1000 free short stories from the public domain
Page
· lemmy.world
1000 free short stories from the public domain
books
But no, not Miller, instead, his scruffy twin remained glued to the news whilst feeding the pet hamster, Mr Chippy, who lived in his shirt pocket. With each passing day, Miller seemed to resemble his furry little lodger more and more.
A British scifi comedy in the Hitchhiker's mould, where one idiot with too much power can destroy the world. It happens a lot. Read the rest of Chapter 1 by downloading the book:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0F8VG16RP
The Summer War. Naomi Novik.
You are a 12 year old sorceress and future princess enamored of your older gay brother, and when he says he’s leaving your abusive father to find love, you curse him to never find love and force him to live a life of killing others in battle; eventually you manipulate him to secure power for yourself.
0 of 5 library cats. (My first 0 rating ever!)
@bookstodon #bookstodon #books #reading #fantasy #magic #queerbaiting
Yesterday, proofs came of my new novella, The Blossoming of the Big Tree, and it got me a bit excited. I have got print copies of my books before, but not one I designed from scratch. I was worried about how the cover would look like, and also because I used LibreWriter for typesetting, if the font was the right one, etc, but it all looks nice and cute. Proud of myself. 😊
Get the ebook or pre-order print here
https://www.ododopress.com/novellas/the-blossoming-of-the-big-tree/
In 19th-century Ireland, a chance encounter between a disillusioned doctor and a fallen woman begins a story of love, loyalty, and choices that will shape their lives.
Amazon - https://mybook.to/ascarletwoman
Other Retailers - https://lornapeel.com/fitzgeralds/a-scarlet-woman
#TheFitzgeraldsOfDublinSeries #Books #BooksByLornaPeel #FamilySaga #HistoricalFiction #Ireland #BookSeries #KindleUnlimited @bookstodon
Love getting lost in a historical fiction series?
Set in 19th-century Ireland, The Fitzgeralds of Dublin series follows one family through hardship, secrets, and choices that echo across generations.
📚️️ Books 1–9 available as box sets
📖 Read free in Kindle Unlimited
Amazon - https://mybook.to/FitzgeraldsBoxSets
#BooksByLornaPeel #Books #FamilySaga #HistoricalFiction #Bookstodon #Ireland #KindleUnlimited #Dublin @bookstodon
50% off @ #Smashwords : https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1462617
Series Ebook omnibus: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1733647
Having an abusive assassin for a sister was bad enough, but when Lyra’s older sister, Nicole, becomes obsessed with killing the teenage troll, her life becomes a special kind of nightmare. Will she escape, or become just another victim of the unstoppable woman?
@bookstodon
#author #indieauthor #writing #fantasy #scifi #sciencefiction #sff #sciencefantasy #scifi #actionadventure #fiction #books
50% off @ #Smashwords : https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1795512
Nicole’s brain is slowly being taken over by an ancient, magical artifact, a small fragment of a magic city. She seeks a cure, before the city can destroy her sanity and then eventually, take her life by replacing her mind. Racing against time, she gathers pieces of the city, hoping to find an answer among them.
@bookstodon
#author #indieauthor #writing #fantasy #scifi #sciencefiction #sff #sciencefantasy #scifi #actionadventure #fiction #books
Which books do you wish would be made into tv shows or films?
My vote goes to “The Deep” by Rivers Solomon.
It’s the best mermaid story I’ve ever read, and the plot twists in it would look amazing on the big or small screen.
5 von 5 Sternen: 20 Bücher - v.a. Comics - las ich 2026 bisher, von denen ich dachte
"Lieblingsbuch/exzellent so!" #books #bookstodon #comics #literatur
The Satire and Style of Vanity Fair is as Relevant as Ever
Roshan Sethi on William Makepeace Thackeray’s Famous Novel
Vanity Fair at PG:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/599
Check out this guide for buying DRM free ebooks in 2026 😁
https://getbookshelves.app/guides/drm-free-ebook-stores/
And go follow the writers of the guide at https://mastodon.art/@getbookshelves@mastodon.social
@reading @bookstodon @books @worldbuilding
#Recommendation
#AmWriting #IndieAuthor #eBook #eBooks
#Reading #Readers #ReadingCommunity
#Litterature #Novel #Novels #Bookshelf
#Books #Bookstodon #FantasyBooks
When someone asks, "What is it?" and someone else answers, "It's a mystery!" I sincerly hope this is what they're talking about 😂
@reading @bookstodon @books @humor @humor@lemmy.world @aiop
#BookMemes #Meme #Memes #Mystery #Humor #Humour #Funny
#Reading #Readers #ReadingCommunity
#Litterature #Novel #Bookshelf #BookStore #Books #Bookstodon
So, does this mean that in the postmodern era the Author is God? 🤔
Because I already have more hubris than I'll ever be able to use 😜😂
@reading @joinin @bookstodon @books @humor @humor@lemmy.world @aiop
#BookMemes #Meme #Memes #Humor #Humour #Funny
#ReadingMemes #Reading #Readers #ReadingCommunity
#Litterature #Novel #Novels #Bookshelf
#Books #Bookstodon #FantasyBooks
Faust: Part One (as I understood)
A bet between God and the Devil.
A shrewdness beyond comprehension to the mind of a man.
A tragedy.
If only this were the case, the oldest of all stories of Christianity, then Goethe probably wouldn’t have ventured to write Faust.
Faust is a blueprint. A blueprint of tragedy that an intellectual, curious, and rigorous philosopher may have to navigate in his life.
At the beginning, when we meet Faust the polymath, he was in Loevinger’s Ego Development Stage 4/5 (Self-Questioning/Individualist/Pluralist). The notions of reality and truth are fractured, yet not in complete disharmony. We can find the evidence for it in Scene IV:
This life of earth, whatever my attire, Would pain me in its wonted fashion. Too old am I to play with passion; Too young, to be without desire.
and,
The God that in my breast is owned Can deeply stir the inner sources; The God, above my powers enthroned, He cannot change external forces. So, by the burden of my days oppressed, Death is desired, and Life a thing unblest!
This stage comes with acute existential dread and distress, as Goethe portrayed them so faithfully.
We need to make a clear distinction here. This distress is not the work of the Devil. Every sincere person, at some point in their life, must stomach this. In consensus, Christianity allows free will; therefore, free exploration of knowledge is allowed. With that exploration, considering the depth and breadth a philosopher may navigate, comes obvious distress.
At this lowest of the moments, Faust made a pact with Mephistopheles. Here, we can see the brilliance of Faust’s mind. While Mephistopheles wanted to give all possible earthly pleasure in return for his soul, Faust’s counter-offer was to forfeit his soul only when he is content. And if you consider his state of mind at this point, bringing contentment to him is a formidable task, even for Mephistopheles— if Mephistopheles is a man.
But Mephistopheles is no man. While a man, with his short span of life, and probably by the very architecture of our mind, cannot help thinking from the perspective where we are the centre of everything. This egocentrism is the Devil’s playground. He runs a whole gamut of tests on all of our feelings to catch us off guard:
MEPHISTOPHELES
Yes, thou findest that unpleasant! Thou hast the moral right to cry me “shame!” at present. One dares not that before chaste ears declare, Which chaste hearts, notwithstanding, cannot spare; And, once for all, I grudge thee not the pleasure Of lying to thyself in moderate measure.
Indeed, he is right when he declares:
MEPHISTOPHELES
Poor Son of Earth, how couldst thou thus alone Have led thy life, bereft of me?
For he is the first rebel in the Bible, and he, also, is the scapegoat for all our dubitable actions.
But Mephistopheles is an egoist too. Soon, it became a chess match of ego. In every turn, one superseding another’s strategy. Although by narrow means, Faust conquered all the traps and lures. You may disagree with me on this point. But this conquering happens in such a bloody, agonising way that it often may feel like a defeat.
We can see their battle externalised in Walpurgis Night:
Tell me, if we still are standing,
Or if further we’re ascending?
All is turning, whirling, blending,
Trees and rocks with grinning faces,
Wandering lights that spin in mazes,
Still increasing and expanding!
MEPHISTOPHELES
Grasp my skirt with heart undaunted! Here a middle–peak is planted, Whence one seeth, with amaze, Mammon in the mountain blaze.
First, we find Faust’s mind-bending philosophical investigation being externalised by a metaphor of Will-O-Wisp.
Then we see the satanic promise of remedy, but not through philosophy, but through materialism, by promising Mammon’s treasure.
Despite every attempt, despite a tragic end, we can see Faust keeping his intellectual sovereignty intact. A prime example of this is when Gretchen, the innocent lover of Faust, asked him about his faith; he replied:
FAUST
My darling, who shall dare “I believe in God!” to say? Ask priest or sage the answer to declare, And it will seem a mocking play, A sarcasm on the asker.
This is not a lack of faith, but a sincerity. A sincerity that the person should show if his faith or belief is not handed down to him and accepted as is.
Faust was right in thinking that Mephistopheles, indeed, cannot make him content. No worldly pleasure (or, even woe) can deter him, ultimately, from the philosophical distress of his soul, a tragedy most intimate, a tragedy wrought in his soul, which no diversion can touch.
It was a stalemate, at least, at the end of this book.
Page
· lemmy.world
A bet between God and the Devil.
A shrewdness beyond comprehension to the mind of a man.
A tragedy.
If only this were the case, the oldest of all stories of Christianity, then Goethe probably wouldn’t have ventured to write Faust.
Faust is a blueprint. A blueprint of tragedy that an intellectual, curious, and rigorous philosopher may have to navigate in his life.
At the beginning, when we meet Faust the polymath, he was in Loevinger’s Ego Development Stage 4/5 (Self-Questioning/Individualist/Pluralist). The notions of reality and truth are fractured, yet not in complete disharmony. We can find the evidence for it in Scene IV:
This life of earth, whatever my attire, Would pain me in its wonted fashion. Too old am I to play with passion; Too young, to be without desire.
and,
The God that in my breast is owned Can deeply stir the inner sources; The God, above my powers enthroned, He cannot change external forces. So, by the burden of my days oppressed, Death is desired, and Life a thing unblest!
This stage comes with acute existential dread and distress, as Goethe portrayed them so faithfully.
We need to make a clear distinction here. This distress is not the work of the Devil. Every sincere person, at some point in their life, must stomach this. In consensus, Christianity allows free will; therefore, free exploration of knowledge is allowed. With that exploration, considering the depth and breadth a philosopher may navigate, comes obvious distress.
At this lowest of the moments, Faust made a pact with Mephistopheles. Here, we can see the brilliance of Faust’s mind. While Mephistopheles wanted to give all possible earthly pleasure in return for his soul, Faust’s counter-offer was to forfeit his soul only when he is content. And if you consider his state of mind at this point, bringing contentment to him is a formidable task, even for Mephistopheles— if Mephistopheles is a man.
But Mephistopheles is no man. While a man, with his short span of life, and probably by the very architecture of our mind, cannot help thinking from the perspective where we are the centre of everything. This egocentrism is the Devil’s playground. He runs a whole gamut of tests on all of our feelings to catch us off guard:
MEPHISTOPHELES
Yes, thou findest that unpleasant! Thou hast the moral right to cry me “shame!” at present. One dares not that before chaste ears declare, Which chaste hearts, notwithstanding, cannot spare; And, once for all, I grudge thee not the pleasure Of lying to thyself in moderate measure.
Indeed, he is right when he declares:
MEPHISTOPHELES
Poor Son of Earth, how couldst thou thus alone Have led thy life, bereft of me?
For he is the first rebel in the Bible, and he, also, is the scapegoat for all our dubitable actions.
But Mephistopheles is an egoist too. Soon, it became a chess match of ego. In every turn, one superseding another’s strategy. Although by narrow means, Faust conquered all the traps and lures. You may disagree with me on this point. But this conquering happens in such a bloody, agonising way that it often may feel like a defeat.
We can see their battle externalised in Walpurgis Night:
Tell me, if we still are standing,
Or if further we’re ascending?
All is turning, whirling, blending,
Trees and rocks with grinning faces,
Wandering lights that spin in mazes,
Still increasing and expanding!MEPHISTOPHELES
Grasp my skirt with heart undaunted! Here a middle–peak is planted, Whence one seeth, with amaze, Mammon in the mountain blaze.
First, we find Faust’s mind-bending philosophical investigation being externalised by a metaphor of Will-O-Wisp.
Then we see the satanic promise of remedy, but not through philosophy, but through materialism, by promising Mammon’s treasure.
Despite every attempt, despite a tragic end, we can see Faust keeping his intellectual sovereignty intact. A prime example of this is when Gretchen, the innocent lover of Faust, asked him about his faith; he replied:
FAUST
My darling, who shall dare “I believe in God!” to say? Ask priest or sage the answer to declare, And it will seem a mocking play, A sarcasm on the asker.
This is not a lack of faith, but a sincerity. A sincerity that the person should show if his faith or belief is not handed down to him and accepted as is.
Faust was right in thinking that Mephistopheles, indeed, cannot make him content. No worldly pleasure (or, even woe) can deter him, ultimately, from the philosophical distress of his soul, a tragedy most intimate, a tragedy wrought in his soul, which no diversion can touch.
It was a stalemate, at least, at the end of this book.
Faust: Part One (as I understood)
In 19th-century Dublin, a disillusioned doctor and a fallen woman discover that some meetings change everything.
The Fitzgeralds of Dublin series is a sweeping Irish family saga following Will and Isobel through hardship, secrets, and the choices that shape their lives in a changing Ireland.
Begin with A Scarlet Woman - free to read in Kindle Unlimited - http://mybook.to/ascarletwoman
#Books #BooksByLornaPeel #FamilySaga #HistoricalFiction #KindleUnlimited #Ireland #BookSeries @bookstodon
Are we living through the end of reading?
https://www.npr.org/2026/07/11/nx-s1-5886268/are-we-living-through-the-end-of-reading
New at my blog, a review of Seers in a Broken Season by Jonathan Olfert!
An Ice Age tale of Stone & Sorcery starring a warrior wooly mammoth!
(As always, boosts are appreciated!)
https://robinmarx.writeas.com/review-seers-in-a-broken-season-by-jonathan-olfert
#BookReview #Books #Bookstodon #Booksky #Fantasy #SwordAndSorcery #StoneAndSorcery #Blog #SmallWeb #IndieWeb @bookstodon
Any good erotic books for women (can't believe I am asking this) like roamance or I guess sexual romance or series like that? Trying to fill up a usb of 20gb of books for my moms birthday next month.
"The spaces are organised into thematic rooms that reflect the layout of the original library and evoke the main areas of Eco's thought."
Sigh. It would be wonderful to visit and tour the newly opened Umberto Eco library at the University of Bologna where he taught for many years. So far it contains 32,000 of his books from his home and study in Milan, the rest of his books from his country house are yet to be added. Eco's way of organizing his books is preserved in the library.
#libraries #books #UmbertoEco @bookstodon
https://magazine.unibo.it/en/articles/eco-library-opens-in-bologna
For those new to my page, I post a little about writing, and a lot about my family's cats.
My first series, I Guess We're Heroes, is a sci-fi/thriller available in paperback, audiobook, and ebook (including Kindle Unlimited). Links to both books are at the bottom of this post.
My next series is in the works, and will be fantasy/LitRPG!
What Are the Routines of So-Called Super-Readers?
Kelsey Rexroat Investigates the Mindsets of People Who Read Hundreds of Books a Year
https://lithub.com/what-are-the-routines-of-so-called-super-readers/
How a forgotten Toronto story shows Hemingway beginning to invent himself as a fiction writer
During his four years with the Toronto Star, Hemingway produced nearly 200 pieces, 170 under his own name plus around 30 with verified pseudonym bylines.
by Irene Gammel
Books by Hemingway
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/author/50533
![Avatar for Vampire [any]](/proxy/identity_icon/601988933390853946/539129b660.jpeg){kind=icon}
Have you read Machiavelli?
I just read Chapter 17 of The Prince only, the famous “Is it better to be loved or feared” chapter
Pretty good, might read the rest now.
Page
· hexbear.net
I just read Chapter 17 of The Prince only, the famous “Is it better to be loved or feared” chapter
Pretty good, might read the rest now.
Have you read Machiavelli?