Carl von Clausewitz's On War has been called, "not simply the greatest, but the only truly great book on war." It is an extraordinary attempt to construct an all-embracing theory of how war works. Its coherence and ambition are unmatched by other military literature. On War is full of sharp observation, biting irony, and memorable phrases, the most famous being, "war is a continuation of politics by other means.

The Pioneers is a novel in the romantic tradition—a tale of love, hidden identity, and forest adventure. It is also a vivid description of life in a newly settled village on the American frontier, where people of varied ethnic and racial backgrounds have come together to build a new community. In it, James Fenimore Cooper introduced his most memorable character, the wilderness scout Natty Bumppo, nicknamed the Leatherstocking. Cooper

This volume pairs two of Charlotte Perkins Gilman's most famous works, Herland (1915) and "The Yellow Wallpaper" (1892). Herland, a utopian novel, sketches Gilman's model of a society governed, inhabited, and perpetuated solely by women; while "The Yellow Wallpaper," typically categorized as a Gothic or horror story, dramatizes a young wife's postpartum descent into madness. These powerful examples of Gilman's fiction illuminate, perhaps

Jeremy Bentham's An Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation (1789) is a classic text in modern philosophy. In this foundational book of utilitarian philosophy, he advocates the institutions and individuals should govern according to the greatest happiness for the most people. His arguments remain strikingly relevant to today's politics.

Alexis de Tocqueville's Democracy in America (De la démocratie en Amérique) is a classic text detailing the United States of the 1830s, showing a primarily favorable view by Tocqueville as he compares it to his native France. Considered to be an important account of the U.S. democratic system, it has become a classic work in the fields of political science and history. It quickly became popular in both the United States and

"[A] commanding invitation to join the battle." — The Boston Times
How the Other Half Lives is a riveting account of life in New York's Lower East Side tenements of the last century written by one of the Progressive Era's preeminent reformers. Drawn from the author's long career as a police reporter and photographer, the book captures the stark realities of life for the destitute and represents one man's campaign to reform

In The Pathfinder, James Fenimore Cooper tells a thrilling tale of naval adventure, rival love, and wilderness experience that captures the rough-and-tumble life on the shores of Lake Ontario during the French and Indian War. Cooper is the foremost author of historical romance in American literature, and The Pathfinder remains one of the finest examples of the genre. The Pathfinder stands alone as an example of Cooper's unique

Demon worship, imprisonment, illicit desire, rape. With such subject matter, it's little surprise that Matthew Gregory Lewis' The Monk became a sensation as soon as it appeared in 1796. England's reading public found the book so compelling that it went through numerous editions within the first couple years of its publication. Today, Matthew Lewis is widely recognized as a central figure in the history of Gothic fiction. In The