There was once upon a time a piece of wood in the shop of an old carpenter named Master Antonio. Everybody, however, called him Master Cherry, on account of the end of his nose, which was always as red and polished as a ripe cherry. No sooner had Master Cherry set eyes on the piece of wood than his face beamed with delight, and, rubbing his hands together with satisfaction, he said softly to himself: "This wood has come at the right moment; it will just do to make the leg of a little table."He immediately took a sharp axe with which to remove the bark and the rough surface, but just as he was going to give the first stroke he heard a very small voice say implor-ingly, "Do not strike me so hard!"He turned his terrified eyes all around the room to try and discover where the little voice could possibly have come from, but he saw nobody! He looked under the bench—nobody; he looked into a cupboard that was always shut—nobody; he looked into a basket of shavings and sawdust—nobody; he even opened the door of the shop and gave a glance into the street—and still nobody. Who, then, could it be?

Unul dintre cei mai de seam romancieri americani contemporani.“ – (Graham Greene) Teribil de amuzant... La fel de bun precum cele mai bune romane ale sale, Leagnul pisicii, Abatorul cinci...“ – (John Irving) Un adevrat triumf. Probabil cel mai bun dintre romanele sale.“ – (Joseph Heller) Romanul cel mai actual, cel mai realist din cte a scris Vonnegut. Un mare scriitor satiric i un moralist pus pe otii.“ – (The New York Times) Vonnegut este George Orwell, doctorul Caligari i Flash Gordon, amestecai laolalt ntr-un singur scriitor – un savant dement, caraghios, dar de o nalt inut etic.“ – (Time)

“Star Maker”, regarded as one of the true classics of science fiction, Star Maker is a poetic and deeply philosophical work. The story details the mental journey of an unnamed narrator who is transported not only to other worlds but also other galaxies and parallel universes, until he eventually becomes part of the "cosmic mind." First published in 1937, Olaf Stapledon's descriptions of alien life are a political commentary on human life in the turbulent inter-war years. The book challenges preconceived notions of intelligence and awareness, and ultimately argues for a broadened perspective that would free us from culturally ingrained thought and our inevitable anthropomorphism. This is the first scholarly edition of a book that influenced such writers as C.S. Lewis and Arthur C. Clarke and which Jorge Luis Borges called "a prodigious novel."? Some Books of Stapledon: Last and First Men (1930) Sirius: A Fantasy of Love and Discord (1944) Odd John: A Story Between Jest and Earnest (1935) Last Men in London (1932) A Modern Magician (1979) Death into Life (1946) Darkness and the Light (1942) A World of Sound (1936) A Man Divided (1950) The Seed and the Flower (1916)

n doar cteva zile, Peter McDowell pierde tot ceea ce a ctigat muncind din greu – averea, casa, existena sa de investitor bancar de succes. Ca i cum asta nu ar fi fost de ajuns, ceea ce urmeaz este i mai ru. Prbuirea bursei de valori nu doar c l aduce pe Peter n situaia de a deveni omer, ci provoac o ruptur n csnicia lui, pe care nu o poate repara. Lipsit de orice mijloace materiale, el are un singur loc n care s se retrag: o caban aflat pe malul unui lac, pe care a motenit-o de la prinii si, care i-au lsat cea mai mare parte a averii lor modeste fratelui geamn al lui Peter. Neavnd alt alegere, fiul risipitor se ntoarce acas. Medic iubit ntr-un orel, familist devotat i stlp al comunitii, Michael McDowell i ajut pe ceilali fr s in cont de ctigul personal. ns numai Peter tie cum i-a manipulat Michael pe prinii lor, atunci cnd bieii erau tineri, fapt care a dus, n cele din urm, la plecarea lui Peter. La nceput, el se teme de ntlnirea cu Michael, dar, spre surprinderea sa, revederea lor este tandr i autentic. Abia mai trziu, cnd Peter examineaz jurnalele mamei sale, adevrul iese la iveal, iar nelegerea i panica ncep s-i fac loc. Cine este fratele lui geamn Este adevrat faada pe care o afieaz sau ceva nfricotor se ascunde sub ea Este imaginaie sau o realitate prea nspimnttoare pentru a fi crezut ntr-o curs contracronometru, Peter las la o parte orice pruden pentru a afla adevrul. Ceea ce descoper va schimba pentru totdeauna viaa celor doi frai, viaa copiilor acestora i un ora ntreg.

"Hast thou seen that lordly castle,?That castle by the sea??Golden and red above it?The clouds float gorgeously." ??Do you remember Gratian—Gratian Conyfer, the godson of the four winds, the boy who lived at the old farmhouse up among the moors, where these strange beautiful sisters used to meet? Do you remember how full of fancies and stories Gratian's little head was, and how sometimes he put them into words to please Fergus, the lame child he loved so much? ??The story I am now going to tell you is one of these. I think it was their favourite one. I can not say that it is in the very words in which Gratian used to tell it, for it was not till long, long after those boyish days that it came to be written down. But all the same it is his story. About Author: Mary Louisa Molesworth, née Stewart (1839 – 1921) was an English writer of children's stories who wrote for children under the name of Mrs Molesworth. Her first novels, for adult readers, Lover and Husband (1869) to Cicely (1874), appeared under the pseudonym of Ennis Graham. She was born in Rotterdam, a daughter of Charles Augustus Stewart (1809–1873) who later became a rich merchant in Manchester and his wife Agnes Janet Wilson (1810–1883). Mary had three brothers and two sisters. She was educated in Great Britain and Switzerland: much of her girlhood was spent in Manchester. In 1861 she married Major R. Molesworth, nephew of Viscount Molesworth; they legally separated in 1879. Mrs Molesworth is best known as a writer of books for the young, such as Tell Me a Story (1875), Carrots (1876), The Cuckoo Clock (1877), The Tapestry Room (1879), and A Christmas Child (1880). She has been called "the Jane Austen of the nursery," while The Carved Lions (1895) "is probably her masterpiece." In the judgement of Roger Lancelyn Green: Mary Louisa Molesworth typified late Victorian writing for girls. Aimed at girls too old for fairies and princesses but too young for Austen and the Brontes, books by Molesworth had their share of amusement, but they also had a good deal of moral instruction. The girls reading Molesworth would grow up to be mothers; thus, the books emphasized Victorian notions of duty and self-sacrifice. Typical of the time, her young child characters often use a lisping style, and words may be misspelt to represent children's speech—"jography" for geography, for instance.She took an interest in supernatural fiction. In 1888, she published a collection of supernatural tales under the title Four Ghost Stories, and in 1896 a similar collection of six tales under the title Uncanny Stories. In addition to those, her volume Studies and Stories includes a ghost story entitled "Old Gervais" and her Summer Stories for Boys and Girls includes "Not exactly a ghost story." A new edition of The Cuckoo Clock was published in 1914.

Andrew J. Rush a atins acel tip de succes de critic? ?i comercial la care majoritatea scriitorilor ?ndr?znesc doar s? viseze: are un agent ?i un editor ?n New York, iar cele dou?zeci ?i opt de romane poli?iste ale sale s-au v?ndut ?n milioane de exemplare. Dar Rush ascunde un secret ?ntunecat. Sub pseudonimul ?Jack of Spades“ – Valetul de Pic? –, el scrie o alt? serie de romane noir, thrillere violente, lugubre, masochiste. C?nd fiica lui g?se?te una dintre aceste c?r?i, ea ?ncepe s? pun? ?ntreb?ri. ?ntre timp, Rush prime?te o cita?ie ?n instan?? de la o femeie care ?l acuz? c? i-a plagiat propriile scrieri. Astfel, reputa?ia, cariera ?i via?a de familie ale lui Rush sunt amenin?ate, iar ?n mintea lui ?ncepe s? aud? vocea sarcastic? a lui Jack of Spades. ?Exact atunci c?nd crezi c? ai ?n?eles totul, Joyce Carol Oates te uime?te ?nc? o dat?. ?i o face ?n stil mare.“

Al sentir un roce en el cuello, Fernando de Ojeda soltó la pluma y levantó la cabeza. Una palmera enana movía detrás de él con balanceo repentino sus anchas manos de múltiples y puntiagudos dedos. Para evitarse este contacto avanzó el sillón de junco, pero no pudo seguir escribiendo. Algo nuevo había ocurrido en torno de él mientras con el pecho en el filo de la mesa y los ojos sobre los papeles huía lejos, muy lejos, acompa?ado en esta fuga ideal por el leve crujido de la pluma. Vio con el mismo aspecto exterior cosas y personas al salir de su abstracción; pero una vida interna, ruidosa y móvil parecía haber nacido en las cosas hasta entonces inanimadas, mientras la vida ordinaria callaba y se encogía en las personas, como poseída de súbita timidez.??Sus ojos, fatigados por la escritura, huían de las ampollas eléctri-cas del techo, inflamadas en plena tarde, para reposarse en los rectángulos de las ventanas que encuadraban el azul grisáceo de un día de invierno. La blancura de la madera laqueada temblaba con cierto reflejo húmedo que parecía venir del exterior. Dos salones agrandados por la escasez de su altura eran el campo visual de Ojeda. En el primero, donde estaba él, mezclábase a la blancura uniforme de la decoración el verde charolado de las palmeras de inver-náculo, el verde pictórico de los enrejados de madera tendidos de pilastra a pilastra y el verde amarillento y velludo de unas parras artificiales, cuyas hojas parecían retazos de terciopelo. Sillones de floreada cretona en torno de las mesas de bambú formaban islas, a las que se acogían grupos de personas para embadurnar con manteca y mermeladas el pan tostado, husmear el perfume del té o seguir el burbujeo de las aguas minerales te?idas de jarabes y licores. ? AUTOR: Vicente Blasco Ibanez nacio el 29 de enero de 1867 en Valencia (Espana). Era hijo de Ramona Ibanez y del comerciante Gaspar Blanco. Estudio Derecho en la Universidad de Valencia. Participo en la politica uniendose al Partido Republicano". En 1894 fundo el periodico El pueblo. En el ano 1896, fue detenido y condenado a varios meses de prision. En 1889 contrajo matrimonio con Maria Blasco del Cacho, hija del magistrado Rafael Blasco y Moreno. Cuando subio al poder Canovas del Castillo, el escritor se exilio brevemente en la ciudad de Paris. Fue un autor vinculado en muchos aspectos al naturalismo frances. Por otra parte, la explicita intencion politicosocial de algunas de las novelas de Blasco Ibanez, aunada al escaso bagaje intelectual del autor, lo mantuvo alejado de los representantes de la Generacion del 98. Murio el 28 de enero de 1928 en Menton (Francia)a los 60 anos. Entre sus titulos destacan: "Arroz y Tartana" (1894), "La Barraca" (1898), "Entre Naranjos (1900), "Canas y Barro" (1902), "La Horda" (1905), "Sangre y Arena" (1908) o "Los Cuatro Jinetes Del Apocalipsis" (1916).

Bir gece anszn kan ter iinde uyand. Evin klar kapal ve saat daha 02.30’du. Uyuyal 1 saatten biraz daha fazla olmutu. Etrafna baknarak nerede olduunu anlamaya alt. Mantar pano ve üzerinde holden gelen clz kla zar zor seilen bir fotoraf tandk geldi. Dikdrtgen, güne ndan solmu kue bir kda baslan fotorafta, nianls n plandayd. Tantklar günlerde vermilerdi bu pozu. Sevgilisi yani u anki nianls o anda, sanki rüyasn biliyormuasna tehlike anlar alyormu gibi bakyordu. Kendine gelmeye balad. Rüya ile gerei ayrt edebildiinde derin bir nefes ald. Yaz yaklayordu. Mays aylarnn ortasyd. Hava geceleri odann olduu cepheden esen serin ilkbahar rüzgryla doluyordu. Balkon kaps akt. Adrenalin ve baskdan oluan teri, rüzgrn ve sakinlemenin etkisiyle souyordu. Kalkt; mutfaa gidip su iti yataa tekrar dndüünde gzleri fal ta gibi almt. nce aklnn ona oyun oynadn düündü, hemen odann n ap tekrar bakt. Yanlmyordu. Grdükleri gerekti ve tam yatan ortasnda duruyordu.

Once upon a time there lived a King and a Queen who had one daughter called Rainbow. When she was christened, the people of the city were gathered together outside the cathedral, and amongst them was an old gipsy woman. The gipsy wanted to go inside the cathedral, but the Beadle would not let her, because he said there was no room. When the ceremony was over, and the King and Queen walked out, followed by the Head Nurse who carried the baby, the gipsy called out to them:?"Your daughter will be very beautiful, and as happy as the day is long, until she sees the Spring!" And then she disappeared in the crowd.?The King and the Queen took counsel together and the King said: "That gipsy was evidently a fairy, and what she said bodes no good."?"Yes," said the Queen, "there is only one thing to be done: Rainbow must never see the Spring, nor even hear that there is such a thing."??So an order was issued to the whole city, that if any one should say the word "Spring" in the presence of Princess Rainbow he would have his head cut off. Moreover, it was settled that the Princess should never be allowed to go outside the palace, and during the springtime she should be kept entirely indoors.??The King and the Queen lived in a city which was on the top of a hill, and had a wall round it, and the King's palace was in the middle of it. In the springtime Rainbow was taken to a high tow-er which looked on to the little round city, and from her window you could see the spires of the churches, the ramparts, and the broad green plain beyond. But a curtain made of canvas was fas-tened outside Rainbow's window, so that she could see nothing, and she was not allowed to go outside her tower until the spring-time was over.??Rainbow grew up into a most beautiful Princess, with grey eyes and fair hair, and until she was sixteen all went well, and nothing happened to interfere with her happiness.

THE history of the Vikings is not, as you might think, the story of a band of sea-pirates who roved the seas in search of plunder. It is rather the story of a race of brave and hardy Northmen who became sea-rovers because the rights and the freedom which their fathers had cherished were being taken from them.Their fathers had lived on their own lands and had been freemen, but the sons were asked to become king's men and hold their land only at the king's pleasure. Rather than give up their ancient rights many of the Northmen became Vikings, and to them the sea-roving life was a noble one, full of high enterprise and ambition.It was no easy matter to become a member of a Viking band. Even a great chief, before he could be admitted, must prove his strength and give an account of the deeds of prowess he had already done.Thus it was an honour to belong to a band of Vikings, an honour which spurred the lads of the North to bold deeds, to mighty feats, that they might be counted worthy to become members of one or another of the famous bands.It is of the customs and battles, of the lives and deaths of these wild Northmen that I have told you in this little book.As these men are, as you will hear, ancestors of our own, you will perhaps wish to know more about them than I have been able to tell you.If that is so, when you grow older, you can read the Sagas or histories of these Northmen which were written by the Skalds, or, as we would call them, the poets of those olden days.In these Sagas you will meet with many strange adventures and see many great battlefields which you will not find in this little book.

This is the third, and probably the last, of the Fairy Books of many colours. First there was the Blue Fairy Book; then, children, you asked for more, and we made up the Red Fairy Book; and, when you wanted more still, the Green Fairy Book was put together. ??The stories in all the books are borrowed from many countries; some are French, some German, some Russian, some Italian, some Scottish, some English, one Chinese. However much these nations differ about trifles, they all agree in liking fairy tales. The reason, no doubt, is that men were much like children in their minds long ago, long, long ago, and so before they took to writing newspapers, and sermons, and novels, and long poems, they told each other stories, such as you read in the fairy books. They believed that witches could turn people into beasts, that beasts could speak, that magic rings could make their owners invisible, and all the other wonders in the stories.??Then, as the world became grown-up, the fairy tales which were not written down would have been quite forgotten but that the old grannies remembered them, and told them to the little grandchildren: and when they, in their turn, became grannies, they remembered them, and told them also. In this way these tales are older than reading and writing, far older than printing. The oldest fairy tales ever written down were written down in Egypt, about Joseph's time, nearly three thousand five hundred years ago. Other fairy stories Homer knew, in Greece, nearly three thousand years ago, and he made them all up into a poem, the Odyssey, which I hope you will read some day. Here you will find the witch who turns men into swine, and the man who bores out the big foolish giant's eye, and the cap of darkness, and the shoes of swiftness, that were worn later by Jack the Giant-Killer. ??These fairy tales are the oldest stories in the world, and as they were first made by men who were childlike for their own amusement, so they amuse children still, and also grown-up people who have not forgotten how they once were children.

The success of "The Children's Book of Christmas Stories" has encouraged the Editor to hope that a similar collection of stories about Thanksgiving would prove useful to parents, librarians, and teachers, and enjoyable to children. Like the former book, this one is exactly what the title would indicate—a select collection of children's stories closely connected with our American festival.The short descriptive note placed before each story will be of use in choosing a tale suited to one's audience in reading aloud.May the present volume make as many friends as did its older brother! [A. D. D.] Older boys and girls who are familiar with "The Courtship of Miles Standish" will enjoy the colonial flavour of this tale of 1705. "OBED!" called Mistress Achsah Ely from her front porch, "step thee over to Squire Belding's, quick! Here's a teacup! Ask Mistress Belding for the loan of some molasses. Nothing but molasses and hot water helps the baby when he is having such a turn of colic. Beseems me he will have a fit! Make haste, Obed!" At that very moment Squire Belding's little daughter Hitty was travelling toward Mistress Ely's for the purpose of borrowing molasses wherewith to sweeten a ginger cake. Hitty and Obed, who were of an age, met, compared notes, and then returned to their respective homes. Shortly afterward both of them darted forth again, bound on the same errands as before, only in different directions. Mr. Chapin, the storekeeper, hadn't "set eyes on any mo-lasses for a week. The river's frozen over so mean and solid," he said, "there's no knowing when there'll be any molasses in town."

THERElies before me, as I write, a quaint old book; from this little book—torn and soiled, its edges all gone—nearly all the stories in this volume are drawn. In their earliest childhood Hungarian children hear the story of "Forget-me-Not" (Nfelejts), the history of the "Twin Hunchbacks", and the doings of the wicked Sultana in the "Magic Cat" In my little book is the shell of these stories told simply and in few words. Who was the originator of them I do not think any one knows, for I have found in many instances the same incidents occurring in the fairy tales of most nations. A modified form of the vain fairy Narcissa is revived in "Little Snow White," and , if I mistake not, an incident similar to that in "The Twin Hunchbacks." But then again, who has ever traced the origin of all the proverbs and jokes that exist, and have existed for generations, in two score or more Eastern and Western, Latin, Teutonic, or Slavonic languages Old Hungarian legends, just like old Hungarian music, have to the national mind no palpable origin, though Jókay or Gaal have rewritten the former and Liszt or Brahms have familiarized the world with the latter. The following little collection has helped me in my childhood to pass many pleasant hours, so I now give them to my little English readers—embellished by many drawings—in the hope that they may derive as much pleasure from this little volume of magic and adventure as I did from my old torn copy of "Nepmesek." IN a certain country there dwelt a prince whose name was Elkabo. He had a dear little daughter called Uletka, who was a most sweet child. She and her father lived quite alone in an old castle with four towers, that stood in a beautiful glade in the centre of a great forest. Uletka was a most dainty and lovely little maid, her wings—she had wings, being related to a fairy—had grown quite strong, and glistened in the sunshine, reflecting all the colours of the rainbow. So sweet and graceful was little Uletka, that perhaps you would imagine she had no faults. Unfortunately she had one, which a wicked and revengeful fairy, who was offended with Nastia, her mother, had endowed her with, and this was the dreadful fault of Curiosity.

n anii 1870, Jacques Rebière i Thomas Midwinter, doi tineri ambiioi, descoper c au aceeai fascinaie de a nelege cum funcioneaz mintea omeneasc.Cercetrile lor n noul domeniu al psihiatriei i poart dintr-un ospiciu englezesc de la ar n cmpiile Africii, din slile de conferin ale Parisului n Alpii austrieci i n California. i nsoesc n aceast cltorie iniiatic Sonia, sora devotat a lui Thomas, i Katharina, o fost pacient, a crei sosire n sanatoriul lor de boli nervoase dezvluie pentru prima dat direciile diferite ale cercetrii lor. La trecerea ntr-un nou secol i n vreme ce Europa este divizat de Primul Rzboi Mondial, cei doi prienteni sunt constrni la o tragic introspecie a propriilor idealuri i credine.Impresionant i provocator n acelai timp, romanul lui Sebastian Faulks caut rspuns la ntrebarea ce fel de fiine suntem noi, oamenii, i dac nu cumva nebunia este preul pe care l pltim pentru a fi umani.Cel mai ambiios roman al lui Sebastian Faulks de pn acum… Dragoste, loialitate, curaj, compasiune, generozitate… acetia sunt polii n jurul crora graviteaz povetile sale.“ – The Independent

The Great Gatsby is a 1925 novel written by American author F. Scott Fitzgerald that follows a cast of characters living in the fictional town of West Egg on prosperous Long Island in the summer of 1922. The story primarily concerns the young and mysterious millionaire Jay Gatsby and his quixotic passion and obsession for the beautiful former debutante Daisy Buchanan. Considered to be Fitzgerald's magnum opus, The Great Gatsby explores themes of decadence, idealism, resistance to change, social upheaval, and excess, creating a portrait of the Jazz Age or the Roaring Twenties that has been described as a cautionary tale regarding the American Dream. Fitzgerald—inspired by the parties he had attended while visiting Long Island's north shore—began planning the novel in 1923, desiring to produce, in his words, "something new—something extraordinary and beautiful and simple and intricately patterned." Progress was slow, with Fitzgerald completing his first draft following a move to the French Riviera in 1924. The Great Gatsby received mixed reviews and sold poorly; in its first year, the book sold only 20,000 copies. Fitzgerald died in 1940, believing himself to be a failure and his work forgotten. However, the novel experienced a revival during World War II, and became a part of American high school curricula and numerous stage and film adaptations in the following decades. Today, The Great Gatsby is widely considered to be a literary classic and a contender for the title "Great American Novel". In 1998 the Modern Library editorial board voted it the 20th century's best American novel and second best English-language novel of the same time period.

William Elliot Griffis, was born in Philadelphia in 1843, author William Elliot Griffis was an extremely prolific author and published several books of fairy tales in the 1900's. An active minister in the United States in the 1800's, he worked in several churches in Boston and New York, before retiring from ministry in 1903 to write and lecture. His extensive bibliography includes works about Japanese culture and heritage, and he helped author Inazo Nitobe write the renowned Bushido: The Soul of Japan. As author and professor, his many trips to Europe, and especially the Netherlands, helped shape his appreciation of European cultures. Over the years, he would go on to publish collections of folklore from across the world, with titles such as Japanese Fairy World: Thirty-five Stories from the Wonderlore of Japan, The Firefly's Lovers and Other Fairy Tales of Old Japan, Belgian Fairy Tales, Swiss Fairy Tales, Welsh Fairy Tales, Korean Fairy Tales and Japanese Fairy Tales. Although he isn't as well known as Hans Christian Anderson, Griffis indeed contributed much to the world of folklore. He also received two Japanese orders (Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon) and (Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Rosette). THE ENTANGLED MERMAIDLONG TIME AGO, in Dutch Fairy Land, there lived a young mermaid who was very proud of her good looks. She was one of a family of mere or lake folks dwelling not far from the sea. Her home was a great pool of water that was half salt and half fresh, for it lay around an island near the mouth of a river..

„Nu cunosc nici un alt roman american care s? prezinte cu mai mult? acurate?e adev?rata Americ?. [Babbitt] este un document social de prim rang.“ – H.L. Mencken, cronic? la apari?ia romanului, 1922 „Mi-a? dori s? fi scris eu Babbitt.“ – H.G. Wells „Babbitt este un om de afaceri modest, nu îndeajuns de important pentru a lupta cu institu?iile sacre c?rora americanul de rând ?i-a vândut sufletul ca s? se poat? bucura de pace ?i prosperitate. Înfrângerea sa, descris? cu for?a, admirabila în?elepciune ?i umorul unui mare scriitor, este înfrângerea unei întregi na?iuni. De aceea cartea a provocat o atât de profund? tulburare în America ?i a avut un succes atât de durabil. În spiritul acesta trebuie s? o citim dac? vrem s-o în?elegem ?i s? fim impresiona?i de ceea ce are ea s? ne transmit?.“ – Paul Morand „[Lewis ...] a administrat Statelor Unite un pumn drept în plexul solar, a imortalizat un personaj tipic american ?i a ad?ugat limbii noastre câteva cuvinte care au devenit moned? curent?.“ – The Times Clasici moderni Litera pune laolalt? scriitori moderni ale c?ror opere au devenit deja repere clasice. Cele mai importante, mai provocatoare, mai emo?ionante, mai revolu?ionare opere din ultimii 125 de ani – c?r?i care vor continua s? fie citite de la o genera?ie la alta.

Hercule Poirot pare c? ?i-a g?sit ?n sf?r?it un adversar pe m?sur?: un cartel criminal cu puteri nelimitate, decis s? cucereasc? ?ntreaga lume. Atunci c?nd un musafir nea?teptat ?i vorbe?te, ?nainte de a muri, despre ?cei patru mari“, Poirot nici nu b?nuie?te c? acesta este ?nceputul unei lupte ce ?l va pune ?n pericol de moarte pe prietenul s?u Hastings ?i chiar pe el ?nsu?i. O ?nmorm?ntare nea?teptat?, un frate geam?n despre care nu s-a mai pomenit ?i o veche prieten? a lui Poirot vor provoca o r?sturnare spectaculoas? de situa?ie...

Where is the harm? The truth is that the Folk Lore Society—made up of the most clever, learned, and beautiful men and women of the country—is fond of studying the history and geography of Fairy Land. This is contained in very old tales, such as country people tell, and savages:??'Little Sioux and little Crow,?Little frosty Eskimo.'??These people are thought to know most about fairyland and its inhabitants. But, in the Yellow Fairy Book, and the rest, are many tales by persons who are neither savages nor rustics, such as Madame D'Aulnoy and Herr Hans Christian Andersen. The Folk Lore Society, or its president, say that their tales are not so true as the rest, and should not be published with the rest. But we say that all the stories which are pleasant to read are quite true enough for us; so here they are, with pictures by Mr. Ford, and we do not think that either the pictures or the stories are likely to mislead children.

WHILE I was engaged in writing the following brief work, again and again the question arose in my mind, “Can I make subjects so deep and difficult really interesting and intelligible to the young? The importance of reading Old Testament types in the light thrown on them by the Gospel cannot, indeed, be overrated, especially in these perilous times; but can a child be taught thus to read them?” The attempt thus to teach is made in the following pages; and I would earnestly request parents and teachers not merely to place the little volume in the hands of children as a prettily-illustrated story-book, but to read it with them, prepared to answer questions and to solve difficulties. Sun-day books should supplement, not take the place of, oral instruction. A writer may give earnest thought and labor to the endeavor to make religious subjects interesting to the young; but what influence has the silent page compared with that of a father expressing his own settled convictions, or that of a mother who has the power to speak at once to the head and the heart? "YOU have no right to spoil my desk, you tiresome, mischievous boy!”“I’ve not spoilt it, Agnes; I’ve only ornamented it by carving that little pattern all round.”“I don’t call that carving, nor ornamenting neither!” cried Agnes, in an angry voice; “you’ve nicked it all round with your knife, you’ve spoilt my nice little desk, and I’ll”— What threat Agnes might have added remains unknown, for her sentence was broken by a violent fit of coughing, whoop after whoop—a fit partly brought on by her passion. “What is all this, my children?” asked Mrs. Temple, drawn into the room called the study by the noise of the quarrel between her son and her eldest daughter.Lucius, a boy more than twelve years of age, and there-fore a great deal too old to have made so foolish a use of his knife, stood with a vexed expression on his face, looking at his poor sister, who, in the violence of her distressing cough, had to grasp the table to keep herself from falling; Amy, her kind younger sister had run to support her; while Dora and little Elsie, who had both the same complaint, though in a milder form than their sister, coughed with her in chorus.."

“That’s awfully strange!” exclaimed Coppertop.??“If a Book of Travels can’t move about a bit, who can?”?“Not a bit,” replied the Book without turning round. “I must improve my circulation somehow! And if a book of travels can’t move about a bit, who can, I should like to know?”??“Come along,” cried Tibbs.?While Coppertop was wondering what reply to make, the Book reached out its hand and pulled the blind, which went up with such force that it twirled round and round the roller at the top.?“What a day for the first of December!” exclaimed the Book. “I’m going to look for something better,” and so saying, it sat on the floor and rapidly turned over its own pages, saying as it did so:??“North, South, East, West,?Weather’s never at its best.?India, Egypt, or Japan,?Give us better, if you can.”?Coppertop blinked at the book of travels, and then at the window, unable to believe her eyes.??It was daybreak, and RAINING HARD.?“Oh dear, oh dear, how dreadfully botherating!” she exclaimed, almost in tears.??“I simply must get a fine December day somehow. It will never do for ‘them’ to arrive on a soaking wet day like this. It’s all the fault of that stupid old clerk of the weather, he does get things so mixed up! Why, this is more like a horrid July day!”?“That’s what it is,” muttered the Book of Travels.