The Modern Library classics

First published in 1922, "The Waste Land" is T.S. Eliot's masterpiece, and is not only one of the key works of modernism but also one of the greatest poetic achievements of the twentieth century. A richly allusive pilgrimage of spiritual and psychological torment and redemption, Eliot's poem exerted a revolutionary influence on his contemporaries, summoning forth a rich new poetic language, breaking decisively with Romantic and Victorian poetic traditions. Kenneth Rexroth was not alone in calling Eliot "the representative poet of the time, for the same reason that Shakespeare and Pope were of theirs. He articulated the mind of an epoch in words that seemed its most natural expression."As influential as his verse, T.S. Eliot's criticism also exerted a transformative effect on twentieth-century letter, and this new edition of The Waste Land and Other Writings includes a selection of Eliot's most important essays. In her new Introduction, Mary Karr dispels some of the myths of the great poem's inaccessibility and sheds fresh light on the ways in which "The Waste Land" illuminates contemporary experience.From the Hardcover edition.

Basil March jumps at the chance to leave his boring job to become the founding editor of a new magazine. But this also means that he must leave comfortable Boston for the confusion and chaos of 1890s New York. As March and his wife try to find a decent place to live, he also struggles to find contributors and readers. The Marches are quickly drawn into the tangled lives of their fellow New Yorkers: a bitter German socialist who lost his hand fighting for the Union in the Civil War, a colonel nostalgic for slavery, Bohemian artists, increasingly desperate workers on strike, a slick publicist, a starchy society family, and a wealthy farmer-turned-speculator who hurts those he loves most. Born in Ohio, William Dean Howells was a highly successful magazine editor before he became a full-time writer. He believed that this midlife novel, which draws on his own family’s experiences moving from Boston to New York, was his “most vital work.” Mark Twain, whom Howells helped early in his career, called A Hazard of New Fortunes “the exactest & truest portrayal of New York and New York life ever written … a great book.”

Set amidst the vibrant colors and sounds of the savage African jungle, this classic work, rich in suspense and action, has beckoned generations of readers on a glorious journey to romance and pure adventure. This is the story of the ape-man Tarzan, raised in the wild by the great ape Kala, and how he learns the secrets of the jungle to survive -- how to talk with the animals, swing through the trees, and fight the great predators. As Tarzan grows up he makes many friends: Tantor the elephant, Ska the vulture, and Numa the lion. When this paradise is invaded by white men, Tarzan's life changes, for in this group is Jane, the first white woman he has ever seen. Speaking directly to our childhood fantasies, this exhilarating work takes us to that faraway place in our minds where dreams prevail, and where we, too, can be masters of our environment. - Back cover.

C'est dans la Thebaide, au haut d'une montagne, sur une plate-forme arrondie en demi-lune, et qu'enferment de grosses pierres. La cabane de l'ermite occupe le fond. Elle est faite de boue et de roseaux, a toit plat, sans porte. On distingue dans l'interieur une cruche avec un pain noir ; au milieu, sur une stele de bois, un gros livre ; par terre ca et la des filaments de sparterie, deux ou trois nattes, une corbeille, un couteau. a dix pas de la cabane, il y a une longue croix plantee dans le sol ; et a l'autre bout de la plate-forme, un vieux palmier tordu se penche sur l'abime, car la montagne est taillee a pic, et le Nil semble faire un lac au bas de la falaise. La vue est bornee a droite et a gauche par l'enceinte des roches. Mais du cote du desert, comme des plages qui se succederaient, d'immenses ondulations paralleles d'un blond cendre s'etirent les unes derriere les autres, en montant toujours ; puis au dela des sables, tout au loin, la chaine lybique forme un mur couleur de craie, estompe legerement par des vapeurs violettes. En face, le soleil s'abaisse. Le ciel, dans le nord, est d'une teinte gris perle, tandis qu'au zenith des nuages de pourpre, disposes comme les flocons d'une criniere gigantesque, s'allongent sur la voute bleue. Ces rais de flamme se rembrunissent, les parties d'azur prennent une paleur nacree ; les buissons, les cailloux, la terre, tout parait dur comme du bronze ; et dans l'espace flotte une poudre d'or tellement menue qu'elle se confond avec la vibration de la lumiere.

The definitive collection of Emerson's major speeches, essays, and poetry, The Essential Writings of Ralph Waldo Emerson chronicles the life's work of a true "American Scholar."As one of the architects of the transcendentalist movement, Emerson embraced a philosophy that championed the individual, emphasized independent thought, and prized "the splendid labyrinth of one's own perceptions." More than any writer of his time, he forged a style distinct from his European predecessors and embodied and defined what it meant to be an American. Matthew Arnold called Emerson's essays "the most important work done in prose."From the Trade Paperback edition.

Collects the poetry and correspondence of the English poet.

A collection of twenty-three stories about the Klondike gold rush of 1897 describes the brutal and frozen Yukon landscape and the extreme tactics men adopted to survive the ordeal.

Contains: Love on the Bon-Dieu -- [Beyond the Bayou]A visit to Avoyelles -- La belle Zorïade [i.e. Zoraïde] -- In Sabine -- Ozème's holiday -- A matter of prejudice -- At Chênière Caminada -- A respectable woman -- Regret -- Athénaïse -- A night in Acadie -- [The Awakening]

Poet, celebrity, and revolutionary, Lord (George Gordon) Byron was one of the most influential and controversial figures of the first half of the nineteenth century, his distinctive, deeply felt work comprising one of the enduring high points of Romantic literature. From "Manfred," with its evocation of the figure that came to be called the "Byronic hero," to the melancholy "Childe Harold," to the satirical masterpiece "Don Juan" (presented here in judiciously selected form), this Modern Library Paperback Classic includes all of the essential Byron.

This novel is perfect for anyone who’s been in a long-term relationship, or realized that the majority of their social time is spent with other couples. A great reminder that marriage is a marathon, not a sprint.

Naturalistic study of a stratum of upperclass life in America, set in a Pennsylvania town.

"The writings of Immanuel Kant became the cornerstone of all subsequent philosophical inquiry. They articulate the relationship between the human mind and all that it encounters and remain the most important influence on our concept of knowledge. As renowned Kant scholar Allen W. Wood writes in his Introduction, Kant "virtually laid the foundation for the way people in the last two centuries have confronted such widely differing subjects as the experience of beauty and the meaning of human history.""--BOOK JACKET.

"Like most great comedy," writes Darin Strauss in his Introduction, "Mr. Beluncle makes sport of the Stuffed Shirt, the Hypocritical Pious Gentleman, and the Tyrant, as well as the Big Spender--and all these descriptions fit a single character: Mr. Beluncle himself." One of V. S. Pritchett's most enduring characters, Mr. Beluncle is narcissistic, sanctimonious, and self-indulgent, yet despite these flaws he is undeniably compelling. Readers who follow this quirky British furniture salesman on his seemingly ordinary escapades--shopping for ridiculously expensive houses, attending services at his peculiar church, presiding over a tumultuous family meal--are in for a delightful and disquieting ride. Poignant, hilarious, and utterly unforgettable Mr. Beluncle is an ideal introduction to one of the English language's most gifted authors.From the Trade Paperback edition.

"The complexity and range of Robert Louis Stevenson's short fiction reveals his genius perhaps more than any other medium. Here, leading Stevenson scholar Barry Menikoff arranges and introduces the complete selection of Stevenson's brilliant stories, including the famed masterpiece Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, as well as "The Beach of Falesa" and Stevenson's previously uncollected stories.". "This Modern Library Paperback Classics edition includes explanatory notes, a Scots Glossary, and a unique appendix dedicated to Stevenson's influence on the Oxford English Dictionary."--BOOK JACKET.

"A work by turns hilarious and grim, Evelina tells the story of a young woman's education in the ways of the world, vividly rendering life in eighteenth-century England. Raised by a pastor after her mother died and her father abandoned her, Evelina leaves the seclusion of the country for her first season out, encounters all manner of people - from prospective husbands to rakes to vulgar relatives - and endures all manner of trials before she achieves her final triumph."--BOOK JACKET.

Examines the pervading influence of this eminent Greek philosopher through a collection of his major works.