Newest Study Guides
Each study guide includes essays, an in-depth chapter-by-chapter summary and analysis, character list, theme list, historical context, author biography and quiz. Study guides are available in PDF format.
Each study guide includes essays, an in-depth chapter-by-chapter summary and analysis, character list, theme list, historical context, author biography and quiz. Study guides are available in PDF format.
East, West (1994) is an anthologized work, one of the most distinctive works to have been written by Salman Rushdie. The anthology consists of a myriad of short stories and is divided into three sections - “east”, “west”, and “east, west”. The...
The nature of Dylan Thomas lies in the tragic characteristics of the drama extending to his life. It is plagued by tales of alcoholism, jealousy, and penury. Yet, despite engaging in excessive self-indulgence, Thomas launched himself into writing...
The Laramie project is a play written by Moisés Kaufman and members of the Tectonic Theater Project and first staged in 2000 at the Ricketson Theatre in Denver Laramie.
The play is set in Laramie and was inspired by the real case of an American...
Ten Little Indians is a 2004 collection of short stories by Sherman Alexie. The collection is composed of nine short stories that tell of the struggles of the Spokane tribe, a Native American tribe that lives in Washington state. Though there are...
Western philosophy in the 18th century was characterized by the emergence of oppositional thought to ancient notions of epistemology, metaphysics and ethics. Immanuel Kant occupies a central role in the generation of several radical new...
Since its publication in 1781, Immanuel Kant’s Critique of Pure Reason has established itself as one of the essential volumes in the history of philosophical literature. The complex work stands on its own as the equal of such other foundational...
Kurt Vonnegut, the author of Galapagos, was born in Indianapolis, Indiana and then attended Cornell University. However, he dropped out at the beginning of 1943 and joined the US Army.
Published in 1985, Galapagos is a novel that describes life...
King Leopold’s Ghost was written by Adam Hochschild and was first published in the fall of 1998. After being refused by nine different publishing houses, the tenth house accepted it and the novel became an international bestseller and won the Mark...
The House of the Scorpion was written by Nancy Farmer and published in 2002 by Atheneum Books. It is the first of two books in the series, and is a combination of the science fiction and YA genres. It is set in the future and largely takes place...
George Bernard Shaw was moved to write his The Doctor’s Dilemma in order explore fully the paradox of how a man can be a genius but still lack honor. It is this tragic circumstance of the individual that moved to Shaw to view the play as a comedy...
A Single Shard was published in 2001 and was written by Linda Sue Park. It is a novel that is set in ancient Korea, and that tells the story of a young boy named Tree-ear, who is an orphan. He sees a potter and wants to learn how to make pottery,...
Rules, written by Cynthia Lord, was published in 2006.
This book is about Catherine, a 12-year-old girl, who has a little brother named David. She tries to pretend that she is a normal girl with a normal life, but her life is not normal because...
Robert Leslie Conley was enjoying a career as a senior editor in the employ of National Geographic Magazine. And this was back when that magazine held a reputation beyond repute; back before it was in the hands of anti-science magnate, Rupert...
Bridge to Terabithia, written by Katherine Paterson, was published in 1977. The narrative focuses on Jesse Aarons, a boy who lives on a farm and who dreams of being the fastest runner in sixth grade. When he gets back to school, Leslie Burke, who...
The Invention of Hugo Cabret is a well-known published text written by American author Brian Selznick, published in 2007. As this book has 284 pictures between its 533 pictures, it can be assumed that the pictures are of the same importance as the...
At around 60 pages in most editions, Sarah, Plain and Tall is a fairly short novel, but it would be an even thinner volume if published in the form originally conceived. Author Patrician MacLachlan had planned for her deceptively simple story to...
Paul Auster’s The New York Trilogy has a title true to its promise. In a manner not dissimilar to John Dos Passos’ monument trilogy U.S.A, Auster’s definitive work is actually composed of three separate and distinct novel: City of Glass, Ghosts...
Chanda's Secrets is a book written by Allan Stratton which was published in 2004. The book revolves around the character of Chanda, who is a 16 year old girl. Chanda's younger sister, Sarah dies and this brings immense grief to her family....
The Book of Negroes, also known as Someone Knows My Name, is a novel written by author Lawrence Hill, which was originally published during 2007. It was later published during 2015 by W. W. Norton Company. This novel tells the story of protagonist...
A Strange Manuscript Found in a Copper Cylinder is a novel written by James De Mille. It is his most famous and most well read book. After De Mille passed away, Harper’s Weekly published the work in a series and then in 1888, it was published in...
Published in 2008, Unaccustomed Earth is Jhumpa Lahiri’s second collection of short stories. Characteristic of Lahiri’s work, Unaccustomed Earth explores the Indian American characters’ lives and culturally mixed society. It won the 2008 Frank...
Betty Smith’s novel A Tree Grows in Brooklyn was first published in 1943. By 1945 it had already been adapted into a very successful movie. Then, by 1952, the story was transformed into a hit musical on Broadway. What was the reason for such...
Shadows was John Cassavetes' directorial debut. The idea for the film grew out of an improvisation from a class he was teaching at his drama school, "The Cassavetes-Lane Drama Workshop." It involved a young African-American woman who was very...
Characterized by Joyce Carol Oates as the most unpretentious masterpiece of the American literary tradition, The Dollmaker is a novel by Harriete Arnow that was published in 1954 and proved to be a pathbreaking novel. This novel was nominated for...