Editorial Review

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Reviews

A Masterpiece of Wit and Style, A Timeless Work for the Ages
Jane Austen is one of the great masters of the English language, and PRIDE AND PREJUDICE is her great masterpiece, a sharp and witty comedy of manners played out in early 19th Century English society, a world in which men held virtually all the power and women were required to negotiate mine-fields of social status, respectability, wealth, love, and sex in order to marry both to their own liking and to the advantage of their family. And such is particularly the case of the Bennetts, a family of daughters whose father's estate is entailed to a distant relative, for upon Mr. Bennett's death they will loose home, land, income, everything. But are the Bennett daughters up to playing a winning hand in this high-stakes matrimonial game without forfeiting their own personal integrity?

This battle of the sexes is largely seen through the eyes of second daughter Elizabeth, who possesses a razor-sharp wit and rich sense of humor--and who finds herself hindered by her own addlepated mother, her sister Jane's hopeless love for the wealthy Mr. Bingley, and her sister Lydia's penchant for scandal... not to mention the high-born, formidable, and outrageously proud Mr. Darcy, who seems determined to trump her every card. But the game of love proves more surprising than either Elizabeth or Mr. Darcy can imagine, and sometimes a seemingly weak hand proves a winning one when all cards are on the table.

PRIDE AND PREJUDICE is simply one of the funniest novels ever written, peopled with memorable characters brought vividly to life as they both succeed and fail at the game of life according to the manners of their era. It is a novel to which I return again and again, enjoying Austen's brillant talent. I have little respect for people who describe it as dull, slow, out of date, for as long as men and women live and fall in love it will never be out of style, always be meaningful, and always be funny. A masterpiece of wit and style; a timeless novel for the ages.

It doesn't get better than this...
It doesn't get better than Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. Whether you're the hopeless romantic or you just love the classics, you're going to love this book. Though I am only sixteen, I consider myself to be moderately well-read. I love reading, and, when I am between books, my life feels desolate and empty. One day, while in the most barren pit of ennui, I picked up Pride and Prejudice at my mother's recommendation. I do not ordinarily like my mother's taste in reading; her favorite books tend to be very dull, but so deep was my boredom that I succumbed to her suggestion. I wasn't displeased with what I found. I fell in love with the book at the first sentence. I brought my beloved book to the dinner table, to my classes and late into the night. I love everything about it. I love the characters; especially Elizabeth Bennet! I love the Victorian vernavular which works so well for this particular novel. I love the scintillating plot and the suspense created by knowing that Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy should be together but their pride and prejudice (hence the title) are temporarily keeping them apart. The language that the novel is written in might be a little more difficult to read than contemporary literature, but once one gets accustomed to it, it makes the novel even more pleasurable. I cannot imagine Elizabeth or Darcy or Bingley or any of the other characters speaking any less eloquently; it would ruin the whole experience! The flowery language completes the whole effect of reading a Jane Austen novel. If a disgruntled female reader put down Pride and Prejudice, pick it back up! I strongly suggest it because it may prove to be tedious at first but if read again, it would probably read more easily. I can offer no suggestions to the male reader, however, because generally this book, in ever essence, is a female novel. I am not saying that men would definetly not enjoy it; I'm simply saying that I have yet to meet any male who has not addressed this book in a very vehement manner. I simply love this book in its entirety, and I know it won't be too long before I pick it up again. Jane Austen surely knew what she was doing when she wrote this one! Her Pride and Prejudice will always have an honored spot on my bookshelf.

A popular Austen work made better by including lit criticism
Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice is more than a manners work! A classic tale of early 19th c. upper middle class English life, Austen's work is important in the development of the novel mainly because of how she creates and intertwines her characters. Austen's characters cannot be easily removed from the novel without considering the effect on other characters. Her characters grow and change. Although the plot describes Elizabeth Bennet's non-pursuit turned pursuit of Mr. Darcy, the novel addresses the role and status of women and issues of class division. The additional essays of the Norton Critical edition provide a sound critical foundation for study and discussion of the work that are missing from "everyday" editions. P&P is a fine novel from an important English writer. The Norton Critical Edition is the recommended edition.

Perfect for first time Austen Readers/A Must for Austen Fans
I have always loved the style and social politics of the Regency period (the time of Jane Austen.) But when I read "Sense and Sensibility" in 7th grade I found the first few chapters lifeless, dull and hard to read. Two years later I was encouraged by a friend to give "Pride and Prejudice" a try. I did and have since become a complete Janeite. I am now able to peruse joyfully through "Sense and Sensibility" with a new understanding and appreciation of Jane Austen. The reason? "Pride and Prejudice" is fresh, witty and is a great introduction to Jane Austen's writing style without the formality of some of her other novels (unlike S&S and Persuasion Austen does not give us a 10 page history of each family and their fortune.) If you have never read Jane Austen or have read her other novels and found them boring, read Pride and Prejudice. The characters, and the situations Austen presents to them, are hysterical and reveal a lot about Regency society and morality. This book perfectly compliments a great writer like Jane Austen and is essential to every reader's library. The Penguin Edition of the book is stellar and I personally recommend it not only for the in-depth and indispensable footnotes, but also for the cover that is non-suggestive of any of the characters' appearances. In summary "Pride and Prejudice" is a great book for beginner Austen readers and seasoned fans, and Penguin Classics is a great edition for fully enjoying and understanding the book.

Great Story- Cute Book
This is a nice copy of the book. It has a built in ribbon bookmark and nice line drawing illustrations. It is about 3 inches wide and 5 inches long (smaller than a standard book). It is a very pretty version of the book though, and would be great as a gift. Seems like it is well made. It does have thin pages, but it doesn't seem problematic. ... Read more

Editorial Review

This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

Reviews

Brilliant
I have never read the novel "Dracula" but with it being absolutely free for my absolutely wonderful Kindle, I decided to give it a shot. The book is written entirely in correspondence from the characters; letters to each other, diary entries, telegrams, etc. While I did have to use my built-in Kindle dictionary many times with the big (or antiquated) words, the book flowed freely and was a surprisingly easy read. Certain scenes were downright chilling. What's truly amazing is Stoker's creation of such an incredible monster that has stood the test of time.

Full-Featured Critical Edition for Fans and Students.
I'll comment on the features of the Norton Critical Edition of "Dracula", as reviews of the novel can be found elsewhere. The novel, itself, is reproduced from the 1897 British edition that was published by Archbald Constable and Company and is preceded by a short but useful Preface that discusses the contexts in which "Dracula" was written and received over a century ago. The text of the novel is amply footnoted. Not only are terms defined, but allusions are explained, and passages of particular interest are treated with some commentary. The footnotes are worthwhile, but easy to ignore if you prefer. I had reservations about the footnotes in the early chapters of the book. Too many of them referred to points later in the story, acting as minor spoilers. I found this stopped after the action moved to England, so it only applies to a small portion of the book. Following the text of the novel are sections on Contexts, Reviews and Reactions, Dramatic and Film Variations, and Criticism.

"Contexts" includes some 19th century source material on vampires, Bram Stoker's working papers for the novel annotated by Christopher Frayling, and "Dracula's Guest", which was originally to be the novel's opening chapter, before Bram Stoker decided to situate the novel in Transylvania. The working papers are thoroughly uninteresting, and "Dracula's Guest" is not as chilling as the introduction that replaced it. "Reviews and Reactions" includes 5 reviews of the novel written shortly after it was published, in 1897 and in 1899, three of which are favorable.

"Dramatic and Film Variations" contains an essay about "Dracula"'s theatrical adaptations, including a list of major plays, by David J. Skal, who wrote "Hollywood Gothic: The Tangled Web of Dracula from Novel to Stage to Screen" and is one of this edition's editors. An essay by Gregory Waller discusses Tod Browning's 1931 film "Dracula". Editor Nina Auerbach gives "Dracula" a feminist reading in her essay about the later film adaptations of the novel: the Hammer films of the 1950s and 1960s and John Badham's 1979 film. There is also a list of major film adaptations.

"Criticism" includes 7 essays that represent widely varying interpretations of Bram Stoker's novel, including Oedipal, Marxist, sexual, gender reversal, xenophobic, and homoerotic interpretations. These essays vary in quality a great deal. The best, in my view, are Christopher Craft's "Gender and Inversion" and Stephen D. Arata's "Reverse Colonization" essays. But, taken together, all of the essays give insight into "Dracula"s continuing -in fact, ever-growing- popularity. The novel can be interpreted through virtually any doctrine. There is a chronology of events in Bram Stoker's life at the end of the book.

If you plan to purchase a copy of "Dracula", this Norton Critical Edition provides the most material for your buck and the best footnotes that I've seen in any edition currently in print.

For the dead travel fast
"Dracula" was not the first vampire novel, nor was it Bram Stoker's first book. But he managed to craft the ultimate vampire novel, which has spawned countless movies, spinoffs, and books that follow the blueprint of the Transylvanian count. Eerie, horrifying and genuinely mysterious, "Dracula" is undoubtedly the most striking and unique vampire novel yet penned.

Real estate agent Jonathan Harker arrives in Transylvania, to arrange a London house sale to Count Dracula. But as the days go by, Harker witnesses increasingly horrific events, leading him to believe that Dracula is not actually human. His fiancee Mina arrives in Transylvania, and finds that he has been feverish. Meanwhile the count has vanished -- along with countless boxes filled with dirt.

And soon afterwards, strange things happen: a ship piloted by a dead man crashes on the shore, after a mysterious thing killed the crew. A lunatic talks about "Him" coming. And Mina's pal Lucy dies of mysterious blood loss, only to come back as an undead seductress. Dracula has arrived in England -- then the center of the Western world -- and intends to make it his own...

"Dracula" is the grandaddy of Lestat and other elegantly alluring bloodsuckers, but that isn't the sole reason why this novel is a classic. It's also incredibly atmospheric, and very well-written. Not only is it very freaky, in an ornate Victorian style, but it is also full of restrained, quiet horror and creepy eroticism. What's more, it's shaped the portrayal of vampires in movies and books, even to this day.

Despite already knowing what's going on for the first half of the book, it's actually kind of creepy to see these people whose lives are being disrupted by Dracula, but don't know about vampires. It's a bit tempting to yell "It's a vampire, you idiots!" every now and then, but you can't really blame them. Then the second half kicks in, with accented professor Van Helsing taking our heroes on a quest to save Mina from Dracula.

And along the way, while our heroes try to figure stuff out, Stoker spins up all these creepy hints of Dracula's arrival. Though he wrote in the late 19th-century manner, very verbose and a bit stuffy, his skill shines through. The book is crammed with intense, evocative language, with moments like Dracula creeping down a wall, or the dead captain found tied to the wheel. Once read, they stick in your mind throughout the book.

It's also a credit to Stoker that he keeps his characters from seeming like idiots or freaks, which they could have easily seemed like. Instead, he puts little moments of humanity in them, like Van Helsing admitting that his wife is in an asylum. Even the letters and diaries are written in different styles; for example, Seward's is restrained and analytical, while Mina's is exuberant and bright.

Even Dracula himself is an overpowering presence despite his small amount of actual screen time, and not just as a vampire -- Stoker presents him as passionate, intense, malignant, and probably the smartest person in the entire book. If Van Helsing hadn't thwarted him, he probably would have taken over the world -- not the Victorian audience's ideal ending.

This particular edition has been made to look almost exactly like the very first edition, down to the illusively-tattered dust jacket and distinctive title print. It also contains an early, gushing newspaper review -- as well as a couple short chapters from Dacre Stoker's forthcoming sequel, "Dracula the Un-Dead."

The excerpts in question are rather different from Bram's work (third person narrative) and takes place a couple decades later. We're reintroduced to a beloved character who is now a morphine junkie haunted by the past and the Jack the Ripper cases. It also introduces a new vampiric figure from history, which can twist the plot in intriguing directions.

Intelligent, frightening and very well-written, "Dracula" is the well-deserved godfather of all modern vampire books and movies -- and its unique villain still dwarfs the more recent undead.

The Definitive Audio Performance
If, by want or necessity, you need to listen to Bram Stoker's classic tale then this is, without question, the best version to purchase. While there are numerous other offerings of the nefarious Count (and as a Dracula aficionado I have heard many of them) none, in my opinion, come close to Brilliant Audio's production. The use of multiple professional voice actors is the key. While most audio readings are done with one person reading all the parts, male as well as female, Brilliance employed numerous actors and cast them exceptionally well. Sheila Hart's portrayal of Mina is particularly good. This is a performance - not just a verbatim reading. I have enjoyed this audio book more times than I care to mention, and never grow tired of it. I whole-heartedly recommend it to you, good reader.

Dracula
My first book read on my new Kindle... I could not put it down! Beautifully written, most engaging, and a wonderful opportunity to use so many features of the Kindle. Thank you for making this classic story available at no charge.

ONE OF THE BEST EDITIONS OF THE NOVEL
Everything I've read in the Norton Critical Editions is always very good. It of course includes the text of the work, usually complete (Herodotus was an exception). But most useful is a selection of critical opinion over time so that the reader is able to compare his own evaluation with that of others. And it is amazing what a non-professional (like me, in the field of literature) misses and how professional critics can deepen understanding. But read the novel first, and then the critics.

The Pioneer of Vampires
I looved this book... in addition to being a very entertaining story, it lets you know the way people thought and behaved in that era. It helped me expand my vocabulary a little, too.

Bram Stoker's Dracula: A Parable For Our Times
Book Groups of America, put down your Oprah choices, your Eat, Pray, and Love drivel, your watered elephants, and read Bram Stoker's Dracula. I wanted to read some long books before my book-a-day project begins and Dracula was on the list of recommended must-reads. My son's English teacher was right, everyone should read this book.

I finished Dracula last night after midnight. WIth a shiver I went off to bed and I dreamt of mist coming in under doors, bats beating against windows, garlic flowers and golden crucifixes. This novel is a really great read and ten million times better than any movie version ever made. The novel is deep and dense and scarily engaging, with compelling characters, great atmosphere, and a plot that teases thrillingly; Evil approaches, then withdraws, moves forward and is then pushed back again, if only until the sun sets and enabling darkness again descends.

The novel reads like the metaphor used often by its characters: a chess match. The match is between Evil (Count Dracula and his lovely undead) and Good (Mina and Jonathan Harker, Dr. Seward, Professor Van Helsing, Lord Godalming and the brave American, Quincey Morris); the pawns include the lunatic Renfield and the lovely and beloved virgin Lucy Westerna, as well as many other minor characters dragged nefariously into Dracula's plot to infiltrate London.

Clearly the novel is about temptations of the Devil being finally vanquished by the deep and intensely held faith of the righteous in their God: eternal life as offered by Count Dracula is spurned in favor of eternal paradise as offered by God.

But the novel is also an appropriate, and apropos, parable about greed. Count Dracula is not satisfied with living only one life; he wants to live the durations of a hundreds of lives. His greed grows and grows, and he feeds on the blood of the oppressed to further power his driving ambition. Greed begets greed and Evil begets evil. There is no end in sight until the forces of Good combine their faculties of intelligence, observation, and action to overcome the Evil and save the world from greed gone wild. As a political commentary, Dracula is frighteningly astute (and makes a sound argument for a much-needed third party in this country, the intelligent, observant reformer party).

Each character in the novel is well-defined and individually presented, each character grows and changes through the course of the novel; there is no stereotyping or predictability (even in Count Dracula). The heroine, Mina Parker, is viewed by the other characters through the lens of sexism but she is presented by Bram Stoker as intelligent, tenacious, and brave; she is never hysterically brave or mother-protecting-her-young brave, as so many movies and novels portray female bravery, but is wisely and timely brave.

The plot moves forward through letters, journal entries, and stenographic recordings, all from the point of view of the various forces of Good; our unease grows into fear as we catch clues that our braver heroes miss. I stayed up way too late to reassure myself that in the end the clues were caught, interpreted, and used to solve the mystery of where and how to catch the vampire villain. Count Dracula is finally brought down (I don't think I'm ruining it for anyone) through such diverse means as hypnotism, detailed knowledge of train schedules, buying of drinks for information (tipping for tippling), and of course, garlic, the sacred communial wafer, golden crucifixes, and the stake through the heart. There are also plenty of wolves, bats, mists, spiders, superstitious (quite rightly so) Roumanians, and long moon-lit nights.

Read this book. For more great book recommendations, visit readallday.org. ... Read more

Editorial Review

This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

Reviews

Free, but possibly not worth it, December 25, 2009
I can't complain too much about free content, however, the format makes it almost not worth the time trying to decipher the titles and actually get to the poems. The contents contains no links to individual poems so you have to page through the entire volume to get where you want to go. Additionally, none of the poem titles that are listed in the contents are separated by punctuation; they read as one long continuous line of text, which needless to say, is unacceptable. Very poor presentation overall.

2393 pages and no table of contents? Really?!, February 12, 2010
How are you expected to get to what you want without a table of contents?! It is tedious to find the poem or story you want. You can book mark it, but you have no way of naming what you bookmarked so you are left with whatever excerpt of the top of the page you marked. Meaning that if you bookmarked The Raven, the excerpt was whatever poem finished at the top of the page since The Raven starts in the middle.

terrible layout for an e-book, June 20, 2009
Zero formatting for the poetry. The Raven was presented as prose. Spend a dollar and get it done right.

My table of contents works....LOVE THIS BOOK, November 7, 2010
Bought this book at the amazing price of free....well worth it. Was first concerned that I would have to page through the entire book to get what I wanted...however, my table of contents worked on my Kindle (newest generation). I noticed that after I selected the topic (i.e. poems, stories, essays, etc) I have to click the next page button and then a list of clickable titles showed up. Works and reads great on mine. :) Glad I went with this version.

Worth everything I paid for it....zero!, March 17, 2010
OK, so it was free. I usually like things that are free, but in this case, it was a total waste. This electronic edition has no organization and no formatting. Difficult if not impossible to read, certainly not something you would sit down and enjoy.

Nice Book of classics, December 24, 2009
What can I say, the formatting isn't that great and reading it on my gray low contrast kindle isn't the most fun, but this is a wonderful collection of stories.

Poe is a Master of Story-telling, December 16, 2010
This version of Poe's work does not have a table of contents and thus makes it difficult to navigate through, however, it's free and Poe is a great writer so I guess the price is right. I would download it and read it as an introduction to his work if you are not familiar with it.

LOVE Poe, December 23, 2010
This stuff never gets old. Incredible artist. I love that these are classics are available for Kindle free on Amazon. That is primarily why I bought the kindle for my son--to give him a fun new way to get all of the timeless classics. Thanks Amazon

Was ok but could be better, November 1, 2010
Don't get me wrong, Edgar Allan Poe is a fantastic writer. I think this book could have had a better layout. It is still the same wonderful poems but that is the only reason i would give it three stars, for the poetry. It is a good thing it was free...

Great Body of Work, October 24, 2010
I love the imagery Poe conjurs. I love the dark psychological revelations experienced by the characters. Dark, intelligent, and at times underrated. Poe is probably one of the best poets/writers from his time. Died way too soon. His body of work is a must have for anyone interested in classic and intelligent literature. The same things that drew me to the Twilight Zone series, also draws me to Poe's work. They both use their respective mediums to showcase human nature in an abstract way. His writings depicted very real characters and subjects, at times dark but always cleverly written. Some of classic literature from this time seemed a bit dry and unwelcoming, Poe's work in contrast tends to dare you to take the first step into unfamiliar territory, knowing that the journey will both enrich and challenge the reader. For anyone either new to Poe's work or simply looking for something new and challenging to read, I'd recommend this. ... Read more

Editorial Review

This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

Reviews

Great stories
This is a wounderful fairytale book. Well known stories in their orignal contex. I didn't find anything wrong with the formatting.

unabridged brilliance
Because these stories are unabridged, they offer an oppoutunity to explore masterful storytelling at its best. Like many free Kindle books, the formatting leaves something to be desired. Many youngsters today will have difficulty staying with these lengthy tales, but if you caress the stories as you present them they will help lay the same foundations for children today as they have done for many generations. Better for a long car ride then bedtime stories.

it is wonderful
this book is wonderful.at first i thought this book is only about faries like ruby the red fairy summer the holiday fairy......things like that.but no it is not.all the stories has happy ending which i like.i like all kinds of story like this.go get one yourself ... Read more

Editorial Review

This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

Reviews

Great Formatting
I have given up on the free Amazon classics. I have decided that paying a couple dollars is well worth the money for Kindle books. Not that the content is any different but the formatting is unbearable in the free books.

So far this book is quite enjoyable. I will update my review when I have finished reading it.

Classic
Classic King Arthur stories, with all the smiteth-ing and destresseth damsels one might wish.

A bit of a slow read due to the older writing style and inclusion of every name of every knight present at every battle, but the book contained everything from Merlin's predictions to the Quest for the Holy Grail to Arthur being bore off to Avalon, although it lacked the tale of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.

Camelot
The story of Arthur and his court has fascinated me for 40 years, I'll read anything to do with the story, Merlin, dragons, love triangles, you get it all! ... Read more

Editorial Review

This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

Reviews

Mildly old fashioned but concise and to the point guide to english
This seems to be a pretty comprehensive guide to English grammar which is to the point. There are plenty of useful examples and it covers common mistakes as well as how to write and speak clearly.

Best of all it's free. What's not to like?

Practical, Precise and Concise Grammar Book
This little book at under 150 pages is practical and precise.

If you've forgotten your grammar lessons, it begins by explaining the rudimentary parts of speech: noun, verb, pronoun, adjective, adverb.

Then it move on to the sentence. What makes a sentence a sentence and not a clause; and just what is the difference between a clause and a phrase. Do you know!? I do now! Joseph Devlin tells us, "Apart from their grammatical construction there can be no fixed rules for the formation of sentences. The best plan is to follow the best authors and these masters of language will guide you safely along the way."

The essential paragraph allows you to contain all the thoughts on a single idea in one area and then blessedly separate it from the next bit of writing. "A solid page of printed matter is distasteful to the reader, it taxes the eye and tends towards the weariness of monotony..."

There is a chapter devoted to figurative language: simile, metaphor, personification, allegory, synecdoche, metonymy, hyperbole... Really essential components to make writing interesting.

Then Devlin delves into puncutation.

You get the idea, a concise book that covers a truck load of good grammar taught well.

A bit dated but still pretty helpful and useful!
It's been probably over 20 years since I've had anything resembling a lesson on grammar or proper sentence construction, so I looked at this and thought, hey, a free book - why not?

The book shows a bit on the age - proper use of the word "thou," for example (however, I think we should bring it back.) However I did find it useful to read and review to make sure I didn't make the same mistakes for the last 20 years, and thus, feel like an idiot.

The best part is that the book's free, which makes it go from "I'd never buy this" to a "must have," even if it's for quick reference.

Beautiful Hard Cover
Very Slick Looking Book - Perfect Condition and Glossy Looking - Looking forward to reading it :) ... Read more

Editorial Review

This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

Reviews

Beautifully written, exciting, and moving
Sir Henry Rider Haggard wrote many great works - "She," "King Solomon's Mines," and this underappreciated treasure, a beautifully written, exciting, and moving tale of adventure, love, sacrifice and a lost civilization in Africa. My favorite character is the African "Otter" who is both funny and heroic, he seems foolish but actually he is far wiser than his white English employers. I first read and loved "People of the Mist" at the age of 15 when is was reprinted as part of that great Ballantine Adult Fantasy series by Lin Carter (which also introduced a new generation of readers to all time fantasy greats like Dunsany, Lovecraft, Cabell, and Clark Ashton Smith). I've read about ten times in the last quarter century and it is still an excellent, sweeping spectacle. Read it, buy it, reprint it. Haggard was the granddaddy of them all, before Burroughs, Mundy and Lamb, before Robert E. Howard, before Buchan and Wilbur Smith, there was Sir Harry.

An absolute MUST READ
A beautiful masterpiece, truly Haggard at his best. It depicts an English youth, who lost his fortune and his fiancee's hand. Swearing with his brother to win back their home, he ends up in Africa, trying to make a fortune. It is only afterwards that he rescues a maid from a slave-dealer (for payment, of course!) falls in love with her, and ends up in a place no one has ever heard of. Narrow escape, love, intrigue, and more make this book great! It's worth every penny!

Why don't people write like this anymore?
What a great story! Haggard wrote adventure fiction like no one else. His pace is slow but it feels right. He isn't in any hurry. He sometimes spends a paragraph or two with stunning descriptions, painting a picture in the mind. But the unfolding plot is totally gripping, and I don't mind the time it takes to make it through.

Haggard's characters are lovable. It is what makes his stories so effective. If you don't genuinely care about the characters, then you won't care about all the dangers they encounter. Watching Leonard, Juanna, and Otter face death over and over is gripping because you like them.

Haggard's settings are fantastic! He really knew how to create a vivid fantasy world. His descriptions are carefully integrated into the plot too. At one point in the novel, Leonard (a "guest" of the People of the Mist) is led by natives through a dark tunnel to a wide-open space in pitch blackness. Leonard can hear the sound of water rushing as if far below. He can hear the murmuring of crowds of natives as though from afar. Leonard waits the coming dawn when the natives will perform a ritual. How Haggard slowly doles out information as the dawn slowly breaks is amazing. While it is still dark, Leonard probes around with his foot. He discovers that about 2 feet in front of him is a drop-off. Then as the light begins to dawn, he can see that he is suspended far above the ground with snow capped mountains all around. Then as the light increases, he realizes he is standing on the outstretched palm of a huge monstrous idol he had seen from far off. The palm isn't nearly large enough for comfort, and a hundred feet below him is a river and a crowd of natives. He looks up to discover that his love, Juanna, whom the natives think is a goddess, has been placed a hundred feet above him, on the head of the idol. Once this weird stage is set, the action is ready to begin, and its action you'll never forget.

Haggard was also a thoughtful man. He often has poignant insights into the human condition: desire for love, the nobility of sacrificing yourself for a friend, loyalty, and the impossibility of complete happiness in this life, to name a few.

I have read 5 or 6 Haggard novels now, and People of the Mist may be the best yet. If you like adventure, fantasy, romance, with a touch of philosophy and humor thrown in, you'll love Haggard. My question is, why don't people write like this anymore? And another question, Why hasn't anyone done a film of this story? It would beat out "Indiana Jones" any day of the week.

A Lucky Find
This was a lucky find for me. I had never heard of Henry Rider Haggard until I read THE PEOPLE OF THE MIST! It is a beautifully written masterpiece. My favorite character has to be Otter a native of Africa. He is uneducated but has great insight into the problems the group is faced with. The four main characters are so completely developed that you feel like you know them. They confront African slavers and defeat them to rescue and free the slaves from the slave compound. This is the final step that takes the group the the land of The People of The Mist and possibly the treasures of King Solomon's mines!

The descriptions of Africa are beautifully done. The suspense is high and keeps you turning the pages. This is a book worth reading more than once. To think, I may not have bought it not having heard of the book or Henry Rider Haggard, but it was free on Kindle. Thank you, Amazon.

One of my favorite books of all time
This is a brilliantly conceived book. It is amazing that it is still such a fun read after 120 years. The most remarkable thing about the book is that there are several very interesting plot twists that are wonderfully constructed, and completely outside the realm of what I would have guessed would happen.

Enjoy!!

A great book, but hard to find
If you like Tolkien, you will like this book. Haggard was one of Tolkien's favorite authors, and this book is Haggard's best, in my estimation.

Was "Tattoo" of "Fantasy Island" based on the character "Otter?" They both say "baas" in reference to their employer.

Sweeps you away to strange lands, and rivets you there!
This is an incredible adventure, complete with terror, tears and laughs! After a brief introduction into the scenario, the pace and mystery picks-up to a 'can't-put-it-down' pace! After lending my tattered copy to someone years ago, forgetting who, and searching for a copy ever since, I've FINALLY FOUND IT!!! Thanks,AMAZON!!!!!!!!

Wonderfully written
This book, while written in the late 1800's, is beautifully written, and a steal (free for Kindle). Very entertaining despite the ethnocentrism of the era, of which the author cannot escape. Who of us can escape our culture?? Highly recommended. ... Read more

Editorial Review

This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

Reviews

absolutely my favorite.
i read this, and i just fell in love with it. i think this has become my favorite book or whatever it's concidered as of all time! i love how it's set up on this; it makes it very pleasing to read with a simple layout for it. some of his other plays on the kindle are set up in a more confusing way, but this one is jsut right. i cannot wait until we do julius caeser in my english class!

Nota Bene
Nota Bene: Once purchased, my Kindle download page contained this note near the download button: "This title has complex layouts and has been optimized for reading on Kindle DX's larger screen, but can still be viewed on other Kindle devices." This message disappeared after a few minutes.

Regardless, the formatting on my Kindle 2 looks good. I use the smallest font available. There is no Table of Contents and no jogability.

Amazing
By far one of my favorite Shakespeare works. I still can't believe how many free books i can get for my kindle!!

Delightful after 400 years!
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000JMLOJU/ref=cm_cr_rev_prod_img

A piece of magic on the stage or screen--or on the electronic paper!

This is probably Shakespeare's most delightful comedy, and I'm glad I have read it in several editions and seen various versions of the play on large screen, small screen, and stage. I wish schools would teach this instead of trying to get the kids to understand Romeo and Juliet and Julius Caesar. Even if they don't understand this one, they can tell that it's fun and somewhat vulgar, with Bottom running around in an ass's head and the Queen of the Fairies falling in temporary love with him. "Fairy" might not yet have had its most recent meaning, but Bottom in an ass's head suggested exactly the same thing then that it suggests now

While I was getting my doctorate in English, my Shakespeare teacher worshiped Shakespeare instead of enjoying it for what it was worth. She almost went ballistic when somebody pointed out vulgarities and slapstick in the plays, because we too were supposed to worship Shakespeare instead of analyzing him. Sorry, but I was right and she was wrong. Shakespeare was a very bawdy writer, and he enjoyed being bawdy.

DO NOT see the movie Dead Poet's Society without reading or watching this play first.

Delightful
This is a delightful book. A Midsummer Night's Dream is one of Shakespeare's most magical, romantic and comedic plays. It has been written very well and is a funny story. It revolves around 3 different and enjoyable plots all woven together.

A True Piece of Literature
Our fall play this year is a mid summer nights dream.This is a perfect way to practice my lines. ... Read more

Editorial Review

This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

Reviews

Great Story, January 6, 2010
This is a great story that I have read many times. It is one of those books that I fall back on when I need a comforting story to read.
It follows the life of one poor dog as he moves from one master to another, and even ends up as a fighting dog at one point. Its a bit like "Black Beauty" I guess seeing as it follows an animals life, but white fang is more of a story. White Fang is not just some docile horse but a real wild dog that has survived where others haven't. A great read and a great story.

Really good literature on a fascinating time in Western history, May 27, 2010
This is the story of White Fang - 3/4 wolf and 1/4 dog. It tells of White Fangs parentage, his birth, his early days in the wild, his meeting with men and learning to live with them, of his meeting with white men and learning to live with them. Along the way, he learns some terribly hard lessons, and also learns some great joys as well.

I must say, now that I have finally taken the time to read this book, I clearly see why it is considered a classic! The story is very well-written, filled with action and adventure, and presents a strangely compelling world - the world of the Arctic Circle at the beginning of the 20th century. Now, this is no happy-happy book written for the more sensitive reader. Indeed, the story is filled with violence and conflict and death, much as the Yukon was back then.

I really found this book to be compelling reading, one that I could not put down. Indeed, one of the most interesting facts is how much this story is the mirror opposite of The Call of the Wild, in which a dog moves from the company of men to living in the wild. Anyway, if you want to read some really good literature on a fascinating time in Western history, then get this book. You won't be disappointed!

Engaging, February 22, 2010
This is a great, engaging book. The story of a wolf-dog mix who is born in the arctic, learns life as a wild wolf, and then meets humans ("gods")and has to adapt to survive. Told from the wolf's point of view, it is easy to see why this is a classic. It is very believable and you can almost feel the pain that White Fang has in trying to survive and learn the laws of life with humans.

Great read of a different time, October 13, 2009
The book is so well written and with such great language you can almost feel the elements. A very enjoyable read.

Great Story, August 3, 2009
I love the story, and best of all, it's free. A great version to read on my Kindle, although some paragraphs are not indented, which is perfectly okay with me.

Amazing, October 14, 2010
White Fang is a timeless classic that is easy to read over and over and over. I first picked up the book at the age of 11 in 2004 and it's still just as beautiful today as it was back then, even though I understand more of it now that I'm older.

White Fang primarily focuses on survival - What must be done to survive, and if you do survive, what kind of person/wolfdog have you become? At one stage Jack London sums up the Wild as "Eat or be eaten. Kill or be killed." White Fang rises to the challenge, and after a lifetime of hardships has become a relentless killer, unlovable and unloving. However, his circumstances change rapidly, and White Fang must learn how to love or else he will perish. The book also focuses on cruelty, loyalty and the remarkable formation of the sled dog team in the sub-arctic temperature of Yukon Territory, Canada, in the Klondike Gold Rush at the end of the 19th century.

As it is a rather old book (1906 was the original publication, I believe, making this book 104 years old at the time of this review) some of the expressions and terms can be a little hard to understand - One that had me giggling like a little girl was "burning faggots". However, with the handy-dandy dictionary installed on your Kindle, enlightenment is only a few clicks away. The text is dense, so I don't suggest it to readers who have short attention spans or a low tolerance for classical literature. But if you're willing to give it a go you will be very pleased to have read this fantastic novel.

This book is great for wolf, dog or animal lovers, and I'd recommend it to anyone who has an appreciation for wild animals. There is a fair bit of violence in this novel (Ripping of throats and other such charming things), but once a reader overcomes this there is nothing in the way of enjoying the amazing, timeless journey of White Fang.

One of my favorites, December 23, 2010
I love that these are classics are available for Kindle free on Amazon. That is primarily why I bought the kindle for my son--to give him a fun new way to get all of the timeless classics. Thanks Amazon

great book, October 28, 2010
WOW...this is the first book i read on my kindle and the book was quite impressive. i was skeptical at first to read a book from a dog's/wolf's point of view but it was certainly worth it. Perhaps even will be added to my best books read list. at one point i was so emotional i had to fight back tears while reading on the subway. i developed my own relatioship with wite fang and was with him in all his experiences. 5 stars all the way!

Great Book and Formatting, July 18, 2009
A true classic. The book is a great one. The formatting of this kindle edition is great, and very easy to read, even on my iPhone, best of all its free. All around great book to have. ... Read more

Editorial Review

This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

Reviews

Extremely Influential, Extremely Memorable, February 2, 2004
On the surface, THE INVISIBLE MAN concerns a scientist named Griffin who has discovered the means to invisibility--but who has gone mad in the process. When frustrated in his efforts to restore himself to visibility, he determines to embark upon a reign of terror that will make him master of the world. It is worth noting, however, that Wells was very much a social writer and that his novels are inevitably commentaries on various social evils. Once you scratch the surface of THE INVISIBLE MAN you will find that it is very much a parable of class structure that dominated British life during the Victorian age: there are many "invisible men;" this particular one, however, is in a very literal situation.

And it is the literal situation from which the novel draws most of its power. Invisibility sounds attractive--but what if you were to actually become so? How would you cope with the ordinary details of every day life? Griffin does not cope well at all, and although Wells suggests that his madness have arisen from a number of sources, he also implies that it may arise from the fact of invisibility itself, again twisting the context back into the social criticism on which the novel seems based.

First published in 1897, THE INVISIBLE MAN is one of Wells earliest novels, and for all its charms it creaks a bit in terms of plot and structure. Some may disagree, but to my mind the most effective portion of the novel are the chapters in which Griffin relates his adventures to fellow scientist Kemp--but regardless of its flaws remains extremely influential and it has tremendous dash and style throughout. Short enough to be read in a single sitting, it is a quick and entertaining read and it is also quite witty in an underhanded, subversive sort of way. Extremely memorable!

GFT, Amazon Reviewer

Still interesting, November 1, 2009
First, this edition: it's reasonably well-formatted for a free ebook, with few typos, although the table of contents is not clickable; it clocks in at 1,841 "locations."

As to the story itself:

This is H.G. Wells' foundational science-fiction tale of a mad scientist who discovers a way to turn himself invisible. It's a masterfully told story that's been entertaining readers for roughly a hundred years, and I'd lay good odds you'll find it well worth the read.

What many readers might miss, though (I certainly did, my first time through) is that this isn't just a sci-fi potboiler; it's a modernization of the Platonic story of the Ring of Gyges. Beyond being a master storyteller, Wells was also an ardent philosopher and socialist, and like all of his other tales, there's a major political point here -- that morality derives from society -- and some additional minor political themes, like the plight of the urban poor.

Wells' genius here was to take the Platonic story of a Ring of Invisibility that inevitably led its wearer to commit injustice, and revitalize it in a modern context and in a way that made a sophisticated philosophical point.

Where Plato's Glaucon states:

--------
"For all men believe in their hearts that injustice is far more profitable to the individual than justice, and he who argues as I have been supposing, will say that they are right. If you could imagine any one obtaining this power of becoming invisible, and never doing any wrong or touching what was another's, he would be thought by the lookers-on to be a most wretched idiot, although they would praise him to one another's faces, and keep up appearances with one another from a fear that they too might suffer injustice."
--------

Wells extrapolates to the present, not only making the story amenable to modern readers by substituting a scientific process for a magic ring, but also by building on Plato's point: not only does Wells' protagonist commit selfish injustice after selfish injustice, but his self-severance from society drives him into a murderous megalomania, and his end is quite the inverse of Plato's Gyges (who ended up king of Lydia and, supposedly, an ancestor of Croesus).

a lofty standard, November 25, 2000
Roughly a century ago, H.G. Wells and Jules Verne virtually created the Science Fiction novel. In a period of less than 4 years, Wells wrote three seminal classics of the genre: The Time Machine (1895), The Invisible Man (1897) and The War of the Worlds (1898). The Invisible Man, which owes an obvious debt to Frankenstein, is based on one of the eternal themes of mankind and one of the perennial themes of Science Fiction. First, it explores the nature of man by asking whether an invisible man would still be bound by normal morality. Second, it develops the theme of science as a two edged sword; after initially conveying great power, scientific innovation turns on its wielder, driving him mad. One hundred years later, this ambivalence about technology and scientific progress has remained a central part of our culture.

As in all of the best books of the genre he helped to create, Wells combines these speculations with an exciting, fanciful tale. He and Verne truly set their successors a lofty standard to aspire towards.

GRADE: A-

A book that isn't what you would expect..., June 14, 1999
"The Invisible Man" by H.G. Wells is not your standard sci/fi-horror novel. Wells wrote in a different era of time, and so uses a different style than what you might expect. The book begins in the village of Iping, and Wells does a masterful job of presenting each character with thier own style and the impact that Griffin/The invisible man has on them. In fact the entire first third of the book is almost a study in using dialog and mental asides for characterization. Then the novel shifts to Dr. Kemp and his relationship to Griffin - along with a healthy does of Griffin's account of his youth and scientific discoveries. Again Wells does a good job of explaining Griffin's temper and growing dementia. The conclusion of the novel depicts Griffin's final plunge into outright megalomania - spurred on in fact by his own genius and the reaction of others to his invisible condition. The book is a good read, but not without it (minor) flaws. If you are not into characterization, you will probably find the first 1/3 to 1/2 of the novel pretty uninteresting. If you are expecting excessive violence you will be dissappointed (only 2 persons die if I recall properly). In the end, this book is a very good example of the amount of detail a great author can heap into a small book. In our day and age of 'More Is Better' pop-hack authors like Eddings and Jordan, Wells still proves that with writing - size isn't important, it's how you use what you know. Wells squeezes more into 1 page than Jordan 'squeezes' into 100 pages.

vivid, suspenseful, and good sci-fi, December 8, 2005
This is a absolutely wonderful book that can be read quickly, maybe even in one sitting. It is told in the first person by an observer who knows the invisible man and is appalled by the transformation that is taking place as both drugs and power corrupt his acquaintence's mind.

What is so fun about this book is the pace: you really feel like you are there. It is all realistically imagined, down to the slowness of the undigested food that can still be seen in the invisible's man stomach. This makes the book far better sci-fi than the films, with the possible exception of the one with Claude Rains, which is the best one and the closest to the original novel by far.

In addition to Mary SHelley and Jules Verne, Wells helped to set the standard for all hard sci-fi that followed. Thus, if you like sci-fi as literature, this is a MUST read. But if you want a really fun read, this is also good for that.

Warmly recommended.

Brilliant book--questionable edition, October 25, 2006
First off, the book is amazing--taut, tantalizing and fast-moving. The protagonist is . . . fascinatingly horrible. I really don't want to reveal more. It was fun for me because I knew so little about what was going to happen!

Wells does a masterful job of leading the plot through several points of view. Some parts you see happen before you, some you only hear about and some you can only guess at. It leaves the reader wanting more until the very unexpected, very horrifying end.

Now, as for this edition, I found it very meddlesome and cantankerous. The footnotes took particular pleasure in pointing out every mistake Wells made, whether with the timeline or in describing events. It was frustrating to read, as I didn't dare skip the notes because some of them were necessary to get definitions of words we are not familiar with today.

So, yes, read this book. Please. But no, don't get this version. Got it? Good!

Has Lost Its Impact, October 4, 2006
A mysterious stranger cloaked in bandages arrives in a sleepy town only to be discovered as invisible. This magical discovery breeds distrust and fear among the town's residents, while further isolating the invisible man from society and driving him mad with envy and loneliness.

It is easy to imagine the impact this short novel had during the 1890's, but it holds no surprises for the modern reader. The theme and plot developments have been done so many times that all original impact is lost to new readers. The writing is not particularly good and there is not much character development. What you are left with is an appreciation for how this book influenced generations of authors and movie makers.

Although the plot does not hold the readers attention as it must have when it was written, the commentary on the affects of human behavior when shunned and isolated from society is very much relevant today. As an outcast the invisible man's loneliness and fear of society destroys his empathy and he seeks solace in the only thing that makes him feel alive: hatred and revenge. I could not read this transformation without thinking about the recent violence in the schools by displaced teenagers. Could they be today's invisible man?

The impact may be lost, but the commentary and influence are very much felt today. For that at least it deserves a reading.

One of my most beloved books, May 2, 2005
The invisible man tells the story of a man who invents an invisible serum which not only affects his personal life, but also his mental state. The book overall is very discriptive. It containd so much eloquence and scientific backround you may think that the serum is real. The sence of realism and scientific explanation creates a story so pulse pounding you will not put it down. Probably the main strength of the invisible man is the personal life of Griffin, the scientist that invented the serum, he did not have a joyfull childhood, and he did not have a good life overall, though he is a man of great brilliance, so once he became invisible his life went to an all time low. He is in the nude in mid london, he does not have much money, he is very much frustrated. He then becomes a tad violent and mentally unstable at times; and due to that he cause a discord in an inn in the rural london that makes him a n infamous beast, and ofcourse london is at a peak of terror. Well if you were mentaly unstable , invisible, and everyone is afraid of you ofcourse you would go.......... well...........nuts. to find out more read the book.

One of his best.., October 17, 2006
H.G. Wells was a prolific Victorian English author who is best remembered today by four novels written in a three year period early in his career: "The Time Machine" (1895), "The Island of Dr. Moreau" (1896), "The Invisible Man" (1897) and "War of the Worlds" (1898). He was writing "The Invisible Man" at the same time he was working on "War of the Worlds" which came out just a few months later. According to one commentator, a common characteristic of all four novels, and the secret of their success, is their graphic violence contrasted with the innocence of their settings.

Wells was not the first to write of invisibility, other works from the 19th century include Gui de Maupassant's "Le Horla" and American novelist Fitz-James O'Brien "What Was It?". However it was Well's who created the mythological character that is immediately recognizable to anyone who has never even read the book. The invisible man, Griffith, is partly a mad scientist in the tradition of Dr. Frankenstein and Dr. Jekyll dabbling in the mysterious arts, and partly a warning about the dangers and fears of science to an innocent public which was seeing dramatic change brought on by scientific advances.

The first part of the novel is fairly light-hearted with the invisible man seemingly a sad victim of his fate trying to hide his true nature and scorned by society, and even dogs. But then he begins to commit petty crimes, even gleefully taunting those around him - and then he designs to go on a "reign of terror" - similar to Frankenstein who was born innocent, but taught by those around him who saw only the fearsome and loathsome, he lives up to his reputation and becomes the evil which others "see" (or don't). His creation of invisibility is an innocent act, but it is man reaction and use of that invention that leads to evil.

"The Invisible Man" can also be contrasted with the English 'Invasion Literature' genre that was popular at the time ("War of the Worlds" is invasion literature canon). Similar to "Dracula" (1897) which played on the fears of a foreign invasion of the "dark" Eastern Europeans, "The Invisible Man" was a "Stranger" (the title of the first chapter), invading the otherwise peaceful confines of a quiet and normal English village.

O Realist of the Fantastic!, March 12, 2005
"Frankly-it is uncommonly fine...Impressed is the word.O Realist of the Fantastic!whether you like it or not."Joseph Conrad(1857-1924),the great english novelist,born in Poland,penned these words to H.G.Wells in a letter he wrote to the author of THE INVISIBLE MAN(a Grotesque Romance),on December 4,1898,praising the novel.And Conrad was wright.Wells had a fine and original mind,a great imagination,but never forgot the world he lived in.His "Scientific Romances"(as his novels were called then) are full of realistic details mixed with startling futuristic concepts.I'm not a literary critic,so I recommend to all persons interested in H.G.Wells's novels,the following title: THE SCIENCE FICTION OF H.G.WELLS by Frank McConnell (paperback edition,Oxford University Press,1981).In an interesting and scholarly book.McConnell treats the author as a major literary figure,and after presenting the details of Wells's long life(1866-1946)offers a broad overview of his work.The emphasis of this long study is the analysis of the five major Wells's Science Fiction novels:THE TIME MACHINE(an Invention,1895),THE ISLAND OF Dr.MOREAU(1896),THE INVISIBLE MAN(a Grotesque Romance,1897),THE WAR OF THE WORLDS(1898) and THE FIRST MEN IN THE MOON(1901).
I first read THE INVISIBLE MAN in the CLASSICS ILLUSTRATED adaptation(Number #153,November 1959,with a catchy cover by Geoffrey Biggs).Years after,I saw the UNIVERSAL film directed by the great JAMES WHALE(THE INVISIBLE MAN,1933).It's my favorite Whale's movie.And Griffin is Claude Rains.When,finally,I read the book,I could not forget Rains's performance as Dr.Griffin,"The Invisible Man".The copy I own is a beautiful HC/With DJ COLLINS CLEAR-TYPE PRESS edition(1953).The novel is wonderful.Funny,suspenseful and tragic.Wells is acknowledged as one of the "fathers of science fiction".But he was,in reality,a real genius. ... Read more

Editorial Review

This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

Reviews

One of Kipling's better short stories, September 19, 2009
This is a story about two con men in British Imperial India who cook up a scheme to make themselves kings in Afghanistan. One of Kipling's better short stories, it was admired by writers as disparate as J.M. Barrie and H.G. Wells. It suffers a little from having had a zillion imitators in the intervening century or so, and like a lot of Kipling's works, there's an undertone of paternalistic imperialism that modern readers may find grating, but it isn't like he's showing the British in a positive light either -- this is Kipling at his best, and at his best he was too good a writer to let anyone, including the British, off the hook.

Read this if you're trying to figure out whether or not you like Kipling's works that are aimed for adults -- it's very different in tone from, say, The Jungle Book or _Just So Stories_, which were written for children. If you like this, I recommend you grab Plain Tales from the Hills, his first collection of stories set in British India; it should also be available online for free.

If you're interested in the historical background for this story, it was at least partially inspired by a real individual, an American named Josiah Harlan.

A classic tale of British India, April 21, 2009
What a great short story. Greed, guts and struggles for glory. If you haven't read this story but have only seen the movie, you are missing out. True, you can't see Sean Connery but you easily get the flavor of the period. And it is free! This is a great short story to read on your Kindle Iphone app.

Nota Bene, July 7, 2009
Nota Bene: Once purchased, my Kindle download page contained this note near the download button: "This title has complex layouts and has been optimized for reading on Kindle DX's larger screen, but can still be viewed on other Kindle devices." This message disappeared after a few minutes.

Regardless, the formatting on my Kindle 2 looks a tad better than usual. I use the smallest font available. There is no Table of Contents and no jogability.

This book was required reading in my college lit course. I've always enjoyed books about far away places. It should have been required reading in some people's poli-sci grad courses but let's not go there.

A Kipling Surprise, March 3, 2010
This was my first prose by Kipling, and it was a pleasant surprise. His descriptions of the people and the country were excellent. The developing story and surprising conclusion made for a page turner. The Kindle version is satisfactory.

Can't beat the price or the story..., April 22, 2010
I love a great story and this is one of my favorites. It conveys the circumstances of an underappreciated newspaper man in the British Colonial era at a minor outpost in what is probably a reasonably accurate way (politically correct by current standards or not).

The characters the writer encounters were likely somewhat common after finishing military duty in a far-off land and being at somewhat loose ends once mustered out. Going a bit "native" was probably not uncommon for those stationed throughout the reaches of the British Empire at its height (and decline). Ideas by those staying behind which appear hare-brained were possibly fairly familiar given the tenuous situation some of the ex-pats may have found themselves in. Heck, it might have even worked if they'd stuck to the original plan! It gives you a lot to think about as far as power vs. ego is concerned.

Read the story first if you haven't already seen the movie. You'll appreciate the writing's compactness and choice of style and flow that way. However, my feeling is that although this is an excellent read and definitely a classic, many readers may find watching the movie (which is absolutely in my top ten favorites of all time) helpful in understanding some of the more subtle aspects of the story. For example, the fairly obscure references to the Masons' rituals (perhaps by necessity at the time of writing) - which are in effect the central underlying theme in regard to the various characters' undertakings - are made much clearer in the film.

Enjoy!

Recommended, February 17, 2010
A bit tough going for few couple of pages. Then I realized this is meant to be read in a "flowing" manner. I was amazed and how much was "packed" into a short story contaning human desires and how they often get the best of us when we give way to our egos. This is shown on a much smaller scale in small villages, but could easily be related to existing governments and their leaders and how and why they got there - and perhaps maybe they fail? All this, but still kept very intimate and personal to the characters in a humerous and entertaining way. And, hey, IT'S FREE!!!

A quick amusing read, June 23, 2009
It is a very short story (I read it in a couple of hours) and amusing enough for the price (free).

The Short Story that would be better left unread..., March 12, 2010
Classic short story with a politics/greed/imperialism theme. I just read it based on another review that said to read it if you had seen the movie. I happen to like light, entertaining reads and thoroughly dislike politics. So this short story of two greedy, stupid Englishmen who think that they can just show up somewhere with some guns and become their own self-proclaimed kings was a frustrating waste of time for me. And remembering the ending ahead of time didn't help. (Don't give up on Kipling based on this book - I just LOVE his Captains Courageous, an upbuilding coming-of-age story about a rich kid who was washed overboard and picked up by a fishing schooner and made to work.) This free Kindle edition (check to make sure the "bought here at Amazon" button is lit) was very readable, no glaring editing errors and only the usual margin issues. ... Read more

Editorial Review

This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

Reviews

Atomic Theory, the book it all started from., February 23, 1999
In this book, Wells describes nuclear warfare and begins the descriptions of a possible future. He named uranium, "Carolinum" and talked about a chain reaction that would leave radiation behind so that nothing would survive afterwards, even if they did escape from the weapon itself. Dr. Szilard, the man who came up with the idea of splitting the atom with a nuetron, did so after reading, "The World Set Free". I say, NO KIDDING! Wells lays the idea right out in front of the world's face, laughing! It then goes on to describe future events that have occured, though in different times, and some which have yet to occur. He spoke of Carolinum (uranium), the atomic theory and its increadible source of power. He spoke of robotics and computers replacing people in the work place. This is where it all started folks. AND THIS IS JUST IN THE FIRST 100 PAGES! Trust me... it gets better :) If you wish yo know more on the theory and the bombs' construction, I refer you to Richard Rhodes. If you want to know the mind and the story that began this whole deal, read this book!!!!

A Man Ahead of His Time, August 1, 1999
H. G. Wells is not usually given enough credit for this particular book (in my opinion, his best). The focus is usually upon one of his other works such as The Time Machine. The World set Free is truly staggering in its scope, scale, and vision of the future. It is interesting to note how much Wells got correct about the future, and to see how much he did not. The fact that this book was written before World War I indicates his genius at seeing what might be possible and how this might come about. I cannot recommend this book more highly than by saying AN EXCELLENT, FASCINATING, GRIPPING PAGE-TURNER. A quick point about the original year of publication - if my memory is correct, it was originally published in 1910, rather than 1914.

Not one of Wells' greatest, first use of words "atomic bomb", September 27, 1997
Ths work written in 1914 is not one of Wells' great works, but is of interest because it is reputedly the first use of the words "atomic bomb", and recognises the dangers of warfare with a weapon of enormous destructive power delivered from the air. It is remarkably prescient in the light of the date of writing.

THE WORLD SET FREE by H. G. Wells, October 25, 2010
The World Set Free (recently reissued as The Last War) is a 1914 science fiction novel by H. G. Wells. When atomic bombs are developed and the world is threatened with universal devastation, its leaders are forced to rethink war, government, and society.

The World Set Free is remarkably prophetic, as Wells forecasts both nuclear war and the capacity for mutually-assured destruction. And while Wells misses the mark on the way atomic bombs work (his atomic bombs have the same explosive power as conventional bombs, but they just keep on burning), he certainly doesn't underestimate their destructive power.

This book feels like a novel only in the sense that it relates a series of fictional events. What few individuals appear here are scarcely characters in the literary sense - other than Egbert, none are developed in the slightest. This simply wasn't what Wells is trying to do - Wells is interested in the technology and its ramifications, and because that's what he focuses on, The World Set Free reads like a fictional history book, or perhaps like an outline for a longer novel. This keeps it from ever getting too interesting, and while it's a short book, it can be hard to get through.

In short, The World Set Free is an impressively-imagined but not very well-written piece of prophetic science fiction.

nice book, December 27, 2009
I like the book very much. I must say it is Wells at its best, even though this one is not as famous, it certainly should be. A really very interesting book, i can only recommend it and will even read it again.

very interesting book!, December 27, 2009
I will give you a bit more details about the book, since there is not much in the product description:

The World Set Free is a novel published in 1914 by H. G. Wells. The book is considered to foretell nuclear weapons.
A constant theme of Wells's work, such as his 1901 nonfiction book Anticipations, was the effect of energy and technological advance as a determinant of human progress. The novel begins: "The history of mankind is the history of the attainment of external power. Man is the tool-using, fire-making animal."

Scientists of the time were well aware that the slow natural radioactive decay of elements like radium continues for thousands of years, and that while the rate of energy release is negligible, the total amount released is huge. Wells used this as the basis for his story.

The problem which was already being mooted by such scientific men as Ramsay, Rutherford, and Soddy, in the very beginning of the twentieth century, the problem of inducing radio-activity in the heavier elements and so tapping the internal energy of atoms, was solved by a wonderful combination of induction, intuition, and luck by Holsten so soon as the year 1933.

The physicist Le� Szil�rd read the book during 1932, conceived the idea of nuclear chain reaction during 1933, and filed for patents for it during 1934. Soddy's book Wealth, Virtual Wealth and Debt praises The World Set Free.

great version!, September 19, 2009
I love this book, it is easy to read in the typical Wells style with some humor and irony to the whole subject. Very intersting and exciting book! ... Read more

Editorial Review

This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

Reviews

VERY TOUCHING, VERY WELL DONE, April 10, 2004
"It is seven thirty on an August evening. The windows in the living room of the gray house are wide open patiently exchanging the tainted inner atmosphere of liquor and smoke for the fresh drowsiness of the late hot dusk. There are dying flower scents upon the air, so thin, so fragile, as to hint already of a summer laid away in time."

This is the story of a young couple Anthony and Gloria Patch living out their days to the hilt in New York City as they await the death of Anthony's grandfather, Adam Patch from whom they expect to inherit his massive fortune.

Gloria is a spoilt child from Kansas City turned into a sophisticated and most beautiful woman. Gloria does not intend to lift a finger to do any domestic work in the home, no matter how slight; while Anthony who considers himself an aesthete, finds it quite hard to get his act together and instead of buckling down to some work, prefers instead to hang with his wife and their friends on nightly binges. They drink and eat in the classiest restaurants and hotels, rent the most expensive apartments, travel out to the West in the spring time driving plush cars, wearing top-of-the-line clothing and just generally living it up high on the hog, as they wait.

Meet Maury Noble who is Anthony best friend who spends his time between New York and Philadelphia; Richard Caramel who has just completed writing a book and looking for new ideas for a second one. Joseph Bloeckman from Munich who started out small in America and is now a big shot in Show Biz. Also the quiet Jewess Rachael Barnes and Muriel Kane who is young, flirtatious and sometimes a bit too talkative and Tana the Japanese housekeeper of the Patches.

We are shown the Patches at their very best as the novel starts, with the world at their feet and loaded with cash with which they make very expensive choices. But, as we get further in, we see things begin to change gradually and we realize that those very choices will be their very downfall. It was quite a good read but it could be very heartbreaking at times as we put ourselves into the shoes of the main characters. All lovers of F. Scott Fitzgerald should read this book if you haven't done so already, and those of you who like reading about the ultra rich in the Roaring Twenties this one is for you. It is the kind of book that you feel you will want to read again. It is that good and I shall miss it.
Reviewed by Heather Marshall Negahdar (SUGAR-CANE 10/04/04)

Moral depravity personified, February 22, 2003
The genius of F.Scott Fitzgerald shines brilliantly in this vastly underappreciated classic novel of moral depravity. The pervasive themes of Fitzgerald include moral corruption, profligate behavior, agnosticism, selfishness, narcissism, egocentrism, and of course, a sick obsession with money and alcohol. These themes permeate all too well throughout the beautifully written The Beautiful and Damned(pardon the pun).

Released in 1922, 2 years subsequent to the seminal This Side of Paradise and 3 years prior to the magnum opus The Great Gatsby, incomprehensibly, The Beautiful and Damned was not well received critically nor financially. As a result, history has erroneously filed it under the dubious sophomore jinx category. Strange it may seem, I vehemently disagree. As you read this book, you witness first-hand the maturation of an amazing writer. No American writer of the 20th Century can compare to the profound power and unwavering genius that is F.Scott Fitzgerald. If you enjoyed The Great Gatsby, you will no doubt enjoy this work - an equally beautifully writen and tragic tale of aspiring morally depraved young Americans in pursuit of The American Dream.

"Remarkable that a person can comprehend so little and yet live in such a complex civilization."

When life takes a turn, October 12, 1998
Fittingly, this was the last of Fitzgerald's novels that I read. And I apparently saved the best for last. In this enrapturing portrayl of young lovers who are attracted by their differences in the beggining yet destroyed by their similarities in the end (the need of wealth). I find this perhaps one of Fitzgerald's finest literary achievements. He has it all working for him in this novel, his character development is excellent, I feel as though I could recognize Anthony or Gloria on the street if they were to saunter my way. Fitzgerald truly breaks his own mold on this terrific literary achievement. He not only tells a wonderful story of two young lovers but he also parallels it with a very strong supporting cast of characters to Anthony and Gloria. Much can be understood of the lead characters by reading into the supporting characters, focus on Anthhony's grandfather for example. The rosy picture which is so commonly printed by the media of the rich has never been so wonderfully redone with vibrant color as Fitzgerald waves his "paint brush" through all the old misconceptions of the rich and into something truly brilliant: Real life. Fitzgerald was indeed touched with brilliance, and never has it ever been more evident than in his wonderful novel :The Beautiful and Damned." An absolute must read.

My Thoughts of the Beautiful and the Damned, October 10, 2003
My thoughts of: The Beautiful and the Damned

The Beautiful and the Damned, by F.Scott Fitzgerald, is an exciting novel that brings friendship. Love, and confusion of young life all together. "here eyes were gleaming ripples in the white lake of her face; the shadows of her hair bordered the brow with a persuasive unintimate dusk." The author clearly tries to describe the joy and sorrow of finding a new love throughout this novel. Fitzgerald shows the ups, downs, confusions, and oddness of how love begins, lingers, and in some cases, ends.
Anthony Patch begins as a young, well educated, and wealthy man. He acts like a regular young man, engaging in drinking, associating with peers, and finding love. He stumbles upon love through a friend, Richard Caramel, an interesting author. Richard's cousin, Gloria, is an attractive young lady who sparks a flame in Anthony's eyes almost instantly. They create what may be love but gradually realize that alcohol and greed soon replaces it all.
The setting of this novel seems perfectly fit for the story. It switches from one impressive city to the next, Boston and New York City. A big city naturally puts these characters into play. The activities they persue, and every young person dreams of, fall snuggly into Boston Massachusetts and New York City. Dancing, dining out, and drinking, done so often they become almost as natural as breathing, all activate their fancy high life.
The characters in this novel bring back the old fashioned yet, somehow, modern ways of the young. The protagonist, Anthony Patch, signifies a highly opinionated person which shows throughout the story as he places himself in deep discussions with Gloria, the antagonist. The deep discussions also occur with Maury and Richard, some of their closest companions. Maury and Richard both get along great, but they characterize very different people. For instance, Richard loves writing. Writing almost addictively, searching for a new character to create always stays on his mind. Maury, a lot like Anthony, stands as an opinionated person who gives the two much to talk about, which only adds more interest to the story. Gloria conversates as well, but mostly about things only appealing to her. Gloria presents what Anthony and Maury call a "childish" kind of glow. Though she seems childish, this feature actually attracts people to her the most. All the characters play an interesting and important role in this book.
The Beautiful and the Damned, definitely worth reading, shows the realism of everyday life in the 1920's. F.Scott Fitzgerald portrays the life of the young and how easily it might self destruct through greed, material wants, and alcoholism. Fitzgerald proves that the fairytale of married life among the wealthy rarely happens. Money, though abundant, possibly means a lack of love and other ingredients that fuel a healthy life. Money turns into the only reason Gloria stays with Anthony. Though this book may seem fantasy-like at first, it breaks through the candy coated appearance of wealthy life in the early 1920's

His Best Roaring 20's Novel, November 2, 1998
By no means his best novel (as others here suggest) but highly underrated. Often one hears of Great Gatsby as his best, Tender is the Night as his labored over lost classic, This Side of Paradise as his promising and famous debut, and The Love of the Last Tycoon as the classic that never was, but Beautiful and Damned is never mentioned. In my opinion this is the book that best describes the hedonistic society I have read of called the Roaring Twenties. As the reader watches all the characters lose their dreams and fall into a depraved, hollow existent based on alcohol I am reminded too fondly of my college years.

If you are a Fitzgerald fan read this one after This Side of Paradise. If you are someone with a passing interest in the Twenties read this. If you are someone with just a passing interest in Fitzgerald then read this one last, after any of the other Fitzgerald novels.

"They were in love with the generalities.", September 22, 2006
I recently went to see Gatz, the wonderful adaptation of Gatsby by the Elevator Repair Service, and it inspired me to go back to Fitzgerald's body of work. I had read all the major the major works except for The Beautiful and Damned, and I decided to remedy that gap.

The Beautiful and Damned is an interesting book-- I probably liked it the least of all the Fitzgerald works, but I like his work enough that this is far from a bad thing. I could have lived without the overly obvious moralizing genaralities, but Fitzgerald himself recognized that this book had been written in too much of a hurry.

The major strength of the novel is, of course, the characters. We have all known versions of Gloria and Anthony Patch. We went to college with them. They were the social butterflies who seemed to have no worries, no weaknesses, and no real cares. We all assume that somewhere along the way they had to have stopped partying and found something to do-- you cannot imagine these people at 30. The Beautiful and Damned is something about what happens when the butterflies of the world keep going well past the point of excusable youthful mistakes.

People who already enjoy Fitzgerald should give The Beautiful and the Damned a read. It is certainly no Great Gatsby, but still contains much of the style and talent that made Fitzgerald so justly famous. Pay particular attention to the language and the turn of the phrase-- even in his lesser works, Fitzgerald is unparalleled at his particular kind of style.

A must-read--before it's made into a movie, December 22, 2009
Nearly ninety years after its first publication, _The Beautiful and Damned_ is still a shockingly relevant account of the entitlement class, the children of the rich or privileged who don't know how to navigate through life without big money. And, it's a New York City novel--written as only a mid-westerner can. It seems to me that because New Yorkers are too much in the middle of it to see themselves clearly, an intelligent "outsider" like F. Scott Fitzgerald must come along. To write as well as he did, Fitzgerald let the city inhabit him. New York got into his blood, and he recorded it in narrative right down to the dirt under the carpet. Fitzgerald's details lead the reader into the depths of the beautiful and doomed couple, the Gloria-Anthony entanglement, as they are part and parcel of the extremes of poverty and wealth (in the World War I era or the roaring 20s).

I don't know how Fitzgerald knew what he knew about the human psyche, or specifically about how a young man might react when he is good-looking and swimming in money and New York, but Fitz's life at Princeton University among this set of people gave him the environment in which to observe; Fitzgerald supplied the story around which the narrative coheres. Of course, there are autobiographical elements to this novel--a lot of himself and Zelda--but what the literary art requires is critical distance. To put his main characters through some shameful scenes, Fitzgerald had to know what tough love is in the New York City context. He had to put his couple to the test, people who from birth had relied on the "religion" of charm and money. And the author had more than just critical distance: F. Scott had them down right! Every expression, every word. Gloria: "This is life! Who cares for the morrow." And you can see Anthony deciding to have one more drink, his speech becoming slurred, his manners maudlin. While Anthony and Gloria wait for his inheritance, we find out what they're made of.

Most pleasurable about Fitzgerald's craft is his carefully-controlled technique of letting Anthony and Gloria visit hell (the "damned" in the title) while softening the harsh surgery-like light with well-timed, well-handled, lyrical sentences. In a single beautiful line, the passage of the winter sun describes both Fitzgerald's craft and his beautiful couple's descent: Gloria "lay still for a moment in the great bed watching the February sun suffer one last attenuated refinement in its passage through the leaded panes into the room" (p.173). Fitzgerald knew how to show the attenuated and refined way downhill.

One more thing about the craft of writing: Only the omniscient narrator technique--which Fitzgerald employs--can show characters in shameful acts and show what they're thinking, and the circumstances in which they got there, and how they "need" money in order to "survive." I wonder if now, in nearly 2010, this novel is not more important than in 1922. More than ever, _The Beautiful and Damned_ is a national portrait. (I can see how "spending" money could be the "sex" in the novel.)

Advice: Read this novel while in New York, if possible. The first time I read _The Beautiful and Damned_, I was living near 123rd (me, a Westerner!). I looked up every address in the novel (except for the gray house near Cos Cob, Conn.) and got to know New York through this novel. In fact, I could almost pick out their final apartment in Harlem near 127th.

An authentic tragedy, September 1, 2004
Highly recommended. Extremely compelling. Still relevant today although first published 80 years ago. A truly remarkable and memorable book.

For me reading great fiction is a bit like holding a mirror up to life. In some characters I see parts of myself and in other characters I see parts of other people in my life. With good fiction the characters are so vividly drawn that they seem real. You get to know them and sometimes you like them and sometimes you don't, but they're always believable and you can identify with their emotions and choices in life. For me that's the sort of book this is - and much much more.

The Beautiful and Damned is a tragic portrayal of a 1920s society enamored with beauty and wealth (I told you it was still relevant today). The novel traces the gradual downfall of Anthony Patch and his wife Gloria. When we first meet Anthony he is young, well educated and wealthy. Thanks to the generous allowance he receives from his wealthy Grandfather he doesn't have to work and instead spends his days lunching, philosophizing and drinking with his friends while he plans his entry into working life - perhaps as a statesman; perhaps as a writer. Life is a series of Broadway plays and extravagant meals. Nice for some.

When Anthony meets the beautiful, flirty and narcissistic Gloria he falls hopelessly in love. After a wonderful courtship they marry and the party really begins. While they wait for Anthony's Grandfather to die and pass his millions on to them, the young couple enjoy an endless string of parties, traveling and extravagance.

It is at about this point in the book that you begin to see a change. Up until now Fitzgerald portrays Anthony as pretentious and lazy, but generally a nice enough guy. Gloria is undoubtedly vain and selfish, but is also bubbly, fun and honest. Initially their life together is filled with optimism and breezy cheerfulness and they are undoubtedly a fun couple to be around. However, as they drink more (in particular Anthony) life begins to lose its rosy glow and we begin to see different, less pleasant parts of their personalities. Gradually at first and then faster and faster their downfall accelerates until they each face personal humiliation and suffer pathetic debacle. Believe it or not, it is actually quiet a heartbreaking story.

What makes this book so good for me is that it seems real. Anthony and Gloria (or parts of them) are people that you probably know. It all seems very believable. They make bad choices and they pay the consequences - just like real life. The supporting cast of characters that live on the edge of Anthony and Gloria's world also add a huge amount to the story. While flawed in their own ways they generally make a success of their lives.

Essentially a chronicle of alcoholic ruin, wasted opportunities and squandered talent, The Beautiful and Damned is a very compelling story. To my mind it's a first-class example of what a novel should be. A book to be savoured and enjoyed.

How do you decide which reprint to buy? The choices, the choices....., October 21, 2010
Fitzgerald's "The Beautiful and the Damned" is one of the great American novels and well worth reading. And if your personal copy's in the same shape as mine, you probably need a new one. But it's now out in the public domain and a plethora of reprints are available, mostly from Print on Demand Publishers. So, as a previous reviewer asked, how do you decide which one to buy?

Because, believe me, there's some truely awful reprints available. To start with, when looking to pick up a copy of this book, CHECK THE PUBLISHER CAREFULLY and make sure you order a version that's what you think it is. The reason for this is....

Amazon associates reviews of a book with many different versions of the same book from different publishers. Unfortunately for us customers, Amazon is seeing a growing plague of new Print-On-Demand Publishers (one of whom, CreateSpace, is owned by Amazon) who are specialising in reprinting copyright-expired books. Such as "The Beautiful and the Damned." Some of these publishers produce quite good quality books, some do not. What you do need to do is check the publisher carefully for all these older "copyright expired" books.

An outstanding example of "not good quality" is the imprint of "The Beautiful and the Damned" published by General Books LLC. The version published by General Books LLC is scanned in using OCR technology (and using pretty poor quality OCR scanning equipment and software from the look of their books), is overall of very poor print quality, uses automated reproduction with no index, no illustrations and an excessive number of typos.

To quote some specifics from the publisher's own web site:
"We created your book using OCR software that includes an automated spell check. Our OCR software is 99 percent accurate if the book is in good condition. However, with up to 3,500 characters per page, even one percent can be an annoying number of typos....

After we re-typeset and designed your book, the page numbers change so the old index and table of contents no longer work. Therefore, we usually remove them. Since many of our books only sell a couple of copies, manually creating a new index and table of contents could add more than a hundred dollars to the cover price....

Our OCR software can't distinguish between an illustration and a smudge or library stamp so it ignores everything except type. We would really like to manually scan and add the illustrations. But many of our books only sell a couple of copies....

We created your book using a robot who turned and photographed each page. Our robot is 99 percent accurate. But sometimes two pages stick together. And sometimes a page may even be missing from our copy of the book. We would really like to manually scan each page and buy multiple copies of each original. But many of our books only sell a couple of copies....."

General Books LLC are flooding Amazon with these low quality publications (450,000+ listed under General Books LLC so far) and, unfortunately, many of them have the reviews associated with the original or with better quality imprints associated with them. For the buyer that's not aware of this publisher this can result in a rather unfortunate purchasing decision.

A good rule of thumb for these Print on Demand publishers is to take a look at the cover - if it's a good quality illustration that reflects the content, there's a table of contents, and when you do the Look Inside thing there's no disclaimer saying you're looking at another book, and they've stated that they used facsimile reproduction technology (rather than OCR), it's usually a pretty safe bet. Conversely, if any of these are missing, you're taking a chance on the quality. I've bought a few based on my selection criteria above and they've been good quality. General Books LLC however, is a publisher to steer clear of at all costs.

If you have been unfortunate enough to buy the General Books LLC version by mistake, you can return to Amazon for a full refund (but check Amazon's return policy and process first).

Abandoned People, July 22, 2004
F. Scott Fitzgerald's second novel, The Beautiful and Damned is a tour-de-force of despair....but don't let that stop you from reading it.

What begins as a sweet and involving love story quickly spirals downward into the depths of alcoholic misery....

If ever there were two people in need of a good AA meeting, it's Anthony Patch and Gloria Gilbert. Meeting as teens by a mutual friend/cousin, Anthony is immediately taken, as are most boys who cross her path, with the beautiful Gloria. Fervently pursuing her, he becomes despondent when she eventually rebuffs his overtures, as she does with all her suitors. But Anthony perseveres, and discovers the truth, that Gloria is indeed in love with him. They marry, with all the best wishes of their friends and family.

Too tidy, of course, as this is where life takes some very unfortunate turns for the happy couple...

Anthony comes from a background of early 20th century privilege...having been raised by his wealthy Grandfather. Subsisting on a more than generous allotment while in school, Anthony receives one of the best educations that can be afforded to a person. Gloria, groomed and poised, is the perfect debutante....flirty, but never overly so...dignified, but not above an occasional drinking binge, and the object of many a boys' affections.

The ongoing party that envelopes the Patch's and their friends becomes a way of life for Anthony and Gloria, and their all-encompassing love becomes a nightmare of co-dependency and over-indulgence. Relying on Anthony's cache of bonds as income, when they continually overspend on their endless nightlife...neither ever engages in a worthwhile profession. Their love of one another turns bitter, resentful, passive-aggressive, and abusive, as they lavish affection on the bottle more and more.

Three quarters of this book reads like an AA sponsor testimonial for 'how not to live'....and is very engrossing. A hoped-for inheritance that meets with delay after delay; a stint in the service, as America enters World War 1; an affair to forget; and an aborted attempt at a movie career highlight the downhill run of Anthony and Gloria Patch.

An excellent read. Frequently humorous, though covering many dark topics, well-realized in regards to characterization and continuity....The Beautiful and Damned is an excellent portrait in black of what a 'privileged life' can also be like. ... Read more

Editorial Review

This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

Editorial Review

This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

Reviews

She gets what she wants... but what does she want?, November 11, 2004
Rider Haggard's Cleopatra tells the story of the legendary queen as shown through the eyes of Harmachis, an Egyptian physician and priest of Isis. It is written from the point of view of Harmacis at the end of his life. He is old and recounts his life story. Like so many others he was obsessed with the beautiful Cleopatra, and so he tells her story as much as his.

Unlike most admirers, Harmachis actually gets involved with Cleopatra. She pushes him to reveal secrets of Isis (including the location of hidden treasures of the pyramids) to further her political ends. Throughout the story, the reader is left wondering whether Cleopatra really does love Harmachis. Sometimes she seems only to use him and she does betray him every time. But one has to consider that Harmachis comes from low class parents, so actually ending up with him might not be an option for her. She seems to really love him and maybe she really is trying to arrange things for them. Her power over him is complete, possibly because she doesn't know what she wants.

The setting and story are lavish. After all, this is ancient Egypt, complete with hidden treasures of Isis. At the same time the story is about more timeless issues - love and betrayal and love vs religion. It has the right blend of action, emotion and awesome settings to keep me interested all the way through. And the ancient setting keeps Cleopatra from feeling dated, as do some of Haggard's other novels.

I highly recommend Cleopatra to anyone into 1890's stuff, Egyptian stuff or adventure novels. I have no idea why indypublish is charging almost 100 dollars for this book. It is in public domain now, so what's the deal? Anyway this seems to be where they used copies are and its definitely worth 10 dollars. I read it about 8 years ago and I still remember it clearly and go wow.

Wonderful Historical Novel, January 11, 2009
The other reviewer did a great job. I agree totally. Normally I would not be attracted to another story about Cleopatra, but I love Haggard's novels, his writing style, character development. I bought this for my Kindle and was surprised at the wonder, complex, multi-dimensional story. Hard to put down. Characters come alive and you experience the mysteries of ancient Egypt. Haggard is a first class writer. Tolkein read Haggard as a boy. This is one I will re-read from time to time. No longer copywrited, I got it for 99 cents for my Kindle.

Great book, March 6, 2010
This is the epic story of the pharaoh who never was. The story of Harmachis and Cleopatra is vivid and intense, and involves love gone wrong in so many ways.

With the exception of a short prologue, the entire book is given as a translation of three ancient scrolls. Here's a sentence, to give you an idea of the style: "Then in life mayst thou be wretched, and after death may Osiris refuse thee, and the judges of Amenti give judgment against thee, and Set and Sekhet torment thee, till such time as thy sin is purged and the Gods of Egypt, called by strange names, are once more worshipped in the Temples of Egypt, and the Staff of the Oppressor is broken, and the footsteps of the Foreigner are swept clean, and the thing is accomplished as thou in thy weakness shalt cause it to be done." It gives the story a certain Biblical weightiness, and isn't as intrusive as it might seem, but be prepared. That aside, it's a great character study of strong personalities against a violent historical backdrop.

Great novel, just make sure you don't buy the version from General Books LLC, December 13, 2010
5* for the Book, 1* for the version from General Books LLC

Love H Rider Haggard's books, and Cleopatra has to be his best "little known" novel (as compared say to the better known ones such as "King Solomons Mines". Other reviewers have done a great job describing the novel, I'm not going to rehash, I agree.

However, if you are interested in buying this, be aware that the book is now out in the public domain and a plethora of reprints are available, mostly from Print on Demand Publishers reprinting copyright-expired books. And, believe me, there's some truely awful reprints available. Some of these publishers produce quite good quality books, some do not. What you do need to do is check the publisher carefully for all these older "copyright expired" books. An outstanding example of "not good quality" is the reprint published by General Books LLC. This version is scanned in using OCR technology (and using pretty poor quality OCR scanning equipment and software from the look of their books), is overall of very poor print quality, uses automated reproduction with no index, no illustrations and an excessive number of typos.

To quote some specifics from the publisher's own web site:
"We created your book using OCR software that includes an automated spell check. Our OCR software is 99 percent accurate if the book is in good condition. However, with up to 3,500 characters per page, even one percent can be an annoying number of typos...."

"After we re-typeset and designed your book, the page numbers change so the old index and table of contents no longer work. Therefore, we usually remove them. Since many of our books only sell a couple of copies, manually creating a new index and table of contents could add more than a hundred dollars to the cover price...."

"Our OCR software can't distinguish between an illustration and a smudge or library stamp so it ignores everything except type. We would really like to manually scan and add the illustrations. But many of our books only sell a couple of copies...."

"We created your book using a robot who turned and photographed each page. Our robot is 99 percent accurate. But sometimes two pages stick together. And sometimes a page may even be missing from our copy of the book. We would really like to manually scan each page and buy multiple copies of each original. But many of our books only sell a couple of copies....."

General Books LLC are flooding Amazon with these low quality publications (450,000+ listed so far) and, unfortunately, many of them have the reviews associated with the original or with better quality imprints associated with them. For the buyer that's not aware of this publisher this can result in a rather unfortunate purchasing decision.

A good rule of thumb for these Print on Demand publishers is to take a look at the cover - if it's a good quality illustration that reflects the content, there's a table of contents, and when you do the Look Inside thing there's no disclaimer saying you're looking at another book, and they've stated that they used facsimile reproduction technology (rather than OCR), it's usually a pretty safe bet. Conversely, if any of these are missing, you're taking a chance on the quality. I've bought a few based on my selection criteria above and they've been good quality. General Books LLC however, is a publisher to steer clear of at all costs.

If you have been unfortunate enough to buy the General Books LLC version by mistake, you can return to Amazon for a full refund (but check Amazon's return policy and process first).

A Tragedy of the Highest Order, September 26, 2010
This novel is a masterpiece, a complex journey into the heart of Ancient Egypt. A gut wrenching tragedy, this story will touch your heart and unlock your imagination while delving into the ultimate conflicts between good and evil. Man and God. Glory and Sin. Triumph and Destruction. Spectacular! ... Read more

Editorial Review

This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

Reviews

Couldn't put it down, February 14, 2010
This well written book was hard to put down. The characters were very well developed. I was disappointed that one reviewer chose to tell too much about the ending, & ruined it a bit for me. This is one of those books that you think about for a long time after reading it. Some of the free books are not worth my time, but this one is a very good read. My only complaint is the careless way the book was transferred into kindle format...lots of errors.

A different kind of romance, May 15, 2009
I am not normally a reader of romance novels. I usually read thrillers or mysteries. But I figures why not try it, it is free. I really was surprised by this book and enjoyed it.I not being a romance novel fan actually liked the way the book did not end all Candy and Roses. But just like the other reviewer did not care for the spoiled brat lil sister either. I am getting the other books by this auther on my kindle.

Engaging story of love, April 13, 2009
Well written engaging story of three sisters who wed - while two marry the wrong man. Unfortunately, the youngest most beautiful sister is the cause of most of the angst. She is immature and spoiled and it takes her almost the whole entire novel before she grows into her marriage after destroying her loyal, loving sister. The end, I have to admit, I predicted even before I finished reading it. I am still angry at the husband of the loyal sister for not recognizing what he had until it was too late. Is that so hard? Is recognizing love and loyalty so difficult for a man? He did not appreciate her simple love and so, lost it. Honestly, even dogs recognize love. They probably do this better then most people. Which is why I always have dogs around as did the loyal sister.

Well worth reading this one, May 2, 2010
It took me a while to get into this book because of the flowery writing style of yesteryear but I'm glad I kept on with it. After finally getting into the style of writing I was surprised at how this book hooked me and kept me reading it. The ending was not how I wanted this book to turn out though. However Sisters is well worth the download. I recommend it.

Kristie Leigh Maguire, author of Second Chances

sisters, November 25, 2010
i bought this book because it was free and honestly could not put it down. typical of the 'soap opera' style of the 1920s and with the flowery language of novels of that day, nonetheless the story was fascinating. i did skip through the language a bit because i could hardly believe what was happening and wanted to get to the final outcome. very bittersweet.

Love quadrangle?, March 18, 2010
The story line was enough to keep you wadding through the book. It got a bit boring because you could see the ending coming about half-way through the text.

Trying too hard?, September 23, 2010
Well... from the summary of this book it sounded like it would be good, but to be honest I could not get through it. I read one chapter and had to give up. It seemed like there was one big word in every sentence. I did not understand many of them and I was constantly looking up the words and this made it difficult for me to really get into the book. I find that sometimes authors just try too hard to make themselves sound smart and sophisticated by sticking a bunch of difficult words in their books. I have always believed in keeping things simple and when you're an author and writing for people of all different ages and education levels you need to think of them. When I read a book I want to fall deep into it and this was impossible to do with this book. I will be continuing this book. ... Read more

Editorial Review

This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

Editorial Review

This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

Reviews

Wonderful Kindle DX download, September 9, 2009
I needed this for some book research I'm doing, but didn't want to accumulate another book. As a Kindle download Kindle DX: Amazon's 9.7" Wireless Reading Device (Latest Generation)I have everything I need and can search and clip and earmark and add notations.

Frankly, I didn't think these Journals would be so absorbing. I can hardly stop reading. Lewis and Clark are coming alive for me. Not at all dry research material. I'm amazed at some of this stuff. Clark seems to be a real oggler of the ladies. And there are more Indians all over the place than I would have imagined from our being taught the country was practically uninhabitated before we Europeans came.

Everyone should read this!

puzzled and confused, December 8, 2010
These are the Lewis and Clark journals in the original spelling, and they are fascinating.

But I'm confused. Internet sites show that the journals began with earlier entries, which this selection doesn't have, starting a few months after the journals were begun.

I hope someone can help me compare this Kindle version with other e-versions available. As things stand, it has excellent stuff, and certainly enough for a beginner to start with, but it's incomplete and I don't know why. Don't know where to download a complete version, either. There IS a complete set of journals on the net, and I can get to that.

All very confusing.

Great Book for Kindle, November 16, 2010
I have wanted to read this book for a long time & am glad it was available free for download to Kindle. It's a great book to have on there where one can read a few pages, take a break and pick back up later. The text can be hard to read and understand as it is written in the style of language used in those days, but other than that it's very informative & interesting. ... Read more

Editorial Review

This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

Reviews

A Great Read, April 5, 2010
I'm not a huge fan of Mark Twain and his works, but I do love this story. The religious overtones and distant settings blend to make a very good, witch trial/McCarthy feel that hits close to home. It is really a "can't put it down" read.

A Truly Great Story, December 19, 2010
This is a side of Twain unread by those who think Huckleberry Finn and Mark Sawyer are children's books. The satire is far from humorous; the condemnation of Man is damning and totally accurate. The picture of ignorant, brutal, and short lives captures the religiosity of the Middle Ages (and of much of the present). If only for its treatment of the "moral sense," this story is worth re-reading. Obviously, the human idiocy Twain describes still exists.
Obviously, we still operate in the darkness Twain portrays. Obviously, if angels existed, they would be more like the character in this story than in our common picture of them.
Should be required reading for every student of religion or good writing, especially for those who ponder the question of why bad things happen to good people.
Note that in my version, there are two other short stories that follow this one. They are somewhat inconsequential and neither add or detract from the value of this edition. ... Read more

Editorial Review

This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

Reviews

Stories for all ages that you HAVEN'T HEARD BEFORE! (Well, most of them...), November 8, 2009
My kids and I love reading these tales together. They are simple enough to appeal to my 11 year old, yet sophisticated enough to hold an adult's interest. A wonderful collection with stories that range in length from only a few paragraphs and read in a minute, to longer tales that would take more like 40 minutes. Perfect for bedtime reading!

Most "fairy tales" are terrible (Cinderella, anyone? Snow White?), and some of these are no exception. But they are wonderful stories, and I appreciate being able to offer my kids a different cultural perspective.

Just skip the intro and go straight to the stories though!

P.S. I'll try to add a list of the stories later once we finish them all! ... Read more