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A Passage to India
E. Forster
From Wikipedia:
A Passage to India is a 1924 novel by English author E. M. Forster set against the backdrop of the British Raj and the Indian independence movement in the 1920s. It was selected as one of the 100 great works of 20th century English literature by the Modern Library and won the 1924 James Tait Black Memorial Prize for fiction. Time magazine included the novel in its "All Time 100 Novels" list. The novel is based on Forster's experiences in India, deriving the title from Walt Whitman's 1870 poem "Passage to India" in Leaves of Grass.
The story revolves around four characters: Dr. Aziz, his British friend Mr. Cyril Fielding, Mrs. Moore, and Miss Adela Quested. During a trip to the fictitious Marabar Caves (modeled on the Barabar Caves of Bihar), Adela thinks she finds herself alone with Dr. Aziz in one of the caves (when in fact he is in an entirely different cave; whether the attacker is real or a reaction to the cave is ambiguous), and subsequently panics and flees; it is assumed that Dr. Aziz has attempted to assault her. Aziz's trial, and its run-up and aftermath, bring to a boil the common racial tensions and prejudices between Indians and the British during the colonial era.

The Big Trip Up Yonder
Kurt Vonnegut
Vonnegut wrote several short stories on the topic of overpopulation. As we wrestle in the present day with a global population ballooning above 8 billion people, Vonnegut's portrait of a world dealing with shortages ranging from food, gas, and building materials feels more prophetic than bizarre.
In this short story, Vonnegut explores the sinister side of a family trying to stay in the good graces of their patriarch as he makes preparations for "the big trip up yonder."

The Red Badge of Courage
Stephen Crane
From Wikipedia:
The Red Badge of Courage is a war novel by American author Stephen Crane (1871–1900). Taking place during the American Civil War, the story is about a young private of the Union Army, Henry Fleming, who flees from the field of battle. Overcome with shame, he longs for a wound, a "red badge of courage", to counteract his cowardice. When his regiment once again faces the enemy, Henry acts as flag-bearer, carrying the regimental colors.
Although Crane was born after the war, and had not at the time experienced battle first-hand, the novel is known for its realism and naturalism. He began writing what would become his second novel in 1894, using various contemporary and written accounts (such as those published previously by Century Magazine) as inspiration. It is believed that he based the fictional battle on that of Chancellorsville; he may also have interviewed veterans of the 124th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment, commonly known as the Orange Blossoms. Initially shortened and serialized in newspapers in December 1894, the novel was published in full in October 1895. A longer version of the work, based on Crane's original manuscript, was published in 1982.
The novel is known for its distinctive style, which includes realistic battle sequences as well as the repeated use of color imagery, and ironic tone. Separating itself from a traditional war narrative, Crane's story reflects the inner experience of its protagonist (a soldier fleeing from combat) rather than the external world around him. Also notable for its use of what Crane called a "psychological portrayal of fear", the novel's allegorical and symbolic qualities are often debated by critics. Several of the themes that the story explores are maturation, heroism, cowardice, and the indifference of nature. The Red Badge of Courage garnered widespread acclaim, what H. G. Wells called "an orgy of praise",[3] shortly after its publication, making Crane an instant celebrity at the age of twenty-four. The novel and its author did have their initial detractors, however, including author and veteran Ambrose Bierce. Adapted several times for the screen, the novel became a bestseller. Never out of print, it is Crane's most important work and a major American text
The Janus Run
Douglas Skelton
When Coleman Lang finds his girlfriend Gina dead in his New York City apartment, he thinks nothing could be worse... until he becomes the prime suspect.
Desperate to uncover the truth and clear his name, Coleman hits the streets. But there's a deranged Italian hitman, an intuitive cop, two US Marshals, and his ex-wife all on his tail. And trying to piece together Gina's murky past without dredging up his own seems impossible. Worse, the closer he gets to Gina's killer, the harder it is to evade the clutches of the mysterious organisation known only as Janus – from which he'd long since believed himself free.
Packed with plot twists, suspense and an explosive climax, The Janus Run is an edge-of-the-seat, breathtaking thriller – NYC noir at its finest.

Anne of the Island
L. Montgomery
Anne of the Island is L. M. Montgomery's third book in the Anne of Green Gables series. It picks up after the events of Anne of Avonlea, and sees Anne leaving her home on Prince Edward Island to attend college in Nova Scotia.
For the first time in her life, Anne is able to experience her life as she sees fit. Though she had a fulfilling childhood and adolescence back in Green Gables, she must decide for herself how to best respond to the surprises that await her at Redmond College. Before her return to Green Gables, she'll develop lasting friendships, fret over suitors, and discover her own identity—which finally allows her to identify that her true love was always before her.

Essays
Ralph Emerson
Ralph Waldo Emerson was one of the forerunners of the American transcendentalist movement in the mid-1800s. At a time when the predominant spiritual theory stated that man was inherently evil, Emerson offered a counterpoint: that goodness was inherent in both man and nature, and to experience the mundane was in itself a spiritual experience.
This collection includes some of his most famous essays, including:
- The American Scholar
- Compensation
- Self-Reliance
- Friendship
- Heroism
- Manners
- Gifts
- Nature
- Shakespeare; Or, the Poet
- Prudence
- Circles

Andersen's Fairy Tales
Hans Christian Andersen
In his lifetime, Hans Christian Andersen attained greatness for his numerous plays and novels, but it is his fairy tales that brought him his most enduring fame. In fact, Andersen's stories are arguably the greatest example of the fairy tale genre, as their themes and principles are unique in their universal appeal. Today, Andersen's influence continues to reverberate through time, as his fairy tales find new life in retellings, remakes, and rehashings from storytellers around the world. Even Disney and Studio Ghibli pay homage to him through some of their most memorable productions.
This collection contains some of his most notable stories, including:
- The Emperor's New Clothes
- The Swineherd
- The Real Princess
- The Shoes of Fortune
- The Fir Tree
- The Snow Queen
- The Leap-Frog
- The Elderbush
- The Bell
- The Old House
- The Happy Family
- The Story of a Mother
- The False Collar
- The Shadow
- The Little Match Girl
- The Dream of Little Tuk
- The Naughty Boy
- The Red Shoes

The Innocence of Father Brown
G. K. Chesterton
From Wikipedia:
Father Brown is a fictional Roman Catholic priest and amateur detective. He features in 53 short stories by English author G. K. Chesterton, published between 1910 and 1936. Father Brown solves mysteries and crimes using his intuition and keen understanding of human nature. Chesterton loosely based him on the Rt Rev. Msgr John O'Connor (1870–1952), a parish priest in Bradford, who was involved in Chesterton's conversion to Catholicism in 1922. Since 2013, the character has been portrayed by Mark Williams in the ongoing BBC Television Series Father Brown.

The Last of the Mohicans: A Narrative of 1757
James Fenimore Cooper
From Wikipedia:
The Last of the Mohicans: A Narrative of 1757 is an historical romance novel written by James Fenimore Cooper in 1826.
It is the second book of the Leatherstocking Tales pentalogy and the best known to contemporary audiences. The Pathfinder, published 14 years later in 1840, is its sequel; its prequel, The Deerslayer, was published a year after The Pathfinder. The Last of the Mohicans is set in 1757, during the French and Indian War (the North American theater of the Seven Years' War), when France and Great Britain battled for control of North America. During this war, both the French and the British used Native American allies, but the French were particularly dependent, as they were outnumbered in the Northeast frontier areas by the British. Specifically, the events of the novel are set immediately before, during, and after the Siege of Fort William Henry.
The novel is set primarily in the area of Lake George, New York, detailing the transport of Colonel Munro's two daughters, Alice and Cora, to a safe destination at Fort William Henry. Among the caravan guarding the women are the frontiersman Natty Bumppo, Major Duncan Heyward, singing teacher David Gamut, and the Indians Chingachgook and Uncas, the latter two being the novel's title characters. These characters are sometimes seen as a microcosm of the budding American society, particularly with regard to their racial composition.
The novel has been one of the most popular English-language novels since its publication and is frequently assigned reading in American literature courses. It has been adapted numerous times and in many languages for films, TV movies, and cartoons.

The Cabala
Thornton Wilder
The Cabala was Thornton Wilder's first novel, and cemented him as one of the greatest American writers of his day. In fact, two years after the publication of The Cabala, Wilder would go on to win a Pulitzer for his follow-up novel, The Bridge of San Luis Rey.
The Cabala, written as a semiautobiographical novel of Wilder's own experiences, captures the first-person observations an educated young American in post-World War 1 Rome. There, he's introduced to a group of intellectuals who, despite their storied past, are seeing their influence wane. But the group is charmed and intrigued by the narrator, whom they dub Samuele, and its members begin to treat them as their confidant in their myriad dramas.
Upon its release, The Cabala was lauded as a genre-defying masterpiece: it provokes in the reader a sense of fantasy in what would otherwise be a straightforward historical fiction.

Anne of Avonlea
L. Montgomery
Anne of Avonlea picks up where Anne of Green Gables left readers. Anne, now sixteen years old, is now teaching at the nearby Avonlea school, while she simultaneously furthers her own studies alongside Gilbert. Anne's encounters with both her students and her neighbors prompt her to reflect on her own teaching methods, and the reader—through Anne—experiences many of the pains and joys associated with the teaching vocation.
Notably, Montgomery vocalizes her own criticisms of contemporary education methods through her work, electing to have her protagonist explore the merits and virtues of the work of education reformers like John Dewey.

King Solomon's Mines
H. Rider Haggard
from Wikipedia:
King Solomon's Mines (1885) is a popular novel[1] by the English Victorian adventure writer and fabulist Sir H. Rider Haggard. It tells of a search of an unexplored region of Africa by a group of adventurers led by Allan Quatermain for the missing brother of one of the party. It is one of the first English adventure novels set in Africa and is considered to be the genesis of the lost world literary genre. Haggard dedicated this book to his childhood idol Humphry Davy.