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Winner of four Pulitzer Prizes for his poetry, Robert Frost is best remembered for his depictions of early 20th century rural New England life and for his command of American colloquial speech. Criticized by some as being out of touch with the Modernist movement in poetry exemplified by contemporaries such as T. S. Eliot and E. E. Cummings, it is probably in fact his adherence to traditionalism that so endeared him to his fans. Literary critic Randall Jarrell described Frost as one of “the greatest of the American poets of [the 20th] century” whose works were serious and honest and although often dealt with rather simple subjects were underlaid with an intense thematic complexity. For example the title poem of this collection “The Road Not Taken” is often interpreted as one about regret over choices not made and exemplifying the benefit of not following the crowd. Frost implied that it is however a comment about indecision and finding meaning in inconsequential decisions. Collected together here are three of Frost’s earliest collections, “A Boy’s Will”, first published in 1913, “North of Boston”, first published in 1914, and “Mountain Interval”, first published in 1916.
This Side of Paradise
Few author’s personal lives have been as intertwined with their writing as that of F. Scott Fitzgerald. The author’s popularity may have as much to do with the interest in his personal life as with his writing itself. The story behind “This Side of Paradise” certainly lends credence to this idea. When Fitzgerald’s future wife, Zelda Sayre, broke of their courtship in the summer of 1919, the author returned home to finish work on his first novel in hopes that its publication would bring him a literary fame and financial success that would change Zelda’s mind about the prospects of a life together as husband and wife. Despite being nearly rejected by editors at Scribner’s the novel was accepted and as a result Zelda agreed to marry him. Set during World War I and immediately following, the novel is the story of Amory Blaine, a young Midwesterner who leaves his home to attend boarding school and eventually Princeton. The book examines the lives and morality of the era’s youth through Amory’s character, who has a series of romances that eventually lead to his disillusionment. An immediate success ever since its original publication, “This Side of Paradise” would cement Fitzgerald’s position as one of America’s premier literary talents of the first part of the 20th century.
The Cat of Bubastes: A Tale of Ancient Egypt (Illustrated by John Reinhard Weguelin)
Originally published in 1888, “The Cat of Bubastes” is one of G. A. Henty’s most popular historical novels which takes place in ancient Egypt on or around 1250 BC. When the Rebu nation is conquered by the Egyptians and their king is killed, the young prince Amuba is carried away as a captive to Egypt, along with his faithful charioteer, Jethro. In the city of Thebes, Amuba becomes the servant and companion to Chebron, the son of Ameres, high priest of Osiris. Amuba and Jethro begin to uncover evidence of a murderous conspiracy within the ranks of the priesthood, however before they can prevent it they find that they must flee the city when they accidentally kill the successor to the Cat of Bubastes, one of the most sacred animals in all of Egypt. A captivating tale of adventure set during the height of the Egyptian empire, “The Cat of Bubastes” will entertain and delight fans of the historical fiction genre. This edition includes all of the original illustrations by John Reinhard Weguelin and a biographical afterword.
The Age of Innocence
First serialized in 1920 in the “Pictorial Review” magazine, “The Age of Innocence” is Edith Wharton’s Pulitzer Prize winning novel, which depicts the bygone era of 1870s New York upper class society. It is the story of Newland Archer, a lawyer and heir to one of New York’s most prominent families. Newland is planning to marry the young, beautiful, and sheltered May Welland, a match, which because of May’s social position, he views as highly desirable. However, when May’s exotic thirty-year-old cousin, the Countess Ellen Olenska, appears on the scene, he begins to question these plans. Newland is intrigued by Ellen’s exotic worldliness and begins to fall in love with her. Noted for Wharton’s attention to the details of late 19th century America, “The Age of Innocence” is an incredibly accurate portrayal of how the upper class lived on the East coast during that time. A classic and romantic story, the novel brilliantly depicts the demands of society to maintain outward appearances and the reputation of the family versus the demands of the heart to pursue true love.
The Virginian (with an Introduction by Struthers Burt)
First published in 1902, Owen Wister’s “The Virginian: A Horseman of the Plains” is a genre-defining work, arguably the first western novel, in which the life of the cowboy of the Old West is romanticized. A highly fictionalized account of the Johnson County War, a dispute in 1890s Wyoming between large cattle ranchers and smaller operators over land use, Wister’s novel is the story of a tall and handsome cowboy known only as the Virginian. At the outset of the novel we meet the Virginian through the words of an unnamed narrator at Medicine Bow, Wyoming, who is to be escorted over 260 miles to the cattle ranch of Judge Henry in Sunk Creek, Wyoming. Here we also meet the story’s relentless enemy, Trampas, who accuses the Virginian of cheating during a poker game. The Virginian is a man of honor bound by a chivalric code which prevents him from dispatching of his enemies in an underhanded manner despite numerous opportunities to do so. In this novel Wister evokes the untamed world of the American frontier brilliantly depicting its struggle to retain its romantic freedom against the civilizing forces of humanity. A sentimental longing for a simpler time, which characterizes our fascination with the western genre, will swell within the reader as he turns the pages of “The Virginian”. This edition includes an introduction by Struthers Burt.
Romeo and Juliet (Annotated by Henry N. Hudson with an Introduction by Charles Harold Herford)
Based upon an Italian tale which was translated by 16th century English poet Arthur Brooke into the narrative poem “The Tragical History of Romeus and Juliet,” Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” is one of the Bard’s most popular and frequently performed plays. Romeo who is a member of the house of Montague falls in love with the beautiful Juliet, a member of the house of Capulet. The Montagues and the Capulets have been engaged in a feud for many years and as such the love between Romeo and Juliet is a forbidden one. Written near the end of the 16th century, “Romeo and Juliet,” is one of Shakespeare's earliest dramas, the story of a love that can never be truly realized and the tragedy that ensues. Regarded as one of the greatest and most tragic love stories of all time, “Romeo and Juliet” is an archetypal story of star-crossed young lovers which has inspired countless imitations on both stage and screen. This edition is annotated by Henry N. Hudson, includes an introduction by Charles Harold Herford, and a biographical afterword.
Irish Fairy and Folk Tales
Born and educated in Dublin, Ireland, William Butler Yeats discovered early in his literary career a fascination with Irish folklore and the occult. Later awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1923, Yeats produced a vast collection of stories, songs, and poetry of Ireland’s historical and legendary past. These writings helped secure for Yeats recognition as a leading proponent of Irish nationalism and Irish cultural independence. Originally published in two separate books near the end of the nineteenth century, “Irish Fairy and Folk Tales” have preserved a rich and charming heritage in an authentic Irish voice. In this volume, extraordinary characters of Irish myth are brought to life through the brilliant poetic voice of W. B. Yeats. These legendary stories of capricious Trooping Fairies, the frightful Banshee, Kings and Queens, Giants, Devils and the ever popular Leprechaun will delight and entertain readers of all ages. This edition includes a biographical afterword.
The Pursuit of God
American Christian Pastor A. W. Tozer hailed from the Midwest where as a teenager he overheard a street preacher say, “If you don't know how to be saved … just call on God, saying, ‘Lord, be merciful to me a sinner.’” It was in this moment that he converted to Christianity and began his own pursuit of a more pious life. Of Tozer’s “The Pursuit of God” Samuel M. Zwemer remarks in his introduction that it “is the result of long meditation and much prayer. It is not a collection of sermons. It does not deal with the pulpit and the pew but with the soul athirst for God. The chapters could be summarized in Moses’ prayer, ‘Show me thy glory,’ or Paul’s exclamation, ‘O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God!’ It is theology not of the head but of the heart. … Here is a book for every pastor, missionary, and devout Christian. It deals with the deep things of God and the riches of His grace. Above all, it has the keynote of sincerity and humility.” Arguably Tozer’s most popular work “The Pursuit of God” will be an insightful read for every Christian who ventures down its path in pursuit of God.
The Pilgrim's Progress (Complete with an Introduction by Charles S. Baldwin)
John Bunyan was a man who felt, above all else, the need to preach the word of God. However during 17th century England it was illegal to preach outside the auspices of the Church of England. His failure to obey this law would land him in the Bedfordshire county jail twice, first for a period of twelve years, and then later for a period of six months. Bunyan could have avoided this harsh sentence if he had simply promised not to continue his preaching, however his faith would not allow him to do so. It was during this incarceration that he would begin composition of “The Pilgrim’s Progress,” a work that has come to be regarded as one of the most important works of religious English literature. First published in 1678, “The Pilgrim’s Progress” is a Christian allegory in the same vein of many such works of Bunyan’s time. It concerns the travel of an everyman named Christian who travels from his home, “The City of Destruction”, to “The Celestial City” atop Mount Zion. “The City of Destruction” is a parallel for this world and “The Celestial City” for the next. In this characterization the journey of Christian can be seen as the quest of man to escape the burden of Earthly sin and find salvation for his soul in heaven. This edition contains both the first and second part of “The Pilgrim’s Progress” and includes an introduction by Charles S. Baldwin.
Hard Times (with an Introduction by Edwin Percy Whipple)
Charles Dickens’s tenth novel, which was first published serially in Dickens’s own periodical journal “Household Words” in 1854, “Hard Times,” is a work that sought to highlight the social and economic divide that was growing between capitalistic mill owners and workers during the Victorian era of Great Britain. Set in the fictitious Coketown, “Hard Times” is a critical examination of the poor working conditions in many English factory towns of the time as well as the changing nature of the aristocracy and the working-class in the second half of the 19th century. The novel centers on the lives of Thomas Gradgrind, senior, the superintendent of the local school, his children, Louisa and Thomas, junior, and Sissy Jupe, a free-spirited circus girl who struggles to fit in as a student under the rigidly utilitarian instruction of the Gradgrind school. Through the lives of Gradgrind’s children, Dickens’s seeks to criticize the failure of excessively utilitarian philosophy which was so prevalent during his time. As Louisa finds herself in an unhappy marriage and Thomas, junior, descends into a life of moral corruption, their father begins to realize the shortcomings of the philosophy that he has so rigidly applied in raising them. This edition includes an introduction by Edwin Percy Whipple.