Social Science
The People of the Abyss
Jack London lived for a time within the grim and grimy world of the East End of London, where half a million people scraped together hardly …
The Souls of Black Folk
The Souls of Black Folk is a well-known work of African-American literature by activist W.E.B. Du Bois. The book, published in 1903, contain…
The Prince and the Pauper
The Prince and the Pauper (1882) represents Mark Twain's first attempt at historical fiction. The book, set in 1547, tells the story of two …
The Jungle
It is the end of the 19th century. Like thousands of others, the Rudkus family has emigrated from Lithuania to America in search of a better…
The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists
Clearly frustrated at the refusal of his contemporaries to recognise the iniquity of society, Tressell's cast of hypocritical Christians, ex…
King Coal
King Coal is a book by Upton Sinclair, first published in 1917, that exposes the dirty working conditions in the coal mining industry in the…
Journal of A Residence On A Georgian Plantation
Fanny Kemble was a British actress who married mega-plantation owner, Pierce Butler of Georgia. During her marriage she kept journals of eve…
Ruth
The book is a social novel, dealing with Victorian views about sin and illegitimacy. It is a surprisingly compassionate portrayal of a 'fall…
Helen of the Old House
Helen is not the main character; it is the mill, in this small town in the first half of the 20th century. This is a story of labor strife, …
Anarchism and Other Essays
Emma Goldman (1869-1940) was an anarchist known for her political activism, writing and speeches. She played a pivotal role in the developme…
The Problem of China
In 1920-21 Bertrand Russell lived and taught in Peking (Beijing), publishing this book on his return to England. In 1920 he had visited Bols…
Domestic Manners of the Americans
Next to de Alexis de Tocquville's almost contemporary Democracy in America, Frances Trollope's work may be the most famous (or at least noto…
The History of Prostitution
Common sense asks for a full investigation of all the evils attending prostitution. In the every-day affairs of life, any man who feels the …
Chinese Sketches
Herbert Giles was in the diplomatic service in China from 1867 to 1893. His frank observations on Chinese culture and people form the basis…
The Soul
Swedenborg, Emanuel, 1688-1772, was born in Stockholm, Sweden and died in London, England. He was a voluminous writer of scientific treatise…
London Labour and the London Poor
Subtitled, "A Cyclopaedia of the condition and earnings of those that will work, those that cannot work, and those that will not work.&…
Japanese Girls and Women
A clear and delightful peek into the world of Japanese girls and women of the late 1800s: their childhood, education, marriage and intimate …
The Negro Problem
This is a collection of essays, edited by Booker T. Washington, representative of what historians have characterized as "racial uplift …
The Ladies' Book of Etiquette
A guide for ladies, written in 1860, on what is accepted as correct behavior in polite society. The advice covers dress, travelling, staying…
Memoirs of Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds
The book chronicles and vilifies its targets in three parts: "National Delusions", "Peculiar Follies", and "Philoso…