Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea (French: Vingt mille lieues sous les mers) is a classic science fiction novel by French writer Jules Verne, published in 1870. It is about the fictional Captain Nemo and his submarine, Nautilus, as seen by one of his passengers, Professor Pierre Aronnax. In chapter one, talk spreads throughout Europe and America about the sighting of a huge sea creature. The public becomes concerned with a series of shipwrecks.

The Heart of Happy Hollow is a short story collection by Paul Laurence Dunbar that focuses on the experiences of African-Americans after the conclusion of the Civil War. In chapter one we find Mr. Asbury is a businessman who successfully works his way up from a barbershop owner to a lawyer. Upon his success, Mr. Bingo conspires against him to make Mr. Asbury the scapegoat for his crimes.

Sara Crewe is left in the care of Miss Minchin's Seminary when her father departs for India. After arriving from India by ship, Captaing Crewe reluctantly leaves his daughter in the care of Miss Minchin.

Published in 1897, The Open Boat is based on an actual incident from Stephen Crane’s life. While on his way to Cuba, Crane's ship sank off the coast of Florida. Crane and other survivors were stranded at sea for thirty hours. They eventually made their way to safety in a small boat, but one of the men drowned while trying to swim to shore. Crane wrote this story soon after the incident occurred. In chapter one, the men aboard a tiny boat discover they are sinking. The captain is hurt and...

The Wind in the Willows is a classic of children's literature by Kenneth Grahame, first published in 1908. Alternately slow moving and fast paced, it focuses on four anthropomorphised animal characters in a pastoral version of England. The novel is notable for its mixture of mysticism, adventure, morality, and camaraderie. In chapter one, The Wind in the Willows is a classic of children's literature by Kenneth Grahame, first published in 1908. Alternately slow moving and fast paced, it...

In chapter one, the King of Bohemia seeks the help of Sherlock Holmes in securing a picture that could be used against him in the political scene.

Sylvie and Bruno, first published in 1889, and its 1893 second volume Sylvie and Bruno Concluded form the last novel by Lewis Carroll published during his lifetime. Both volumes were illustrated by Harry Furniss. The novel has two main plots: one set in the real world at the time the book was published (the Victorian era), the other in the fictional world of Fairyland. While the latter plot is a fairytale with many nonsense elements and poems, similar to Carroll’s most famous children’s book...

The Story of Siegfried is James Baldwin's retelling of ancient yet perpetually popular Norse and Germanic tales about the hero Siegfried. The stories tell of a young man who had many adventures that readers might find familiar from modern movies and books, such as forging a legendary sword, rescuing a beautiful woman from a deep sleep, fighting dragons and armies, and so forth. Baldwin's sources included the Eddas, the Volsung Saga, and the Nibelungenlied, some of the oldest surviving...

Originally published in French in 1864, the first English translation of this classic of adventure and science fiction was published in 1871. The book describes the journey of a scientist, his nephew, and their guide through the Earth's interior by way of volcanic tubes. Along the way, they encounter various threats and wonders, seeing evidence of earlier stages in the planet's development.

The Emerald City of Oz is the sixth of L. Frank Baum’s fourteen Land of Oz books. Originally published in 1910, it is the story of Dorothy and her Uncle Henry and Aunt Em coming to live in Oz permanently. While they tour through the Quadling Country, the Nome King assembles allies for an invasion of Oz. Baum had intended to cease writing Oz stories with this book, but financial pressures prompted him to write and publish The Patchwork Girl of Oz, with seven other Oz books to follow. In...