Books Should Be Free Loyal Books Free Public Domain Audiobooks & eBook Downloads |
|
Non-fiction |
---|
Book type:
Sort by:
View by:
|
By: Plato (424/423 BC - 348/347 BC) | |
---|---|
Apology
The Apology of Socrates is Plato's version of the speech given by Socrates as he unsuccessfully defended himself in 399 BC against the charges of "corrupting the young, and by not believing in the gods in whom the city believes, but in other daimonia that are novel" (24b). "Apology" here has its earlier meaning (now usually expressed by the word "apologia") of speaking in defense of a cause or of one's beliefs or actions (from the Ancient Greek ἀπολογία). |
By: Calista McCabe Courtenay | |
---|---|
George Washington
In this biography for young people, Calista McCabe Courtenay takes the reader from George Washington the surveyor to his early military career, first as a colonel in the Virgina militia and then as a member of General Braddock'a staff during the French and Indian War. He later commanded the Virginia forces before joining the First Continental Congress. Much of the book is devoted to his campaigns during the American Revolution. At the end, we see him as President for two terms. |
By: Various | |
---|---|
Girl Scout Collection
These articles, pamphlets, and stories relating to the Girls Scouts of America touch on the history, activities, ideals, and traditions of this remarkable girls' organization. Though some of the articles appear redundant, they were selected to represent a contemporary view spanning five years of the organization's early popularity (1917-1921). Of significance are the detailed descriptions of Girl Scout involvement in war work during what is now known as World War I. Girl Scouts were prepared through their training for merit badges to be independent, resourceful, reliable, and helpful... | |
By: Unknown | |
---|---|
Pennsylvania Dutch Cooking |
By: Various | |
---|---|
Collection: Tales of the Cities
This is a collection of city stories, fiction or non-fiction, in English and published before 1923. Contributions have been chosen by the reader himself. |
By: Charles A. Siringo (1855-1928) | |
---|---|
History of Billy the Kid
A cowboy outlaw whose youthful daring has never been equalled in the annals of criminal history.When a bullet pierced his heart he was less than twenty-two years of age, and had killed twenty-one men, Indians not included.The author feels that he is capable of writing a true and unvarnished history of "Billy the Kid," as he was personally acquainted with him, and assisted in his capture, by furnishing Sheriff Pat Garrett with three of his fighting cowboys--Jas. H. East, Lee Hall and Lon Chambers... |
By: Immanuel Kant (1724-1804) | |
---|---|
Fundamental Principles of the Metaphysic of Morals
The Fundamental Principles of the Metaphysic of Morals, also known as The Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals or Foundations of the Metaphysics of Morals or Grounding of the Metaphysics of Morals, is Immanuel Kant's first contribution to moral philosophy. It argues for an a priori basis for morality. Where the Critique of Pure Reason laid out Kant's metaphysical and epistemological ideas, this relatively short, primarily meta-ethical, work was intended to outline and define the concepts and arguments shaping his future work The Metaphysics of Morals. However, the latter work is much less readable than the Fundamental Principles. |
By: the Three Initiates (1908) | |
---|---|
The Kybalion
The Kybalion: Hermetic Philosophy is a 1908 book claiming to be the essence of the teachings of Hermes Trismegistus, published anonymously by a group or person under the pseudonym of “the Three Initiates”. (Introduction by Wikipedia) |
By: Aaron Smith (?-1862) | |
---|---|
The Atrocities of the Pirates
In 1822, Aaron Smith, a young English seaman, was taken captive by Cuban pirates when his ship was boarded en route from Jamaica to England. Forced to work as a navigator and as a member of pirate boarding parties, he witnessed unspeakable acts of murder and torture. Befriended by a young Cuban woman, he managed to escape with his life, but was arrested as a pirate in Havana and sent back to England in chains. There, he found himself on trial for his life at the Old Bailey courthouse—with the attorney general himself leading the prosecution. Smith's dramatic account of his personal experience is a brutally honest, unromanticized [sic] look at piracy in the 19th century. |
By: Theodore Roosevelt (1858-1919) | |
---|---|
The Naval War of 1812
Somewhat detailed history of naval engagements between the United States and England during the War of 1812, from a decidely American perspective. Completed by the author as a young man at age 24. After 120 years, it remains a standard study of the war. |
By: Johnannes Jorgensen (1866-1956) | |
---|---|
Saint Francis of Assisi: A Biography
Born to a prosperous cloth merchant of Assisi, Francis (1182-1226) lived the typically high-spirited life of a wealthy young man of his day, which included fighting as a soldier. In 1205, while away at war, he experienced a vision that beckoned him return to Assisi, where he soon lost his taste for the worldly life and began to live a life of evangelical poverty in imitation of Jesus Christ. He embarked upon a pilgrimage to Rome, where he begged for alms alongside the poor at St. Peter's Basilica... |
By: St. Benedict of Nursia (ca. 480-547) | |
---|---|
The Rule of St. Benedict
The Rule of Saint Benedict (Regula Benedicti) is a book of precepts written by St. Benedict of Nursia for monks living communally under the authority of an abbot. Since about the 7th century it has also been adopted by communities of women. During the 1500 years of its existence, it has become the leading guide in Western Christianity for monastic living in community. The spirit of St Benedict's Rule is summed up in the motto of the Benedictine Confederation: pax ("peace") and the traditional ora et labora ("pray and work").(Introduction from Wikipedia) |
By: J. C. Ryle (1816-1900) | |
---|---|
Expository Thoughts on the Gospels - St. Matthew
“Expository Thoughts” divides the Gospels into sections of about twelve verses each, from which J. C. Ryle selects two or three prominent points to dwell on and bring to the reader’s attention. In Ryle’s day, there were many detailed commentaries and expositions on scripture. In writing these “Expository Thoughts”, Ryle aimed to offer a resource to the laity for use in family prayers, as an aid to those who visit the sick and desire a proper book to read on such occasions, and for private devotions for those whose callings and engagements make it impossible for them to read large commentaries... |
By: Anonymous | |
---|---|
The Cloud of Unknowing
The Cloud of Unknowing (Middle English: The Cloude of Unknowyng) is an anonymous work of Christian mysticism written in Middle English in the latter half of the 14th century. The text is a spiritual guide on contemplative prayer in the late Middle Ages. The book counsels a young student to seek God, not through knowledge and intellection (faculty of the human mind), but through intense contemplation, motivated by love, and stripped of all thought. This is brought about by putting all thoughts and desires under a "cloud of forgetting", and thereby piercing God's cloud of unknowing with a "dart of longing love" from the heart... | |
Irish Wit and Humor
Excerpted anecdotes from the biographies of Swift, Curran, O'Leary and O'Connell, relating humorous snippets of politics in 18th and 19th century Ireland. For some these may be poignant in addition to being humorous and for others they may be humorous in addition to being poignant. ( |
By: Jewish Publication Society of America (1917) | |
---|---|
Genesis (JPSA)
The first book of the Pentateuch - Genesis. Presented according to weekly parshah.Praised are You, Adonai, Our G-d, ruler of the Universe, who has made us holy with commandments and commanded us to engage in the study of Torah. |
By: Jacob Abbott (1803-1879) | |
---|---|
Romulus
Jacob Abbott wrote many historical books for children. He was careful to ensure historical accuracy, and as he said himself in the preface to this book "Whatever of interest ... these stories may possess is due solely to the facts themselves which are recorded in them, and to their being brought together in a plain, simple, and connected narrative."This is the story of Romulus, the founding of Rome and the early years of its history, written in a way both readable and enjoyable for adults and children alike. |
By: Thomas Whittaker (1856-1935) | |
---|---|
The Origins of Christianity
The full title of this book is The Origins of Christianity with an Outline of Van Manen’s Analysis of The Pauline Literature. Willem Christiaan van Manen (1842-1905) was a Dutch theologian. The vast majority of van Manen’s radical criticism of the New Testament and Christian origins has never been translated into English.In this book, Thomas Whittaker outlines the arguments of van Manen for an English-speaking audience. Van Manen’s work is not now generally known, but his views obtained notoriety by the articles and books that he wrote, in which he maintained that none of the Epistles that bear the Apostle Paul’s name were in fact written by him... |
By: Thomas Troward (1847-1916) | |
---|---|
The Edinburgh Lectures on Mental Science
Thomas Troward was a divisional Judge in British-administered India. His avocation was the study of comparative religion. Influences on his thinking, as well as his later writing, included the teachings of Christ, Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism. After his retirement from the judiciary in 1896, Troward set out to apply logic and a judicial weighing of evidence in the study of matters of cause and effect. The philosopher William James characterized Troward’s Edinburgh Lectures on Mental Science as "far and away the ablest statement of philosophy I have met, beautiful in its sustained clearness of thought and style, a really classic statement... |
By: Owen Wister | |
---|---|
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the great hero (for the North) in the Civil War and the 18th President of the United States. This short biography is only 145 pages in a little pamphlet size. The author is famous for his stories of the Old West, but he also wrote a substantial body of nonfiction literature. |
By: Captain John Smith (1580-1631) | |
---|---|
A Description of New England
Captain John Smith (c. January 1580 – June 21, 1631) Admiral of New England was an English soldier, explorer, and author. He was knighted for his services to Sigismund Bathory, Prince of Transylvania. He is remembered for his role in establishing the first permanent English settlement in North America at Jamestown, Virginia, and his brief association with the Virginia Indian girl Pocahontas during an altercation with the Powhatan Confederacy and her father, Chief Powhatan. He was a leader of the Virginia Colony (based at Jamestown) between September 1608 and August 1609, and led an exploration along the rivers of Virginia and the Chesapeake Bay... |
By: Ida M. Tarbell (1857-1944) | |
---|---|
The History of Standard Oil: Volume 1
The History of the Standard Oil Company is a book written by journalist Ida Tarbell in 1904. It was an exposé of the Standard Oil Company, run at that time by oil tycoon John D. Rockefeller the richest figure in America's history. Originally serialized in 19 parts in McClure's magazine, the book was a seminal example of muckraking, and inspired many other journalists to write about trusts, large businesses that (in the absence of strong antitrust law in the 19th century) attempted to gain monopolies in various industries... |
By: Ambrose Bierce (1842-1913) | |
---|---|
Iconoclastic Memories of the Civil War
At the outset of the American Civil War, [the writer Ambrose] Bierce enlisted in the Union Army's 9th Indiana Infantry Regiment....In February 1862 he was commissioned First Lieutenant, and served on the staff of General William Babcock Hazen as a topographical engineer, making maps of likely battlefields. Bierce fought at the Battle of Shiloh (April 1862), a terrifying experience that became a source for several later short stories and the memoir, "What I Saw of Shiloh". In June 1864, he sustained a serious head wound at the Battle of Kennesaw Mountain, and spent the rest of the summer on furlough, returning to active duty in September. He was discharged from the army in January 1865. |
By: Louis Laravoire Morrow (1892-1987) | |
---|---|
My Bible History: Old Testament
A short, simple Old Testament Bible History for children, but which can also be enjoyed by adults alike. Starting with Creation, the sections cover Adam and Eve, Abraham, Moses, etc. up to the promise of a Redeemer. The same format continues in the volume that follows - My Bible History: New Testament - by the same author. |
By: Aristotle (384 BCE-322 BCE) | |
---|---|
De Anima
On the Soul (Greek Περὶ Ψυχῆς (Perì Psūchês), Latin De Anima) is a major treatise by Aristotle on the nature of living things. His discussion centres on the kinds of souls possessed by different kinds of living things, distinguished by their different operations. Thus plants have the capacity for nourishment and reproduction, the minimum that must be possessed by any kind of living organism. Lower animals have, in addition, the powers of sense-perception and self-motion (action). Humans have all these as well as intellect... |
By: Carlo Giuseppe Quadrupani (1740-1807) | |
---|---|
Light and Peace: Instructions for Devout Souls to Dispel Their Doubts and Allay Their Fears
Padre Quadrupani was an Italian priest and member of the Clerics Regular of St. Paul, also known as the Barnabites, from their association with St. Barnabas Catholic Church in Milan, Italy. Quadrupani's spirituality is based on that of the illustrious Doctor of the Church, St. Francis de Sales (1567-1622). Like St. Francis, the Padre offers spiritual advice that is practical and balanced. Perhaps it is owing to this that Quadrupani's treatise has been so well received by Catholic laypersons and has been recommended by numerous bishops over the years... |
By: Charles Francis Adams, Sr. (1807-1886) | |
---|---|
Letters of Mrs. Adams, the Wife of John Adams, Vol. 1
Abigail Adams lived the American Revolution as the wife of one of its central figures--John Adams. Her family correspondence, published along with a memoir by her grandson, Charles Francis Adams, brings that era into eloquent focus. What was it like to hear the cannon's roar from your window? to face pestilence? food shortages? rampant inflation? devalued coinage? to raise four children alone--and earn the money to keep your household afloat, while your husband was engaged in politics and diplomacy miles and oceans away ... |
By: Charles H. Spurgeon (1834-1892) | |
---|---|
According to Promise, or The Lord’s Method of Dealing with His Chosen People
Charles Haddon (C.H.) Spurgeon (19 June 1834 – 31 January 1892) was a British Particular Baptist preacher and is still known today as the "Prince of Preachers". He was a strong figure in the Reformed Baptist tradition, defending the Church in agreement with the 1689 London Baptist Confession of Faith understanding, and opposing the liberal and pragmatic theological tendencies in the Church of his day. In his lifetime, Spurgeon preached to around 10 million people, often up to ten times each week at different places... |
By: Various | |
---|---|
Prefaces and Prologues to Famous Books
Charles W. Eliot, 21st President of Harvard University, edited this volume of prefaces ... authored by a Who's Who of World Literature: Bacon, Calvin, Caxton, Condell, Copernicus, Dryden, Fielding, Goethe, Heminge, Hugo, Johnson, Knox, Newton, Raleigh, Spenser, Taine, Whitman and Wordsworth. Eliot wrote in his preface to these prefaces, "No part of a book is so intimate as the Preface. Here, after the long labor of the work is over, the author descends from his platform, and speaks with his reader as man to man, disclosing his hopes and fears, seeking sympathy for his difficulties, offering defence or defiance, according to his temper, against the criticisms which he anticipates." |
By: Aristotle (384-422) | |
---|---|
On the Heavens
On the Heavens (Greek: Περί ουρανού, Latin: De Caelo or De Caelo et Mundo) is Aristotle's chief cosmological treatise. In it Aristotle argues that the Earth is a sphere by pointing to the evidence of lunar eclipses. Aristotle also provides a detailed explanation of his theory of 'gravity' arguing that things which contain 'earth' fall towards the centre of the Universe because 'earth' is naturally attracted to the centre of the Universe. Aristotle argues that if the planet Earth was moved to the location of the Moon then objects which contain 'earth' would not fall towards the centre of the Earth but rather towards the centre of the Universe... |
By: Louis Hughes (1832-1913) | |
---|---|
Thirty Years A Slave
Louis Hughes was born a slave near Charlottesville, Virginia to a white father and a black slave woman. Throughout his life he worked mostly as a house servant, but was privy to the intimate details and workings of the entire McGee cotton plantation and empire.In Thirty Years A Slave Hughes provides vivid descriptions and explicit accounts of how the McGee plantation in Mississippi, and the McGee mansion in Tennessee functioned--accounts of the lives of the many slaves that lived, suffered and sometimes died under the cruel and unusual punishments meted out by Boss and his monstrously unstable and vindictive wife... |
By: Katherine Jewell Everts (d. after 1919) | |
---|---|
The Speaking Voice
From the Preface of The Speaking Voice: principles of training simplified and condensed: "This book offers a method of voice training which is the result of a deliberate effort to simplify and condense, for general use, the principles which are fundamental to all recognized systems of vocal instruction. It contains practical directions accompanied by simple and fundamental exercises, first for the freeing of the voice and then for developing it when free."Parts I and II of the book comprise advice... |