Penguin Classics

Revised edition The master of ancient Greek comic drama, Aristophanes combined slapstick, humour and cheerful vulgarity with acute political observations. In The Frogs, written during the Peloponnesian War, Dionysus descends to the Underworld to bring back a poet who can help Athens in its darkest hour, and stages a great debate to help him decide between the traditional wisdom of...

Part of the authoritative and acclaimed Penguin Shakespeare series, now rejacketed in the celebrated Penguin Classics livery. A storm rages. Prospero and his daughter watch from their desert island as a ship carrying the royal family is wrecked. Miraculously, all on board survive. Plotting, mistaken identities, bewitching love, and drunkenness follow as the travellers explore the strange place of spirits...

With an introduction and notes by Terence Brown Dubliners, Joyce's first major work, was written when he was only twenty-five, bringing his city to the world for the first time. His stories are rooted in the rich detail of Dublin life, portraying ordinary, often defeated lives with unflinching realism. He writes of social decline, sexual desire and exploitation, corruption, and...

Twenty new titles in the much-loved and hugely successful Penguin English Library series. All animals are equal but some animals are more equal than others When the downtrodden animals of Manor Farm overthrow their master, Mr Jones, and take over the farm themselves, they imagine it is the beginning of a life of freedom and equality. But gradually, a cunning,...

First time in Penguin Modern Classics In Ponyboy's world, there are two types of people. There are the Socs, the rich society kids who get away with anything. Then there are the greasers, like Ponyboy, who aren't so lucky. Ponyboy has a few things he can count on—his older brothers, his friends, and trouble with the Socs, whose idea of...

"In a decade marked, much like our own, by simple fears, John Wyndham refused to make simple metaphors". -M John Harrison. A world paralyzed by genetic mutation- Wyndham takes the reader into the anguished heart of a community where the chances of breeding true are less than fifty percent and where deviations are rooted out and destroyed as abominations.

Having got rid of their human master, the animals in this political fable look forward to a life of freedom and plenty. But as a clever, ruthless elite takes control, the other animals find themselves hopelessly ensnared in the same old way. Animal Farm by George Orwell is a powerful allegory that explores the dynamics of power and corruption, leaving...

A beautifully designed clothbound edition of Shirley Jackson's chilling tale of power and fear. Hunting for evidence of the occult, Dr Montague invites three participants to Hill House: Theodora, his lovely assistant; Luke, set to inherit the estate; and Eleanor, a fragile young woman with a troubled past. As The House takes hold, Jackson plumbs the depths of the human...

City of God by Saint Augustine of Hippo is a seminal work that has had a profound impact on the history of Western thought. This monumental text, crafted by one of the most influential Church Fathers, stands as a significant synthesis of Christian theology and Platonic philosophy, as interpreted by the philosopher Plotinus. Written in the aftermath of the sack...

The Sickness Unto Death is famed for the depth and acuity of its modern psychological insights. Writing under the pseudonym Anti-Climacus, Kierkegaard explores the concept of 'despair', alerting readers to the diversity of ways in which they may be described as living in this state of bleak abandonment—including some that may seem just the opposite—and offering a much-discussed formula for...

In Paradise Lost, Milton produced a poem of epic scale, conjuring up a vast, awe-inspiring cosmos and ranging across huge tracts of space and time. Yet, by placing a charismatic Satan and naked Adam and Eve at the centre of this story, he also created an intensely human tragedy on the Fall of Man. Written when Milton was in his...

One of fifteen new translations of Freud's key writings, under the general editorship of celebrated psychoanalyst Adam Phillips, this project reimagines one of the modern era's greatest writers. These works were written against a background of war and racism. Freud sought the sources of conflict in the deepest memories of humankind, finding clear continuities between our 'primitive' past and 'civilised'...

The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand is a gripping narrative that revolves around the unwavering and fiercely independent architect, Howard Roark. Roark’s vision and uncompromising integrity lead him to clash with a conformist society that resists innovation and creativity. The novel intricately explores Roark's journey as he battles against traditional norms, challenges mediocrity, and strives to preserve his unique artistic vision...

The Origins of Totalitarianism by Hannah Arendt is a seminal examination of the rise of totalitarianism in the 20th century. Through a profound and thorough analysis, Arendt explores the complex mechanisms and underpinnings that facilitated the emergence of totalitarian regimes, specifically delving into the horrors of Nazi Germany and Stalinist Soviet Union. Arendt masterfully dissects the various elements that contribute...

Things Fall Apart introduces Okonowo, the greatest warrior alive. His fame has spread like a bushfire in West Africa, making him one of the most powerful men of his clan. However, Okonowo's fiery temper is equally renowned. Determined to be the opposite of his father, he refuses to show any weakness to anyone. To maintain his strength and dominance, he...

Introducing Little Clothbound Classics: irresistible, mini editions of short stories, novellas and essays from the world's greatest writers, designed by the award-winning Coralie Bickford-Smith. A group of passengers on a cruise ship challenge the world chess champion to a match. At first, they crumble, until they are helped by whispered advice from a stranger in the crowd – a man...

Robin Kirkpatrick's superb translation of the most famous work of Italian literature, in a one-volume edition. The Divine Comedy describes Dante's descent into Hell with Virgil as a guide; his ascent of Mount Purgatory and encounter with his dead love, Beatrice; and finally, his arrival in Heaven. Examining questions of faith, desire and enlightenment, the poem is a brilliantly nuanced...

A magnificent new translation of The Odyssey by best-selling author and classicist Daniel Mendelsohn. With his Odyssey, best-selling author and classicist Daniel Mendelsohn has created a momentous new work, hailed by classicists and poets alike—a translation to stand with those of E. V. Rieu and Robert Fagles. Setting aside the streamlining, modernizing approach of many recent translations, Mendelsohn artfully reproduces...

This exhilarating collection of non-fiction sees one of the greatest twentieth-century writers meditating on the small moments that make up a life. How did I so unwittingly transform the joy of living into the great luxury of being alive? Between 1967 and 1977, Clarice Lispector wrote weekly dispatches from her desk in Rio for the Jornal do Brasil. Already famous...

In his perfectly crafted haiku poems, Basho described the natural world with great simplicity and delicacy of feeling. These travel writings not only chronicle Basho's perilous journeys through Japan, but they also capture his vision of eternity in the transient world around him. The Narrow Road to the Deep North and Other Travel Sketches showcases Basho's exceptional ability to portray...

Major new collection of Clarice Lispector's short stories for the first time in English. The publication of Clarice Lispector's Complete Stories, eighty-five in all, is a major literary event. Now, for the first time in English, are all the stories that made her a Brazilian legend— from teenagers coming into awareness of their sexual and artistic powers to humdrum housewives...

Beautifully designed, clothbound edition Part of Penguin's beautiful hardback Clothbound Classics series, designed by the award-winning Coralie Bickford-Smith, these delectable and collectible editions are bound in high-quality colourful, tactile cloth with foil stamped into the design. Meg, Jo, Amy, and Beth — four little women enduring hardships and enjoying adventures in Civil War New England. The charming story of the...

Fifty new books at £1 each, celebrating the pioneering spirit of the Penguin Modern Classics series, from inspiring essays to groundbreaking fiction and poetry. I am Black and lesbian, and what you hear in my voice is fury, not suffering. From the self-described 'black, lesbian, mother, warrior, poet', these soaring, urgent essays on the power of women, poetry and anger...

This stunning collectible hardcover edition of L. Frank Baum's classic features gorgeous printed and sprayed edges, and coloured endpapers designed with an Ex Libris bookplate. In time to celebrate the forthcoming film adaptation of Wicked starring Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Michelle Yeoh, Jeff Goldblum, and Jonathan Bailey, and directed by Jon M. Chu, this edition is a Penguin Hardcover Classic....

46 new books in the bestselling Little Black Classics series, to celebrate the first ever Penguin Classic in 1946 What matters is to live everything. Live the questions for now.

"Nothing but the darkness, and all around them destruction, and before them nothing but the fire—a bastard people, far from God, singing and crying in the wilderness!" First published in 1953, Go Tell it on the Mountain is Baldwin's first novel, offering a short but intense, semi-autobiographical exploration of the troubled life of the Grimes family in Harlem during the...

A newly updated edition of the landmark translation by the esteemed Biblical scholar. The discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls in the Judaean desert between 1947 and 1956 transformed our understanding of the Hebrew Bible, early Judaism, and the origins of Christianity. These extraordinary manuscripts appear to have been hidden in the caves at Qumran by members of the Essene...

East of Eden, John Steinbeck's most ambitious and engrossing novel, unfolds in the rich and fertile farmlands of the Salinas Valley, California. This powerful narrative paints a vivid portrait of human struggle and the enduring quest for identity, love, and redemption, all framed within a family saga that transcends generations. The novel masterfully weaves together the destinies of two families,...

When brutal landowner Fyodor Karamazov is murdered, the lives of his sons are changed irrevocably: Mitya, the sensualist, whose bitter rivalry with his father immediately places him under suspicion for parricide; Ivan, the intellectual, whose mental tortures drive him to breakdown; the spiritual Alyosha, who tries to heal the family's rifts; and the shadowy figure of their bastard half-brother Smerdyakov....

The Outsider, Albert Camus' existentialist masterpiece, is now available in a wonderful new Clothbound Classics edition. In The Outsider, his classic existentialist novel, Camus explores the alienation of an individual who refuses to conform to social norms. Meursault, his anti-hero, will not lie. When his mother dies, he refuses to show his emotions simply to satisfy the expectations of others....

Lawyer, philosopher, statesman, and defender of Rome's Republic, Cicero was a master of eloquence. His pure literary and oratorical style, coupled with a strict sense of morality, have exerted a powerful influence on European literature and thought for over two thousand years, particularly in matters of politics, philosophy, and faith. Selected Works showcases the diversity of Cicero's writings. It includes...

Published in 1962, this is an emotionally intense novel of love, hatred, race, and liberal America in the 1960s. Set in Greenwich Village, Harlem, and France, Another Country tells the story of the suicide of jazz-musician Rufus Scott and the friends who search for an understanding of his life and death, discovering uncomfortable truths about themselves along the way.

46 new books in the bestselling Little Black Classics series, to celebrate the first ever Penguin Classic in 1946 'It would be unfair to expect other people to be as remarkable as oneself'

Considered an audacious second novel, Giovanni's Room is set in the 1950s Paris of American expatriates, liaisons, and violence. This now-classic story of a fated love triangle explores, with uncompromising clarity, the conflicts between desire, conventional morality and sexual identity.

One of the most influential political and philosophical texts ever written One of the most notorious works of modern times, as well as one of the most influential, Capital is an incisive critique of private property and the social relations it generates. Living in exile in England, where this work was largely written, Marx drew on a wide-ranging knowledge of...

The trial and condemnation of Socrates on charges of heresy and corrupting young minds is a defining moment in the history of Classical Athens. In tracing these events through four dialogues, Plato also developed his own philosophy, based on Socrates' manifesto for a life guided by self-responsibility. Euthyphro finds Socrates outside the court-house, debating the nature of piety, while The...

The Trial is Kafka's gripping work of psychological horror. A terrifying psychological trip into the life of one Joseph K., an ordinary man who wakes up one day to find himself accused of a crime he did not commit, a crime whose nature is never revealed to him. Once arrested, he is released, but must report to court on a...

The Last Days of Socrates by Plato is a profound and gripping account of the trial and eventual execution of one of the greatest philosophers in history. This new translation by Christopher Rowe offers a fresh perspective on the timeless dialogues that capture Socrates' unwavering commitment to his principles and his unique approach to life and death. Set in 399...

A collection of some of Dostoyevsky's finest short stories. With their penetrating psychological insight and their emphasis on human dignity, respect, and forgiveness, Dostoyevsky's early short stories contain the seeds of the themes that came to his major novels. Poor Folk, the author's first great literary triumph, is the story of a tragic relationship between an impoverished copy clerk and...

Gaius Plinius Secundus, known as Pliny the Elder, was born in AD 21. He served both as a cavalry officer in Germania and as a procurator, and he combined this public service with a deep interest in science. Natural History is Pliny's sole surviving work, and in it, he records the sum total of Roman scientific knowledge in the first...

Fifty new books at £1 each, celebrating the pioneering spirit of the Penguin Modern Classics series, from inspiring essays to groundbreaking fiction and poetry. 'The illegible signature of teetering disaster' Three great stories—The Aurelian, Signs and Symbols, and Lance—the latter is both a derisive attack on science fiction and an attempt to imagine the real pain and horror that would...

Fifty new books at £1 each, celebrating the pioneering spirit of the Penguin Modern Classics series, from inspiring essays to groundbreaking fiction and poetry. I Have More Souls Than One showcases the poignant poetry of Fernando Pessoa. In these verses: 'But no, she's abstract, is a bird Of sound in the air of air soaring, And her soul sings unencumbered...

The sacred texts of the Hindu faith The Upanishads, the earliest of which were composed in Sanskrit between 800 and 400 BCE by sages and poets, form part of the Vedas—the sacred and ancient scriptures that are the basis of the Hindu religion. Each Upanishad, or lesson, takes up a theme ranging from the attainment of spiritual bliss to karma...

The adventures of the well-loved clerical sleuth, collected in a single volume and introduced by Michael D. Hurley. Shabby and lumbering, with a face like a Norfolk dumpling, Father Brown makes for an improbable super-sleuth. But his innocence is the secret of his success—refusing the scientific method of detection, he adopts instead an approach of simple sympathy, interpreting each crime...

Faust, Part I by Goethe reworks the late-medieval myth of Dr Faust, a brilliant scholar so disillusioned he resolves to make a contract or wager with the devil, Mephistopheles. The devil will do all he asks on Earth and seek to grant him a moment in life so glorious that he will wish it to last for ever. But if...

Twenty new titles in the much-loved and hugely successful Penguin English Library series. The Lighthouse was then a silvery, misty-looking tower with a yellow eye that opened suddenly and softly in the evening. To the Lighthouse is at once a vivid impressionistic depiction of a family holiday, and a meditation on marriage, on parenthood and childhood, on grief, tyranny and...

Twenty new titles in the much-loved and hugely successful Penguin English Library series. Every step the Scarlet Pimpernel takes on French soil is fraught with danger. The French Terror is raging, and few are safe from the threat of the guillotine. Sir Percy Blakeney, a foppish Englishman, decides to rescue imprisoned aristocrats before they can be executed. Showing great daring...

A truly great book ... an utterly gripping thriller — Justin Cartwright, Sunday Telegraph Berlin, 1940, and the city is filled with fear. At the house on 55 Jablonski Strasse, its various occupants try to live under Nazi rule in their different ways: the bullying Hitler loyalists, the Persickes; the retired judge, Fromm; and the unassuming couple, Otto and Anna...

One of the great books in Western history and the very first work of non-fiction, in Tom Holland's compelling new translation. The Histories of Herodotus, completed in the second half of the 5th century BC, is generally regarded as the first work of history and the first great masterpiece of non-fiction writing. Joined here are the sheer drama of Herodotus'...

Arthur Miller's classic parable of mass hysteria draws a chilling parallel between the Salem witch-hunt of 1692—'one of the strangest and most awful chapters in human history'—and the McCarthyism which gripped America in the 1950s. The story of how the small community of Salem is stirred into madness by superstition, paranoia, and malice, culminating in a violent climax, is a...

Flann O'Brien's first novel is a brilliant impressionistic jumble of ideas, mythology and nonsense. Operating on many levels, it incorporates plots within plots, giving full rein to O'Brien's dancing intellect and Celtic wit. The undergraduate narrator lives with his uncle in Dublin, drinks too much with his friends and invents stories peopled with hilarious and unlikely characters. One of these...

Things Fall Apart is a brand new imprint from Penguin Classics. Okonowo is the greatest warrior alive. His fame has spread like a bushfire in West Africa, and he is one of the most powerful men of his clan. But he also has a fiery temper. Determined not to be like his father, he refuses to show weakness to anyone—even...

New to Penguin Black Classics, the fully annotated edition of Mireille Ribière's acclaimed translation. Rumours that a ghost stalks the dark passages and cellars of the Paris Opera House, wreaking havoc, have long been rife among staff and performers. This Phantom also haunts the imagination of the beautiful and talented singer Christine Daaé, appearing to her as the 'Angel of...

Martin Luther King, Jr.'s Letter from Birmingham Jail is an incisive and inspiring piece of writing that remains a touchstone in the history of civil rights and social justice. Composed in 1963 while King was imprisoned for his participation in nonviolent protests against racial segregation in Birmingham, Alabama, the letter is a powerful and eloquent defence of civil disobedience in...

Being Happy by Epicurus is a timeless collection that delves into the profound teachings of one of the most influential philosophers of antiquity. Epicurus, the father of Epicureanism, presents his thoughts on the nature of happiness, the methods to achieve it, and the role of philosophy as a therapeutic tool. Through his exploration of these themes, Epicurus highlights the importance...

The Great Railway Bazaar by Paul Theroux is a captivating travelogue that chronicles the author's epic journey by rail across Asia. This remarkable narrative details Theroux's exploits on some of the most iconic and legendary train routes in the world. From the Direct-Orient Express, the Khyber Pass Local, and the Delhi Mail from Jaipur, to the Golden Arrow to Kuala...

In Notes on Camp, Susan Sontag explores the intriguing and often misunderstood aesthetic of "camp," delving into the reasons why certain art forms, fashion, and cultural expressions resonate uniquely with audiences. Through incisive analysis and sharp insights, Sontag unravels the complex interplays between taste, irony, and exaggerated style. This essay is a compelling exploration of the pseudo-serious, the extravagant, and...

Introducing Little Clothbound Classics—irresistible, mini editions of short works by the world's greatest writers, designed by the award-winning Coralie Bickford-Smith. One morning, ordinary salesman Gregor Samsa wakes up to find himself transformed into a giant cockroach. Metamorphosis, Kafka's masterpiece of unease and black humour, is one of the twentieth century's most influential works of fiction, and is accompanied here by...

'Everybody knows now that Ulysses is the greatest novel of the century' — Anthony Burgess, Observer Following the events of one single day in Dublin, the 16th June 1904, and what happens to the characters Stephen Dedalus, Leopold Bloom and his wife Molly, Ulysses is a monument to the human condition. It has survived censorship, controversy and legal action, and...

Selected Writings brings together the major writings of the great Italian philosopher. In his reflections on Christianity, Saint Thomas Aquinas forged a unique synthesis of ancient philosophy and medieval theology. Preoccupied with the relationship between faith and reason, he was influenced both by Aristotle's rational worldview and by the powerful belief that wisdom and truth can ultimately only be reached...

Virginia Woolf's masterpiece, now in a beautiful clothbound edition. On a June morning in 1923, Clarissa Dalloway is preparing for a party and remembering her past. Elsewhere in London, Septimus Smith is suffering from shell-shock and on the brink of madness. Their days interweave and their lives converge as the party reaches its glittering climax. Here, Virginia Woolf perfected the...

A stunning clothbound edition of Wells' science-fiction classic. Part of Penguin's beautiful hardback Clothbound Classics series, designed by the award-winning Coralie Bickford-Smith, these delectable and collectible editions are bound in high-quality, colourful, tactile cloth with foil stamped into the design. From the planet of war they came to conquer the Earth... The night after a shooting star is seen streaking...

Twenty new titles in the much-loved and hugely successful Penguin English Library series. 'To that flash of semi-vision can be traced a full half of the horror which has ever since haunted us' An expedition to Antarctica goes horribly wrong as a group of explorers stumbles upon some mysterious ancient ruins, with devastating consequences. At the Mountains of Madness ranks...

The Metaphysics is Aristotle's probing look at the fundamental questions of philosophy. The Metaphysics presents Aristotle's mature rejection of both the Platonic theory that what we perceive is just a pale reflection of reality and the hardheaded view that all processes are ultimately material. He argued instead that the reality or substance of things lies in their concrete forms. In...

A new translation of Dostoyevsky's great novel of suffering and sickness. Inspired by an image of Christ's suffering, Dostoyevsky set out to create a protagonist with "a truly beautiful soul" and to trace the fate of such an individual as he comes into contact with the brutal reality of contemporary society. The novel begins when the innocent epileptic Prince Myshkin...

"Soseki is the representative modern Japanese novelist, a figure of truly national stature." - Haruki Murakami The father of modern Japanese literature's best-loved novel, in its first new English translation in half a century. No collection of Japanese literature is complete without Natsume Soseki's Kokoro, his most famous novel and the last he completed before his death. Published here in...

Famously associated with the term 'magical realism', Gabriel Garcia Marquez is probably South America's most famous literary export. An acknowledged masterpiece, this is the story of seven generations of the Buendía family and of Macondo, the town they have built. Though little more than a settlement surrounded by mountains, Macondo has its wars and disasters, even its wonders and miracles....

The story of one Allied air raid over twenty-four hours remains one of the finest British war novels. 31 June, 1943. An RAF crew prepare for their next bombing raid on Germany. It is a night that many will never forget. Len Deighton's devastating novel is a gripping minute-by-minute account of what happens over the next twenty-four hours. Told through...

This Penguin Classics edition of Louisa May Alcott's inspiring tale of sisterhood, Little Women, is edited with an introduction by Elaine Showalter. One of the best-loved books of all time. Nominated as one of America's best-loved novels by PBS's The Great American Read. Lovely Meg, talented Jo, frail Beth, and spoiled Amy face the hard lessons of poverty and growing...

Reflecting the voices of poets, soldiers, the families they left behind, and their comrades who would never return, The Penguin Book of First World War Poetry, previously published as In Flanders Fields, is edited with an introduction by George Walter in Penguin Classics. Unrivalled for its range and intensity, the poetry of the First World War continues to have a...

Ethics, published shortly after the death of the Dutch philosopher Benedict Spinoza, stands as his greatest and most impactful work. The book meticulously constructs a holistic philosophical system that delves into the essence of existence and the ethical life. Spinoza employs a rigorous, geometric method, presenting propositions and axioms in a logical progression. This structured approach allows him to systematically...

The complete collection of Donne's poems, including his famous Holy Sonnets, 'The Flea' and 'The Sun Rising'. No poet has been more wilfully contradictory than John Donne, whose works forge unforgettable connections between extremes of passion and mental energy. From satire to tender elegy, from sacred devotion to lust, he conveys an astonishing range of emotions and poetic moods. Constant...

Launching a major new paperback series: Penguin English Library The Penguin English Library Edition of Far From the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy 'I cannot allow any man to - to criticise my private conduct!' she exclaimed. 'Nor will I for a minute.' Hardy's powerful novel of swift sexual passion and slow-burning loyalty centres on Bathsheba Everdene, a proud working...

We are in Harlem, the black soul of New York City, in the era of Aretha Franklin and Ray Charles. The narrator of James Baldwin's novel is Tish, nineteen, and pregnant. Her lover, Fonny, father of her child, is in jail accused of rape. Flashbacks from their love affair are woven into the compelling struggle of two families to win...

A beautifully designed new Clothbound Classic of le Carré's masterpiece, published to celebrate the novel's 50th anniversary. A mole, implanted by Moscow Centre, has infiltrated the highest ranks of the British Intelligence Service, almost destroying it in the process. And so former spymaster George Smiley has been brought out of retirement in order to hunt down the traitor at the...

The Trouble With Being Born by E. M. Cioran is a deeply introspective and profoundly philosophical exploration of the human condition. The book navigates the bleak and often darkly comic territories of existence, examining fundamental questions such as birth, death, the concept of God, the relentless passage of time, the complexity of human relationships, and the daily struggle to find...

Don't hope that events will turn out the way you want, welcome events in whichever way they happen. How can we cope when life's events seem beyond our control? These words of consolation and inspiration from the three great Stoic philosophers—Epictetus, Seneca, and Marcus Aurelius—offer ancient wisdom on how to face life's adversities and live well in the world. GREAT...

A spellbinding story of a community defending their land, by one of New Zealand's most established contemporary writers. Destroy the land and sea, we destroy ourselves On the remote coast of New Zealand, at the curve that binds land and sea, a small Māori community live, work, fish, play, and tell stories of their ancestors. But something is changing. The...

The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson is an unparalleled classic in the genre of horror literature, weaving an atmosphere of dread and suspense that continues to captivate readers. The story follows four distinct characters brought together by a shared curiosity about the supernatural phenomena reported at the infamous Hill House. Dr. Montague, a determined and scholarly investigator of...

With neither friends nor family, Lucy Snowe sets sail from England to find employment in a girls' boarding school in the small town of Villette. There she struggles to retain her self-possession in the face of unruly pupils, an initially suspicious headmaster and her own complex feelings, first for the school's English doctor and then for the dictatorial professor Paul...