Books published by publisher Benediction Classics

Hendrik van Loon attempted to write a complete history of mankind for younger readers. It was a great success and won him the first John Newbery medal. Although influenced by his own attitudes and those of his day (it is very Western-centric), it will still inform and delight a contemporary audience. Please note this is a new edition (not a scan) of the text of the original version, but all the charming original illustrations have been included (in black and white).

The Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius wrote down his thoughts between 170 and 180. He was a late Stoic Philosopher and this one of the few examples of this type of literature that exists today. The book is written as personal notes to himself and his thesis is that one can obtain inner calm irrespective of outer adversity. The text considers good and evil, solidarity, adversity and inner freedom. It is a book that offers wisdom, comfort and inspiration. As well as the thought, this edition contains a biographical sketch and summary of the philosophy of Marcus Aurelius, a number of illustrations and both an index and index of terms.

David Brainerd, missionary to the Native Americans, has long been admired for his single minded perseverance. This book, edited by Jonathan Edwards, American's greatest theologian, has inspired missionaries and preachers since its publication in 1749. Indeed, John Wesley, Brainerd's contemporary, urges 'Let every preacher read carefully over the Life of David Brainerd'.This is Edwards' most reprinted book..

This delightful set of stories about the adventures of a mischievous koala bear has been loved by generations of young Australians. Dorothy Wall's amusing tales and drawings, and her love of the bush and concern for its conservation, still have the power to enchant children everywhere. This handsome new edition contains the complete text of 'Blinky Bill', 'Blinky Bill Grows Up' and 'Blinky Bill and Nutsy', with all the original charming illustrations.

Treasure Island, a coming of age novel, is perhaps the best adventure story of all time. It is certainly the quintessential pirate tale, and together with its many movie adaptations it has created our idea of the pirate world: treasure maps with an "X", the one legged pirate, the parrot on the shoulder, the eye-patch, the black spot and even phrases like "shiver my timbers," and the captain's eternal song: "Fifteen men on the dead man's chest-- Yo-ho-ho, and a bottle of rum!Drink and the devil had done for the rest-- Yo-ho-ho, and a bottle of rum!"The young Jim Hawkins is hired by an old seadog Billy Bones to look out for a sailor with one leg. Despite this precaution, Bones is found dead in suspicious circumstances. Searching through his belongings Jim finds a treasure map, which he shows to the local doctor and a wealthy squire. They engage a ship and captain, but unwittingly they hire the ruthless and immensely strong Long John Silver, who has designs on the treasure, as their cook ...Stevenson published Kidnapped a few years later, and it too was a success. The seventeen year old Scottish lad David Balfour, whose parents have recently dies goes out to make his way in the world. His first stop is his uncle, who in order to steal David's inheritance, sells him to a ship's captain, who in turn plans to sell him into slavery in the Carolinas. The ship, encountering adverse winds and fog hits a small boat near the Hebrides, killing all on the boat but Alan Stewart, who is brought on board. As the story unfolds Alan and David encounter and overcome numerous dangers to achieve the justice that each desires.This edition contains 130 illustrations by Louis Rhead, the well known children's book illustrator. In addition, each chapter begins with an illustrated capital. The text is modern crisp easy-to-read font and would be a pleasure for children or adults to read.The Scottish writer Robert Louis Stevenson, a celebrity during his lifetime, is best known for Treasure Island, Kidnapped, The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, A Child's Garden of Verse. While being a writer he was great traveller, journeying to Europe, America and the South Pacific, where spent his last years in Samoa. There he was loved by the Samoans who called him Tusitala (Samoan for "Teller of Tales").

Harriet Jacobs was not an ordinary slave girl, and her autobiography is not an ordinary account of the miseries of slavery. She was a slave who triumphed not only by luck but by careful planning and daring deceit. Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, the most important and most widely read female slave narrative, presents the subtle humiliations in addition to the simple brutality of slave life, especially for enslaved women and children. This gripping account, first published under the pseudonym Linda Brent, skilfully employs rhetorical and narrative devices to create a gripping and evocative story. Indeed, until Jean Yellin’s over work a century later, it was regarded as a work of fiction.

In the character of Prince Myshkin, Dostoevsky, master of the philosphical novel, set himself the task of depicting "the positively good and beautiful man." The novel examines the consequences of placing such a unique individual at the centre of the conflicts, desires, passions and egoism of worldly society, both for the man himself and for those with whom he becomes involved. The result is, according to A.C. Grayling, "one of the most excoriating, compelling and remarkable books ever written; and without question one of the greatest."

Times are tough around the little brown house! The widowed Mrs. Pepper sews all day long just to earn enough to pay the rent and feed the five growing Peppers. But she faces poverty and trouble with a stout heart, a smiling face, and the help of her jolly brood: blue-eyed Ben, the eldest and the man of the house at the age of 11; pretty Polly, so eager to cook for the family and make everyone happy and comfortable; and the three littlest Peppers, Joel, Davie, and baby Phronsie. A favorite of ch

The Three Musketeers recounts the adventures d'Artagnan, a poor young nobleman, who leaves home and travels to Paris to enter the elite Musketeers of the Guard. He joins the three most formidable musketeers of the age—Athos, Porthos and Aramis—and they get involved in affairs of the state and court. Pitted against the Machiavellian Cardinal Richelieu and the unscrupulous seductress Milady de Winter they need all their valour and swordsmanship. This riveting novel is a swashbuckling classic and one of the most famous historical novels ever written. (Complete and unabridged.)

This visionary dystopian and apocalyptic novel of 1907 presents a future in which secular humanism has triumphed, with religion suppressed and almost non-existent. It follows the fortunes of an M.P. and his wife, who come under the sway of the antichrist figure, the titular Lord of the World, who appears to promise a heaven on earth, and a catholic priest, who is fighting to keep the Church alive through its many tribulations. It is highly readable and seems prescient on many counts - the rise of communist states, the advent of air travel and the dominating power of a forceful leader - but its strong Catholic bias has tended to limit its readership. This handsome new edition has been completely re-typeset to be clear and complete.