August Strindberg

A Madman's Defense, one of the series of autobiographical novels by the great Swedish playwright, gives the author's version of his marriage to his first wife, Siri von Essen. The book is a searing and astonishingly frank account of the dissolution of a union in which the protagonist depicts himself slowly being driven mad as his wife mocks his work and his manhood, consorts with other men, and leaves him to live with a Lesbian friend. Although this book stands on its own as a novel, it has particular interest for the student of Strindberg's dramatic works. As Evert Sprinchorn points out in his Introduction: "A Madman's Defense is one of the most fascinating of Strindberg's works for the light it sheds on his genius as a playwright. The situation it presents is resolved in The Father, which was written before it, and in which the wife is permitted to drive her husband to utter insanity. In Miss Julie and The Creditors, which followed closely upon Defense, the Siri-Strindberg relationship is studied from two other points of view, both clearly set forth in the novel. Few authors have let us examine so closely the creative process -- the process by which 'real experiences' are subjected to the pattern-making genius of the artist to produce different versions of the truth."

"With his wit, eloquence and shrewd perception of contemporary morals, Samuel Johnson was the most versatile of Augustan writers. His dictionary, dramas and poetry established his reputation, but it was the essays published in The Rambler, The Adventurer and The Idler that demonstrated the range of his talent. Tackling ethical questions such as the importance of self-knowledge, awareness of mortality, the role of the novel, and, in a lighter vein, marriage, sleep and deceit, these brilliant and thought-provoking essays are a mirror of the time in which they were written and a testament to Johnson's stature as the leading man of letters of his age." "This new edition contains a broad selection of essays presenting both the forcefully argued moral pieces of Johnson's middle years and the more light-hearted essays of his later work. The introduction places the works in their historical and literary context, and there is also a chronology of Johnson's life and times."--Jacket.

The Adventure of the Speckled Band, by Arthur Conan Doyle Death Arrives on Schedule, by Hansjörg Martin The Feeling of Power, by Isaac Asimov The Expedition, by Rudolf Lorenzen The Cegua, by Robert D. San Souci Master and Man, by Leo Tolstoy Just Lather, That's All by Hernando Téllez Nervous Conditions, by Tsitsi Dangarembga Marriage Is a Private Affair, by Chinua Achebe Cranes, by Hwang Sun-won Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Gir, by Anne Frank Letter to Indira Tagore, by Rabindranath Tagore Letter to the Rev. J. H. Twichell, by Mark Twain When Heaven and Earth Changed Places, by Le Ly Hayslip By Any Other Name, by Santha Rama Rau Kaffir Boy, by Mark Mathabane China Men, by Maxine Hong Kingston The Last Seven Months of Anne Frank, by Willy Lindwer Account Evened With India, Says P.M., From Dawn Tests Are Nowhere Near India's: Fernandes, From The Times of India Pakistan Nuclear Moratorium Welcomed, From the BBC Online Network The Frightening Joy, From De Volkskrant Building Atomic Security, From Zycie Warszawy Macbeth, by William Shakespeare "Master Harold"... and the Boys, by Athol Fugard The Stronger, by August Strindberg The Diameter of the Bomb, by Yehuda Amichai Taking Leave of a Friend, by Li Po Thoughts of Hanoi, by Nguyen Thi Vinh Mindoro, by Ramón Sunico Ode to a Pair of Socks, by Pablo Neruda Haiku by Matsuo Bashō Haiku by Takarai Kikaku Haiku by Anonymous Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night, by Dylan Thomas Letter to the English, by Joan of Arc Nobel Lecture, by Alexander Solzhenitsyn Gettysburg Address, by Abraham Lincoln Inaugural Address, by John F. Kennedy Of Repentance, by Michel de Montaigne A Small Place, by Jamaica Kincaid A Modest Proposal, by Jonathan Swift Cup Inanity and Patriotic Profanity, From the Buenos Aires Herald Staying at a Japanese Inn: Peace, Tranquillity, Insects, by Dave Barry Why Can't We Have Our Own Apartment?, by Erma Bombeck Lohengrin, by Leo Slezak A Wedding Without Musicians, by Sholom Aleichem

Adapted from Finnish epic Kalevala.

David Almond turns his talents to drama in these two plays. Skellig is the dramatization of his highly acclaimed novel. What has Michael found in the derelict garage? What is this creature that lies in the darkness? Is it human, or a strange beast never seen before? And what will happen in the world when he carries it out into the light? Wild Girl, Wild Boy is an original play produced in London by the Pop-Up Theatre company. Young Elaine has recently lost her father, and now she spends her days dreaming in the family's garden, skipping school, unable to read or write. One day, Elaine conjures up a Wild Boy from spells and fairy seed. No one else can see him, and Elaine disappears into a world of fantasy where she and Wild Boy remember the teachings of her father. Will her mother ever come to understand? These two plays introduce a new talent from the remarkable David Almond.

Nick Montgomery had been pulling Dani Devereaux out of scrapes since they were kids. But now Dani wondered if she'd finally gone too far--appearing on his doorstep at midnight, interrupting his hot date with an even hotter redhead.... Would her handsome best friend ever forgive her? He hadn't seemed especially pleased to see her.. .. Of course, Dani had never dreamed that this adventure would lead both her and Nick into working with the FBI--or that they would have to pose as a happily engaged couple to trap a spy! Though she knew the truth, their performance became quite real to their families and the public ... and Nick's brotherly pecks suddenly turned into passionate, heart-stopping kisses. Was it an act? Or were they about to ruin a wonderful friendship ... by falling in love?