“Water is the origin of all things, and to water all things return.” Chapter 1: The Return Kogito Choko, an aging writer, returns to his childhood village in […]
Japanese literature
The Sound of the Mountain
“Old age was a soundless place. The sound of the mountain was the sound of his own heart.” Chapter 1: The Sound of the Mountain Shingo Ogata, an […]
German literature
The Mussel Feast
“We were waiting for father, and as we waited we ate mussels.” Chapter 1: The Waiting Begins The novel opens with a mother and her two teenage children […]
Russian literature
Sincerely Yours, Shurik
“Every family has its own mythology, its own legends, and its own secrets.” Chapter 1: Childhood in Post-War Moscow The novel opens with young Shurik growing up in […]
Russian literature
Three Sisters
“We must work, work! Tomorrow I shall go alone, I shall teach in the school, and give my whole life to those who may need it. It’s autumn […]
American literature
Freedom
“The personality susceptible to the dream of limitless freedom is a personality also prone, should the dream ever sour, to misanthropy and rage.” Part One: Good Neighbors The […]
American literature
The Poisonwood Bible
“The serpent is the most clever of all the creatures the Lord God ever made.” Book One: Genesis The Price family—Nathan, a zealous Baptist preacher; his wife, Orleanna; […]
English literature
Brick Lane
“The world was full of doors, and all of them led to the same place.” Part One: Arrival in London Nazneen, a young Bangladeshi woman, arrives in London […]
English literature
Black Swan Green
“Hang on, I thought, if I can see the stars from here, then the stars can see me.” January: Hangman Thirteen-year-old Jason Taylor lives in the small English […]
English literature
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
“Prime numbers are what is left when you have taken all the patterns away. I think prime numbers are like life. They are very logical but you could […]