Showing results by author "Mentor New York" in All Categories

Against Celsus, preserved entirely in Greek, is a major apologetics work by the Church Father Origen of Alexandria, written in around 248 AD, countering the writings of Celsus, a pagan philosopher and controversialist who had written a scathing attack on Christianity in his treatise "The True Word". Among a variety of other charges, Celsus had denounced many Christian doctrines as irrational and criticized Christians themselves as uneducated, deluded, unpatriotic, close-minded towards reason, and too accepting of sinners. He had accused Jesus of performing his miracles using black magic rather...

The British historian, George W. Cox writes that the "whole duration of the Athenian empire extends over little more than two generations." This confederation of Greek city states with Athens at its head was an attempt to present a unified front to the Persian Empire. But ultimately, the strife between democratic and oligarchic factions within each polis, combined with the tangle of alliances between the various city states, led to the ruinous and protracted Peloponnesian War. In this short work, Cox describes the battles on land and sea, and such personalities as the Athenian general, Nikias,...

I: ‘Pandemic’ by Jesse F. Bone A deadly pandemic consumes the world (blah blah blah - you know the rest). If only THAT was the cure to the real one? II: ‘2BR02B’ by Kurt Vonnegut I wanna live forever...and have kids...but what about the consequences? III: ‘The Beautiful People’ by Charles Beaumont Why would you not want to be beautiful? Like every else. Now, now, don't be difficult. IV: ‘Operation Distress’ by Lester del Rey One man alone in the depths of space...suddenly struck with illness...if he returns to Earth, he could infect the world! V: ‘Doctor’ by Murray Leinster...

The Adventures of Maya the Bee is an exciting tale for children of all ages. Themes of growth and development of courage and wisdom are found, as well as the extreme joy and satisfaction that Maya experiences in the beauty of creation and all creatures. Her ultimate and innate loyalty to her Nation of Bees is acted out in the final heroic scenes. This story gives us the delightful sense of having seen a small segment of the world through a Bee's eyes. (Summary by Brenda Price)

By turns illuminating, infuriating, bewildering, and amusing, Nietzsche's masterwork covers a lot of ground. He rejects most strands of Western thought, especially on the subject of morality, and develops his own theme demanding that individuals embrace their own 'will to power' to give life intention and direction. First published in German in 1887, this translation was produced in 1907 by Helen Zimmern, a long-standing acquaintance of Nietzsche.There is an accessible text at http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/4363 but it leaves out all words in Greek, and is not in alignment with any printed ...

This is the story of Peter Rabbit, a mischievous, but cautious, lagomorph who lives in the Green Meadows. Peter Rabbit begins his adventures with a quest for a new name, since his name is far too common for his taste. Having a new name is not quite what he thought it would be, however, and soon he is on to new exploits like outsmarting Reddy Fox and discovering where all his friends spend the winter. This tale co-stars Reddy Fox, Jerry Muskrat, Unc' Billy Possum, Jimmy Skunk, Ol' Mistah Buzzard, Bowser the Hound, and many more of Thornton W. Burgess' delightful characters. - Summary by Jill ...

A collection of short stories featuring a suite of wealthy protagonists navigating the perceived hardships of 1920s society. The themes center on lost love, personal struggles, fleeting romance, and the melancholy life.

Nominally an autobiography, Biographia Literaria ranges widely across the realms of philosophy, poetry and memoir, in Coleridge's trademark discursive style, providing a living glimpse of the great talker, the man who could hold his contemporaries in thrall for hours with his dazzling conversation, and who was famously described as the last man "to have read everything". Summary by Nicole Lee.

Everybody makes mistakes, and everything has a price. This novel describes, according to its name, the life of Adeline Mowbray, full of everything: sorrow, happiness, falsehood, truth, kindness, and mistakes. This novel is an exploration of the human heart. Be prepared for a strong and enjoyable read. (Summary by Stav Nisser)

Gilbert Keith Chesterton was an influential English writer of the early 20th century. His prolific and diverse output included journalism, philosophy, poetry, biography, Christian apologetics, fantasy, and detective fiction. Chesterton has been called the "prince of paradox." He wrote in an off-hand, whimsical prose studded with startling formulations. Chesterton wrote about 4000 essays on various subjects, and "Alarms and Discursions is one of his collections. (Summary adapted from Wikipedia by Karen Merline.)

The play Agamemnon details the homecoming of Agamemnon, King of Argos, from the Trojan War. Waiting at home for him is his wife, Clytemnestra, who has been planning his murder, partly as revenge for the sacrifice of their daughter, Iphigenia, and partly because in the ten years of Agamemnon's absence Clytemnestra has entered into an adulterous relationship with Aegisthus, Agamemnon's cousin and the sole survivor of a dispossessed branch of the family (Agamemnon's father, Atreus, killed and fed Aegisthus's brothers to Aegisthus's father, Thyestes, when he took power from him), who is determined...

The Able McLaughlins won the Pulitzer Prize for a novel in 1924 in Margaret Wilson's debut work. Aptly described as "Little House on the Prairie - but for adults" the novel follows a group of Scottish families who pioneer the Iowa prairie in the 1860’s. The main storyline concerns Wully, the eldest McLaughlin son, who returns home from the Civil War to find that his sweetheart, Chirstie, has experienced an unspeakable tragedy that will profoundly affect the couple's lives. Their story is one of shame and honor, secrets and guilt, fear and loathing, revenge and forgiveness. But perhaps the ...

As the title indicates, here are three SF stories by Frank Herbert, Missing LInk, originaly purlished in Astounding SF, 1959; Operation Haystack, also published in Astounding SF 1959; and Old Rambling House, published in Galaxy SF 1958. - Summary by Phil chenevert

Loaded with cryptic, nearly indecipherable inside jokes and double entendres, this early comedy of Aristophanes has a simple, anti-war premise that resounds down the centuries. On flimsy pretexts, greedy politicians have embroiled the nation of Athens in war after war after war. Dicæopolis is Everyman, an ordinary, plain-speaking citizen fed up with the bumbling, belligerence, and insincerity of the professional leaders. He decides on a whim to make a separate peace with Sparta all by himself, returning with a treaty good for thirty years. Envious of the good deal he has made and of the ...

Thirteen short stories by the master.

Alcestis, queen of Pherae, is one of the noblest heroines in all of Greek drama. Her husband Admetus is the supposedly virtuous king of Pherae who wins the friendship of the god Apollo. Apollo tricks the Eumenides into an agreement that when the time comes for Admetus to die, a willing substitute will be accepted in his place, allowing his friend to go on living. Admetus selfishly tries to persuade anyone to agree to be his substitute, even his own parents, but no one is willing to make that sacrifice; this disappointment and its tragic consequences embitter him, leading him ultimately to ...

Young naive sailor Billy Budd is impressed into military service with the British navy in the 1790s, framed for conspiracy to mutiny, summarily convicted in a drum-head court martial, and hanged. Billy Budd is the final published work by Herman Melville, discovered in his personal papers three decades after his death. (Summary by ScientificMethodist)

In this famous early work of German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, he investigates the artistic characteristics of Apollonian (reason) and Dionysian (passion) characteristics in Greek art, specifically in Greek tragedy as it evolved. Then he applies his conclusions about Greek tragedy to the state of modern art, especially modern German art and specifically to the operas of Richard Wagner.

The first part of the book builds the characters of four con men who become interconnected and attempt their schemes on each other. This book is the first of a two part story, the second part is the book Charlotte's Inheritance.

As Jowett relates in his brilliant introduction, 95% of Plato's writing is certain and his reputation rests soundly on this foundation. The Alcibiades 1 appears to be a short work by Plato with only two characters: Socrates and Alcibiades. This dialogue has little dramatic verisimilitude but centres on the question of what knowledge one needs for political life. Like the early dialogues, the question is on whether the virtues needed by a statesman can be taught, on the importance of self-knowledge as a starting point for any leader. While this may be only partially the work of Plato, or even ...