Collected Short Stories (Vol. 9). Collected Short Stories. Volume 9

Arthur Conan Doyle

Sherlock Holmes is a fictional consulting detective in London 1880-1914 created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Holmes, master of disguise, reasoned logically to deduce clients background from their first appearance. He used fingerprints, chemical analysis, and forensic science. This volume contains the final set of twelve Sherlock Holmes short stories written by Arthur Conan Doyle. The stories are not in chronological order, and the only characters common to all twelve are Holmes and Dr. Watson. The stories are related in first-person narrative from Watsons point of view. In general the stories in The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes identify, and try to correct, social injustices. Holmes is portrayed as offering a new, fairer sense of justice.

The Terrible People

Edgar Wallace

Clay Shelton is an outstanding forger and has been capable of cheating on an entire country. One day is finally arrested, convicted of the assassination for killing a policeman and sentenced to death. His execution is performed and the case is closed. Or this is what everyone thinks, until the judge who sentenced Shelton, his prosecutor and executioner are brutally murdered by the Terrible People, an mysterious secret organization. The next name on their list is the one of Arnold Betcher Long, the private eye who had caught the infamous forger. However, Long is all but an easy target... This early work by Edgar Wallace was originally published in 1926. The Terrible People is a classic mystery novel by this pioneer of the detective genre.

Sergeant Michael Cassidy, R.E

H.C. McNeile

Cassidy is a loyal and legendary soldier in the Corps of Royal Engineers. He is brave, proud, and even his elders are afraid of him. Cassidy meets the narrator, a high-ranking officer in Flander. They talk about life at the front. Indeed, a spiritual story, the reader himself will be able to feel all those spiritual moments of life.

Der Teufel von Tidal Basin. Roman

Edgar Wallace

Zu den Bekannten des Reporters Michael Quigley gehörten Einbrecher, Diebe, Schwindler, Bankräuber, Taschendiebe und viele andere Leute, die nicht gern mit der Polizei in Berührung kamen. Auch mit fast allen Beamten von Scotland Yard stand Mike auf gutem Fuß, und mehrmals hatte er schon das Wochenende mit dem Henker Dumont verbracht. Der Reporter Michael Quigley liebt die bezaubernde Janice Harman. Diese verlobt sich jedoch mit dem reichen Donald Bateman, obwohl sie ihn noch nicht lange kennt. Wenig später Donald Bateman wird ermordet aufgefunden, neben ihm liegt eine verdächtige Dolchscheide die einem gewissen Louis Landor gehört. Die Polizei ist sicher, auf der richtigen Spur zu sein. Doch dann wird Sergeant Elk überfallen. Der Unbekannte bedroht ihn mit einem Messer es gehört wiederum Louis Landor...

Lady Molly of Scotland Yard

Emmuska Orczy

By the author of the Scarlet Pimpernel, Lady Molly of Scotland Yard is a collection of short stories featuring Lady Molly Robertson-Kirk, head of the Female Department at Scotland Yard in and around 1910. The book contains all twelve Lady Molly adventures and is narrated by Lady Mollys assistant Mary Granard. Lady Molly has a keen and brilliant mind, never failing to unravel a case that baffles the entire Scotland Yard force. Feisty, brilliant, and beautiful; precursor of the lay sleuth who relies on brains rather than brawn, Lady Molly, and her faithful sidekick and admiring chronicler Mary, began appearing in Orczys entertaining stories years before the first Englishwoman did in fact become an officer of the law. Mystery readers and fans of detective fiction and the police procedural are in for a real treat with these interlaced stories.

Mr. Laxworthys Adventures

E. Phillips Oppenheim

The man was awaiting the service of his dinner in the magnificent buffet of the Gare de Lyon. He sat at a table laid for three, on the right-hand side of the entrance and close to the window. From below came the turmoil of the trains. In appearance he was of somewhat less than medium height, of unathletic, almost frail, physique. His head was thrust a little forward, as though he were afflicted with a chronic stoop. He wore steel-rimmed spectacles with the air of one who has taken to them too late in life to have escaped the constant habit of peering, which had given to his neck an almost storklike appearance.

Nada the Lily

H. Rider Haggard

Nada the Lily is a historical novel. It tells about the origins of Umslopogaas, the illegitimate son of the Zulu king in the 19th century. Parts of the story are inspired by the real historical events and fairy tales that Haggard heard during his time in South Africa. Haggard portrays the Zulus as real peoplepeople with hopes and dreams, as well as flaws.

Athabasca Bill. A Tale of the Far West

Bessie Marchant

In Alberta, Canada, young Freds family awaits the return of their father who is looking for a site for a new home for them. But just as he return, bloodhounds seeking the thief who stole a box containing hundreds of dollars trace the scent to Freds father. Fred sets out to find Athabasca Bill who may have information that will prove that his father is innocent. Elizabeth Marchant (18621941) was a prolific English writer who wrote in the style of the Victorian adventure novel. She was born in Petham in Kent and preferred to be known as Bessie. In many of her novels the lead characters in her books were very often female, although she did write books with male heroes. Athabasca Bill: A Tale of the Far West is a must-read for anyone in need for a dose of entertaining, worthwhile writing.

Dr. Night

Aidan de Brune

Originally published in 1926, Dr. Night is the first story from the Dr. Night trilogy by Aidan De Brune, (1874-1946). Aidan de Brune was a big name in Australian literature but is forgotten today. He was a prolific author who wrote in a variety of genres. This story is basically rather gaudy crime yarns, which steadily veers into fantasy by the end and features a very unlikely Asian villain who is as different from Fu Manchu as you can imagine: a small, colorless man of uncertain central Asian origin whose principal obsession is raising money by any means possible to recreate a long-dead central Asian kingdom of which his distant ancestors were kings. Most of the stories from the trilogy take place in and around Sydney, although the earliest known is set in Perth Western Australia and one of the novelettes in north Queenslan.

Sonata Belzebuba, czyli Prawdziwe zdarzenie w Mordowarze. Sztuka w 3 aktach

Stanisław Ignacy Witkiewicz

Dramat Sonata Belzebuba, czyli prawdziwe zdarzenie w Mordowarze stanowi Witkacowską wersję mitu faustowskiego. Autor szuka w nim odpowiedzi na pytania o rolę sztuki i artysty w skazanym na zagładę świecie. Podejmuje temat niezależności artysty i jego wywyższenia ponad społeczeństwo. Sztuka jawi się jako ostatnia szansa ocalenia ludzkiej indywidualności.

On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection. Or, The Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life

Charles Darwin

Everyone has opinions about evolution, but how many people have actually read Charles Darwin? If you havent done so yet, youre missing out on what is surely one of the greatest books ever written. Written for the general public of the 1850s, it is a rigorously documented but highly readable account of the scientific theory that now lies at the root of our present attitude to the universe. Darwins book contains a wealth of evidence that the diversity of life arose through a branching pattern of evolution and common descent. Challenging notions such as the fixity of species with the idea of natural selection, and setting forth the results of pioneering work on the ecology of animals and plants, it made a lasting contribution to philosophical and scientific thought. Such an important foundational book that changed the course of the world and laid foundation to many new branches of science.

Sezonowa miłość

Gabriela Zapolska

Co się stanie, gdy znudzona życiem, nieco zblazowana żona urzędnika uda się dla kuracji do Zakopanego i spotka tam młodego, przystojnego aktora? Czy tak właśnie zaczyna się sezonowa miłość? Historia romansu na tle polskich Tatr dziś również zadziwia celnością obserwacji zachowań ludzkich i znajomością charakterów, które Zapolska mistrzowsko wykorzystuje w powieści.

The Mayor on Horseback

E. Phillips Oppenheim

The young handsome Mayor of Mechester, Daniel Poynton is the owner of a very successful shoe manufacturer, the major employer in the city and the mayor will soon be a Lord Mayor. Never before interested in women, or even in social affairs, he is stricken by the beauty of The Lady Ursula Manningham and falls in love. As the novel develops, Poyntons factory is threatened by foreign manufacturers who want to establish a cooperative monopoly with him. At the same time, Poyntons relationship with Violet Grey, who is a competent secretary, continues to develop and becomes more important to his business and social life. Meanwhile his infatuation with Lady Ursula progresses to the point of asking her to marry... The book shows interesting color on the interaction between socialist workers unions and managements enlightened response to worker unrest.

Sawtooth Ranch

B.M. Bower

B. M. Bower (a woman who actually lived in early 20th century Montana when this story was written) has a good sense of humor and touches on some of the big issues of the West such as water rights and land ownership and development. Her intrepid heroine starts out as a girl actor in the silly Westerns of early Hollywood and then switches to a remote ranch for the real cowgirl experience. Many of Bowers books were adapted for the big screen, and her characters and landscape descriptions have been indelibly stamped on the conventions of classic Western films. Whether youre a first-time reader or a long-time fan, Sawtooth Ranch will surely please fans of classic Westerns.

Tregarthens Wife. A Cornish Story

Fred M. White

Another fantastic story from Fred M. White. The island of Tregarthen is a long green succulent piece from the mainland, about eight miles long and five wide. It is protected from the east and north by granite walls, rising a thousand feet up and dark, and its music is the Atlantic thunder and the cry of countless sea birds. Where is it? What matters it? Not so many leagues from Tintagel, for they tell tales of King Arthur, and there is a deep apple orchard in the heart of the island where Lancelot slew the dragon whose teeth were flaming swords.

Island Nights Entertainments

Robert Louis Stevenson

The famous novel by Robert Louis Stevenson tells about the exciting and dangerous adventures of young Jim and his older comrades who set off in search of a pirate treasure. Jim had to face such serious tests that an adult could not stand. But the courage, nobility, honesty and kindness of this wonderful boy helped him cope with all the difficulties!

The Crimson Circle

Edgar Wallace

The mysterious Crimson Circle is a high-level protection society: pay them, or you die. Every wealthy man goes in fear of them if hes smart, and dies if he isnt. This is a criminal genius who recruits people in trouble, rescues them with help or cash, and puts them to work on robbery, blackmail and murder. At least one man is dead after refusing to pay L100,000. Will there be more bodies? The Circle has many minions, including the mysterious and beautiful Thalia Drummond, and many wealthy and high-powered potential victims. Derrick Yale and Inspector Parr track down the criminals in a race against time in this classic British detective thriller by the master of mystery Edgar Wallace.

The Idiot

Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky

Into a compellingly real portrait of nineteenth-century Russian society, Dostoevsky introduces his ideal hero, the saintly Prince Lev Nikolaevich Myshkin. Returning to St. Petersburg from a Swiss sanatorium, the gentle and nave epileptic Myshkin, the last, poverty-stricken member of a once great family and regarded by many as an idiot, pays a visit to his distant relative General Yepanchin and proceeds to charm the General and his family. Here he sees a picture of Nastasya Fillipovna and falls in love with her. Things get complicated when he proposes her and she rejects him for a man of dubious character called Rogozhin. Myshkin finds love in Aglaya but all hell loose breaks when once again Nastasya decides that she is still in love with the Prince. Utterly infatuated, he soon finds himself caught up in a love triangle and drawn into a web of blackmail, betrayal, and finally, murder. In Prince Myshkin, the author portrays the purity of a truly beautiful soul and explores the perils that innocence and goodness face in a corrupt world. A tragicomic masterpiece.

Poezje. Wybór

Tadeusz Gajcy

Tom zawiera wybór poezji Tadeusza Gajcego, polskiego poety czasu wojny i żołnierza Armii Krajowej. W wierszach, które powstawały przed drugą wojną światową, widoczne jest pragnienie filozoficznego zrozumienia świata, losu i życia człowieka. Przeważa ton refleksyjny, pesymistyczny i momentami buntowniczy, lecz pojawiają się także pozytywne akcenty. W poezji z czasu wojny Gajcy podejmuje problemy ponadczasowe: dojrzewania, poszukiwania wartości, budowania fundamentów dla dorosłego życia. To, co wyróżnia wojenną poezję Gajcego na tle innych poetów tamtego okresu, to przede wszystkim odmienny, niepowtarzalny styl pisania o brutalnej rzeczywistości. Okrucieństwa okupacji ukazuje poeta w postaci apokaliptycznych wizji, które nie odbierają nic z ich okropności, a za to nie nużą dosłownością opisu.

An American Angler in Australia

Zane Grey

Australia recalls the images of the Great Barrier Reef, large white sharks, huge crocodiles and friendly people. Zane Gray was fishing and fishing everywhere, but he was often delighted with the Pacific Ocean, especially around Australia and New Zealand. Most of the fish caught by American fishermen in Australia are sharks (large white, tiger, even a few slopes!).

Poezja polskiego oświecenia

Praca zbiorowa

Niekwestionowanym mistrzem polskiej poezji oświeceniowej był Ignacy Krasicki, w którego satyrach jak w krzywym zwierciadle odbijał się świat ludzi i obyczajów. Gorzkie prawdy ujmował on w lekkie, sarkastyczne formy, które potęgowały prześmiewczy wydźwięk i jeszcze bardziej skłaniały do refleksji. Obok Krasickiego na uwagę zasługuje także sentymentalna twórczość Franciszka Karpińskiego oraz skandalizujące utwory Tomasza Kajetana Węgierskiego.

Horsztyński

Juliusz Słowacki

Dramat opowiada o synu zdrajcy hetmana Szymona, Szczęsnym Kossakowskim, który zostaje wplątany w dworskie intrygi, będące częścią planów ojca i powstańców kościuszkowskich. Klasyka godna polecenia.

Rouletabille w zakładach Kruppa

Gaston Leroux

Powieść kryminalno-sensacyjna opisujące kolejną z przygód sympatycznego reportera-detektywa Józefa Rouletabilla. Przed bohaterem kolejne zadania i kolejne zagadki. Tym razem musi dołożyć wszelkich starań, aby odkryć tajemnicę w zakładach Kruppa.

Król Edyp

Sofokles

Król Edyp to jedna z niewielu zachowanych tragedii Sofoklesa. Została napisana ok. 427 r. p.n.e. Inspiracją do jej powstania był mit tebański, którego tematem są tragiczne dzieje rodu Labdakidów. Tytułowy bohater to człowiek, który chce żyć spokojnie i w zgodzie ze światem. Ciąży jednak nad nim klątwa, od której nie da się uwolnić. Kazirodztwo i ojcobójstwo są niewybaczalnymi przewinieniami. Piętno pozostaje także na dzieciach (rodzeństwie) Edypa. Tragedia przedstawia bezsilność wobec nieodgadnionych praw losu.