Anting-Anting Stories, and Other Strange Tales of the Filipinos

Anting-Anting Stories, and Other Strange Tales of the Filipinos

Sargent Kayme

Classics

The Anting-Anting is both talisman and fetich: it is the Filipino version of good medicine. The characters and situations in these eleven stories are from an earlier, less progressive era. These stories contain adventure, mystical elements, pirates, pearls, man-apes, towering volcanoes, strange animals and birds, and even stranger men, pythons, bejuco ropes stained with human blood, feathering palm trees at one moment fanned by soft tropical breezes and the next uprooted and hurled aside by tornadoes. Mr. Kayme tells the eleven stories, and tells them cleverly,from the point of a non-Filipino looking in on Filipino life and makes no attempt to imitate Kipling. Kayme\'s "Anting-Anting" stories give the native Filipino of unmixed blood a place in western fiction. In the late 19th C. he was favourably compared to the North American Indian of the same era. But that was over 100 years ago and perceptions and attitudes have changed a lot since 1901. So pickup this interesting volume, settle into a comfy chair and enter into the colourful world of Filipino life, folk beliefs and superstitions of a hundred years ago. And if you should ever visit the Philippines, don\'t be surprised to find that these superstitions are as prevalent today as they were a century ago.
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The Prank

The Prank

Anton Chekhov

Classics / Fiction / Humor and Comedy

Twelve early comedic short stories by the Russian master of the form.An NYRB Classics OriginalThe Prank is Chekhov’s own selection of the best of his early work, the first book he put together and the first book he hoped to publish. Assembled in 1882, with illustrations by Nikolay Chekhov, the book was then presented to the censor for approval—which was denied. Now, more than a hundred and thirty years later, The Prank appears here for the first time in any language.At the start of his twenties, when he was still in medical school, Anton Chekhov was also busily setting himself up as a prolific and popular writer. Appearing in a wide range of periodicals, his shrewd, stinging, funny stories and sketches turned a mocking eye on the mating rituals and money-grubbing habits of the middle classes, the pretensions of aspiring artists and writers, bureaucratic corruption, drunken clowning, provincial ignorance, petty cruelty—on Russian...
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The Reunion

The Reunion

Paul Jackson

Classics / Plays / Drama

Jacob had dreams of becoming a great reporter but could never have imagined what horror his first ever interview would have in store for him.Old Harvey James had kept his dark and sinister tale secret for many years but now it was time to reveal it. Will Jacob live to tell the old man's story?Due to fan feedback I've released this edition with an additional 84 pages and 4 new chapters. Enjoy! Do you love Thrillers? Take a wild ride with: danger, intrigue, betrayal, and the dark exploration of self- jaw-dropping revelations, and intense characters. This new, fast-paced story may be too much for some to handle, as it leaves many feeling: on edge, shocked, and haunted by the nature of humanity. Rory Chambers is an extreme sports expert who helps people to partake in every adrenaline inducing experience that California has to offer. However, his life becomes complicated when it is discovered that, due to a special protein produced by his body, his blood can cure a variety of terminal illnesses, including deadly cancers, and pathogens such as HIV. When the medical experts report their inability to create a vaccine artificially, Rory finds that there is no shortage of rich and powerful people who are desperate for a second chance... Desperate enough to carve it straight from his body. Regardless of what his career in extreme sports has taught Rory about fear; nothing can prepare him for the unpredictable ride, and lascivious betrayals that are borne by the human psyche. When his blood is valued at over $500,000 a pint, and so many dying people are looking for another chance; how will he keep the world from draining him of everything? For a thrilling experience that is not to be missed, order a copy today!
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Near to the Wild Heart

Near to the Wild Heart

Clarice Lispector

Fiction & Literature / Experimental / Classics

Near to the Wild Heart is Clarice Lispector's first novel, written from March to November 1942 and published around her twenty-third birthday. The novel, written in a stream-of-consciousness style reminiscent of the English-language Modernists, centers around the childhood and early adulthood of a character named Joana, who bears strong resemblance to her author: "Madame Bovary, c'est moi", Lispector said, quoting Flaubert, when asked about the similarities. The book, particularly its revolutionary language, brought its young, unknown creator to great prominence in Brazilian letters and earned her the prestigious Graça Aranha Prize. Joana, a young woman very much in the mode of existential contemporaries like Camus and Sartre, ponders the meaning of life, the freedom to be one's self, and the purpose of existence. Near to the Wild Heart does not have a conventional narrative plot. It instead recounts flashes from the life of Joana, between her present, as a young woman, and her early childhood. These focus, like most of Lispector's works, on interior, emotional states of mind.
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Courtesans and Opium

Courtesans and Opium

AnonYMous

Religion / Classics / Nonfiction

In his preface, the anonymous author of Courtesans and Opium describes his book as an act of penance for thirty years spent patronizing the brothels of Yangzhou. Written in the 1840s, his story is filled with vice and dark consequence, portraying the hazards of the city's seedy underbelly and warning others against the example of the Fool.Chinese literature's first true "city novel," Courtesans and Opium recounts the illustrious career of a debauched soul enveloped by enthralling pursuits and romantic illusions. While socially acceptable marriages were arranged and often loveless, brothels offered men accomplished courtesans who served as both enchanting companions and sensual lovers. These professional sirens dressed in the latest styles and dripped with gold, silver, and jewels. From an early age, they were taught to excel at various arts and graces, which transformed the brothel into a kind of club for men to meet, exchange gossip, and smoke opium at... In his preface, the anonymous author of Courtesans and Opium describes his book as an act of penance for thirty years spent patronizing the brothels of Yangzhou. Written in the 1840s, his story is filled with vice and dark consequence, portraying the hazards of the city's seedy underbelly and warning others against the example of the Fool. Chinese literature's first true "city novel," Courtesans and Opium recounts the illustrious career of a debauched soul enveloped by enthralling pursuits and romantic illusions. While socially acceptable marriages were arranged and often loveless, brothels offered men accomplished courtesans who served as both enchanting companions and sensual lovers. These professional sirens dressed in the latest styles and dripped with gold, silver, and jewels. From an early age, they were taught to excel at various arts and graces, which transformed the brothel into a kind of club for men to meet, exchange gossip, and smoke opium at their leisure. The Fool's fable follows five sworn brothers and their respective relationships with Yangzhou courtesans, revealing in acute detail the lurid materialism of this dangerous world—its violence and corruption as well as its seductive but illusory promise. Never before translated into English, Courtesans and Opium offers a brilliant window into the decadence of nineteenth-century China. Patrick Hanan (1927–2014) was Victor S. Thomas Professor of Chinese Literature at Harvard University. He was one of the foremost translators of Chinese fiction from the fourteenth to the twentieth century. His books include Chinese Fiction of the Nineteenth and Early Twentieth Centuries, which contains a study of this novel. His translations include Silent Operas, The Carnal Prayer Mat, A Tower for the Summer Heat, The Sea of Regret, The Money Demon, and Falling in Love.
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Goody Two Shoes

Goody Two Shoes

Anonymous

Religion / Classics / Nonfiction

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it.This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. To ensure a quality reading experience, this work has been proofread and republished using a format that seamlessly blends the original graphical elements with text in an easy-to-read typeface.We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.
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The Cherry Orchard

The Cherry Orchard

Anton Chekhov

Classics / Fiction / Humor and Comedy

Published to tie in with the world premiere at the Abbey Theatre, Dublin In Chekhov's tragi-comedy - perhaps his most popular play - the Gayev family is torn by powerful forces, forces rooted deep in history and in the society around them. Their estate is hopelessly in debt: urged to cut down their beautiful cherry orchard and sell the land for holiday cottages, they struggle to act decisively. Tom Murphy's fine vernacular version allows us to re-imagine the events of the play in the last days of Anglo-Irish colonialism. It gives this great play vivid new life within our own history and social consciousness.
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  • 386
The Story of the Treasure Seekers

The Story of the Treasure Seekers

E. Nesbit

Children's / Classics / Poetry

The Story of the Treasure Seekers is a novel by E. Nesbit. First published in 1899, it tells the story of Dora, Oswald, Dicky, Alice, Noel, and Horace Octavius (H. O.) Bastable, and their attempts to assist their widowed father and recover the fortunes of their family; its sequels are The Wouldbegoods (1899) and The New Treasure Seekers (1904). The novel\'s complete name is The Story of the Treasure Seekers: Being the Adventures of the Bastable Children in Search of a Fortune. The original edition included illustrations by H. R. Millar. The Puffin edition (1958) was illustrated by Cecil Leslie. The story is told from a child\'s point of view. The narrator is Oswald, but on the first page he announces:
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  • 386
Lost Face

Lost Face

Jack London

Literature & Fiction / Adventure / Classics

Lost Face is a collection of seven short stories by Jack London. It takes its name from the first short story in the book, about a European adventurer in the Yukon who outwits his (American) Indian captors\' plans to torture him. The book includes London\'s best-known short story, "To Build a Fire".
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  • 386
Daisys Work: The Third Commandment

Daisy's Work: The Third Commandment

Joanna H. Mathews

Fiction / Childrens / Classics

Leopold Classic Library is delighted to publish this classic book as part of our extensive collection. As part of our on-going commitment to delivering value to the reader, we have also provided you with a link to a website, where you may download a digital version of this work for free. Many of the books in our collection have been out of print for decades, and therefore have not been accessible to the general public. Whilst the books in this collection have not been hand curated, an aim of our publishing program is to facilitate rapid access to this vast reservoir of literature. As a result of this book being first published many decades ago, it may have occasional imperfections. These imperfections may include poor picture quality, blurred or missing text. While some of these imperfections may have appeared in the original work, others may have resulted from the scanning process that has been applied. However, our view is that this is a significant literary work, which deserves to be brought back into print after many decades. While some publishers have applied optical character recognition (OCR), this approach has its own drawbacks, which include formatting errors, misspelt words, or the presence of inappropriate characters. Our philosophy has been guided by a desire to provide the reader with an experience that is as close as possible to ownership of the original work. We hope that you will enjoy this wonderful classic book, and that the occasional imperfection that it might contain will not detract from the experience.
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Wylders Hand

Wylder's Hand

Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

Horror / Classics

Joseph Thomas Sheridan Le Fanu was born on August 28th, 1814, at 45 Lower Dominick Street, Dublin, into a literary family with Huguenot, Irish and English roots. The children were tutored but, according to his brother William, the tutor taught them little if anything. Le Fanu was eager to learn and used his father\'s library to educate himself about the world. He was a creative child and by fifteen had taken to writing poetry. Accepted into Trinity College, Dublin to study law he also benefited from the system used in Ireland that he did not have to live in Dublin to attend lectures, but could study at home and take examinations at the university as and when necessary. This enabled him to also write and by 1838 Le Fanu\'s first story The Ghost and the Bonesetter was published in the Dublin University Magazine. Many of the short stories he wrote at the time were to form the basis for his future novels. Indeed, throughout his career Le Fanu would constantly revise, cannabilise, embellish and re-publish his earlier works to use in his later efforts. Between 1838 and 1840 Le Fanu had written and published twelve stories which purported to be the literary remains of an 18th-century Catholic priest called Father Purcell. Set mostly in Ireland they include classic stories of gothic horror, with grim, shadowed castles, as well as supernatural visitations from beyond the grave, together with madness and suicide. One of the themes running through them is a sad nostalgia for the dispossessed Catholic aristocracy of Ireland, whose ruined castles stand in mute salute and testament to this history. On 18 December 1844 Le Fanu married Susanna Bennett, the daughter of a leading Dublin barrister. The union would produce four children. Le Fanu was now stretching his talents across the length of a novel and his first was The Cock and Anchor published in 1845. A succession of works followed and his reputation grew as well as his income. Unfortunately, a decade after his marriage it became an increasing source of difficultly. Susanna was prone to suffer from a range of neurotic symptoms including great anxiety after the deaths of several close relatives, including her father two years before. In April 1858 she suffered an "hysterical attack" and died in circumstances that are still unclear. The anguish, profound guilt as well as overwhelming loss were channeled into Le Fanu’s work. Working only by the light of two candles he would write through the night and burnish his reputation as a major figure of 19th Century supernaturalism. His work challenged the focus on the external source of horror and instead he wrote about it from the perspective of the inward psychological potential to strike fear in the hearts of men. A series of books now came forth: Wylder\'s Hand (1864), Guy Deverell (1865), The Tenants of Malory (1867), The Green Tea (1869), The Haunted Baronet (1870), Mr. Justice Harbottle (1872), The Room in the Dragon Volant (1872) and In a Glass Darkly. (1872). But his life was drawing to a close. Joseph Thomas Sheridan Le Fanu died in Merrion Square in his native Dublin on February 7th, 1873, at the age of 58.
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