Lady Murasaki's Tale of Genji - Recommendations

• Vol: 1
• 2011

Reminiscent of The Arabian Nights in structure, Hagakure is a collection of tales and anecdotes that offer instruction and insight into the philosophy and code of behavior that foster the true spirit of Bushido – the Way of the Warrior. A young, upcoming samurai seeks the advice of an older, seasoned warrior who has become a Zen monk. The ambitious young samurai humbly begs to learn from the old master, who consents. So begins a series of eventful meetings. At each sitting. the master tells his young student tales of samurai past. Tales of famous warriors are recited, as well as ignoble gaffs. With brutal, unrelenting samurai justice, wrongs are righted and judgment is enacted. With each incident, the young novice learns what it means to be a samurai. Learns what courage and right thought are. Learns the harsh realities and subtle wisdom of his age.

• Vol: 1; Ch: 5
• 2012

This graphic novel version of The Book of Five Rings, the iconic book of confrontation and victory by the famed seventeenth-century duelist and undefeated samurai Miyamoto Musashi, illuminates this brilliant manifesto, which has long inspired martial artists and anyone interested in cultivating a strategic mind. With evocative drawings and a distilled but faithful text adapted by acclaimed manga writer Sean Michael Wilson, The Book of Five Rings comes alive both as a guide to swordsmanship and strategy, and as a view into Musashi’s world.

• Vol: 1; Ch: 10
• 2015

When Hester Prynne bears an illegitimate child she is introduced to the ugliness, complexity, and ultimately the strength of the human spirit. Though set in a Puritan community during the Colonial American period, the moral dilemmas of personal responsibility and consuming emotions of guilt, anger, loyalty, and revenge are timeless.

• Vol: 1
• 2020

Obsessed with natural philosophy, the young Victor Frankenstein succeeds in creating life from its basic elements - and abandons the newborn monstrosity in terror when he cannot bear to look at it. The rejected creature vanishes, and Victor attempts to forget what he has done... But the monster survives. It learns. Deprived of everything, fated to forever be alone, it has nothing left but revenge.

• Vol: 1; Ch: 10
• 2015

When her former governess finds happiness as the bride of a local widower, the brilliant and beautiful Emma Woodhouse flatters herself that she alone has secured the marriage and that she possesses a special talent for bringing lovers together. The young heiress next busies herself with finding a suitable husband for her friend and protégé, Harriet Smith.

• Vol: 1
• 2016

Impulsive Marianne Dashwood and cautious Elinor are as different as two sisters could be, yet both are shattered by their father's sudden death. Elinor's attachment to the reserved Edward Ferrars is torn asunder by family opposition and his own dark secret, while Marianne's brilliant romance with the dashing John Willoughby comes to a tumultuous end in a devastating public betrayal. Can the two sisters overcome these trials to find true, lasting happiness?

• Vol: 1
• 2017

Chafed by the "sivilized" restrictions of his foster home, and weary of his drunkard father's brutality, 14 year-old Huck Finn fakes his own death and sets off on a raft down the Mississippi River. He is soon joined by Jim, an escaped slave. Together, they experience a series of rollicking adventures that have amused readers, young and old, for over a century. The fugitives become close friends as they weather storms together aboard the raft and spend idyllic days swimming, frying catfish suppers, and enjoying their independence.

• Vol: 1
• 2017

The Stories of Edgar Allan Poe is a brilliant collection of some of his best-known stories: The Tell Tale Heart (a murder's haunting guilt), The Cask of Amontillado (a story of brilliant revenge), and The Fall of the House of Usher (an ancient house full of very dark secretes). Also included in this collection are The Mask of the Red Death (horrors of 'the Plague'), and the most famous of all his poems: The Raven (a lover's decline into madness). 

• Vol: 1
• 2020

An ancient evil lurks in the dark heart of Transylvania - but it won't lurk there forever. Now Count Dracula's immortal eyes look towards London, a new land full of opportunity and unsuspecting victims. A ragged band of survivors must stop him before it is too late... but how?

• Vol: 1; Ch: 10
• 2014

In 19th-century France, Jean Valjean, who for decades has been hunted by the ruthless policeman Javert after breaking parole, agrees to care for a factory worker's daughter. The decision changes their lives forever.