Author Topic: 800 hours of free ebook reading  (Read 7022 times)

redwood_canyon

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800 hours of free ebook reading
« on: January 24, 2019, 03:42:19 PM »
There is a classics book set called the Harvard Classics also known as the 5ft bookshelf as the 51 volumes and 20 volumes of novels fit on a bookshelf of that size. Currently I have all that in my phone on the Amazon Kindle app. A little about it from Wikipedia:

The Harvard Universal Classics, originally known as Dr. Eliot's Five Foot Shelf, is a 51-volume anthology of classic works from world literature, compiled and edited by Harvard University president Charles W. Eliot and first published in 1909.[1]

Eliot had stated in speeches that the elements of a liberal education could be obtained by spending 15 minutes a day reading from a collection of books that could fit on a five-foot shelf. (Originally he had said a three-foot shelf.) The publisher P. F. Collier and Son saw an opportunity and challenged Eliot to make good on this statement by selecting an appropriate collection of works, and the Harvard Classics was the result.

Eliot worked for one year with William A. Neilson, a professor of English; Eliot determined the works to be included and Neilson selected the specific editions and wrote introductory notes.[1] Each volume had 400–450 pages, and the included texts are "so far as possible, entire works or complete segments of the world's written legacies."[2] The collection was widely advertised by Collier and Son, in Collier's and elsewhere, with great success.

I have all of that for free and can carry it everywhere in my pocket. As a college student I use it as a treat in between studies or to fill in the time, time that I used to spend on social media. It is one of a few things I am doing for self improvement, a well read man is rare to come by and reading an hour a day or so I will be finished within two years if not earlier. Currently I am reading Benjamin Franklin's Autobiography and it is inspiring. Back then you would be lucky to have a collection of books, now you can have a wonderful one in your pockets! It also was inspiring how much they valued self education back then.

This set covers everything from science, fiction, poetry, religion, bio and autobiographies...... It is a powerful set!!!

Here is the link to Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Harvard-Classics-Shelf-Fiction-ebook/dp/B07MV8G9MP/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1548369130&sr=8-2&keywords=harvard+classics+ebook

As you can see it is indeed FREE!!! So sit back relax and read on. The app is also free and comes with cool highlight and look up options. It can also be downloaded so it is offline for you. If only one person checks this out or starts reading it my goal will be accomplished. Thank you!


Here is the lengthy table of contents as requested:

Vol. 1: FRANKLIN, WOOLMAN, PENN
The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin , by Benjamin Franklin
also as: Pine, Frank Woodworth, editor. Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin . Illustrator: Smith, E. Boyd
Journal, by John Woolman
selections: Journal
Fruits of Solitude, by William Penn
selections: Fruits of Solitude
Vol. 2. PLATO, EPICTETUS, MARCUS AURELIUS
Apology , Phædo  and Crito , by Plato
also as: Apology, Crito, and Phaedo of Socrates
The Golden Sayings , by Epictetus
The Meditations , by Marcus Aurelius
Vol. 3. BACON, MILTON'S PROSE, THOS. BROWN
Essays, Civil and Moral  & The New Atlantis , by Francis Bacon
Areopagitica  & Tractate on Education, by John Milton
Religio Medici , by Sir Thomas Browne
Vol. 4. COMPLETE POEMS IN ENGLISH, MILTON
Complete Poems Written in English , by John Milton
Vol. 5. ESSAYS AND ENGLISH TRAITS, EMERSON
Essays and English Traits , by Ralph Waldo Emerson
also as: Essays — First Series  and Essays — Second Series
Vol. 6. POEMS AND SONGS, BURNS
Poems and Songs , by Robert Burns
Vol. 7. CONFESSIONS OF ST. AUGUSTINE, IMITATION OF CHRIST
The Confessions of Saint Augustine , by Saint Augustine
The Imitation of Christ , by Thomas á Kempis
Vol. 8. NINE GREEK DRAMAS
Agamemnon , The Libation Bearers , The Furies  & Prometheus Bound , by Aeschylus
Oedipus the King  & Antigone , by Sophocles
Hippolytus  & The Bacchæ , by Euripides
The Frogs , by Aristophanes
Vol. 9. LETTERS AND TREATISES OF CICERO AND PLINY
Treatises on Friendship and Old Age and Letters , by Cicero
Letters also as: The Letters of Cicero
Letters , by Pliny the Younger
also as: Letters of the Younger Pliny, First Series — Volume 1
Vol. 10. WEALTH OF NATIONS, ADAM SMITH
An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations , by Adam Smith
Vol. 11. ORIGIN OF SPECIES, DARWIN
On the Origin of Species By Means of Natural Selection, or, the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life , by Charles Darwin
also as: The Origin of Species by means of Natural Selection, 6th Edition
also as: On the Origin of Species A also as: On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection
Vol. 12. PLUTARCH'S LIVES
Plutarch: Lives of the noble Grecians and Romans , by Plutarch
also as: Plutarch's Lives, Volume I , Volume II , Volume III
also as: The Boys' and Girls' Plutarch; being parts of the "Lives" of Plutarch, edited for boys and girls
Vol. 13. AENEID, VIRGIL
Æneid , by Virgil
also as: The Aeneid of Virgil
also as: The Aeneid  (Latin)
also as: The Aeneid of Virgil
Vol. 14. DON QUIXOTE, Part 1, CERVANTES
Don Quixote , by Cervantes
also as: Don Quixote
also as: Don Quijote  (Spanish)
Vol. 15. PILGRIM'S PROGRESS, DONNE & HERBERT, BUNYAN, WALTON
The Pilgrim's Progress , by John Bunyan
also as: The Pilgrim's Progress
The Lives of Donne and Herbert , by Izaak Walton
Vol. 16. THE THOUSAND AND ONE NIGHTS
Stories from the Thousand and One Nights
also as: The Arabian Nights Their Best-known Tales
also as: other "Arabian Nights"
also as: Richard Francis Burton's The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night, in 16 volumes
also as: other "Thousand Nights"
Vol. 17. FOLKLORE AND FABLE, AESOP, GRIMM, ANDERSON
Fables , by Æsop
also as: Aesop's Fables
also as: other Aesop's Fables
Household Tales , by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm
also as: works by Gebrüder Grimm
Tales , by Hans Christian Andersen
also as: Andersen's Fairy Tales
Vol. 18. MODERN ENGLISH DRAMA
All for Love, by John Dryden
The School for Scandal , by Richard Brinsley Sheridan
She Stoops to Conquer , by Oliver Goldsmith
The Cenci , by Percy Bysshe Shelley
A Blot in the 'Scutcheon , by Robert Browning
Manfred , by Lord Byron
Vol. 19. FAUST, EGMONT, ETC. DOCTOR FAUSTUS, GOETHE, MARLOWE
Faust, Part I , Egmont  & Hermann and Dorothea , by J. W. von Goethe
Faust also as: Faust
Faust also as: Faust
all also in the original German: Faust , Egmont , Hermann und Dorothea
Dr. Faustus , by Christopher Marlowe
also as: Dr. Faustus
Vol. 20. THE DIVINE COMEDY, DANTE
The Divine Comedy , by Dante Alighieri
also as: The Divine Comedy
also as: The Divine Comedy
also as: Hell, Purgatory  & Paradise
also in the original Italian: La Divina Commedia
Vol. 21. I PROMESSI SPOSI
Promessi Sposi (The Betrothed ), by Alessandro Manzoni
also as: The Betrothed Lovers
Vol. 22. THE ODYSSEY, HOMER
The Odyssey , by Homer
also as: The Odyssey
also as: The Odyssey
Vol. 23. TWO YEARS BEFORE THE MAST, DANA
Two Years Before the Mast, by Richard Henry Dana, Jr.
also as: Two Years Before the Mast
Vol. 24. ON THE SUBLIME, FRENCH REVOLUTION, ETC., BURKE
On Taste, On the Sublime and Beautiful (titled as "A Philosophical Inquiry into the Origin of Our Ideas of the Sublime and Beautiful; With an Introductory Discourse Concerning Taste"), Reflections on the French Revolution (titled as "Reflections on the Revolution in France") & A Letter to a Noble Lord , by Edmund Burke
Vol. 25. AUTOBIOGRAPHY, ETC., ESSAYS AND ADDRESSES, J.S. MILL, T. CARLYLE
Autobiography  & On Liberty, by John Stuart Mill
"Characteristics", "Inaugural Address at Edinburgh" & "Sir Walter Scott", by Thomas Carlyle
Vol. 26. CONTINENTAL DRAMA
Life Is a Dream , by Pedro Calderón de la Barca
also as: Life Is a Dream
Polyeucte , by Pierre Corneille
Phèdre (Phaedra ), by Jean Racine
Tartuffe , by Molière
Minna von Barnhelm , by Gotthold Ephraim Lessing
also in the original German: Minna von Barnhelm
also in Finnish: Minna von Barnhelm
Wilhelm Tell , by Friedrich von Schiller
also as: Wilhelm Tell
Vol. 27. ENGLISH ESSAYS: SIDNEY TO MACAULAY
Vol. 28. ESSAYS: ENGLISH AND AMERICAN
Vol. 29. VOYAGE OF THE BEAGLE, DARWIN
The Voyage of the Beagle , by Charles Darwin
also as: The Voyage of the Beagle
also as: The Voyage of the Beagle
Vol. 30. FARADAY, HELMHOLTZ, KELVIN, NEWCOMB, ETC.
Scientific Papers: Physics, Chemistry, Astronomy, Geology
Vol. 31. AUTOBIOGRAPHY, BENVENUTO CELLINI
The Autobiography of Benvenuto Cellini , by Benvenuto Cellini
Vol. 32. LITERARY AND PHILOSOPHICAL ESSAYS
Montaigne, Sainte-Beuve, Renan, etc.
Vol. 33. VOYAGES AND TRAVELS
Voyages and Travels: Ancient and Modern
Vol. 34. FRENCH AND ENGLISH PHILOSOPHERS, DESCARTES, VOLTAIRE, ROUSSEAU, HOBBES
Discourse on Method , by René Descartes
also as: Discourse on the Method
also in the original French: Discours de la méthode
also in Finnish: Metodin esitys
Letters on the English , by Voltaire
On the Inequality among Mankind & Profession of Faith of a Savoyard Vicar, by Jean Jacques Rousseau
Of Man, Being the First Part of Leviathan , by Thomas Hobbes
Vol. 35. CHRONICLE AND ROMANCE, FROISSART, MALORY, HARRISON
Chronicles, by Jean Froissart
The Holy Grail, by Sir Thomas Malory
A Description of Elizabethan England, by William Harrison
Vol. 36. MACHIAVELLI, MORE, LUTHER
The Prince , by Niccolò Machiavelli
The Life of Sir Thomas More, by William Roper
Utopia, by Sir Thomas More
The Ninety-Five Theses , Address to the Christian Nobility & Concerning Christian Liberty, by Martin Luther
The Ninety-Five Theses includes the original Latin: Disputatio pro Declaratione Virtutis Indulgentiarum
Vol. 37. LOCKE, BERKELEY, HUME
Some Thoughts Concerning Education, by John Locke
Three Dialogues Between Hylas and Philonous in Opposition to Sceptics and Atheists , by George Berkeley
An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding , by David Hume
Vol. 38. HARVEY, JENNER, LISTER, PASTEUR
The Oath of Hippocrates, by Hippocrates
Journeys in Diverse Places, by Ambroise Paré
On the Motion of the Heart and Blood in Animals, by William Harvey
The Three Original Publications on Vaccination Against Smallpox, by Edward Jenner
The Contagiousness of Puerperal Fever, by Oliver Wendell Holmes
On the Antiseptic Principle of the Practice of Surgery, by Joseph Lister
Scientific Papers, by Louis Pasteur
Scientific Papers, by Charles Lyell
Vol. 39. FAMOUS PREFACES
Prefaces and Prologues
Vol. 40. ENGLISH POETRY 1: CHAUCER TO GRAY
Vol. 41. ENGLISH POETRY 2: COLLINS TO FITZGERALD
Vol. 42. ENGLISH POETRY 3: TENNYSON TO WHITMAN
Vol. 43. AMERICAN HISTORICAL DOCUMENTS
American Historical Documents: 1000-1904
Vol. 44. SACRED WRITINGS 1
Confucian: The Sayings of Confucius , by Confucius
Hebrew: Job , Psalms  & Ecclesiastes
Christian I: Luke  & Acts
Vol. 45. SACRED WRITINGS 2
Christian II: Corinthians I  & II  & Hymns
Buddhist: Writings
see: Buddhism (Bookshelf)
Hindu: The Bhagavad-Gita
Mohammedan (that is, Muslim): Chapters from the Koran
also as: The Koran
also as: Three Translations of The Koran (Al-Qur'an) side by side
also as: The Koran (Al-Qur'an)
also in Dutch: De Koran
Vol. 46. ELIZABETHAN DRAMA 1
Edward the Second , by Christopher Marlowe
Hamlet, King Lear, Macbeth & The Tempest, by William Shakespeare
Vol. 47. ELIZABETHAN DRAMA 2
The Shoemaker's Holiday, by Thomas Dekker
The Alchemist , by Ben Jonson
Philaster , by Beaumont and Fletcher
The Duchess of Malfi , by John Webster
A New Way to Pay Old Debts, by Philip Massinger
Vol. 48. THOUGHTS AND MINOR WORKS, PASCAL
Thoughts , Letters & Minor Works, by Blaise Pascal
Vol. 49. EPIC AND SAGA
Beowulf
The Song of Roland
The Destruction of Dá Derga's Hostel
The Story of the Volsungs and Niblungs
Vol. 50 INTRODUCTION, READER'S GUIDE, INDEXES
LECTURES
The last volume contains 60 lectures introducing and summarizing the covered fields: history, poetry, natural science, philosophy, biography, prose fiction, criticism and the essay, education, political science, drama, voyages and travel, and religion.
The Harvard Classics Shelf of Fiction
The Harvard Classics Shelf of Fiction was selected by Charles W. Eliot, LLD (1834-1926), with notes and introductions by William Allan Neilson. It also features an index to Criticisms and Interpretations.

Vols. 1 & 2: The History of Tom Jones , by Henry Fielding
Vol. 3: A Sentimental Journey , by Laurence Sterne; Pride and Prejudice , by Jane Austen
also: Pride and Prejudice
also: Pride and Prejudice
Vol. 4: Guy Mannering , by Sir Walter Scott
also as: Guy Mannering
also as: Guy Mannering, Or, the Astrologer
also as: Guy Mannering, Or, the Astrologer, Part 1  & Guy Mannering, Or, the Astrologer, Part 2
Vol. 5 & 6: Vanity Fair , by William Makepeace Thackeray
also in French: La foire aux vanités, Tome I  & La foire aux vanités, Tome II
Vols. 7 & 8: David Copperfield , by Charles Dickens
also as: David Copperfield
also in Finnish: David Copperfield I  & David Copperfield II
also in French: David Copperfield - Tome I  & David Copperfield - Tome II
Vol. 9: The Mill on the Floss , by George Eliot
also as: The Mill on the Floss
Vol. 10: The Scarlet Letter & Rappaccini's Daughter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne; Rip Van Winkle & The Legend of Sleepy Hollow BookIcon.png, by Washington Irving; Three Short Stories, by Edgar Allan Poe; Three Short Stories, by Francis Bret Harte; Jim Smiley and His Jumping Frog, by Samuel L. Clemens; The Man Without a Country , by Edward Everett Hale
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow also in Esperanto: La Legendo de Dorm-Valeto
Vol. 11: The Portrait of a Lady, by Henry James
as: The Portrait of a Lady - Volume 1  & The Portrait of a Lady - Volume 2
Vol. 12: Notre Dame de Paris , by Victor Marie Hugo
also as: The Hunchback of Notre Dame
also in the original French: Notre Dame de Paris
Vol. 13: Old Goriot , by Honoré de Balzac; The Devil's Pool , by George Sand; The Story of a White Blackbird, by Alfred de Musset; Five Short Stories, by Alphonse Daudet; Two Short Stories, by Guy de Maupassant
also: The Devil's Pool
also the original French: La Mare au Diable  (The Devil's Pool)
Vols. 14 & 15: Wilhelm Meister's Apprenticeship & The Sorrows of Werther , by J. W. von Goethe; The Banner of the Upright Seven, by Gottfried Keller; The Rider on the White Horse, by Theodor Storm; Trials and Tribulations, by Theodor Fontane
selections: Wilhelm Meister's Apprenticeship
Wilhelm Meister's Apprenticeship in the original German: Wilhelm Meisters Lehrjahre — Band 1  to Wilhelm Meisters Lehrjahre — Band 8 : see under Goethe
The Sorrows of Werther in the original German: Die Leiden des jungen Werther — Band 1  & Die Leiden des jungen Werther — Band 2
The Sorrows of Werther also as: Die Leiden des jungen Werther
The Rider on the White Horse in the original German: Der Schimmelreiter
Vols. 16 & 17: Anna Karenina  & Ivan the Fool , by Leo Tolstoy
Anna Karenina also in Dutch: Anna Karenin
Anna Karenina also in French: Anna Karénine, Tome I
Vol. 18: Crime and Punishment , by Fyodor Dostoevsky
Vol. 19: A House of Gentlefolk  & Fathers and Children, by Ivan Turgenev
Vol. 20: Pepita Jimenez, by Juan Valera; A Happy Boy , by Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson; Skipper Worse, by Alexander L. Kielland
Pepita Jimenez in the original Spanish: Pepita Jimenez
« Last Edit: January 24, 2019, 10:32:44 PM by redwood_canyon »

solon

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Re: 800 hours of free ebook reading
« Reply #1 on: January 24, 2019, 04:44:57 PM »
Is there any way you could show us a table of contents? I want to know what I'm getting into before I put down that kind of dough!

redwood_canyon

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Re: 800 hours of free ebook reading
« Reply #2 on: January 24, 2019, 10:15:36 PM »
@solon

I appreciate the sarcasm, I will update the post accordingly.

tarheeldan

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Re: 800 hours of free ebook reading
« Reply #3 on: January 25, 2019, 05:36:19 AM »
Very cool! Thanks!

PoutineLover

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Re: 800 hours of free ebook reading
« Reply #4 on: January 25, 2019, 06:09:45 AM »
Cool list, something I'd look into. One thing to note though, it looks like there's only 1 female author on the entire list. I know that while women were shut out of literature for much of the past, the are still many female authors that could fit in the more modern volumes. Not surprising, given the time and place this list was assembled, but I'd suggest adding some more female authors to your reading list on your own if you'd like to get a more well rounded educational experience.

MonkeyJenga

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Re: 800 hours of free ebook reading
« Reply #5 on: January 25, 2019, 08:42:48 AM »
I spotted Jane Austen and George Eliot representing the ladies.

There are obviously giant categories that are out of date (like science and world history) or missing entirely (race studies, meme culture).

And let's be real, unless you're majoring in poetry at Oxford, nobody needs to read the complete works of Robert Burns and John Milton.

Some of those books are for real, of course. Even though I had read a lot about evolution, I never read Darwin himself until I was 25 or so. I felt very smrt.

I bet there's a similar list that's more comprehensive and up to date, but of course it wouldn't all be free.

rudged

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Re: 800 hours of free ebook reading
« Reply #6 on: January 26, 2019, 01:34:35 PM »
Does anyone know whether there has been an attempt to update the list since it was first formulated? I imagine it occasioned some debate when it was originally proposed, but wonder if, in the time since, serious attempts have been made to suggest additional readings.

Tass

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Re: 800 hours of free ebook reading
« Reply #7 on: January 26, 2019, 02:05:27 PM »
I spotted Jane Austen and George Eliot representing the ladies.

That's exactly what I was about to point out, ha. C'mon, at least include Sappho if you're going to focus on classic poetry?

It lists the price at $0.99 for me, though. Not sure I can spare that kind of cash.

redwood_canyon

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Re: 800 hours of free ebook reading
« Reply #8 on: January 26, 2019, 07:56:09 PM »
I spotted Jane Austen and George Eliot representing the ladies.

That's exactly what I was about to point out, ha. C'mon, at least include Sappho if you're going to focus on classic poetry?

It lists the price at $0.99 for me, though. Not sure I can spare that kind of cash.

Wow wth!! It was free for me, I bought and own it for free. Sorry to see the price changed. If you would like I could cover your expense for the book set ;)
That's weird.

A Fella from Stella

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Re: 800 hours of free ebook reading
« Reply #9 on: July 07, 2019, 01:25:20 PM »
This is very cool. Thank you.

Replying so that it can be seen by others at the top of the list.

NGeek

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Re: 800 hours of free ebook reading
« Reply #10 on: July 11, 2019, 09:08:02 AM »
Since these are all public domain works, they are also available for free through Project Gutenberg (along with thousands of others): https://www.gutenberg.org/wiki/Harvard_Classics_(Bookshelf)