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Henry James (1843-1916) was an America-born English writer whose novels, short stories and letters established the foundation of the modernist movement in twentieth century fiction and poetry. His career, one of the most significant and influential in English literature, spanned over five decades and resulted in a body of work that has had a profound impact on generations of writers. Born in New York, but educated in France, Germany, England and Switzerland, James often explored the cultural discord between the Old World (Europe) and the New World (United States) in his writings. Included in this third volume of «The Complete Tales of Henry James» are some of the works published between 1873 and 1875, at the beginning of James' rise to popularity. Beginning with «The Madonna of the Future», this volume also includes «The Sweetheart of M. Briseux,» «The Last of the Valerii,» «Madame de Mauves,» «Adina,» «Professor Fargo,» «Eugene Pickering,» and «Benvolio.»

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This volume contains a collection of some of the best short stories ever written by Edgar Allan Poe. A master of the macabre, Poe exhibits his literary prowess in these classic short stories. Contained within this volume are the following: The Gold-Bug, The Murders in the Rue Morgue, The Balloon-Hoax, The Purloined Letter, A Descent into the Maelström, The Black Cat, The Fall of the House of Usher, The Masque of the Red Death, The Cask of Amontillado, The Pit and the Pendulum, and The Tell-Tale Heart.

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Ivan Turgenev (1818-1883) stands as one of Russia's most influential authors. Along with Tolstoy and Dostoevsky, he helped shape the Russian novel and consequently the Russian identity. Born into wealth, Turgenev had a compelling vision of nobility and the perils of serfdom. His profound novels and short stories made him internationally revered. In this collection of short stories, Turgenev characterizes the «superfluous man»—an archetype which becomes central to the rest of his work and Russian literature at large. This idea of an idle, nihilist nobleman characterized by inaction pervades Russian literature throughout the 19th century. Here, in «The Diary of a Superfluous Man», we see one of its earliest iterations. Also included is «A Tour in the Forest» and several more. Turgenev's unique treatment of romance, sociology, and the Russian spirit are all explored here through his commanding, realist prose.

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The work of William James contributed greatly to the burgeoning fields of psychology, particularly in the areas of education, religion, mysticism and pragmatism. The brother of novelist Henry James and of diarist Alice James, William wrote several powerful essays expressing his ideas on the pragmatic theory of truth, sentience, and human beings' right to believe. In «The Will to Believe», James suggests that what a person holds to be true or attainable may exist through that person's belief in them, regardless of a lack of physical evidence. In a sense, he advocates the theory of self-fulfilling prophesies. «Human Immortality» was a speech delivered during the annual Ingersoll Lectureship, given in memory of George Goldthwait Ingersoll, in 1897 at Harvard University. These works are a prime example of the powerful influence William James has had on modern psychology, and are still recognized today for their brilliance and revolutionary impacts on the field.

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Henry James (1843-1916) was an America-born English writer whose novels, short stories and letters established the foundation of the modernist movement in twentieth century fiction and poetry. His career, one of the most significant and influential in English literature, spanned over five decades and resulted in a body of work that has had a profound impact on generations of writers. Born in New York, but educated in France, Germany, England and Switzerland, James often explored the cultural discord between the Old World (Europe) and the New World (United States) in his writings. Included in this ninth volume of «The Complete Tales of Henry James» are the following stories: «Owen Wingrave,» «The Middle Years,» «The Death of the Lion,» «The Coxon Fund,» «The Next Time,» «The Altar of the Dead,» «The Figure in the Carpet,» «Glasses,» «The Way It Came,» and «John Delavoy.»

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"TRUE! nervous, very, very dreadfully nervous I had been and am; but why will you say that I am mad?" And so begins «The Tell-Tale Heart», that compressed tale of Gothic composition. The characters and images that Edgar Allan Poe has gifted us are plentiful. Hugely influential to the short story genre, Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849) remains a lion of American letters. His morose explorations of human depravity render his tales exceptionally captivating. Here, in Volume II of II, is contained «A Predicament», «Mystification», «and Eleonora», among many others. Many acknowledge Poe's tales as prototypes for the later development of the horror, mystery, and science fiction genres. Poe's life is perhaps as fabled and shrouded in mystery as his stories. His cryptic death remains a source of myth. Poe was firmly established in the Gothic movement of the time and further was a father of «dark romanticism» which explored the psychology of torment and death. These stories are sure to arrest and transport the reader to the unique world of Edgar Allan Poe.

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Considered one of the greatest short story writers of her generation, Katherine Mansfield was a modernist writer from New Zealand. This collection includes thirty-five of her most popular stories. In this volume you will find the following stories: «The Tiredness of Rosabel», «At Lehmann's», «Frau Brechenmacher Attends a Wedding», «The Swing of the Pendulum», «The Woman at the Store», «How Pearl Button Was Kidnapped», «Ole Underwood», «Millie», «Bains Turcs'», «The Little Governess», «An Indiscreet Journey», «The Wind Blows», «Prelude», «A Dill Pickle», «Je Ne Parle Pas Français», «Bliss», «Psychology», «Pictures», «The Man Without a Temperament», «Revelations», «The Escape», «The Young Girl», «The Stranger», «Miss Brill», «Poison», «The Daughters of the Late Colonel», «Life of Ma Parker», «Her First Ball», «Marriage ý la Mode», «At the Bay», «The Voyage», «The Garden Party», «The Doll's House», «The Fly», and «The Canary».

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Charles Dickens (1812-1870) was an English short story writer, dramatist, essayist, and the most popular novelist to come from the Victorian era. He created some of the most iconic characters and stories in English literature, including Mr. Pickwick from «The Pickwick Papers», Ebenezer Scrooge from «A Christmas Carol», David Copperfield, and Pip from «Great Expectations», to name a few. Dickens' began by writing serials for magazines, and from 1833-1836 he used the pseudonym Boz, taken from a childhood nickname for his younger brother. «Sketches by Boz» contains 56 stories and, like most of Dickens' work, vividly portrayed the lives of Londoners around him in an effort to illustrate social injustices and promote reform. Unlike less successful writers of the time who divided whole works into serialized episodes, Dickens often gauged public reaction to each installment, allowing himself to tailor the plot accordingly. This collection is divided into four sections: «The Parish,» «Scenes,» «Characters,» and «Tales.»

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While Edgar Allan Poe was most famous for his eerie tales of murder, ghouls, and suspense, he is also credited with paving the way for the future of detective stories with his character C. Auguste Dupin. Dupin made his first appearance in the murder mystery «The Murders in the Rue Morgue,» a tale about the murder of two women. When Dupin questioned witnesses, everyone claimed that the murderer was speaking a different language, yet none of the witnesses could place his accent. Dupin put himself in the mind of the killer and read the faces of witnesses, suspects, and other persons of interest. He also drew inspiration and ideas from outside resources such as newspapers or police reports. As Dupin sought to unravel the mystery, Poe was creating an archetypal character that would be followed by many other great detectives. In the collection «The Murders in the Rue Morgue: The Dupin Tales,» Poe allows Dupin's genius to shine in stories like «The Murders in the Rue Morgue,» «The Mystery of Marie Roget,» and «The Purloined Letter.» These tales are not typical Poe stories, but instead all follow the cases that detective Dupin solves after other police and investigators are stumped. Dupin showed that, with a little ingenuity and creativity, even the most difficult case could be solved. Mystery lovers and Poe fans will all enjoy this groundbreaking collection and the intrigue that Poe creates within it.

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While readers will be most familiar with «The Christmas Carol» in which Ebenezer Scrooge is visited by four ghosts who endeavor to show him the error of his miserly ways just in time for Christmas, Dickens also wrote four other Christmas themed books. These include «The Chimes», the story of Toby «Trotty» Veck, a poor working-class man who has lost his faith in humanity and believes that his poverty is the result of his unworthiness; «The Cricket on the Hearth», the story of John Peerybingle and his family who are visited by a guardian angel in the form of a cricket who is constantly chirping on their hearth; «The Battle of Life» a charmingly uplifting and romantic Christmas story; and «The Haunted Man and the Ghost's Bargain», which is the story of Redlaw, a chemistry teacher constantly brooding over the grief caused by wrongs done to him in the past. These five books are collected here together in this edition of «The Complete Christmas Books of Charles Dickens.»

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