Showing results by publisher "Dreamscape Media, LLC" in Classics

In Agatha Christie’s short story, “The Chocolate Box,” Poirot describes a case he was unable to solve. Investigating the apparent poisoning of a popular Belgian civil servant, Poirot goes undercover to expose the murderer, only to discover the case is not so tidy as he thinks. But who could have wanted the man dead? This short story originally appeared in the May 23, 1923 issue of The Sketch magazine.

In Agatha Christie’s short story, “The Tragedy at Marsdon Manor,” Poirot investigates the case of a middle-aged man who died under suspicious circumstances just weeks after insuring his life for 50,000 pounds. Could the man, who was in financial straits, have killed himself to benefit his beautiful young wife? This short story originally appeared in the April 18, 1923 issue of The Sketch magazine.

In 1797, young Billy Budd is impressed into naval service. It is a perilous time for a British Royal Navy still reeling from mutinies and marauding French ships. When Billy is forcibly transferred to HMS Bellipotent, he evokes the wrath of John Claggart, the ship's Master-at-arms. Claggart falsely accuses Billy of conspiracy to mutiny, a charge that will have a profound effect on the fates of both seamen.

In this science-fiction classic, a shooting star seen in the skies over Victorian England heralds an alien invasion. The Martians, in need of resources, have been shot from Mars via a huge space gun and have landed in Southern England, where they quickly overwhelm its inhabitants. As the battle for Earth begins, our unnamed narrator struggles to return to his wife amidst the fighting and devastation.

In New York's Catskill Mountains before the American Revolution, a Dutch American villager named Rip Van Winkle falls asleep and wakes up 20 years later without realizing how much time has passed. Unaware that the Revolutionary War has taken place, he must come to terms with the changes he encounters.

At one time, Jacob MacCallum had it all: wealth, a wonderful family, and a position as one of the most respected businessmen in Chicago. For the past 20 years, he's lived in an alcohol-induced haze, riddled with guilt for his role in the untimely death of his wife. Estranged from his children and penniless, he embarks on a journey to find his family and seek their forgiveness. On his path to redemption, he encounters a young girl whose friendship might be the key to reuniting the MacCallum family just in time for Christmas.

After studying piano as a child, Thea Kronborg leaves her family and their frontier town of Moonstone, Colorado, to pursue music in Chicago. There, her instructor insists that her singing voice is her greater gift, and she begins to work on mastering her craft. Seeking to become one of the world's greatest opera singers, she embarks on a journey of self-discovery and fulfillment that takes her across the world.

Considered to be French novelist Victor Hugo's masterpiece, Les Miserables, which was published in 1862, is a sprawling historical and philosophical epic that covers from 1815 through the Paris Uprising in 1832. Notable for its many subplots and digressions from the main storyline, the novel's stated aim is a progress from evil to good, from injustice to justice, from falsehood to truth, which can be seen most clearly in the story of the central character Jean Valjean, an ex-convict who struggles to shake the sins of his past and become a good man.

All Danika Frost wanted was to lead a normal life and go to college. It’s too bad destiny had other plans. After her mother is brutally attacked, Dani inherits the family business: protecting the world from things that go bump in the night. With the help of the Ink, ancient spirits who live in her skin as tattoos, Dani must hunt down demons and the necromancers who raise them. Alone in the dark city streets of Blackthorn, Dani meets a young girl named Cassie. Her sister is missing, and Dani recognizes the tell-tale signs of demonic possession.

Written in a decade when American music and literature were exploding in new directions, F. Scott Fitzgerald's Tales of the Jazz Age (1922) is a collection of 11 short stories that capture the spirit of the times. The author of The Great Gatsby divided this collection into three parts: My Last Flappers, Fantasies, and Unclassified Masterpieces. Among these beloved short works is the classic "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button", which describes a man who grows younger in appearance as he ages.

In the early 20th century, Anthony Patch, a socialite and presumptive heir to a tycoon's fortune, finds himself falling madly in love with another socialite. Self-absorbed and vain, Gloria Gilbert jumps at the chance to marry Anthony, and the pair embark on a downward spiral that illustrates their selfishness and leaves them both unfulfilled.

The year is 1922, and young Nick Carraway moves to the village of West Egg, where he discovers that his neighbor is the eclectic millionaire Jay Gatsby. As he and Gatsby become acquainted, Nick is thrown into a world full of dazzling parties, unrequited love, and unchecked idealism. Gatsby, surrounded by riches, yearns for the love of a woman who chose another man. He waits for her every night, using a green light at the end of his dock to call out to her from across the water.

Written in 1924, The Dream tells the story of a man from a utopian future who dreams the entire life of an Englishman from birth to his untimely death. Weaving the lives of Sarnac, a biologist from the year AD 4000, and Harry, a man whose life was ended too soon, Wells creates a mystical connection between two very different time periods. This classic science-fiction novel with a splash of romance has captivated audiences for generations.

In 1642, a pregnant Hester Prynne is found guilty of adultery, shunned by her neighbors, and forced to wear a scarlet letter 'A' on her dress. Meanwhile, Hester's husband - long thought to be lost at sea - has returned to Boston under the assumed name 'Roger Chillingworth' and plots to uncover her lover's identity. After her daughter Pearl is born, Hester is frequently visited by both Reverend Dimmesdale and Chillingworth, but always refuses to name her lover.

This short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald is included in the collection entitled Tales of the Jazz Age. It follows a 16-year-old boy from an affluent family in Mississippi on his way to the most exclusive preparatory school in the world. It is at this school that the boy, named John, meets Peter, a boy whose father is the richest man in the world. John is invited to stay in their home in the west on a break. As John learns more and more about the wealthy family, he discovers their dark, haunting secrets and finds himself running for his life.

Experience the height of the Jazz Age through the eyes of F. Scott Fitzgerald, one of the most notable authors in American literature. This collection includes: This Side of Paradise, The Beautiful and the Damned, The Great Gatsby.

Published in 1925, Ernest Hemingway's collection of short stories focuses on alienation, grief, separation, and loss. Nick, his semi-autobiographical character, appears in multiple stories throughout and is used to explore themes of male comradery, early love, and marriage problems. Known as Hemingway's most experimental book, In Our Time is considered one of Hemingway's early masterpieces.

The Fernalds are an elderly couple, alone now that their children are grown and, mostly, married. But one of their sons realizes how lonely they must be and decides to bring his family together for the holidays to surprise his parents. First published in 1908, this short novel was followed by a sequel, On Christmas Day in the Evening, in 1910.

The Fernalds, who now always share the holidays together, decide to try to reunite their community, as well, by reopening the village church after schisms have shut its doors. First published in 1910, this short tale continues the story of the Fernald family that began with the 1908 short novel On Christmas Day in the Morning.

In this sketch that features a young mountain girl, her family, and the feuding family across the street, Fitzgerald closes out his collection of Tales of the Jazz Age with this light and entertaining piece.