In creating one of the first and most successful examples of the inspirational self-help book, James Allen was motivated by his own hard experience to show how our mental attitude has profoun...
In Beyond Good and Evil, Friedrich Nietzsche gives an impassioned analysis of Western religion, specifically Christianity, that confronts its authoritative view of humans and na...
A compilation of more than 30 addresses from Booker T. Washington explaining the importance of personal responsibility, self-reflection and economic independence in the Black community. <...
The Defeat of Youth and Other Poems (1918) is a collection of poems by English author Aldous Huxley. Although Huxley is known foremost as a novelist, his poetry exhibits a mastery of lang...
Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners (1666) is a spiritual autobiography by English author and Puritan preacher John Bunyan. Written while Bunyan was serving a lengthy prison sentence ...
Hawaii's Story by Hawaii's Queen (1898) is an autobiography by Lili'uokalani. Published in 1898, the book was written in the aftermath of Lili'uokalani's attempt to appeal on behalf of he...
Ideas of Good and Evil (1903) is a collection of wide-ranging essays by Irish poet W.B. Yeats. Writing on such subjects as the art of poetry, politics, and the occult, Yeats proves himsel...
Intentions consists of multiple essays in which Wilde combats the popular argument that art must adhere to a moral standard and serve a benevolent purpose. It's a direct contrast t...
Written by one of the founders of modern political philosophy, Thomas Hobbes, during the English civil war, Leviathan is an influential work of nonfiction. Regarded as one of the earliest...
Magna Carta (1215) is a peace treaty drafted by Archbishop of Canterbury Stephen Langton in coordination with the English barons. Intended as an appeal to King John of England on behalf o...
Mountain Interval (1916) is a collection of poems by American poet Robert Frost. Having gained success with his first two collections, both published in London, Frost returned home to New...
Nancy Prince is an African American woman who writes about her personal and professional life, including her marriage and travels abroad to Russia and Jamaica. It's a vivid account of the...
First appearing in 1845 The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, with its painfully vivid depiction of life in bondage, was both a bestseller in its day and one of the most pow...
Originally published in 1847, William W. Brown offers a first-person narrative that details his enslavement and the daring escape that ultimately led to his freedom. It's a capt...
Old Indian Legends (1901) is a collection of traditional stories from Yankton Dakota writer Zitkála-Sá. Published while Zitkála-Sá was just beginning her career as an artist and activist,...
Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral (1773) is the first book of poetry published by an African American author. Written while Wheatley was a slave in Boston, the collection was...
The Poetics is a fundamental text that examines the development, production and effectiveness of poetry as it pertains to a writer and their intended audience. The author uses nota...
The Prayers and Meditations of Saint Anselm (1070-1080) is a collection of writings by Anselm of Aosta. Written during his time at Bec Abbey in Normandy, The Prayers and Meditations of...
The Reynolds Pamphlet (1797) is an essay by Alexander Hamilton. Written while Hamilton was serving as Secretary of the Treasury, the Pamphlet was intended as a defense against ...
The Sacred Wood: Essays on Poetry and Criticism (1920) is a collection of essays by T.S. Eliot. Although Eliot is primarily recognized as one of the twentieth century's leading English po...