Harperperennial Classics: 218 books

Miss Meadows, a singing teacher, bustles into school one day in bad temper. Upon encountering her colleagues and young students, she is cold, bitter, and reproachful. But what could have brought out this sudden irritation and resentment in Miss Meadows? HarperPerennial Classics brings great...

Fiercely dependent on her identity as a lady’s maid, a woman relates her experiences and ambitions, and the paths that her vocation has taken her down in this dramatic monologue. HarperPerennial Classics brings great works of literature to life in digital format, upholding the highest standards...

Mrs. Parker has had a hard life, even the neighbours say so. As a girl in Stratford-on-Avon, she had never heard of Shakespeare. In her first position in London, she wasn’t allowed out of the cellar except to pray with the family. After two years of being run off her feet in a doctor’s house,...

It is Sunday and Miss Brill is sitting on her special bench in the public gardens. She likes to watch the crowd and listen to their conversations, especially now that the Season has started and the band in its rotunda is making a greater effort. Week after week she sees the same faces. There is something...

William’s heart aches. The pleasure he finds in his work is only a temporary distraction from the pain of being separated from his family, especially his wife. Every Saturday he takes the train down to the new house, full of new servants and Isabel’s Bohemian friends. It’s true that they needed...

The streets are bustling with people—musicians, children, psychics, and salesmen—because a bank holiday means that everyone is out of the house, enjoying the day. In “Bank Holiday” author Katherine Mansfield examines the sights, sounds, and feelings of people out on a holiday in the summertime. HarperPerennial...

Fenella Crane struggles to keep up with her father and grandmother as they stride toward the Picton boat. Her neatly-rolled luggage is strapped to her back and she clutches her grandmother’s umbrella closely to her. Her father looks tired and sad, she thinks, and as the second whistle blows, he...

In this short story by Katherine Mansfield, an unidentified narrator is left in charge of Mrs. Raddick’s children while their mother keeps her friend, Mrs. MacEwen, company at the casino. At twelve, Hennie is delighted with everything the world has to offer—an English bulldog, a cup of chocolate,...

With their annual vacation coming to an end, the Burnells and the Trouts spend the day at the beach. While the children dig for treasures in the sand, the adults ponder the fleeting nature of life and the best way to live. HarperPerennial Classics brings great works of literature to life in...

Leila was born and raised in the country, and so when she visits her cousins in town and is invited to a ball for the first time, she is overwhelmed by the exciting and daunting new experience. Taking in every detail of the night, Leila delights in the luxury and beauty of her first ball. HarperPerennial...

Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tales have delighted generations of readers since they were first published starting in 1835. The Ultimate Hans Christian Andersen: Fairy Tales brings together many of Andersen’s best-known and loved works including “The Little Mermaid,” “The Princess on the...

While searching for fresh food on a seemingly uninhabited island Edward Dorrington and his crew stumble upon a meticulously crafted village. They soon discover that the buildings and everything in them belong to a single man who has been living on the island alone for more than fifty years. Dorrington...

When approached at sea by the slaver San Dominick, Captain Amasa Delano of the Bachelor’s Delight is struck by the Spanish ship’s dilapidated condition, her peculiar captain—Benito Cereno—and the strange atmosphere among the white crew and black slaves. While Delano accepts Cereno’s explanation...

When the narrator decides to build a piazza at his new country home, his neighbours are amused when he decides to construct it on the north-facing side of his property. But the narrator is content, and when his view provides a glimpse of silver gleaming in the distance, he is convinced that his piazza...