The Memoirs of Cardinal de Retzby Cardinal de RetzHISTORIC COURT MEMOIRS.THE ENTIRE MEMOIRS OF JEAN FRANCOIS PAUL de GONDI, CARDINAL DE RETZWritten by HimselfBeing Historic Court Memoirs of the Great Events during the Minority ofLouis XIV. and the Administration of Cardinal Mazarin.ORIGINAL PREFACE.Our Author, John Francis Paul de Gondi, Cardinal de Retz, Sovereign of Commercy, Prince of Euville, second Archbishop of Paris, Abbot of Saint Denis in France, was born at Montmirail, in Brie, in October, 1614.His father was Philippe Emanuel de Gondi, Comte, de Joigni, General of the Galleys of Fra　

Travels with a Donkey in the Cevennesby Robert Louis Stevenson.My Dear Sidney Colvin,The journey which this little book is to describe was veryagreeable and fortunate for me. After an uncouth beginning, I hadthe best of luck to the end. But we are all travellers in whatJohn Bunyan calls the wilderness of this world - all, too,travellers with a donkey: and the best that we find in our travelsis an honest friend. He is a fortunate voyager who finds many. Wetravel, indeed, to find them. They are the end and the reward of...　

AGNES GREYAGNES GREYBy Anne Bronte1- Page 2-AGNES GREYCHAPTER I - THE PARSONAGEALL true histories contain instruction; though, in some, the treasuremay be hard to find, and when found, so trivial in quantity, that the dry,shrivelled kernel scarcely compensates for the trouble of cracking the nut.Whether this be the case with my history or not, I am hardly competent tojudge. I sometimes think it might prove useful to some, and entertaining...　

ANTHOLOGY OF MASSACHUSETTS POETSANTHOLOGY OFMASSACHUSETTSPOETSWILLIAM STANLEY BRAITHWAITE, Editor1- Page 2-ANTHOLOGY OF MASSACHUSETTS POETSAMERICA THE BEAUTIFULO BEAUTIFUL for spacious skies, For amber waves of grain, Forpurple mountain majesties Above the fruited plain! America! America!God shed His grace on thee And crown thy good with brotherhood >Fromsea to shining sea!...　

The Moon and SixpenceThe Moon and Sixpenceby W. Somerset MaughamAuthor of "Of Human Bondage"1- Page 2-The Moon and SixpenceChapter II confess that when first I made acquaintance with Charles StricklandI never for a moment discerned that there was in him anything out of theordinary. Yet now few will be found to deny his greatness. I do not...　

Castle RackrentCastle RackrentBy Maria Edgeworth1- Page 2-Castle RackrentINTRODUCTIONIThe story of the Edgeworth Family, if it were properly told, should beas long as the ARABIAN NIGHTS themselves; the thousand and onecheerful intelligent members of the circle, the amusing friends and...　

FAIRY TALES OF HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSENUNDER THE WILLOW-TREEby Hans Christian AndersenTHE region round the little town of Kjoge is very bleak andcold. The town lies on the sea shore, which is always beautiful; buthere it might be more beautiful than it is, for on every side thefields are flat, and it is a long way to the forest. But whenpersons reside in a place and get used to it, they can always findsomething beautiful in it,- something for which they long, even in themost charming spot in the world which is not home. It must be owned...　

　　 HIS NAME WAS THORNE. In the ancient language of the runes, it had been longer-Thornevald. But when he became a blood drinker, his name had been changed to Thorne. And Thorne he remained now, centuries later, as he lay in his cave in the ice, dreaming.　 When he had first e to the frozen land, he had hoped he would sleep eternally. But now and then the thirst for blood awakened him and using the Cloud Gift, he rose into the air, and went in search of the Snow Hunters.　 He fed off them, careful never to take too much blood from any one so that none died on account of him. And when he neede　

　　　　Like an uncoiling serpent, a line of fighting chariots wound swiftly down the gut of the valley. From where he clung to the dashboard of the leading chariot the boy looked up at the cliffs that hemmed them in. The sheer rock was pierced by the openings to the tombs of the old people that honeybed the cliff. The dark pits stared down at him like the implacable eyes of a legion of djinn. Prince Nefer Memnon shuddered and looked away, furtively making the sign to avert evil with his left hand.　　　　Over his shoulder he glanced back down the column and saw that from the following chariot Taita 　

　　　I am a vampire, and that is the truth. But the modern meaning of the word vampire, the stories that have been told about creatures such as I, are not precisely true. I do not turn to ash in the sun, nor do I cringe when I see a crucifix. I wear a tiny gold cross now around my neck, but only because I like it. I cannot mand a pack of wolves to attack or fly through the air. Nor can I make another of my kind simply by having him drink my blood. Wolves do like me, though, as do most predators, and I can jump so high that one might imagine I can fly. As to blood-ah, blood, the whole subject fa　

　　December 6, 1996　　Epworth Heights Luddington, Michigan　　My Dearest Kay,　　1 am sitting on the porch, staring out at Lake Michigan as a sharp wind reminds me I need to cut my hair. 1 am remembering when we were here last, both of us abandoning who and what we are for one precious moment in the history of our time. Kay, I need you to listen to me.　　You are reading this because I am dead When I decided to write it, 1 asked Senator Lord to deliver it to you in person in the early part of December, a year after my death. I know how hard Christmas has always been for you, and now it must be unbear　

Tacitus on Germanyby TacitusTranslated by Thomas GordonINTRODUCTORY NOTEThe dates of the birth and death of Tacitus are uncertain, but it isprobable that he was born about 54 A. D. and died after 117. He was acontemporary and friend of the younger Pliny, who addressed to himsome of his most famous epistles. Tacitus was apparently of theequestrian class, was an advocate by training, and had a reputation asan orator, though none of his speeches has survived. He held a numberof important public offices, and married the daughter of Agricola, the...　

ClocksClocksby Jerome K. Jerome1- Page 2-ClocksThere are two kinds of clocks. There is the clock that is alwayswrong, and that knows it is wrong, and glories in it; and there is the clockthat is always rightexcept when you rely upon it, and then it is morewrong than you would think a clock _could_ be in a civilized country.I remember a clock of this latter type, that we had in the house when I...　

FAIRY TALES OF HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSENTHE BUTTERFLYby Hans Christian AndersenTHERE was once a butterfly who wished for a bride, and, as maybe supposed, he wanted to choose a very pretty one from among theflowers. He glanced, with a very critical eye, at all the flower-beds,and found that the flowers were seated quietly and demurely on theirstalks, just as maidens should sit before they are engaged; butthere was a great number of them, and it appeared as if his searchwould become very wearisome. The butterfly did not like to take too...　

A WAIF OF THE PLAINSA WAIF OF THEPLAINSby Bret Harte1- Page 2-A WAIF OF THE PLAINSCHAPTER IA long level of dull gray that further away became a faint blue, withhere and there darker patches that looked like water. At times an openspace, blackened and burnt in an irregular circle, with a shred ofnewspaper, an old rag, or broken tin can lying in the ashes. Beyond these...　

　　ACKNOWLEDGMENTS　A debt of gratitude to Emily Bestler, Jason Kaufman, Ben Kaplan, and everyone at Pocket Books for their belief in this project.　To my friend and agent, Jake Elwell, for his enthusiasm and unflagging effort.　To the legendary George Wieser, for convincing me to write novels.　To my dear friend Irv Sittler, for facilitating my audience with the Pope, secreting me into parts of Vatican City few ever see, and making my time in Rome unforgettable.　To one of the most ingenious and gifted artists alive, John Langdon, who rose brilliantly to my impossible challenge and created the amb