Family Life Classics

Literary critic, E. A. Koltonovskaya, described the literary style of novelist Maria Krestovskaya as follows, “Her pen, for all its feminine agility, is often remarkable for its nearly masculine reticence. She has none of the chaotic flood of thoughtless emotions, which so frequently plagues the works by female writers. She does not like lyrical diversions and allows her characters to speak and act for themselves. Even during the most dramatic scenes, her tone remains restrained. Her formulation of women’s issues gives one the sense of a broad, universal foundation...."

Sometimes, the right perspective and the right question can make all the difference. When pursuing a dream or any type of creative work, it is easy to get stuck. What if your future self (who had already successfully completed the work) was there to guide you? Would that make a difference in how you view your current challenges, the questions you ask yourself, and the fears you are willing to face?

"The Test" is a short, powerful piece that describes a day in the life of a woman, whose past comes to haunt her just as she thinks she is settled and perfectly safe in her life. Faced with memories of long ago as well as considerations and responsibilities of today, she must make a difficult choice she knows will change her life and affect the lives of those around her.

Since summer was six years old she lived with dear Aunt May and Uncle Ob. Now, six years later, Aunt May has died. Summer, who misses May with all her might, is afraid something will happen to Ob. Most days Ob seems like he doesn't want to go on. But then Ob feels May's spirit around him and he wants to contact her. Cletus Underwood, a strange boy from school, reads about someone who could help him do that. Summer wants to hear from May too. Ob and Summer don't know what to expect when they set off on their search for some sign from May.

Little Mary Lennox is a bad-tempered, disagreeable child. When her parents die in India, she is sent back to England to live with her uncle in a big, lonely, old house. There is nothing to do all day except walk in the gardens – and watch the robin flying over the high walls of the secret garden . . . which has been locked for ten years. And no one has the key. An Oxford Bookworms Library reader for learners of English, adapted from the Frances Hodgson Burnett original by Clare West.

Monsieur Saval blickt auf sein Leben zurück, und was er dort sieht, gefällt ihm ganz und gar nicht. Seit seine Mutter gestorben ist, hat er niemanden mehr - und über sechzig ist er auch mittlerweile. Er wird einsam sterben, das wird ihm klar. Aber warum ist alles so gekommen? Hätte er nicht auch eine Frau haben können? Aber es hat sich nie ergeben. Bis auf das eine Mal, als er mit der Frau seines Freundes alleine am Fluss war... Eine wunderbar-wehmütige Novelle über das menschliche Leben, verpasste Chancen und die immer wiederkehrende Frage des "Was wäre, wenn...".

Moumine le troll, ses amis et sa famille partent pour de nouvelles aventures au cours desquelles Moumine le troll découvre l’amitié, le partage, le pardon et le courage. Dans l’une de ces histoires, Moumine le troll perd un précieux télescope qu’il doit récupérer avant qu’il ne soit trop tard. Dans une autre, les amis partent à la recherche de la chanson de l’océan sur une île solitaire. Et dans une troisième histoire, Moumine le troll trouve un magnifique trésor : une perle de la couleur de la lune de minuit. Viens découvrir les autres histoires qui se déroulent dans la vallée des Moumines !

Alcuni pulcini dentro ad un'incubatrice provano a ipotizzare come potrebbe essere la loro madre...

"A Desertion" is a short story published in 1900 about a young woman who is suspected by others in the neighborhood of indiscretion that might trouble her father.

It all started with the school rabbit. Snowflake is the school rabbit, and Snowflake is trouble. At least that's what Tommy thinks, and when Snowflake is unexpectedly left for him to look after and everything starts to go wrong, it looks like Tommy might be right. Even if he is getting more pocket money for feeding it and might be able to afford a new bike after all. And with a sick sister left in bed, a snobby actor left with suspiciously damp trousers, and no rabbit anywhere to be seen, Tommy can see his hopes of a new bike disappearing as fast as Snowflake.

In the beginning, Jane was a lonely child who wanted a friend and was blessed with a little sister who made those lonely days fade away. Jane's days became filled with happiness and wonder as she discovered that her little sister was also her best friend.

"Out on the islands that poke their rocky shores above the waters of Penobscot Bay, you can watch the time of the world go by, from minute to minute, hour to hour, from day to day..." So begins this classic story of one summer on a Maine island from the author of One Morning in Maine and Blueberries for Sal. The spell of rain, the gulls and a foggy morning, the excitement of sailing, the quiet of the night, the sudden terror of a hurricane, and, in the end, the peace of the island as the family packs up to leave are shown in McClosky's poetic language brought to life.

En manos de la cocinera, Al correr de los años y El sencillo don Rafael, cazador y tresillista, cuentan la historia de unos personajes que llegan al amor tras un largo noviazgo - Al correr de los años - o por el azar: el destino actúa cuando Vicente, protagonista del primer cuento, se rompe una pierna y don Rafael, en el último cuento, encuentra el niño en la puerta de su casa.

In this classic Hawthorne short story set in the late 18th century, the ambitious young scientist Aylmer cannot bear the fact that his otherwise flawlessly beautiful wife Georgiana bears a tiny birthmark on her cheek, an imperfection that he believes his scientific methods can cure. Devoted wholeheartedly to her husband, Georgiana allows Aylmer to work his scientific wonders upon her, so that the blemish no may no longer torment him. But tampering with nature can prove a fearful business....

This short story might well have been called, "All I Even Needed to Know About Humanity I Learned From Chickens". At times humorous, at times sympathetic, the author reveals the inadequacies of chickens and then points to our own inadequacies. As much as we hate chickens we can despise the things we believe are lacking in our own lives. That’s the philosophy of the story, perhaps it is equally enjoyable as a story about a family that just can’t seem to move far enough away from demented fowl.

Although best known for such long novels as Our Mutual Friend and The Old Curiosity Shop, Charles Dickens also wrote many wonderful short stories with both a supernatural and a humorous twist. This is one of his best.

"Local color" author Frances Gilchrist Wood wrote this powerful tale of a young wife who proves better able to succeed on the homestead frontier than does her husband.

What would you say to a Loved One if you had one day to live? A Letter to My Daughter is a short book of individual letters to my dearest daughter. I leave her with advice on Positive Thinking, How to Tap into your Inner Power, The Importance of Unplugging, Love, Inner Beauty etc. A Letter to My Daughter will not only inspire and empower girls but serves as a universal message to all readers.

The Cut Glass Bowl is the story of the beautiful but ill-fated Evelyn Piper, who succumbs to the power of a cut glass bowl - a wedding gift from a spurned former beau. It is a unique and powerful portrait depicting how frivolous choices can lead to deterioration and loss of all that one loves. It was written by F. Scott Fitzgerald in 1920 as a short story for Colliers magazine.

Read by award-winning narrator Mike Vendetti, this short story written in 1850 by Charles Dickens is beautiful in its simplicity. A boy grows to a man with the memory of him and his now dead sister gazing upon the evening star, imagining it as a gate to heaven.