The Backwoods Settlement—Crusoe’s Parentage and Early History—The agonising pains and sorrows of his puppyhood, and other interesting matters. The dog Crusoe was once a pup. Now do not, courteous reader, toss your head contemptuously, and exclaim, “Of course he was; I could have told you that.” You know very well that you have often seen a man above six feet high, broad and powerful as a lion, with a bronzed shaggy visage and the stern glance of an eagle, of whom you have said, or thought, or heard others say, “It is scarcely possible to believe that such a man was once a squalling baby.” If you had seen our hero in all the strength and majesty of full-grown doghood, you would have experienced a vague sort of surprise had we told you—as we now repeat—that the dog Crusoe was once a pup—a soft, round, sprawling, squeaking pup, as fat as a tallow candle, and as blind as a bat. But we draw particular attention to the fact of Crusoe’s having once been a pup, because in connection with the days of his puppyhood there hangs a tale. This peculiar dog may thus be said to have had two tails—one in connection with his body, the other with his career. This tale, though short, is very harrowing, and, as it is intimately connected with Crusoe’s subsequent history, we will relate it here. But before doing so we must beg our reader to accompany us beyond the civilised portions of the United States of America—beyond the frontier settlements of the “far west,” into those wild prairies which are watered by the great Missouri river—the Father of Waters—and his numerous tributaries. Here dwell the Pawnees, the Sioux, the Delawares, the Crows, the Blackfeet, and many other tribes of Red Indians, who are gradually retreating step by step towards the Rocky Mountains as the advancing white man cuts down their trees and ploughs up their prairies. Here, too, dwell the wild horse and the wild ass, the deer, the buffalo, and the badger; all, men and brutes alike, wild as the power of untamed and ungovernable passion can make them, and free as the wind that sweeps over their mighty plains. There is a romantic and exquisitely beautiful spot on the banks of one of the tributaries above referred to—a long stretch of mingled woodland and meadow, with a magnificent lake lying like a gem in its green bosom—which goes by the name of the Mustang Valley. This remote vale, even at the present day, is but thinly peopled by white men, and is still a frontier settlement round which the wolf and the bear prowl curiously, and from which the startled deer bounds terrified away. At the period of which we write the valley had just been taken possession of by several families of squatters, who, tired of the turmoil and the squabbles of the then frontier settlements, had pushed boldly into the far west to seek a new home for themselves, where they could have “elbow room,” regardless alike of the dangers they might encounter in unknown lands and of the Red-skins who dwelt there. The squatters were well armed with axes, rifles, and ammunition. Most of the women were used to dangers and alarms, and placed implicit reliance in the power of their fathers, husbands, and brothers to protect them—and well they might, for a bolder set of stalwart men than these backwoodsmen never trod the wilderness.... Views: 227
Bernard Edward Joseph Capes was an English author. Capes was a prolific Victorian author, publishing more than forty volumes - romances, mysteries, poetry, history - together with many articles for the magazines of the day. His early writing career was as a journalist, later becoming editor of a paper called The Theatre, which was well known in late nineteenth century London. Other magazines for which Capes wrote included Blackwood's, Butterfly, Cassell's, Cornhill Magazine, Hutton's Magazine, Illustrated London News, Lippincott's, Macmillan's Magazine, Literature, New Witness, Pall Mall Magazine, Pearson's Magazine, The Idler, The New Weekly, and The Queen. Capes wrote numerous ghost stories, which were later rediscovered by anthologist Hugh Lamb in the 1970s. Views: 226
Dead Men\'s Money by J. S. Fletcher Views: 226
When Victoria A. Treemont, the most revered and reclusive woman in Ardsmore, Pennsylvania, passes away, she leaves behind a $160,000 scholarship fund that rocks the worlds of the students at Ardsmore High School.
The successful candidate must "exemplify purity of soul, spirit, and body." Everyone agrees that this caveat can mean only one thing: The recipient of the scholarship must still be holding on to the big V.Welcome to the V Club -- where members embrace abstinence, get off on civic duties, and heat up their chances to clinch the Treemont scholarship. What better way to prove purity than to pledge allegiance to the virginity flag? Besides, chastity belts are sooo 1300s.
Kai, Mandy, Debbie, and Eva have put their futures on the line. But will their deepest insecurities and darkest secrets ruin their chances at the scholarship, or worse, their relationships? Or will they discover the true meaning behind Mrs. Treemont's famous last words? Views: 225
The maid of the title is red-haired, dog-loving Wilhelmina "Billie" Bennett, and the three men are: Bream Mortimer, a long-time friend and suitor of Billie Eustace Hignett, a shy poet who is engaged to Billie at the opening of the tale Sam Marlowe, Eustace\'s dashing cousin, who falls in love with Billie "at first sight" The four of them find themselves together on an ocean liner sailing for England. Also on board is a capable young woman, Jane Hubbard, who is in love with Eustace. Wodehousian funny stuff ensues, with happy endings for all except Bream Mortimer. Views: 225
This is the book everyone has been waiting for—an inspiring celebration of the joy, challenges, and triumphs of being African American.
Combine Ilyana Vanzant and Terry McMillan, then include a dash of E. Lynn Harris, and you’ve got Chicken Soup for the African American Soul. This book captures the spirit of the community through inspiring storytelling that understands both the struggles and joys of being African American. From Jim Crow to the Civil Rights movement to today’s business leaders and gangsta culture, this book is a primer on black history. And like all Chicken Soup books, it’s a moving tribute to the small things—a moment of insight, a mentor, a lover, the loss of innocence—that make life worth living.
This great volume is focused on representing all facets of African American life—man and woman; young and old; rural, suburban, and urban; rich and poor; race conscious and mostly color-blind. Views: 225
First time in paperback-the saga of Mrs. Mike continues in the story of her granddaughter.
From her Cree mother, Kathy Little Bird has heard stories of her grandmother, Mrs. Mike. She has also learned to sing in the Cree tradition. It is a talent that will serve her well-and soothe her shattered soul-when she becomes a famous country music singer in the 1970s. Views: 225
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. Views: 224
Savannah Grant once had the reputation for being the wild sister-but no one, not even her twin, knew just how wild Savannah had once been. Now that past has come back to haunt her. Someone is murdering humans in Ripple Creek, and the murders are eerily similar to those she'd witnessed nearly ten years ago. Worse still, the man sent in to help with the investigation is the one man Savannah had hoped never to see again. The man who had taken her trust and her heart and smashed them both. Cade Jones is in Ripple Creek to catch the killer who'd escaped his noose ten years ago. What he doesn't expect to find is the woman who had very nearly caused his death. A woman who knew far more than she'd ever let on. A woman who'd slithered from his grasp as easily as the killer. This time, Cade has every intention of discovering what she knows-and every intention of holding her to the promises she'd made long ago. As the murders continue, it becomes evident that the killer isn't murdering at random, that it's all part of a larger plan-revenge. In order to survive, Savannah finds herself having to trust the one man she'd sworn never to trust again. But can Cade unravel the clues left from the past and the present in time to save them both, or will a killer's need for revenge snatch away their hopes of a future yet again? Views: 224
The first day of senior year:
Everything is about to change. Until this moment, Sal has always been certain of his place with his adoptive gay father and their loving Mexican-American family. But now his own history unexpectedly haunts him, and life-altering events force him and his best friend, Samantha, to confront issues of faith, loss, and grief.
Suddenly Sal is throwing punches, questioning everything, and discovering that he no longer knows who he really is—but if Sal’s not who he thought he was, who is he? Views: 223
When you're the oldest daughter, you don't get to have any fun!
Witty, orphaned Tess Essex faces her duty: marry well and marry quickly, so she can arrange matches for her three sisters -- beautiful Annabel, romantic Imogen and practical Josie. After all, right now they're under the rather awkward guardianship of the perpetually tipsy Duke of Holbrook. But just when she begins to think that all might end well, one of her sisters bolts with a horse-mad young lord, and her own fiancé just plain runs away.
Which leaves Tess contemplating marriage to the sort of man she wishes to avoid -- one of London's most infamous rakes. Lucius Felton is a rogue whose own mother considers him irredeemable! He's delicious, Annabel points out. And he's rich, Josie notes. But although Tess finally consents to marry him, it may be for the worst reason of all. Absurd as she knows it to be, she may have fallen utterly in love . . . Views: 223
Mike is presented here in a high quality paperback edition. This popular classic work by P. G. (Pelham Grenville) Wodehouse is in the English language, and may not include graphics or images from the original edition. If you enjoy the works of P. G. (Pelham Grenville) Wodehouse then we highly recommend this publication for your book collection. Views: 223
The road to Broken Hill has never been so scary: a compulsive read from one of Australia's finest writers. Views: 223
