Humor Classics

Having assumed the form of an American multimillionaire, Satan sets out on a tour through Europe in quest of amusement and adventure. He observes a panopoly of subversive and hypocritical behaviors, the abhorrent cruelty of men and the deceptive innocence of women. Within a short time, Prince of Hell finds himself outwitted, deceived, relieved of his millions, mocked and humiliated, and beaten by man by the use of his own devilish devices.

Книга "НАШИ ЗА ГРАНИЦЕЙ" [1890] до революции выдержала 27 изданий. Затем долго не издавалась - ездить за границу было не модно. В наше время издатель Захаров дал книге 28-ю, а студия "АРДИС" - 29-ю жизнь. В книге рассказывается, как молодой купец решил съездить в Париж на Всемирную выставку.

Josef Schwejk lebt 1914 als behördlich anerkannter Idiot in Prag. Dennoch soll er Kriegsdienst leisten, und so gerät er ins riesige Getriebe der k. u. k. Armee. Schwejk wird Bursche beim Feldkurat Katz, der ihn beim Kartenspiel an Oberleutnant Lukasch verspielt. Mit dem kommt er an die Front, findet aber immer wieder Schlupflöcher, um den Kämpfen zu entgehen. Er verpasst den Zug, vertrinkt sein Fahrgeld und stolpert von einem Missgeschick ins Nächste.

"Mystically powered terrorists unleash volatile magic on the world, turning Washington, D.C., into a politically-charged fantasyland ripe for human sacrifice. Attackers with magical abilities bring down a 747 by summoning a dragon to rip it from the sky, using the hundreds of lives lost as a sacrifice to initiate the Change. The country morphs into a new landscape of swords and sorcery. Now computers and other machines are coming to life, and regular people have started to turn into mythical creatures and forgotten deities." ( Kirkus Reviews)

"The Red Room" (Swedish: "Röda rummet") is a satire of Stockholm society, it has frequently been described as the first modern Swedish novel. While receiving mixed reviews in Sweden, it was acclaimed in Denmark, where Strindberg was hailed as a genius. As a result of "The Red Room", Strindberg became famous throughout Scandinavia. Edvard Brandes wrote that it "makes the reader want to join the fight against hypocrisy and reaction".

Quando Lemuel Gulliver si sveglia su un'isola dopo un naufragio, con mani e piedi legati e tante frecce puntate su di lui, penseresti che ogni speranza è perduta. Ma i rapitori sono alti un dito, la corda è sottile come un filo e le piccole frecce sfiorano appena la superficie della pelle di Gulliver. Questa storia non è nemmeno tanto assurda rispetto a quanto capiterà a Gulliver in mare, ma, ironicamente, nessuna avventura susciterà una reazione emotiva nell'uomo. "I viaggi di Gulliver" (1726) di Jonathan Swift sono un'ottima satira politica.

Gulliver’s Travels takes listeners on an adventure to fictional and real places in the world, with fantastical elements such as a society of tiny people, flying cities, and the ghosts of ancient world leaders. Gulliver’s adventure takes him all over, and each location is uniquely themed and satirizes themes from our real world.

Moriae encomium, zu Deutsch: Lob der Torheit (oder Lob der Narrheit), ist der Titel eines der bekanntesten Werke des niederländischen Humanisten Erasmus von Rotterdam. Das Werk, ein herausragendes, zu seiner Zeit wirkmächtiges Beispiel der Narrenliteratur, ist auch als Laus stultitiae bekannt. Es wurde eines der meistgelesenen Bücher der Weltliteratur und wurde schon zu Lebzeiten des Erasmus in viele europäische Sprachen übersetzt, denn Satiren waren in der Renaissance die bevorzugte Literatur der Gebildeten.

Ein englischer Geschäftsmann, Mr Wood, hat einen glorreichen Einfall, wie er den Iren ihr Geld auf ebenso geschickte wie schamlose Art und Weise legal aus deren Taschen ziehen kann. Jedoch hat er nicht damit gerechnet, dass Mr. Jonathan Swift seinen durch höchste britische Stellen abgesegneten Beutezug durchschauen würde. In der Analyse und Auseinandersetzung mit den Argumenten des "englischen Wirtschaftsgenies" wird die unglaubliche Heuchelei, Unverschämtheit und gewissenlose Gerissenheit ans Tageslicht gebracht, mit welcher skrupellose britische Turbo-Kapitalisten die irische Bevölkerung auszubeuten beabsichtigen.

A beautifully crafted collection of eight short stories by Edna Ferber: In Gigolo, Edna Ferber delves into the minds of eight diverse characters from all walks and stages of life.

Charles De Coster, 1827 in München geboren, aufgewachsen in Brüssel, griff die Legende vom Taugenichts Till Eulenspiegel auf und transportierte sie ins 16. Jahrhundert, genauer in die Zeit des Achtzigjährigen Krieges. Womöglich war es sein Engagement für die Satire-Zeitung "Uylenspiegel", das De Coster den Volkshelden näherbrachte. Doch ist sein "Ulenspiegel" nicht nur ein Schelmenstück, sondern auch ein historischer Roman mit einer Hauptfigur, die Freiheitsheld und Widerstandskämpfer zugleich ist.

As Jeeves and Bertie fall out over the latter's new white mess jacket, the young master takes exception to Jeeves' handling of the romantic affairs of newt enthusiast Gussie Fink-Nottle and assumes personal charge of the case. But Bertie's schemes soon expand to encompass the ruptured engagement of his cousin Angela and Tuppy Glossop, and the financial problems of his Aunt Dahlia - leading to unforeseen difficulties with Aunt Dahlia's peerless French chef, the temperamental Monsieur Anatole.

Raised by vampyre relatives, Jane grows to resent the lifestyle's effect on her upbringing. No sunlight, nighttime hours, and a diet of bloody red meat is no way for a mortal girl to live. Things change for Jane when the ghost of her uncle visits her, imparts her parents' slayer history, and charges her with the responsibility of striking out to find others of her kind and learn the slayer ways.

Il romanzo venne pubblicato nel 1840 su un settimanale , e come volume nel 1842. Si compone di una carrellata di personaggi e di descrizioni dettagliate dei luoghi attraversati dalla piccola Nell e da suo nonno, nella loro fuga da Londra. Il libro alterna momenti di caratterizzazione comica dei personaggi (vi si intravedono le radici di altri successivi umoristi di lingua inglese, come Jerome e Wodehouse) a passaggi drammatici, che, tuttavia, come in tutta l’opera di Dickens, non mancano di morale.

First published in 1873, The Gilded Age is both a biting satire and a revealing portrait of post-Civil War America - an age of corruption when crooked land speculators, ruthless bankers, and dishonest politicians voraciously took advantage of the nation's peacetime optimism. With his characteristic wit and perception, Mark Twain and his collaborator, Charles Dudley Warner, attack the greed, lust, and naiveté of their own time in a work that endures as a valuable social document and one of America's most important satirical novels.

"I demoni", terzo romanzo nel percorso spirituale di Dostoevskij, dopo "Delitto e Castigo", "L'Idiota", e prima dei "Fratelli Karamazov", ha avuto una lunga storia editoriale. Prima pubblicato a puntate sulla rivista "Messaggero Russo" nel 1872 e poi in volume l'anno successivo. Il romanzo è ispirato ad un fatto di cronaca del novembre del 1869: l'anarchico e nichilista Sergej Necaev, legato a Michail Bakunin uccide lo studente Ivan Ivanov, sospettato di voler abbandonare la cellula sovversiva dello stesso Necaev.

Il romanzo, pubblicato nel 1830, raffigura la Francia immediatamente precedente la rivoluzione del 1830, le opposizioni tra Parigi e la provincia, tra borghesia e nobiltà, tra gesuiti e giansenisti. Grazie alla sua capacità di rappresentare i rapporti tra i personaggi e la loro psicologia, Stendhal traccia un affresco della società reazionaria post-napoleonica, mostrando le ambizioni, il cinismo e l'ipocrisia di cui si nutrono quotidianamente i rapporti umani.

In the style of Jonathan Swift's Gulliver's Travels, an every-man character travels to a land filled with mythical characters. It's an adventure story, with the main character, George Taylor, having to confront and befriend pixies, elves, fairies, brownies, giants, dwarfs, mimis, sprites, satyrs, and mermaids. But there is one character that is the most feared, and hated of all. The groll. A species that kills and tortures for the pure pleasure of seeing the pain they inflict. The tales of their evil are endless.

Una narrazione disincantata e ironica denuncia il vuoto di valori che seguì la disfatta napoleonica. La cittadella descritta da Stendhal è in realtà molto diversa dalla vera cittadella di Parma e, invece, molto simile a Castel Sant'Angelo, dalla cui cella fuggì (calandosi con delle corde), nel Cinquecento, Alessandro Farnese, rinchiuso per aver rapito e sedotto una nobildonna romana. In seguito diviene cardinale e, poi, papa.

Yet another volume of the biggest and silliest collection of side-splitting classic Jewish jokes! Enjoy hundreds more all-time-favorite jokes straight from the archives of the Jewish Press. The laughter will never stop with this once-in-a-lifetime collection of the side-splitting family-friendly humor from the brilliant humorist, Arnold Fine. Arnie's classic Jewish jokes, one-liners, and humorous observations will leave you - and everyone else - rolling on the floor!