Серия книг «Wordsworth Classics» — 62 книги

With an Introduction by Roger Clark, University of Kent at Canterbury Castigated for offending against public decency, Madame Bovary has rarely failed to cause a storm. For Flaubert's contemporaries, the fascination came from the novelist's meticulous account of provincial matters. For the writer, subject matter was subordinate to his anguished quest for aesthetic perfection. For his twentieth-century successors the formal experiments that underpin Madame Bovary look forward to the innovations of contemporary fiction. Flaubert s protagonist in particular has never ceased to fascinate. Romantic heroine or middle-class neurotic, flawed wife and mother or passionate protester against the conventions of bourgeois society, simultaneously the subject of Flaubert s admiration and the butt of his irony - Emma Bovary remains one of the most enigmatic of fictional creations. Flaubert's meticulous approach to the craft of fiction, his portrayal of contemporary reality, his representation of an unforgettable cast of characters make Madame Bovary one of the major landmarks of modern fiction.

With an Introduction by Roger Clark, University of Kent at Canterbury Castigated for offending against public decency, Madame Bovary has rarely failed to cause a storm. For…

With an Introduction and Notes by Michael Irwin, Professor of English Literature, University of Kent at Canterbury.

This selection of Carroll's works includes Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and its sequel, Through the Looking-Glass, both containing the famous illustrations by Sir John Tenniel. No greater books for children have ever been written. The simple language, dreamlike atmosphere, and fantastical characters are as appealing to young readers today as ever they were. Meanwhile, however, these apparently simple stories have become recognised as adult masterpieces, and extraordinary experiments, years ahead of their time, in Modernism and Surrealism. Through wordplay, parody and logical and philosophical puzzles, Carroll engenders a variety of sub-texts, teasing, ominous or melancholy. For all the surface playfulness there is meaning everywhere. The author reveals himself in glimpses.

With an Introduction and Notes by Michael Irwin, Professor of English Literature, University of Kent at Canterbury.

This selection of Carroll's works includes Alice's…

There are four of them - George, Harris, the writer himself and that dog, Montmorency - all participants in a boating expedition on the Thames. The difficulties and vicissitudes heaped upon these innocents develop to epic proportions as they experience the hazards of the great English waterway. Their problems are in no way diminished by the outrageous behaviour of Montmorency, who lays waste several riverside communities in the course of their journey.
"What is a bummel?" said George. "How would you translate it?" "A bummel," I explained, "I should describe as a journey, long or short, without an end; the only thing regulating it being the necessity of getting back within a given time to the point from which one started..." After considerable indecision the bummel takes our heroes to Germany's Black Forest where they manage to disrupt the tranquil way of life usually enjoyed by the denizens, whose curious behaviour they closely observe and record in their account of this second epic journey. Even without that dog, chaos and mayhem reign supreme.

There are four of them - George, Harris, the writer himself and that dog, Montmorency - all participants in a boating expedition on the Thames. The difficulties and vicissitudes…

"Pride and Prejudice", which opens with one of the most famous sentences in English Literature, is an ironic novel of manners. In it the garrulous and empty-headed Mrs. Bonnet has only one aim - that of finding a good match for each of her five daughters. In this she is mocked by her cynical and indolent husband.
With its wit, its social precision and, above all, its irresistible heroine, "Pride and Prejudice" has proved one of the most enduringly popular novels in the English language.

"Pride and Prejudice", which opens with one of the most famous sentences in English Literature, is an ironic novel of manners. In it the garrulous and empty-headed Mrs. Bonnet has…

"Young women who have no economic or political power must attend to the serious business of contriving material security".
Jane Austen's sardonic humour lays bare the stratagems, the hypocrisy and the poignancy inherent in the struggle of two very different sisters to achieve respectability.
"Sense and Sensibility" is a delightful comedy of manners in which the sisters Elinor and Marianne represent these two qualities. Elinor's character is one of Augustan detachment, while Marianne, a fervent disciple of the Romantic Age, learns to curb her passionate nature in the interests of survival.
This book, the first of Austen's novels to be published, remains as fresh a cautionary tale today as it every was.

"Young women who have no economic or political power must attend to the serious business of contriving material security".
Jane Austen's sardonic humour lays bare the…

What does persuasion mean - a firm belief, or the action of persuading someone to think something else? Anne Elliot is one of Austen's quietest heroines, but also one of the strongest and the most open to change. She lives at the time of the Napoleonic wars, a time of accident, adventure, the making of new fortunes and alliances. A woman of no importance, she manoeuvres in her restricted circumstances as her long-time love Captain Wentworth did in the wars. Even though she is nearly thirty, well past the sell-by bloom of youth, Austen makes her win out for herself and for others like herself, in a regenerated society.

What does persuasion mean - a firm belief, or the action of persuading someone to think something else? Anne Elliot is one of Austen's quietest heroines, but also one of the…

The Diamond as Big as the Ritz is an ominous fable about the pursuit of great wealth. Readers will be transported to a fabulous fantasy land of such opulence that the very existence of this domain has to remain a jealously guarded secret.
Fatal consequences lie in store for 'bona fide' guests and uninvited visitors alike, while the sybaritic luxury of the place is evoked in an effortless prose style which is quintessentially F.Scott Fitzgerald.
Also featured in this volume are The Cut-Glass Bowl, May Day, The Rich Boy, Crazy Sunday, Aп Alcoholic Case, The Lees of Happiness, The Lost Decade and Babylon Revisited.

The Diamond as Big as the Ritz is an ominous fable about the pursuit of great wealth. Readers will be transported to a fabulous fantasy land of such opulence that the very…

With an Introduction and Notes by Dr Patsy Stoneman, University of Hull Set in the mid-19th century, and written from the author's first-hand experience, North and South follows the story of the heroine's movement from the tranquil but moribund ways of southern England to the vital but turbulent north. Elizabeth Gaskell's skilful narrative uses an unusual love story to show how personal and public lives were woven together in a newly industrial society. This is a tale of hard-won triumphs - of rational thought over prejudice and of humane care over blind deference to the market. Readers in the twenty-first century will find themselves absorbed as this Victorian novel traces the origins of problems and possibilities which are still challenging a hundred and fifty years later: the complex relationships, public and private, between men and women of different classes.

With an Introduction and Notes by Dr Patsy Stoneman, University of Hull Set in the mid-19th century, and written from the author's first-hand experience, North and South follows…

With an Introduction and Notes by Anne Varty, Royal Holloway, University of London.

Oscar Wilde took London by storm with his first comedy, Lady Windermere's Fan. The combination of dazzling wit, subtle social criticism, sumptuous settings and the theme of a guilty secret proved a winner, both here and in his next three plays, A Woman of No Importance, An Ideal Husband, and his undisputed masterpiece, The Importance of Being Earnest.

This volume includes all Wilde's plays from his early tragedy Vera to the controversial Salome and the little known fragments, La Sainte Courtisane and A Florentine Tragedy. The edition affords a rare chance to see Wilde's best known work in the context of his entire dramatic output, and to appreciate plays which have hitherto received scant critical attention. Wilde’s plays have never failed to delight audiences and are a lasting testimony to their author’s supreme wit and theatrical genius.

With an Introduction and Notes by Anne Varty, Royal Holloway, University of London.

Oscar Wilde took London by storm with his first comedy, Lady Windermere's Fan. The…

Introduction and Notes by Janet Beer, Manchester Metropolitan University.

The House of Mirth tells the story of Lily Bart, aged 29, beautiful, impoverished and in need of a rich husband to safeguard her place in the social elite, and to support her expensive habits - her clothes, her charities and her gambling. Unwilling to marry without both love and money, Lily becomes vulnerable to the kind of gossip and slander which attach to a girl who has been on the marriage market for too long.

Wharton charts the course of Lily's life, providing, along the way, a wider picture of a society in transition, a rapidly changing New York where the old certainties of manners, morals and family have disappeared and the individual has become an expendable commodity.



The House of Mirth was published in October 1905 to widespread critical acclaim. It became an instant bestseller and is regarded today as one of Edith Wharton’s most accomplished and compelling social satires.

Introduction and Notes by Janet Beer, Manchester Metropolitan University.

The House of Mirth tells the story of Lily Bart, aged 29, beautiful, impoverished and in need of a…

When "The Forsyte Saga" was shown on television in 1967 it was hugely successful. The nation was gripped by the masterful visual telling of the Forsyte family's troubled story and adapted its activities to suit the next transmission. "The Forsyte Saga" comprising "The Man of Property", "In Chancery and To Let", is here produced by Wordsworth for the first time in a single volume.
Initially, the narrative centres on Soames Forsyte - a successful solicitor living in London with his beautiful wife Irene. A pillar of the late Victorian upper middle class, materially wealthy, his appears to be a golden existence endowed with all the necessary possessions for a "Man of Property", but beneath this very proper exterior lies a core of unhappiness and brutal relationships.
The marriage of Soames and Irene disintegrates in bitter recrimination, creating a feud within the family that will have far-reaching consequences. As the years pass, the feud between the two factions of the troubled family deepens and the shadows of past miseries return to haunt the lives of a new, younger generation. Irene's son Jon has fallen in love with Fleur, the daughter of the embittered Soames. The consequences will be tragic.

When "The Forsyte Saga" was shown on television in 1967 it was hugely successful. The nation was gripped by the masterful visual telling of the Forsyte family's troubled story and…

Translated by Louise & Aylmer Maude. With an Introduction by Henry and Olga Claridge, University of Kent at Canterbury.

War and Peace is a vast epic centred on Napoleon's war with Russia. While it expresses Tolstoy's view that history is an inexorable process which man cannot influence, he peoples his great novel with a cast of over five hundred characters.

Three of these, the artless and delightful Natasha Rostov, the world-weary Prince Andrew Bolkonsky and the idealistic Pierre Bezukhov illustrate Tolstoy's philosophy in this novel of unquestioned mastery. This translation is one which received Tolstoy's approval.

Translated by Louise & Aylmer Maude. With an Introduction by Henry and Olga Claridge, University of Kent at Canterbury.

War and Peace is a vast epic centred on Napoleon's war…

"Martin Chuzzlewit" is Charles Dickens' comic masterpiece about which his biographer, Forster, noted that it marked a crucial phase in the author's development as he began to delve deeper into the "springs of character".
Old Martin Chuzzlewit, tormented by the greed and selfishness of his family, effectively drives his grandson, young Martin, to undertake a voyage to America. It is a voyage which will have crucial consequences not only for young Martin, but also for his grandfather and his grandfather's servant, Mary Graham, with whom young Martin is in love.
The commercial swindle of the Anglo-Bengalee Company and the fraudulent Eden Land Corporation have a topicality in our own time. This strong sub-plot shows evidence of Dickens' mastery of crime where characters such as the criminal Jonas Chuzzlewit, the old nurse Mrs (lamp, and the arch-hypocrite Setb Pecksniff are the equal to any in his other great novels.
Generations of readers have also delighted in Dickens' wonderful description of the London boarding-house - "Todgers".

"Martin Chuzzlewit" is Charles Dickens' comic masterpiece about which his biographer, Forster, noted that it marked a crucial phase in the author's development as he began to…

"Jane Eyre" ranks as one of the greatest and most perennially popular works of English fiction. Although the poor but plucky heroine is outwardly of plain appearance, she possesses an indomitable spirit, a sharp wit and great courage. She is forced to battle against the exigencies of a cruel guardian, a harsh employer and a rigid social order. All of which circumscribe her life and position when she becomes governess to the daughter of the mysterious, sardonic and attractive Mr Rochester.

However, there is great kindness and warmth in this epic love story, which is set against the magnificent backdrop of the Yorkshire moors. Ultimately the grand passion of lane and Rochester is called upon to survive cruel revelation, loss and reunion, only to be confronted with tragedy.

"Jane Eyre" ranks as one of the greatest and most perennially popular works of English fiction. Although the poor but plucky heroine is outwardly of plain appearance, she…

Jane Austen teased readers with the idea of a "heroine whom no one but myself will much like", but Emma is irresistible. "Handsome, clever, and rich", Emma is also an "imaginist", "on fire with speculation and foresight". She sees the signs of romance all around her, but thinks she will never be married. Her matchmaking maps out relationships that Jane Austen ironically tweaks into a clearer perspective. Judgement and imagination are matched in games the reader too can enjoy, and the end is a triumph of understanding.

Jane Austen teased readers with the idea of a "heroine whom no one but myself will much like", but Emma is irresistible. "Handsome, clever, and rich", Emma is also an "imaginist",…

This collection of Sherlock Holmes stories will have you leaving lights on and checking behind doors. These tales, first published in the Strand magazine between 1903 and 1905, include: "The Adventure of the Empty House", "The Adventure of the Norwood Builder", "The Adventure of the Dancing Men", "The Adventure of the Solitary Cyclist", "The Adventure of the Priory School", "The Adventure of Black Peter", "The Adventure of Charles Augustus Milverton", "The Adventure of the Golden Pince-Nez", "The Adventure of the Missing Three-Quarter", "The Adventure of the Abbey Grange", and "The Adventure of the Second Stain". "Properly suspenseful, Covell re-creates the awestruck Doctor Watson and the scientific Sherlock Holmes in another of the sleuth's escapades. Covell gives Watson a baronial English accent and renders the unerring Sherlock Holmes in a fittingly aloof, confident tone. To be led through a criminal quagmire by so expert a voice will please any...listener who likes a good mystery".

This collection of Sherlock Holmes stories will have you leaving lights on and checking behind doors. These tales, first published in the Strand magazine between 1903 and 1905,…

Moscow, 1929: a city that has lost its way amid corruption and fear, inhabited by people who have abandoned their morals and forsaken spirituality. But when a mysterious stranger arrives in town with a bizarre entourage that includes a giant talking cat and a fanged assassin, all hell breaks loose. Among those caught up in the strange and inexplicable events that transpire in the capital are the Master, a writer whose life has been destroyed by Soviet repression, and his beloved Margarita. Their adventures reveal a story that began two thousand years ago in ancient Jerusalem - and its resolution will decide their fate.

Moscow, 1929: a city that has lost its way amid corruption and fear, inhabited by people who have abandoned their morals and forsaken spirituality. But when a mysterious stranger…

With an Introduction and Notes by Dr Siv Jansson, University of Greenwich Begun when the author was only eighteen and conceived from a nightmare, Frankenstein, is the deeply disturbing story of a monstrous creation which has terrified and chilled readers since its first publication in 1818. The novel has thus seared its way into the popular imagination while establishing itself as one of the pioneering works of modern science fiction.

With an Introduction and Notes by Dr Siv Jansson, University of Greenwich Begun when the author was only eighteen and conceived from a nightmare, Frankenstein, is the deeply…

With an Introduction by Stuart Hutchinson, Rutherford College, University of Kent at Canterbury.

'Who could read the programme for the excursion without longing to make one of the party?'

So Mark Twain acclaims his voyage from New York City to Europe and the Holy Land in June 1867. His adventures produced The Innocents Abroad, a book so funny and provocative it made him an international star for the rest of his life. He was making his first responses to the Old World - to Paris, Milan, Florence, Venice, Pompeii, Constantinople, Sebastopol, Balaklava, Damascus, Jerusalem, Nazareth, and Bethlehem.

For the first time he was seeing the great paintings and sculptures of the 'Old Masters'. He responded with wonder and amazement, but also with exasperation, irritation, disbelief. Above all he displayed the great energy of his humour, more explosive for us now than for his beguiled contemporaries.

With an Introduction by Stuart Hutchinson, Rutherford College, University of Kent at Canterbury.

'Who could read the programme for the excursion without longing to make one of…