Literature: history & criticism

Some Best Books About Literature 

• The Coming Race : It is simple to understand this book written by Edward Bulwer and Lord Lytton, which was written in the 1870s, had such a significant impact on science fiction, fantasy, hollow earth theorists, utopians, occultists, and Eugenicists. The story can make you lose for a short time in a few spots when he goes into some of the intricacies of the society he has discovered in the subterranean world but overall this was a good yarn. The novel revolves around the story of a man who finds an underground world while exploring a mine. An advanced civilization greets him, educating him on all the secrets of their advanced civilization. The vril was a universal power that could be used for both creation and destruction. It was a discovery that heralded peace in this civilization. Men fled in terror when one of them was killed by a woman, Lytton writes. They remained in other communities and "were caught up" by other males, he says. Girls are married off at 16, guys hammer away until 20, and men stay celibate for life. 

• This book includes a bonus narrative in addition to one of Rinehart's most well-known mysteries. The last person anyone would suspect of crime in "The Confession" is elderly Miss Emily Benton. She kindly agrees to let Agnes Blakiston and her housekeeper Maggie live in the Benton house for the summer without paying rent. But the women quickly realize that there is a problem. Curl up with a mystery from the pen of Mary Roberts Rinehart, a brilliant storyteller who was frequently praised as the American equivalent of Agatha Christie of Britain. The best examples of Rinehart's spine-tingling, heart-pounding work can be found in "The Confession." American mystery author Rinehart, whose cleverness and humor are renowned for their work on The Confession, starts the book: Up until this point, only private records existed on the somewhat amazing tale that the Neighborhood Club's experiments revealed. But as a participant in the investigations, he believes that they should be made public—not so much for what they will add to the body of knowledge about psychological research, since from that perspective they were not unusual, but rather as another investigation into the human mind, which is still largely unexplored.

• The coral island is a book by Scottish author R. M. Ballantyne that was published in 1857. The tale follows the exploits of three lads who are marooned on a South Pacific island after being the only survivors of a shipwreck. It was one of the first works of young adult literature to feature only young adult heroes. The book first went on sale in late 1857 and has never been out of print. It is a typical Robinsonade, a type of fiction influenced by Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe. The significance of hierarchy and leadership is one of the novel's key themes, along with the civilizing influence of Christianity and 19th-century imperialism in the South Pacific. The dystopian novel Lord of the Flies by William Golding, published in 1954, was inspired by it and flipped the morals of Ballantyne's The Coral Island; whereas in Ballantyne's tale, the children meet evil, in Lord of the Flies evil resides within them. The book was regarded as a classic for primary school students in the UK around the turn of the 20th century, and it was frequently included on high school reading lists in the US.

• The Czar's Spy is an international espionage and intrigue story that was published in 1905 by the English/French novelist William Le Queux. This story takes the reader on a slalom journey across Italy, England, Finland, and Russia before returning to Italy. The goal of this expedition is to solve a mystery, but instead of providing sought-after answers, it simply raises additional questions and causes unclear events. The protagonist of the novel discovers a ripped photo of a stunning woman, falls in love with this unfortunate victim of circumstance, and sacrifices everything to save her. Love, murder, treachery, and mystery are all elements of the plot.The First World War's impending international unrest and hostility are foretold in the novel fairly accurately. It is also an accurate depiction of the early 20th century's deteriorating morality, as well as the collapse of the central pillar that formerly held together all of life's principles. Money replaced family as the most essential thing, power replaced dignity, and a little girl could now compete with world leaders!

• The Diamond Master : The largest importer of precious stones in America, Gustave Schultze, sent Mr. Latham a parcel in the mail that was addressed to him. There were thirty to forty letters inside a basic, cigarette-box-sized bundle that was wrapped in yellow paper. At half past seven the night before, the item was mailed at the Madison Square substation. The following morning's mail brought nothing, and Mr. Latham frantically searched through his afternoon mail in the same manner. Red Haney's diamond case and the jewels, which were widely publicized in Sunday morning newspapers, instantly sparked a circular parade as Haney, the goal center, slept off sweetly in a drunken stupor.When Mulberry Street's cops are confronted with an issue other than a common, minor theft, burglary, or murder, as the case may be, they frequently get up and circle about. The little thread of life inside Doris nearly broke as she gazed down in vast, dry-eyed terror at the body of this aged, shriveled man whom she had loved. He suddenly kissed both of her outstretched hands after she extended them. The excruciating fear that had driven her here was temporarily ignored in favor of the indescribable delight of seeing him once more.

• The Doctor's Wife : About six extremely spiced novels by Mr. Sigismund Smith were published, and they were quite well received by the classes who prefer their literature as strongly flavored as their tobacco. Except when he found himself on the shelf of a newsvendor, very oily and dog-eared at the edges, he always appeared in weekly numbers for a cent a week. The maid-of-all-work visited the greengrocer's and came back with a boy who appeared filthy and a truck. Mr. Lansdell had returned from Lowlands, but he avoided the grey old estate where the Earl and his daughter were wallowing in a depressing and financially precarious situation. The carpet bag, luggage, and trunks belonging to Mrs. Judkin's son were loaded into the truck before he left, leaving them in Sigismund's care.Smooth glades, enchanting waterfalls, and gorgeous landscape gardening effects like those at Mordred Priory are absent from Lowlands. For the past 150 years, the Earls of Ruysdale have mostly lagged behind the rest of the world. Only a dense layer of woodland surrounded the old red-brick home, unaltered by the merciless handicraft of modern development.

• H. Rider Haggard, an English Victorian author, followed up his gothic fantasy novel She with Ayesha, the Return of She, which was released in 1905. It is the last book in the Ayesha and Allan Quatermain series chronologically. With illustrations by Maurice Greiffenhagen, it was serialized in Windsor Magazine issues 120 (December 1904) through 130 (October 1905). In October 1977, Newcastle Publishing Company released it as the fourteenth installment in the Newcastle Forgotten Fantasy Library series. Haggard claims in the preface that the name Ayesha should be pronounced "Assha," despite the fact that this pronunciation may be more widespread, and relates it to Muhammad's wives and the Arabic name (Arabic:ishah). Ayesha, the Return of She, along with the other three books in the series, was made into the 1935 movie She. An anonymous "Editor" of the book receives a package in the prologue. He opens it and discovers a letter from Horace Holly with a manuscript inside that is a second memoir about Her. Additionally, there is a second letter from Holly's physician, to whom Holly has given his letter and manuscript, as well as a wooden box containing an antiquated sistrum.

• Sinclair Lewis' satirical book Babbitt, published in 1922, is about American culture and society and criticizes the superficiality of middle-class life and the temptation to fit in. Babbitt's disagreement had a big impact on the decision to give Lewis the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1930. The book has been adapted into two motion pictures: a silent version in 1924 and a talkie version in 1934. Babbitt's life is chronicled in the first seven chapters over the course of a single day. Babbitt coos over his ten-year-old daughter Tinka during breakfast, tries to talk his 22-year-old daughter Verona out of her recent socialist tendencies and exhorts his 17-year-old son Ted to work more in school. He dictates letters while at work and has conversations with his staff on real estate advertising. Babbitt hurries home and abandons all disobedience when his wife develops acute appendicitis. They reestablish their intimacy during her prolonged recovery, and Babbitt returns to his emotionless conformity. In the climactic scene, Babbitt learns that his son Ted secretly wed Eunice, his neighbor's daughter. Though he doesn't agree, he declares that he is in favor of the union and commends Ted for leading an independent life.

• Beasts and Super-Beasts, a collection of short stories, was first published in 1914 and was written by Saki, a pen name for Hector Hugh Munro. The title is a parody of Man and Superman by George Bernard Shaw. Along with The Chronicles of Clovis, Beasts and Super-Beasts are one of Saki's best-known works. It was his last book of short stories before he died in World War I, and many of its tales, most notably "The Open Window," are frequently repeated in anthologies. The majority of the stories in this collection feature animals in some way, which serves as the inspiration for the title. In a number of the stories, Clovis Sangrail, a figure from earlier Saki works, makes an appearance. The majority of the stories have a prior publication in journals. Beasts and Super-Beasts adhere to Saki's earlier literary output's straightforward language, cynicism, and sardonic humor stylistically. Saki, a pen name for Hector Hugh Munro, wrote a collection of short stories titled Monsters and Super beasts that was first released in 1914. The title is a parody of Man and Superman by George Bernard Shaw.

• Black Heart and White Heart a Zulu Idyll : Although not a trained soldier at the time of Rorke's Drift, the Zulu warrior was nonetheless a dangerous adversary. All Zulu men were obligated to serve in the military from the age of 19 until they were 40, however the Zulus were a citizen army that was called up during times of war. Each regiment had unique distinguishing characteristics, like as jewelry or a distinctive headgear. Zulus carried two spears: a throwing spear with a 7-inch blade on a 3-foot shaft and a hefty broad-bladed stabbing spear with an 18-inch blade that was nearly 2-inches wide (in some ways comparable to the Roman Gladius). They used enormous, color-coded cowhide shields, with younger regiments having predominantly black shields and senior regiments having mostly white shields. This made it simple for a Zulu commander to recognize the various forces on the battlefield.Contrary to common belief, the Zulus also employed firearms, including Martini Henry rifles taken from British forces as well as Napoleonic weaponry purchased from dealers. With each regiment having companies, its own Izinduna or commanders, and a clear chain of command, the warriors were well organized and disciplined. Unlike a European Army of the period, they did not have a baggage train, therefore they could move quickly and were quite mobile.

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