Enjoy Old Favorites: "To My Dear and Loving Husband" by Anne Bradstreet "The Owl and the Pussycat" by Edward Lear "When I Was One and Twenty" by A. E. Housman Make Surprising Discoveries: "Your Catfish Friend" by Richard Brautigan "To Alice B. Toklas" by Gertrude Stein "Valentine" by Donald Hall "True Love" by Judith Viorst Carry this book wherever you go. It's a perfect companion to read alone or to share with that special person in your life. The 100 Best Love Poems of all Time.
Hercule Poirot: The Complete Short Stories
Agatha Christie - 1999
There's a bonus, a story not seen for more than 70 years!'My name is Hercule Poirot and I am probably the greatest detective in the world.' The dapper, moustache-twirling little Belgian with the egg-shaped head, curious mannerisms and inordinate respect for his own 'little grey cells' has solved some of the most puzzling fictional crimes of the century. Appearing in Agatha Christie's very first novel in 1920 and her very last in 1975, Hercule Poirot became the most celebrated detective since Sherlock Holmes, appearing in 33 novels, a play, and these 51 short stories. These short stories provide a feast for hardened Agatha Christie addicts as well as those who have grown to love the detective through his many film and television appearances. This edition also includes Poirot in "The Regatta Mystery, "an early version of an Agatha Christie story not published since 1936!Some may dispute whether "all" is the correct word. Several Poirot short stories have earlier, alternate, or expanded versions, and we shouldn't forget the dozen or so not here; they were re-purposed into the 1927 novel "The Big Four." Others appeared under different titles. Most importantly, "Hercule Poirot The Complete Short Stories" will delight newcomers to Christie's famous detective, as well as those who just want to remember how good their read was the first time around.The stories in order are: (1) The Affair at the Victory Ball, (2) The Jewel Robbery at the Grand Metropolitan, (3) The King of Clubs, (4) The Disappearance of Mr. Davenheim, (5) The Plymouth Express, (6) The Adventure of The Western Star, (7) The Tragedy at Marsdon Manor, (8) The Kidnapped Prime Minister, (9) The Million Dollar Bond Robbery, (10) The Adventure of the Cheap Flat, (11) The Mystery of Hunter's Lodge, (12) The Chocolate Box, (13) The Adventure of the Egyptian Tomb, (14) The Veiled Lady, (15) The Adventure of Johnnie Waverly, (16) The Market Basing Mystery, (17) The Adventure of the Italian Nobleman, (18) The Case of the Missing Will, (19) The Incredible Theft, (20) The Adventure of the Clapham Cook, (21) The Lost Mine, (22) The Cornish Mystery, (23) The Double Clue, (24) The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding, (25) The Lemesurier Inheritance, (26) The Under Dog, (27) Double Sin, (28) Wasps' Nest, (29) The Third-Floor Flat, (30) The Mystery of the Spanish Chest, (31) Dead Man's Mirror, (32) How Does Your Garden Grow? (33) Problem at Sea, (34) Triangle at Rhodes, (35) Murder in the Mews, (36) Yellow Iris, (37) The Dream, (38) The Labours of Hercules, the Foreword, (39) The Nemean Lion, (40) The Lernean Hydra, (41) The Arcadian Deer, (42) The Erymanthian Boar, (43) The Augean Stables, (44) The Stymphalean Birds, (45) The Cretan Bull, (46) The Horses of Diomedes, (47) The Girdle of Hyppolita, (48) The Flock of Geryon, (49) The Apples of the Hesperides, (50) The Capture of Cerberus, and (51) Four-and-Twenty Blackbirds.Librarian's note: this entry is for the collection, "Hercule Poirot The Complete Short Stories." Entries for each of the individual stories can be found elsewhere on Goodreads.
Trout Fishing in America / The Pill vs. the Springhill Mine Disaster / In Watermelon Sugar
Richard Brautigan - 1967
Trout Fishing in America is by turns a hilarious, playful, and melancholy novel that wanders from San Francisco through America's rural waterways; In Watermelon Sugar expresses the mood of a new generation, revealing death as a place where people travel the length of their dreams, rejecting violence and hate; and The Pill Versus the Springhill Mine Disaster is a collection of nearly 100 poems, first published in 1968.