Others: Positive When Dorothy triumphed over the Wicked Witch of the West in L. Frank Baum's classic tale, we heard only her side of the story. But what about her arch-nemesis, the mysterious witch? Where did she come from? How did she become so wicked? And what is the true nature of evil? Gregory Maguire creates a fantasy world so rich and vivid that we will never look at Oz the same way again. Wicked is about a land where animals talk and strive to be treated like first-class citizens, Munchkinlanders seek the comfort of middle-class stability and the Tin Man becomes a victim of domestic violence. And then there is the little green-skinned girl named Elphaba, who will grow up to be the infamous Wicked Witch of the West, a smart, prickly and misunderstood creature who challenges all our preconceived notions about the nature of good and evil.
Lists: …
Charles Perrault
2010 · 144 pages · 1 review
Others: PositiveIn eighteenth century France, Charles Perrault rescued from the oral tradition fairy tales that are known and loved even today by virtually all children in the West. Angela Carter came across Perrault's work and set out to adapt the stories for modern readers of English. In breathing new life into these classic fables, she produced versions that live on as classics in their own right, marked as much by her signature wit, irony, and subversiveness as they are by the qualities that have made them universally appealing for centuries.
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C. S. Lewis
1942 · 160 pages · 2 reviews
Others: Overwhelmingly positiveA milestone in the history of popular theology, The Screwtape Letters is an iconic classic on spiritual warfare and the dynamics of temptation.This profound and striking narrative takes the form of a series of letters from Screwtape, a devil high in the Infernal Civil Service, to his nephew Wormwood, a junior colleague engaged in his first mission on earth, trying to secure the damnation of a young man who has just become a Christian. Although the young man initially looks to be a willing victim, he changes his ways and is "lost" to the young devil.Dedicated to Lewis's friend and colleague J. R. R. Tolkien, The Screwtape Letters is a timeless classic on spiritual conflict and the psychology of temptation which are part of our religious experience
What made the match, strongest first
Joris-Karl Huysmans
1884 · 134 pages · 3 reviews
Others: Overwhelmingly positiveÀ rebours (French pronunciation: [a ʁ(ə).buʁ]; translated Against Nature or Against the Grain) is an 1884 novel by the French writer Joris-Karl Huysmans. The narrative centers on a single character: Jean des Esseintes, an eccentric, reclusive, ailing aesthete. The last scion of an aristocratic family, Des Esseintes loathes nineteenth-century bourgeois society and tries to retreat into an ideal artistic world of his own creation. The narrative is almost entirely a catalogue of the neurotic Des Esseintes's aesthetic tastes, musings on literature, painting, and religion, and hyperaesthetic sensory experiences. À rebours contains many themes that became associated with the Symbolist aesthetic. In doing so, it broke from Naturalism and became the ultimate example of "Decadent" literature, inspiring works such as Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray (1890). In his preface for the 1903 publication of the novel, Huysmans wrote that he had the idea to portray a man "soaring upwards into dream, seeking refuge in illusions of extravagant fantasy, living alone, far from his century, among memories of more congenial times, of less base surroundings ... each chapter became the sublimate of a specialism, the refinement of a different art; it became condensed into an essence of jewellery, perfumes, religious and secular literature, of profane music and plain-chant." (Wikipedia)
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Franz Kafka
1825 · 279 pages · 0 reviews
Byzantine and claustrophobic novel of a man arrested by the secret police and charged with an unspecified crime. Unable to defend himself and disorientated by the legal process at work around him the man soon becomes apathetic and acquiescent, accepting his eventual sentence as inevitable.
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Jean Menzies
2025 · 208 pages · 1 review
Others: PositiveLegends about sea people – part human, part fish – have been told across the world since ancient times. Now the best of these stories are brought together in one entrancing volume.Early maps carried illustrations of mermaids alongside monsters, signalling both the allure and the danger of uncharted seas. The far-reaching historical and cultural significance of mermaids and their kin is reflected in the myriad stories about them.Odysseus at sea must resist the sirens’ song. There are sea serpents from North America and selkies from Scotland. And from shores across the globe, humble fishermen and princes alike fall in love with mermaids in stories from Germany to Japan by way of Denmark with the famous story of The Little Mermaid.Mermaids, Sirens and Myths and Legends is part of the Macmillan Collector’s Library; a series of stunning, pocket-sized classics bound in real cloth with gold foiled edges and ribbon markers. These beautiful books make perfect gifts or a treat for any book lover. For more myths from Jean Menzies, Fairies, Elves and Sprites is also available.
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Niccolò Machiavelli
1515 · 152 pages · 1 review
Others: NegativeThe Prince (Italian: Il Principe [il ˈprintʃipe]; Latin: De Principatibus) is a 16th-century political treatise written by Italian diplomat and political theorist Niccolò Machiavelli as an instruction guide for new princes and royals. The general theme of The Prince is of accepting that the aims of princes – such as glory and survival – can justify the use of immoral means to achieve those ends. From Machiavelli's correspondence, a version appears to have been distributed in 1513, using a Latin title, De Principatibus (Of Principalities). However, the printed version was not published until 1532, five years after Machiavelli's death. This was carried out with the permission of the Medici pope Clement VII, but "long before then, in fact since the first appearance of The Prince in manuscript, controversy had swirled about his writings". Although The Prince was written as if it were a traditional work in the mirrors for princes style, it was generally agreed as being especially innovative. This is partly because it was written in the vernacular Italian rather than Latin, a practice that had become increasingly popular since the publication of Dante's Divine Comedy and other works of Renaissance literature.
What made the match, strongest first
Loved itthen we have Wicked by Gregory McGuire which I don't talk about a ton but is really good this book is probably kind of hyped because of the musical that goes along with it but that isn't at all like it because this is a ton different came first obviously cuz it's the book that the musical was based on and is incredibly dark
