Renowned as a novelist, journalist, and humorist, Mark Twain is not only one of the most widely read and admired American writers, he is also among the most quoted. Wit and repartee permeate his work — from the short, light pieces to his great novel Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and even later, in dark meditations on the human condition where his humor takes on a cynical, satirical twist. This remarkably inexpensive volume gathers tog ...
Wonderfully wide-ranging and enjoyable, this outstanding collection features short stories by great nineteenth- and twentieth-century writers from America, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Western Europe. Included are Hemingway's «A Clean, Well-Lighted Place,» in which two waiters and a lonely customer in a Spanish cafe confront the concept of nothingness; «A & P,» John Updike's most anthologized story and one of his most popul ...
In an effort to provide unemployed writers with work during the Great Depression of the 1930s, the United States Government, through the Works Progress Administration (WPA), funded the Federal Writers' Project. One of the group's most noteworthy and enduring achievements was the Slave Narrative Collection, consisting of more than 2,000 transcripts of interviews with former slaves, who, in blunt, simple words, provided often-startling f ...
"I know only two tunes," said Ulysses S. Grant. «One of them is Yankee Doodle and the other isn't.» Jimmy Carter observed: «Whatever starts in California unfortunately has an inclination to spread.» And Warren Harding complained: «The White House is a prison. I can't get away from the men who dog my footsteps. I am in jail.»This entertaining, handy little book includes over 400 other memorable quotes, expressed by America's c ...
"Blessed is the man who, having nothing to say, abstains from giving us wordy evidence of the fact," said Mary Ann Evans, a.k.a. George Eliot. «In nine cases out of ten, a woman had better show more affection than she feels,» opined Jane Austen. «When a girl marries, she exchanges the attentions of many men for the inattention of one,» observed Helen Rowland. These are just a few of more than 400 memorable quotes in this volume, expressed o ...
In an era of revolutions demanding greater liberties for mankind, Mary Wollstonecraft (1759–1797) was an ardent feminist who spoke eloquently for countless women of her time.Having witnessed firsthand the devastating results of male improvidence, she assumed an independent role early in life, educating herself and eventually earning a living as a governess, teacher and writer. She was also an esteemed member of the radical intellectual ...
A woman of many gifts, Margaret Fuller (1810–1850) is most aptly remembered as America's first true feminist. In her brief yet fruitful life, she was variously author, editor, literary and social critic, journalist, poet, and revolutionary. She was also one of the few female members of the prestigious Transcendentalist movement, whose ranks included Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, Elizabeth Palmer Peabody, Nathaniel Hawt ...
The most eloquent of American presidents, Lincoln seemed to have a comment—sagacious or humorous—on just about anything that mattered. This concise compendium offers his astute observations on a variety of subjects—from women to warfare. Nearly 400 quotations include such thought-provoking and memorable remarks as:Bad promises are better broken than kept.Marriage is neither heaven nor hell; it is simply purgatory.Wh ...
Born into poverty, Jack London led a knockabout existence before achieving success as one of the most popular authors of his era. In the course of his brief but active life, he sought adventure — as a hobo, prospector, sailor, and a dozen other occupations — along with self-education from the works of Marx, Darwin, Nietzsche, and Jung. The vitality and variety of London's experiences are reflected in his stories ...
