American Classics Children's Collection | Campbell County Libraries

Author

Earliest Publication Date

1915

Summary

For generations, children around the world have come of age with Louisa May Alcott's March girls: hardworking eldest sister Meg, headstrong, impulsive Jo, timid Beth, and precocious Amy. With their father away at war, and their loving mother Marmee working to support the family, the four sisters have to rely on one another for support as they endure the hardships of wartime and poverty. We witness the sisters growing up and figuring out what role...

2) Moby Dick

Author

Melville, Herman, 1819-1891

Earliest Publication Date

1926

Summary

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?Call me Ishmael? is the iconic opening line of Herman Melville?s classic American novel, Moby-Dick. Ishmael is a seaman aboard the whaling vessel, Pequod, under the vengeful captain, Ahab. Maniacally seeking retribution from the great white sperm whale called Moby-Dick--the whale responsible for the captain?s missing leg--Ahab leads the crew on a quest to kill the infamous beast.

3) Rip Van Winkle

Author

Irving, Washington, 1783-1859

Earliest Publication Date

1888

Summary

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An idle man falls asleep in the Catskill Mountains only to wake up twenty years later, bewildered as to how life passed him by. Includes an analysis of the story and a biography of the author.

4) The call of the wild

Author

London, Jack, 1876-1916

Earliest Publication Date

1903

Summary

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"Life is good for Buck in Santa Clara Valley, where he spends his days eating and sleeping in the golden sunshine. But one day a treacherous act of betrayal leads to his kidnap, and he is forced into a life of toil and danger. Dragged away to be a sledge dog in the harsh and freezing cold Yukon, Buck must fight for his survivial. Can he rise above his enemies and become the master of his realm once again?"--Amazon.com.

5) The great Gatsby

Author

Fitzgerald, F. Scott (Francis Scott), 1896-1940

Earliest Publication Date

1925

Summary

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"In a single, engaging volume, The Great Gatsby presents a helpful literary guide to one of America's most prized classic novels. First published in 1925, F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby captured the spirit of the Jazz Age and examined the American obsession with love, wealth, material objects, and class. Considered one of the great novels of the 20th century, Fitzgerald s famous work remains relevant for its observations on the pursuit of...

6) The last of the Mohicans

Author

Cooper, James Fenimore, 1789-1851

Earliest Publication Date

1923

Summary

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Set in 1757 amidst the French and Indian War, the novel tells the story of frontier scout Hawkeye and his efforts to conduct two daughters of a fort commander to safety.

7) The portrait of a lady

Author

James, Henry, 1843-1916

Earliest Publication Date

1890

Summary

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When Isabel Archer, a beautiful, spirited American, is brought to Europe by her wealthy Aunt Touchett, it is expected that she will soon marry. But Isabel, resolved to determine her own fate, does not hesitate to turn down two eligible suitors. She then finds herself irresistibly drawn to Gilbert Osmond, who, beneath his veneer of charm and cultivation, is cruelty itself.

8) Twelve years a slave

Author

Northup, Solomon, 1808-1863?

Earliest Publication Date

1968

Summary

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Perhaps the best written of all the slave narratives, Twelve Years a Slave is a harrowing memoir about one of the darkest periods in American history. It recounts how Solomon Northup, born a free man in New York, was lured to Washington, D.C., in 1841 with the promise of fast money, then drugged and beaten and sold into slavery. He spent the next twelve years of his life in captivity on a Louisiana cotton plantation. After his rescue, Northup published...