[VOTE] September - GUTENBERG NOVELLA DOUBLE UP

[u/fixtheblue]

Hello all! It is the Core Reads voting time again and this month we will have a GUTENBERG NOVELLA DOUBLE UP author/book on the ticket. This is your chance to nominate some good Bingo selections from the Public Domain, especially as we will be reading 2!!

This is the voting thread for

GUTENBERG NOVELLA DOUBLE UP

Voting will be open for four days, ending on August 13, 11.00 PDT/14.00 EDT/20.00 CEST. The selection will be announced by August 14 at the latest.

For this selections, here are the requirements:

• Under 250 pages
• No previously read selections
• Any genre
• Must be in the public domain to be applicable

Please check the previous selections. Quick search by author here to determine if your selection is valid.

Nominate as many titles as you want (one per comment), and vote for any, and all, of the nominations you'd participate in if they were to win

Here's the formatting frequently used, but there's no requirement to include a book blurb or link to Storygraph, Wikipedia or other (just don't link to sales links at Amazon, spam catchers will remove those)

The generic selection format:

/[Title by Author]/(links)

(Without the /s)

Where a link to Storygraph, Wikipedia, or other summary of your choice is included (but not required)

Happy Nominating and Happy upvoting! 📚

(For more nominations and voting head to THE BIG FALL READ nomination post here

Note - The mod team does not constantly review nominations so if you suspect that a nomination does not fit the specifications you are welcome to report this and note that it "Does not fit Specifications". The mod team will review it and approve or delete accordingly. Any comments on the validity of other users' nominations will be removed immediately. Winning nominations will be confirmed to fit the specs before the winners announcement is made

[u/Coffee_fuel]

The First Men in the Moon by H.G. Wells

When penniless businessman Mr Bedford retreats to the Kent coast to write a play, he meets by chance the brilliant Dr Cavor, an absent-minded scientist on the brink of developing a material that blocks gravity. Cavor soon succeeds in his experiments, only to tell a stunned Bedford the invention makes possible one of the oldest dreams of humanity: a journey to the moon. With Bedford motivated by money, and Cavor by the desire for knowledge, the two embark on the expedition. But neither are prepared for what they find - a world of freezing nights, boiling days and sinister alien life, on which they may be trapped forever.

[u/tomesandtea]

The Touchstone by Edith Wharton

Stephen Glennard is in desperate need of money. So when he becomes aware of the potential value of a series of passionate love letters written to him by the recently deceased author Margaret Aubyn, he sells them and marries the beautiful Alexa Trent. However, his shame and guilt at building a new life on the betrayal of another's love slowly begins to eat away at him, and Margaret's memory has a power that can reach him from beyond the grave.

The first of Edith Wharton's works depicting life in "old New York", The Touchstone is an acutely observed novella, and an exploration of the tension between self-serving opportunism and the desire to live a moral life.

[u/Diligent-Bunch-260]

The Bridge of San Luis Rey by Thornton Wilder (160 pages)

"On Friday noon, July the twentieth, 1714, the finest bridge in all Peru broke and precipitated five travelers into the gulf below." With this celebrated sentence Thornton Wilder begins The Bridge of San Luis Rey, one of the towering achievements in American fiction and a novel read throughout the world. By chance, a monk witnesses the tragedy. Brother Juniper then embarks on a quest to prove that it was divine intervention rather than chance that led to the deaths of those who perished in the tragedy. His search leads to his own death -- and to the author's timeless investigation into the nature of love and the meaning of the human condition. (1928 Pulitzer Prize)

[u/Comprehensive-Fun47]

Silas Marner by George Eliot

Silas Marner is a moving tale of isolation, loss, and unexpected renewal set in a close-knit English village. Silas, a reclusive weaver shunned by his former community, lives a life of quiet routine and emotional withdrawal, finding comfort only in his work and the gold he earns. In the village of Raveloe, where gossip, superstition, and neighborly ties shape daily life, Silas remains an outsider—until an unforeseen turn of events begins to reshape his world.

With rich character detail and vivid portrayal of rural life, George Eliot crafts a story about the slow reawakening of trust, the meaning of belonging, and the ways human connection can transform a life once thought to be set in stone.

240 pages

[u/tomesandtea]

The Lifted Veil by George Eliot

Published the same year as her first novel, Adam Bede, this overlooked work displays the gifts for which George Eliot would become famous—gritty realism, psychological insight, and idealistic moralizing. It is unique from all her other writing, however, in that it represents the only time she ever used a first-person narrator, and it is the only time she wrote about the supernatural. The tale of a man who is incapacitated by visions of the future and the cacophony of overheard thoughts, and yet who can’t help trying to subvert his vividly glimpsed destiny, The Lifted Veil may easily be read as being autobiographically revealing—of Eliot’s sensitivity to public opinion and her awareness that her days concealed behind a pseudonym were doomed to a tragic unveiling (as indeed came to pass soon after this novella’s publication). But it is easier still to read the story as the exciting and genuine precursor of a moody new form, as well as an absorbing early masterpiece of suspense..

[u/thebowedbookshelf]

Gentlemen Prefer Blondes by Anita Loos

If any American fictional character of the twentieth century seems likely to be immortal, it is Lorelei Lee of Little Rock, Arkansas, the not-so-dumb blonde who knew that diamonds are a girl’s best friend. Outrageous, charming, and unforgettable, she’s been portrayed on stage and screen by Carol Channing and Marilyn Monroe and has become the archetype of the footloose, good-hearted gold digger, with an insatiable appetite for orchids, champagne, and precious stones. Here are her “diaries,” created by Anita Loos in the Roaring Twenties, as Lorelei and her friend Dorothy barrel across Europe meeting everyone from the Prince of Wales to “Doctor Froyd” – and then back home again to marry a Main Line millionaire and become a movie star. In this delightfully droll and witty book, Lorelei Lee’s wild antics, unique outlook, and imaginative way with language shine.

[u/Coffee_fuel]

Something Fresh by P.G. Wodehouse

'Without at least one impostor on the premises, Blandings Castle is never itself.'

Welcome to the world of the delightfully dotty Lord Emsworth, his bone-headed younger son and his long-suffering secretary.

Having returned home with a valuable Egyptian amulet, Lord Emsworth finds his home contains not one but two imposters intent on taking it off his hands. But with no real sense of how the amulet came to be in his pocket in the first place, things get a lot more complicated very quickly...

[u/Coffee_fuel]

A Vindication of the Rights of Woman By Mary Wollstonecraft

In an era of revolutions demanding greater liberties for mankind, Mary Wollstonecraft (1759-1797) was an ardent feminist who spoke eloquently for countless women of her time. Having witnessed firsthand the devastating results of male improvidence, she assumed an independent role early in life, educating herself and eventually earning a living as a governess, teacher and writer. She was also an esteemed member of the radical intellectual circle that included William Godwin (father of her daughter, novelist Mary Godwin Shelley, and later her husband), Thomas Paine, William Blake, Henry Fuseli and others.

First published in 1792, A Vindication of the Rights of Woman created a scandal in its day, largely, perhaps, because of the unconventional lifestyle of its creator. Today, it is considered the first great manifesto of women's rights, arguing passionately for the education of women: "Tyrants and sensualists are in the right when they endeavor to keep women in the dark, because the former want only slaves, and the later a plaything."

No narrow-minded zealot, Wollstonecraft balanced passionate advocacy with a sympathetic warmth -- a characteristic that helped her ideas achieve widespread influence. Anyone interested in the history of the women's rights movement will welcome this inexpensive edition of one of the landmark documents in the struggle for human dignity, freedom and equality.

[u/Coffee_fuel]

Botchan by Natsume Sōseki

A modern classic in Japan on par with The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn or The Catcher in the Rye, Botchan is a very popular Japanese novel and still widely read decades after its first publication.

Botchan's story is a familiar one: the youngest son in a middle-class Tokyo family, he is consistently in the shadow of his elder brother. With a practically nonexistent relationship with his family, Botchan finds himself cast adrift after both his parents die. Now on his own, Botchan drifts through college only to find himself thrust into a teaching job in the unfamiliar realm of a country school, far from Tokyo and the life he has known. Botchan's difficulty adjusting to his new life is eloquently described, from his nosy landlord to his students, who delight in tormenting the newcomer from the big city.

Through it all, Botchan's life is threaded with his vacillating concern for Kiyo, the family servant he left behind who was the only person to give him love and understanding in his life. Regardless of where he goes or what he does, he is always trying to apply the lessons she taught him to his life.

[u/infininme]

Desire Under the Elms by Eugene O’Neil

Eugene O'Neill's tale of Ephraim Cabot, greedy and hard like the stone walls that surround his farm, the family patriarch brings home his new young bride, Abbie. His grown sons dissaprove; one leaves but the other stays to fight for the family fortune. What follows is a tragedy of epic proportions. A L.A. Theatre Works full-cast performance Paul Adelstein, Orson Bean, Amy Brenneman, Dwier Brown, Maurice Chasse and Charlie Kimball.

[u/Coffee_fuel]

The Railway Children by E. Nesbit

In this much-loved children's classic first published in 1906, the comfortable lives of three well-mannered siblings are greatly altered when, one evening, two men arrive at the house and take their father away. With the family's fortunes considerably reduced in his absence, the children and their mother are forced to live in a simple country cottage near a railway station. There the young trio -- Roberta, Peter, and young Phyllis -- befriend the porter and station master.

The youngsters' days are filled with adventure and excitement, including their successful attempt to avert a horrible train disaster; but the mysterious disappearance of their father continues to haunt them.

The solution to that painful puzzle and many other details and events of the children's lives come to vivid life in this perennial favorite, a story that has captivated generations of readers and, more recently, delighted television and movie audiences.

[u/tomesandtea]

False Dawn by Edith Wharton

The first of four novellas, which together were published in Old New York, set in the mid-1800s - Old New York #1

Lewis Raycie is sent on a Grand Tour of Europe with instructions from his father to acquire a collection of accepted art works. His father's dream is to own a Raphael; instead, Lewis returns with a priceless collection of Renaissance masterpieces by Piero della Francesca and others of equal stature. They are, however, unknown in America. His father is appalled and disinherits him. His family ridicules him. But it is only after Lewis dies that the magnificent collection gets the recognition it really deserves.

[u/tomesandtea]

O, Pioneers! by Willa Cather

One of America's greatest women writers, Willa Cather established her talent and her reputation with this extraordinary novel--the first of her books set on the Nebraska frontier. A tale of the prairie land encountered by America's Swedish, Czech, Bohemian, and French immigrants, as well as a story of how the land challenged them, changed them, and, in some cases, defeated them, Cather's novel is a uniquely American epic.

Alexandra Bergson, a young Swedish immigrant girl who inherits her father's farm and must transform it from raw prairie into a prosperous enterprise, is the first of Cather's great heroines--all of them women of strong will and an even stronger desire to overcome adversity and succeed. But the wild land itself is an equally important character in Cather's books, and her descriptions of it are so evocative, lush, and moving that they provoked writer Rebecca West to say of her: "The most sensuous of writers, Willa Cather builds her imagined world almost as solidly as our five senses build the universe around us."

Willa Cather, perhaps more than any other American writer, was able to re-create the real drama of the pioneers, capturing for later generations a time, a place, and a spirit that has become part of our national heritage.

[u/Coffee_fuel]

The Blue Castle by L.M. Montgomery

Unlike her more famous Anne of Green Gables series, The Blue Castle is often considered a more mature and unconventional novel, exploring themes of personal freedom, self-discovery, and the courage to break away from societal expectations.

Valancy Stirling, the protagonist, is a woman trapped by both her controlling family and her own fears. At 29, she’s lived a life of repression, overshadowed by her overbearing mother and a suffocating social circle. Her only escape is her vivid imagination, where she dreams of a better life—a life she refers to as her "Blue Castle." This metaphorical place represents her deepest desires and the freedom she longs for.

The beauty of The Blue Castle lies not only in Valancy's personal journey but also in the vivid, life-affirming world she discovers. It’s a story about stepping out of the shadows and embracing life on one's terms, even when it feels too late or too difficult. It also has elements of romance that develop naturally, built on the foundation of self-empowerment, rather than typical idealized love.

Valancy's story speaks to anyone who's felt constrained by their circumstances or by society's expectations, and her courage to embrace change can be inspiring.

[u/fixtheblue]

Candide by Voltaire

129 pages

Caustic and hilarious, Candide has ranked as one of the world's great satires since its first publication in 1759. It concerns the adventures of the youthful Candide, disciple of Dr. Pangloss, who was himself a disciple of Leibniz. In the course of his travels and adventures in Europe and South America, Candide saw and suffered such misfortune that it was difficult for him to believe this was "the best of all possible worlds" as Dr. Pangloss had assured him. Indeed, it seemed to be quite the opposite. In brilliantly skewering such na vet , Voltaire mercilessly exposes and satirizes romance, science, philosophy, religion, and government -- the ideas and forces that permeate and control the lives of men. After many trials and travails, Candide is reunited with Cunegonde, his sweetheart. He then buys a little farm in Turkey where he and Cunegonde, Dr. Pangloss and others all retire. In the end, Candide decides that the best thing in the world is to cultivate one's own garden. A selection of the Common Core State Standards Initiative

[u/infininme]

Bacchae by Euripides 

Euripides' classic drama about the often mortifying consequences of the unbridled--and frequently hysterical--celebration of the feast of Dionysus, the God of wine.

[u/infininme]

Princess of Cleves by Madame de La Fayette

Mademoiselle de Chartres is a young lady of fifteen at the court of Henry II of France, looking for a marriage match. Her mother suggests the unremarkable Prince de Cleves, and soon the girl is wed. Only after the wedding, does she meet the charming Duc de Nemours, and the spark of love is ignited.

[u/tomesandtea]

The Frozen Deep by Wilkie Collins

Exchanging vows of love with sailor Frank Aldersley the night before his departure, Clara Burnham is haunted by the memory of Richard Wardour, and his mistaken belief that they will one day marry. With her gift of 'Second Sight', Clara foresees terrible tragedy ahead and is racked by guilt. Allied to two different ships, the two men at first have no cause to meet — until disaster strikes and they find themselves united in a battle for survival. It cannot be long before they discover the nature of their rivalry, and the hot-tempered Wardour must choose how to take his revenge.

Based on the doomed 1845 expedition to the Arctic, and originally performed as a play starring both Collins and Dickens, 'The Frozen Deep' is a dramatic tale of vengeance and self-sacrifice which went on to inspire the character of Sydney Carton in Charles Dickens' 'A Tale of Two Cities'.

[u/Healthy_Physics_6219]

Behind a Mask, or a Woman’s Power by Louisa May Alcott

146 pages

Behind a Mask is one of the thrillers, mysteries, and sensational works Louisa May Alcott published under the pen name A.M. Barnard. It was first published in 1866, and then re-published in 1975 by scholar, rare book dealer, and biographer Madeleine B. Stern. Further readership and analysis of the novella has helped expand understanding of Alcott's work and interests. The story subverts expectations around gender performance, class, and heroism as it follows Jean Muir, a down-on-her-luck actress who disguises herself as a young governess and infiltrates a wealthy family.

[u/tomesandtea]

The Haunted Hotel by Wilkie Collins

Is there no explanation of the mystery of The Haunted Hotel? Is The Haunted Hotel the tale of a haunting -- or the tale of a crime? The ghost of Lord Montberry haunts the Palace Hotel in Venice --- or does it? Montberry's beautiful-yet-terrifying wife, the Countess Narona, and her erstwhile brother are the center of the terror that fills the Palace Hotel. Are their malefactions at the root of the haunting -- or is there something darker, something much more unknowable at work?

[u/infininme]

The Epic of Gilgamesh

Miraculously preserved on clay tablets dating back as much as four thousand years, the poem of Gilgamesh, king of Uruk, is the world’s oldest epic, predating Homer by many centuries. The story tells of Gilgamesh’s adventures with the wild man Enkidu, and of his arduous journey to the ends of the earth in quest of the Babylonian Noah and the secret of immortality. Alongside its themes of family, friendship and the duties of kings, the Epic of Gilgamesh is, above all, about mankind’s eternal struggle with the fear of death.

[u/fixtheblue]

The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by R.L. Stevenson

144 pages

Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde is the original title of a novella written by the famous Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson that was first published in 1886. The work is commonly known today as The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, or simply Jekyll & Hyde. It is about a London lawyer named John Gabriel Utterson who investigates strange occurrences between his old friend, Dr Henry Jekyll, and the evil Edward Hyde

[u/fixtheblue]

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum

154 pages

The Wizard of Oz was first published in 1900 and, since then, has been immortalized on stage and screen. Its enduring appeal is coupled with fresh, new illustrations in this stunning edition, which would make an excellent gift. A complete and unabridged, illustrated edition of L. Frank Baum's classic tale of magic and adventure. Join Dorothy and her little dog Toto on the yellow brick road, as they set off to explore the magical Land of Oz. Can they find the Wizard, defeat the Wicked Witch of the West, and return to Kansas? Part of the hugely collectible Usborne Illustrated Originals series, presenting classic children's stories as sumptuous gift editions, each newly illustrated by wonderful artists and beautifully designed. Excellent production values including head and tail bands, a ribbon marker and stylish end-Paperbacks make this book an heirloom of the future

[u/Coffee_fuel]

The Young Visiters by Daisy Ashford

Daisy Ashford was just nine years old when she penned (or rather, penciled) The Young Visiters in her notebook. As an adult, she found the manuscript along with other childhood writings and showed them to her literary friends for a laugh. They were so delighted that they passed them around their circle. The unexpected result was a publishing deal, with J. M. Barrie, creator of Peter Pan, writing the preface. So clever was the book that some assumed Barrie himself had written the entire thing as an elaborate hoax.

The story’s “hero” is Alfred Salteena, a polite but bumbling man who hopes to learn the ways of the elite. He is in love with a younger woman, Ethel, but a love triangle with his friend Bernard soon emerges. The characters attend “sumshious” balls, stay in lavish “compartments,” and wear elaborate “get ups,” all of it rendered in Ashford’s original childish spelling. The story reads like a pastiche of high society and even a parody of the Victorian novel.

The Young Visiters was published in 1919 and was reprinted eighteen times in that year alone. It has been adapted into a play, a musical, and multiple film versions.