A retelling of the medieval poem about a group of travelers on a pilgrimage to Canterbury and the tales they tell each other. With their astonishing diversity of tone and subject matter, The Canterbury Tales have become one of the touchstones of medieval literature. Translated here into modern English, these tales of a motley crowd of pilgrims drawn from all walks of life-from knight to nun, miller to monk-reveal a picture of English life in the fourteenth...

Originally serialized in Knickerbocker's Magazine between 1847 and 1849, The Oregon Trail is a fascinating chronicle of Francis Parkman's travels on the Oregon Trail during the summer of 1846 through the western states of Kansas, Nebraska, Wyoming, and Colorado. Living and hunting with a tribe of Native Americans for a period of time, Francis Parkman captures the spirit of the old west in this gripping 19th century narrative. Fans of the old west...

The centuries old epic about the wrath of Achilles is rendered into modern English verse by a renowned translator and accompanied by an introduction that reassesses the identity of Homer. In Robert Fagles' beautifully rendered text, the Iliad overwhelms us afresh. The huge themes godlike, yet utterly human of savagery and calculation, of destiny defied, of triumph and grief compel our own humanity. Time after time, one pauses and re-reads before continuing....

Gibbon's masterpiece, which narrates the history of the Roman Empire from the second century A.D. to its collapse in the west in the fifth century and in the east in the fifteenth century, is widely considered the greatest work of history ever written. This abridgment retains the scope of the original, but in a compass equivalent to a long novel. Casual readers now have access to the full sweep of Gibbon's narrative, while instructors and students...

Written by Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus in 121 AD while he was the personal secretary to emperor Hadrian, "The Twelve Caesars" is a series of twelve biographies of Roman rulers beginning with Julius Caesar and ending with Domitian. The tales of Rome's emperors are deeply personal and informative, while also entertaining and often filled with drama. Suetonius included invaluable descriptions of the rulers' public and private lives, physical appearances,...

Because of the absence of writings by Socrates, we only know of his philosophical beliefs through the writings of his students. Fortunately many of these have survived through to today and provide an excellent primary source for the understanding of this great philosopher. Of all the students' writings none are more comprehensive and informative with regard to Socrates than those of Plato. Contained in this volume are some of the most important of...