Books published by publisher Norilana Books

THE EXPLORER (1907) by W. Somerset Maugham is a story of the proud Allertons whose fortune has been squandered, and whose three-hundred-year estate Hamlyn's Purlieu stands to be lost to the family. Lucy and George Allerton, brother and sister, are resolved to overcome the mistakes of their father, Fred Allerton. A powerful exploration of relationships and familial bonds by a true master of the human psyche.

Arrr, Matey! Here be Pirates and buried gold! Treasure Island (1883) by Robert Louis Stevenson is the stirring classic tale of adventure on the high seas and a hunt for buried pirate treasure. Follow young Jim Hawkins and the mysterious buccaneer map to Skeleton Island, but avoid the bloodthirsty old crew of the terrible Captain Flint and especially Long John Silver.... Somewhere out there, a treasure chest of untold riches awaits!

Freckles (1904) by Gene Stratton Porter is the uplifting story of a plucky waif without a name and without one hand, disabled since infancy. Raised in a Chicago orphanage, he survives abuse and harsh circumstances and grows up a brave, loyal, and hardworking young man with a true capacity for self-sacrifice. Freckles becomes a timber guard in the Limberlost swamp in Indiana and exhibits extraordinary courage and resourcefulness on the job. He also falls in love with the Swamp Angel, a young girl whose beauty and kindness bring out the best in others. A beloved turn-of-the-century Indiana classic for all ages.

Vanity Fair: A Novel Without a Hero is an unparalleled satire of 19th Century British Society, written by William Makepeace Thackeray (1811-1863) and originally published in serial format from 1847 to 1848. Meet the charming and cunning Becky Sharp, insinuating upward through the social ranks with the fervor of Napoleon plowing through Europe, and the subtlety of a butterfly. More so than any other picaresque character, Becky Sharp's name has become synonymous with a gold-digging, amoral, opportunistic social charmer who is also shrewd and strong-a portrait of a complex woman of her time. She is the anti-heroine you love to hate, and yet at the same time cannot help but secretly admire her methods.

The Secret Garden (1909) is possibly Frances Hodgson Burnett's most treasured children's novel, a story of miraculous rediscovery of joy and positive life-force magic. Mary Lennox, a bitter and spoiled upper-class child, orphaned in India, is sent back to England to live with her reclusive uncle Mr. Craven at his manor. At first, Mary is "quite contrary" and a scourge of the household, until the gentle magic of the countryside and those who work the earth begins to have its effect on her. Since her uncle is mostly away on travels, Mary begins to run wild, and makes many discoveries on the estate grounds, including a secret walled-off garden that has been locked up and forbidden for anyone to enter. She finds the key by accident when watching the antics of a wild bird, then discovers the hidden door, and starts exploring. But the garden is not the only secret in the household. The crying at night that Mary occasionally hears in the manor belongs to a mysterious young invalid boy Colin, locked away not unlike the garden itself. Spring is coming. Mary and Colin meet, their tempers collide and explode in vital bloom as does the garden, and at last, oh-so many things are brought back to life. A life-affirming, beloved classic for all ages.

Barchester Towers (1857) by Anthony Trollope is one of the charming series of loosely connected novels set in Barsetshire. This is the second book to appear in the series, but may be read as a standalone work, and enjoyed on its own merits. The residents and clergy of Barchester are faced with the continuation of the wardenship controversy, the tyranny of the controlling Mrs. Proudie (the new bishop's spouse), and the insinuating onslaught of hypocrite and social climber Mr. Obadiah Slope -- to amusing effect, and culminating in rather satisfying circumstances.

Pan (1894) by Knut Hamsun who won the 1920 Nobel Prize in Literature, is a multi-layered psychological masterpiece of human perversity and pride in the face of love and sensual attraction. Romantically awkward hunter, fisherman and nature-lover Lieutenant Thomas Glahn lives in a cabin away from society -- alone, except for his dog and occasional interactions with the locals including the young and audacious Edwina, a free spirit who searches for a prince to conquer her, and has not yet met her match. The two commence a peculiar hot and cold relationship that evolves into a tragic psychological standoff. A classic literary probing of quirks and vulnerabilities of the psyche, set against the exquisite natural background of Norway.

This delightful collection of Hans Christian Andersen's Fairy Tales includes the following classic favorites: - The Emperor's New Clothes - The Swineherd - The Real Princess - The Shoes of Fortune - The Fir Tree - The Snow Queen - The Leap-Frog - The Elderbush - The Bell - The Old House - The Happy Family - The Story of a Mother - The False Collar - The Shadow - The Little Match Girl - The Dream of Little Tuk - The Naughty Boy - The Red Shoes A great introduction to this beloved storyteller for all ages.

Cousin Henry (1879) by Anthony Trollope, is one of the more non-traditional storylines of its time, subverting expectations and dwelling deeper into the psychology of character. And still it contains all the elements for which the author is so well-loved, the ups and downs, tragedy and joy of relationships, rendered with the sensibility of Jane Austen and the quirky humor of Dickens. Henry Jones, a vacillating and weak man is faced with the moral dilemma of telling the truth about a lost will in favor of another relative or keeping an inheritance that is not rightfully his.

THE WAY WE LIVE NOW (1875) by Anthony Trollope is possibly his most influential novel, a satire, and a biting expose of the financially interconnected British Victorian society. The arrival in London of the mysterious Augustus Melmotte who offers brilliant opportunities for financial investments affects a varied cast of personages, and upturns their lives, loves, and relationships.