You can read them on your PC or print out the e-books on your PC's printer to read ink on paper.

Classic Mystery Short Stories

Free E-Books (PDFs)

I offer several e-books (PDFs) for free download from my website.  They can all be read using the Adobe Reader either on-line or off-line if you save the file to your computer.  

Click on the PDF link to open the book in your Adobe Reader, then save it to your PC.  Be patient while the books load; they are a bit big, but once loaded you can move around the book quickly.

If you don't already have the Reader installed on your computer (most new computers come with it installed), you can easily download and install the Reader yourself.  If you need help, you can consult my Lessons. 

And don't worry.  If you prefer to read ink on paper, you can print the e-books out on any PC printer.

Room With a View

Stage Actor Autobiographies

Ancient Rome

3 Ancient Italian Cookbooks

The Adventures of Pinocchio by Collodi

This is an English translation of the original Italian, 321 pages long.  I've illustrated it with images relating to the text.  You can read three chapters as pages of this site.

I've formatted the pages so they fit on the Reader screen (landscape format), and have made the text large enough to read easily without needing to enlarge the page.  

It's ideal to read to a child, or for the child to read alone.  Find out more about Pinocchio on my Pinocchio Page.

A Sicilian Romance by Ann Ward Radcliffe

This classic gothic romance is 150 pages long.  I've edited it and divided up the sometimes page-long paragraphs to make it more readable. 

Mrs. Ann Ward Radcliffe (b.1764-d.1823), the English novelist, is considered the mother of Gothic Romance Novels, starring damsels in distress.  Read more about her on my page about her and the book. 

The book is a fun read and should be read in a lighthearted manner.  It resembles a fairytale, complete with wicked stepmother.  It was written in the 1780s but set 50 years or so earlier in Sicily, which was then part of the Two Kingdoms of Sicily,  under the Spanish crown.

Mrs. Radcliffe's books were so popular they attracted a parody or spoof by none other than Jane Austen:  Northanger Abbey. 

Ancient Rome from the Earliest Times down to 476 A.D.' by Robert F. Pennell

This classic textbook is 228 pages long.  The only thing omitted from the original book is the index, because you can search the e-book easily for any word using the e-book Reader.  

I’ve added a small piece about the author at the end of the book.  I've illustrated the book with images to highlight various parts of the text.  Landscape, large font.

Parallel Lives or Lives by Plutarch

Plutarch's book is a series of 4 single biographies and 23 pairs of biographies of Greeks and Romans, originally written in Greek by Plutarch who lived from approximately 46 to 120 A.D.  

The book is a whopping 1719 pages.  Most offer the book in volumes, and for a price, but I've put it all in one free book so you can search it in it’s entirety with ease.   I’ve added a preface with an introduction to Plutarch and this book.  Landscape format, large font.

The Civilization of the Renaissance in Italy' by Jacob Burckhardt

This classic work from 1878 is 349 pages long, followed by two pieces I added about the author and his history writings.  Landscape format, large font.

I've added appropriate graphics at the start of each chapter.  The chapter headings are:  The State as a Work of Art, The Development of the Individual, The Revival of Antiquity, The Discovery of the World and of Man, Society and Festivals, Morality and Religion.  

Little Masters of Autobiography:  Actors (19th Century)

This is a charming book of 87 pages that transports you back in time, but shows you that very little to do with human nature, and certain professions, changes.

It includes excerpts from the autobiographies of these stars of the stage from the 1800s:  Joseph Jefferson, Edwin Booth, Charlotte Cushman, Clara Morris, Sir Henry Irving, Henry Brodribb Irving, Ellen Terry, Richard Mansfield, Tomaso Salvini, and Adelaide Ristori.

I've added images of the actors, and brief biographies to assist provide the reader with some background.

These are autobiographical snippets, that provide social history, and a history of the acting profession, including the highs and lows that remain the same to this day.

A Room With A View by E. M. Forster

A Room With A View is a novella of just over 100 pages.  And yet E. M. Forster's impeccable style and sharp wit makes each line worth at least twenty in any other novel, for the pleasure and punch they offer the reader.

If you've only ever seen the film adapted, very faithfully, from this story, here's your chance to savor the words that inspired the modern classic movie.

From the written text, you gain insight into the thoughts of the characters, and can appreciate the sardonic point of view of Mr. Forster.  

For more about the book, excerpts, images of rooms with views, and to read the book on-line, visit my Room With A View Page.

To read more about these books and what you might find in them, visit my page dedicated to them:  Ancient Italian Cookbooks.

Two Non-Italy-Related Mystery Books  

The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie

This is Agatha Christie's very first book, from 1920, and her first story featuring her famous Belgian private detective Hercule Poirot.  

Poirot is a war-refugee in England.  Soon after running into his old friend Hastings, someone conveniently drops dead, and Poirot gets to exercises his little grey cells...

This book is out of copyright and available as simple text from Project Gutenberg.  I've edited the errors from the simple text, formatted it for easy reading, applied page numbering, generated a Table of Contents, created a title page, and made the printable PDF version.

You can read the e-book with the Adobe Reader or print the e-book out on your PC's printer, if you prefer to read ink on paper.

The book is 177 pages long.

A Collection of Short Mystery Stories

I've collected together two short mystery stories each from four famous writers of short mystery fiction, all available from Project Gutenberg as simple text.  I've edited it, formatted it, put page numbers, title page and Table of Contents, and made the PDF version.  

I also provide introductions to each author and their respective stories.  The collection includes:

Two stories from The Amateur Cracksman by E. W. Hornung, published in 1899, featuring his famous gentleman-thief Mr. A. J. Raffles.

Two stories from The Case Book of Sherlock Holmes, published in 1927, by Arthur Conan Doyle, featuring his famous amateur detective Mr. Sherlock Holmes.

Two stories from The Innocence of Father Brown, published in 1911, by G. K. Chesterton, featuring his famous priest-detective Father Brown.

Two stories from Lady Molly of Scotland Yard, published in 1910, by Baroness Orczy, featuring her famous female police detective Lady Molly.

You can read the e-book with the Adobe Reader or print the e-book out on your PC's printer, if you prefer to read ink on paper.

The book is 128 pages long.