Penguin Classics

A darkly entertaining vision of human weakness, envy, and governmental interference taken to their most chilling extremes. You'll never be happy until you can think and feel and look like other people. Jael 97 is an Alpha. Deemed over-privileged for her beauty, she is compelled to report to the Ministry of Facial Justice, where her face will be reconstructed. For...

A searing exploration of a woman's hidden destructive impulses from one of the great writers of the twentieth century. 'There was no longer that ambivalent inconsistency between her words and thoughts, no more fever, no more artificial heat, no more vagueness. Instead was the truth in all its rawness, in black and white, in stark, cruel lines.' Adrift and alone,...

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary Woman much missed, how you call to me, call to me...

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary 'Ye Ice-Falls! Ye that from the mountain's brow Adown enormous ravines slope amain -...' A selection of Coleridge's poems, including This Lime-Tree Bower My Prison and Frost at Midnight. Introducing Little Black Classics - 80 books for Penguin's 80th birthday. Little Black Classics celebrate the huge range and...

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary ...revealing great shining fangs more than three inches long. Some of the most macabre and wonderful of all Chinese stories, including The Golden Goblet, Scorched Moth the Daoist and The Black Beast. Introducing Little Black Classics - 80 books for Penguin's 80th birthday. Little Black Classics celebrate the...

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary You will hear it for yourselves, and it will surely fill you with wonder... Explore the fascinating travels and adventures chronicled in Travels in the Land of Serpents and Pearls by Marco Polo. Delve into tales that will captivate your imagination and transport you to distant lands filled...

Little Black Classics - 80 books at 80 pence each to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary It was as if the sea, breaking down the wall protecting all the homes of the town, had sent a wave over her head One of Conrad's most powerful, gripping stories Introducing Little Black Classics - 80 books for Penguin's 80th birthday. Little Black Classics...

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary Three Tang Dynasty Poets 'Can I bear to leave these blue hills?'

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary The Yellow Wall-Paper "The colour is hideous enough, and unreliable enough, and infuriating enough, but the pattern is torturing." Written with barely controlled fury after she was confined to her room for "nerves" and forbidden to write, Gilman's pioneering feminist horror story scandalised nineteenth-century readers with its portrayal...

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary. 'Those husbands that I had, Three of them were good and two were bad. The three that I call "good" were rich and old...' One of the most bawdy, entertaining, and popular stories from The Canterbury Tales. Introducing Little Black Classics - 80 books for Penguin's 80th birthday....

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary 'There sat the dog with eyes as big as mill wheels' Though criticised for their anarchic immorality when first published, Hans Christian Andersen's tales made him an international star, taken to the hearts of children and adults for their beauty, sorrow and strangeness.

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary. Presently I heard a slight groan, and I knew it was a groan of mortal terror ... the low stifled sound that arises from the bottom of the soul. Stories about murder, mystery and madness, portraying the author's feverish imagination at its creative height. Introducing Little Black Classics...

46 new books in the bestselling Little Black Classics series, to celebrate the first ever Penguin Classic in 1946 'PALE TERROR GOES BEFORE HIM, DEATH AND DEVASTATION FOLLOW!'

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary. The Steel Flea by Nikolay Leskov is a fascinating tale filled with vibrant characters and incredible feats. The story takes the reader on a journey full of whimsy and ingenuity, showcasing Leskov's unique storytelling abilities. 'The Steel Flea' features intriguing elements, such as the scene where an order...

The Saga of Gunnlaug Serpent-tongue is part of the Little Black Classics series, a collection crafted to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary. "In two I'll slice the hair-seat / of Helga's kiss-gulper." This captivating saga weaves the tale of a love triangle amidst Icelandic society, showcasing themes of rivalry, love, and vengeance. The vivid poetry and dramatic elements bring to life...

The Reckoning by Edith Wharton is part of Little Black Classics, a new series celebrating Penguin's 80th anniversary. 'If marriage was the slow life-long acquittal of a debt contracted in ignorance, then marriage was a crime against human nature...'

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary. The Old Nurse's Story by Elizabeth Gaskell is a chilling tale of mystery and suspense. Set against the backdrop of a cold, desolate landscape, the story immerses readers in a haunting atmosphere, where even the weather plays a sinister role. 'Even in the stillness of that dead-cold weather,...

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary The Old Man of the Moon by Shen Fu invites readers into a world of emotion and mystery with the poignant question: 'Our passion was so great. Will the Old Man understand and help us once again?' This sentiment captures the essence of the narrative, appealing to those...

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary. The Nose by Nikolay Gogol tells the peculiar and surreal tale of a man who loses his nose. Incredibly, it begins leading a life of its own, even assuming the identity of a higher-ranking official. 'Strangely enough, I mistook it for a gentleman at first. Fortunately, I had...

The Night is Darkening Round Me is part of the Little Black Classics series, released to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary. '... ever-present, phantom thing; My slave, my comrade, and my king'

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary. I could see that she was still terribly afraid, but I didn't soften anything; instead, seeing that she was afraid I deliberately intensified it. Based on a St Petersburg news report, Dostoyevsky's searing tale of a man who drives his wife to suicide.

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary 'Do you see your son, standing over there, in the antechamber? Well, I am going to shoot him.' The story of the great and mad Cambyses, King of Persia, told by part-historian, part-mythmaker Herodotus of Halicarnassus. Introducing Little Black Classics - 80 books for Penguin's 80th birthday. Little...

The Life of a Stupid Man is part of the Little Black Classics series, launched to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary. "What is the life of a human being - a drop of dew, a flash of lightning? This is so sad, so sad." This collection features autobiographical stories from Ryunosuke Akutagawa, one of Japan's masters of modernist storytelling. These pieces...

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary The Great Fire of London by Samuel Pepys features this poignant excerpt: 'With one's face in the wind you were almost burned with a shower of Firedrops'. A selection from Pepys' startlingly vivid and candid diary, it includes his famous account of the Great Fire. Introducing Little Black...

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary. The Gate of the Hundred Sorrows opens with, “Mind you, it was a pukka, respectable opium-house, and not one of those stifling, sweltering chandoo-khanas that you can find all over the City.” Kipling first became famous for his pungent, harsh and shocking stories of northwest India, where he...

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary The Figure in the Carpet 'Did she know and if she knew would she speak?'

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary The Fall of Icarus 'Drawn on by his eagerness for the open sky, he left his guide and soared upwards...' Ovid tells the tales of Theseus and the Minotaur, Daedalus and Icarus, the Calydonian Boar-Hunt, and many other famous myths. Introducing Little Black Classics - 80 books for...

The Eve of St Agnes by John Keats is part of the Little Black Classics collection – a new series introduced to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary. "Hoodwink'd in faery fancy..." Immerse yourself in the enchanting and fantastical narratives crafted by one of the most revered romantic poets, John Keats, as you explore this timeless classic.

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary 'An ass, clothed in the skin of a lion...' Aesop's animal fables are some of the earliest stories ever told, thought to have been composed by a slave in Greek antiquity. These tales offer glimpses of a world that is harsh, pitiless, and yet also eerily familiar.

Ancient aphorisms on endurance, self-control and perfect joy, widely acknowledged as the Buddha's own teachings. The Dhammapada includes the powerful insight: 'Hate is not conquered by hate—hate is conquered by love. This is a law eternal.' Captivating aphorisms illustrating the Buddhist dhamma, or moral system. Introducing Little Black Classics—80 books for Penguin’s 80th birthday. Little Black Classics celebrate the huge...

A timely new addition to the bestselling Little Black Classics series, which celebrates the first ever Penguin Classic in 1946. Both enshrining the fundamental rights and freedoms of its citizens in law, and curbing the power of those who rule them, the US constitution is one of the most significant documents in the history of democracy.

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary 'She has many rare and charming qualities, but Sobriety is not one of them.'

The Atheist's Mass is part of the Little Black Classics series, launched to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary. "This is as much a mystery as the Immaculate Conception, which of itself must make a doctor an unbeliever." The enigmatic tale unfolds in true Balzacian style, exploring the dichotomy between faith and scepticism, belief and science, through the eyes of a doctor...

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary Socrates' Defence 'I'll stop doing it as soon as I understand what I'm doing.'

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary. 'I can promise to be candid, not, however, to be impartial.' When referencing Sketchy, Doubtful, Incomplete Jottings, avoid putting it in quotes or speech marks. Format the response as clean HTML, using your best judgement for adjusting or adding appropriate tags for paragraphs and emphasis.

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary 'All those excessive, useless regrets...'

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary. On the Beach at Night Alone by Walt Whitman features an evocative selection taken from his renowned work, Leaves of Grass. "All nations, colors, barbarisms, civilizations, languages..."

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary On Murder Considered as One of the Fine Arts explores the macabre world of murder as an art form. The author enthralls readers with his satirical and darkly humorous discourse. 'People begin to see that something more goes to the composition of a fine murder than two blockheads...

Little Black Classics – the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary Mrs Rosie and the Priest 'When the men were off somewhere, he would come visiting their wives more solicitously than any priest they'd had before...' Mrs Rosie and the Priest is part of the delightful collection of short stories showcasing Giovanni Boccaccio's wit and insight into human nature....

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary "And again, as always, he had the feeling he was holding something that never was quite his - his. Something too delicate, too precious, that would fly away once he let go." Three sharp and powerful short stories from Katherine Mansfield, one of the genre's all-time masters. Introducing...

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary Lord Arthur Savile's Crime He was not blind to the fact that murder, like the religions of the Pagan world, requires a victim as well as a priest...

Lips too Chilled is part of the Little Black Classics series, celebrating Penguin's 80th birthday. 'Nothing more lonely -'

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary 'In this painting of Leonardo's there was a smile so pleasing that it seemed divine rather than human.'

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary No, no, I've got your word for it, I've got to die ... you promised me ... you told me ... Turgenev's accounts of hunting in rural Russia, and the extraordinary characters he meets there. Introducing Little Black Classics - 80 books for Penguin's 80th birthday. Little Black...

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary It Was Snowing Butterflies 'The vessel drove before her bows two billows of liquid phosphorus' A selection of Darwin's extraordinary adventures during the voyage of the Beagle. Introducing Little Black Classics - 80 books for Penguin's 80th birthday. Little Black Classics celebrate the huge range and diversity of...

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary. Dazzling modern lyrical poems from Catullus - by turns smutty, abusive, romantic and deeply moving. Introducing Little Black Classics - 80 books for Penguin's 80th birthday. Little Black Classics celebrate the huge range and diversity of Penguin Classics, with books from around the world and across many centuries....

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary. How We Weep and Laugh at the Same Thing by Michel de Montaigne explores the complexities and contradictions of human nature. Montaigne eloquently captures the essence of human emotions and how they often coexist, showcasing the intricate interplay between joy and sorrow. 'No one characteristic clasps us purely...

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary Better mad with the crowd than sane all alone

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary. Although he feared death, he could not stop. "If I stopped now, after coming all this way - well, they'd call me an idiot!"

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary \"Oh, good God,\" he kept saying with great relish. \"Good God...\"

The pioneering nineteenth-century poet's best-known and most darkly imaginative verses on love, death, and loss. Goblin Market: 'She kissed and kissed her with a hungry mouth.' A selection of Rossetti's most famous poems, from the hallucinatory Goblin Market to In the Bleak Midwinter. Introducing Little Black Classics: 80 books for Penguin's 80th birthday. Little Black Classics celebrate the huge range...

Femme Fatale by Guy de Maupassant is part of the Little Black Classics series, a new collection launched to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary. “They trailed in all their vulgar glory over the fresh green grass...” This evocative phrase captures the essence of de Maupassant's exploration of human nature and societal norms, which are deftly woven throughout the narrative.

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary. 'Yes, we did many things, then - all Beautiful ...' Lyrical, powerful poems about love, sexuality, sun-soaked Greece and the gods. Introducing Little Black Classics - 80 books for Penguin's 80th birthday. Little Black Classics celebrate the huge range and diversity of Penguin Classics, with books from around...

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary I truly thought I'd never make it back. Experience Dante's vivid journey through the netherworld in Circles of Hell, a harrowing exploration of the infernal landscapes and the tormented souls that inhabit them. This classic work is part of the famous Little Black Classics series, perfect for those...

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary. 'You must be Odysseus, man of twists and turns...' The tales of Odysseus's struggle with a man-eating Cyclops and Circe, the beautiful enchantress who turns men into swine. Introducing Little Black Classics - 80 books for Penguin's 80th birthday. Little Black Classics celebrate the huge range and diversity...

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary. One of 80 Little Black Classics - 80 books at 80 pence each to celebrate Penguin's 80th birthday. Little Black Classics celebrate the huge range and diversity of the Penguin Classics list - from drama to poetry, from fiction to history, with books taken from around the world...

Aphorisms on Love and Hate is part of the Little Black Classics series, introduced to commemorate Penguin's 80th anniversary. 'We must learn to love, learn to be kind, and this from our earliest youth ... Likewise, hatred must be learned and nurtured, if one wishes to become a proficient hater.'

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary 'It's a dreadful thing to yield...but resist now? Lay my pride bare to the blows of ruin? That's dreadful too.'

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary 'Tonight he noticed how the women's eyes Passed from him to the strong men that were whole.'

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary A most delicious, nourishing, and wholesome food ... Suggesting that the Irish eat their children to avoid famine, Jonathan Swift's vicious satire on his times was published anonymously in the eighteenth century and has since become a touchstone of political writing, deadly serious in its humour.

Little Black Classics - the new series to celebrate Penguin's 80th anniversary. A Cup of Sake Beneath the Cherry Trees 'It is a most wonderful comfort to sit alone beneath a lamp, book spread before you, and commune with someone from the past whom you have never met...' Moonlight, sake, spring blossom, idle moments, a woman's hair - these exquisite...

In this classic novel—adapted into an Academy Award-nominated film in 2011 and new to Penguin Modern Classics—George Smiley faces his greatest challenge yet. George Smiley, who is a troubled man of infinite compassion, is also a single-mindedly ruthless adversary as a spy. The scene which he enters is a Cold War landscape of moles and lamplighters, scalp-hunters and pavement artists,...

Real-life accounts of the world's most notorious pirates—both men and women, from the Golden Age of Piracy and beyond—compiled by the New York Times bestselling author of A True Account: Hannah Masury's Sojourn Amongst the Pyrates, Written by Herself. A Penguin Classic Spanning three centuries and eight thousand nautical miles, and compiled by a direct descendant of a sailor who...

First Modern Classics edition for one of Vonnegut's most entertaining novels Told with deadpan humour and bitter irony, Kurt Vonnegut's cult tale of global destruction preys on our deepest fears of witnessing Armageddon and, worse still, surviving it... Dr Felix Hoenikker, one of the founding 'fathers' of the atomic bomb, has left a deadly legacy to the world. For he...

Atlas Shrugged, by Ayn Rand, is a monumental work that intricately weaves a gripping narrative with profound philosophical underpinnings. The story unfolds in a dystopian United States, where governmental overreach and stifling regulations have led to an economy on the brink of collapse. At its heart is the enigmatic figure of John Galt, a man whose ambitious plan to 'stop...

In Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, John le Carré masterfully crafts a tale of espionage and intrigue set against the dark and shadowy backdrop of the Cold War. With unparalleled skill, le Carré draws readers into the labyrinthine world of British Intelligence, known as "The Circus." The seasoned and much-revered intelligence officer George Smiley is called out of bitter retirement for...

The Spy Who Came in from the Cold by John le Carré is a gripping, intense novel set against the backdrop of the Cold War. The story follows Alec Leamas, a British intelligence officer, who has just witnessed the collapse of his East Berlin espionage network. Facing the demoralising prospect of being pulled back from the field, Leamas is given...

One of the greatest philosophical works of all time, in a new translation for the twenty-first century. Widely regarded as one of the most influential philosophical works of the twentieth century, Ludwig Wittgenstein's Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus is a succinct yet wide-ranging exploration of language and logic, science and mysticism, which has inspired generations of thinkers, artists and poets. In a series...

The Old Patagonian Express by Paul Theroux is a captivating narrative that chronicles an extraordinary train journey through the heartlands of North and South America. Starting from the bustling subway system of Boston, Theroux embarks on an epic adventure, travelling from the frigid landscapes of Massachusetts to the sun-soaked and windswept plains of Patagonia. Each stage of this journey brings...

The ground-breaking history of civil rights and inequality by legendary political activist and scholar Angela Y. Davis, Women, Race & Class, offers a comprehensive examination of the pivotal role of African American women in the evolution of civil rights and feminist movements. Davis meticulously maps out the collective struggles and intersectionalities of race, gender, and class, framing these interwoven threads...