English Literature Club: books, essays,reviews.

Anthem By Ayn Rand A dystopian fiction novella by Ayn Rand, first published in 1938. It takes place at some unspecified future date when mankind has entered another dark age as a result of the evils of irrationality and collectivism and the weaknesses of socialistic thinking and economics.

Oh my gosh, Pride and Prejudice—where do I even start? It’s like Jane Austen reached into my soul, handed me a cup of tea, and said, “Let’s gossip about 19th-century British society, but make it fabulous.” First off, Elizabeth Bennet? Iconic. She’s witty, sharp-tongued, and unapologetically herself in a world that’s constantly telling women to sit down and look pretty. The way she claps back at Lady Catherine? Chef’s kiss. I love how she’s flawed, too—her pride in her own judgment and her snap prejudices make her so human. Like, we’ve all been Lizzy, thinking we’ve got someone all figured out, only to realize… oops, maybe I was wrong. And Darcy. Darcy. That man is a walking red flag that turns into a green one by the end. The first proposal scene? Disaster. The letter? Heart-wrenching. The second proposal in the misty dawn? SWOON. Austen invented the enemies-to-lovers trope, and I’ll fight anyone who says otherwise. But what gets me is his growth. He starts off all, “She’s tolerable, I suppose,” and ends up literally saving her family’s reputation. Character development, people! But let’s be real—this book isn’t just a romance. Austen totally drags the whole marriage-as-a-business-transaction thing. Mrs. Bennet’s obsession with marrying off her daughters? The cringe of Mr. Collins proposing to Lizzy like he’s reading a spreadsheet? It’s hilarious and horrifying. Austen’s satire is so sly. She’s like, “Look at these ridiculous societal rules,” while also making you root for Charlotte Lucas to marry a guy who talks about cabbage for fun. Survival mode, baby. Also, can we talk about the dialogue? The banter between Lizzy and Darcy is top-tier. Every time they’re in a room together, the tension could power a steam engine. And Mr. Bennet’s dry humor? “For what do we live, but to make sport for our neighbors, and laugh at them in our turn?” Mood, sir. Absolute mood. But here’s the thing—it’s not just a period drama. It’s about seeing people clearly. Lizzy and Darcy both have to humble themselves, shed their biases, and admit they messed up. It’s a reminder that first impressions are often garbage (looking at you, Wickham), and real love—and respect—takes work. Plus, the vibes. The balls, the countryside walks, the chaotic Bennet family dinners… It’s cozy and dramatic and timeless. Every time I read it, I find something new—like how Austen low-key critiques class snobbery or how Lizzy’s friendship with Charlotte is quietly tragic. In the end, Pride and Prejudice feels like a warm hug and a sharp reality check all at once. It’s about finding your person, yes, but also about growing up, learning to laugh at yourself, and refusing to settle—for less than you deserve or for shallow judgments. 10/10, no notes. Jane Austen, you chaotic genius. 👑✨ (Now, who’s up for a Colin Firth-as-Darcy meme marathon?) 🏊📚

The Man Who Knew Too Much by G. K. Chesterton Horne Fisher is the man who ‘knows too much…and all the wrong things’. He and his trusty companion Harold March take on the world of crime among societies most eminent members in eight classic mysteries. Fisher has a brilliant mind and powers of deduction - but he always faces a moral dilemma.

Prince Caspian The Return to Narnia by C. S. Lewis The Pevensie siblings travel back to Narnia to help a prince denied his rightful throne as he gathers an army in a desperate attempt to rid his land of a false king. But in the end, it is a battle of honor between two men alone that will decide the fate of an entire world. Prince Caspian is the fourth book in C. S. Lewis’s classic fantasy series, which has been drawing readers of all ages into a magical land where animals talk and trees walk for over sixty years. This is a stand-alone novel, but if you would like to read more of Lucy and Edmund’s adventures, pick up The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, the fifth book in The Chronicles of Narnia.

The Gambler by Fyodor Dostoyevsky In this dark and compelling short novel, Fyodor Dostoevsky tells the story of Alexey Ivanovitch, a young tutor working in the household of an imperious Russian general. Alexey tries to break through the wall of the established order in Russia, but instead becomes mired in the endless downward spiral of betting and loss. His intense and inescapable addiction is accentuated by his affair with the General’s cruel yet seductive niece, Polina. In The Gambler, Dostoevsky reaches the heights of drama with this stunning psychological portrait.

The River War An Account of the Reconquest of the Sudan By Winston Churchill The reconquest of the Egyptian Sudan was a military achievement remarkable first of all for the fact that unvarying and complete success attended every movement form the advance from Wady Halfa to the defeat and death of the Khalifa. This success was mainly due to one man endowed with extraordinary organizing genius, seconded by able and zealous subordinates.

Dior 2017 ❤️

Shibusawa or, The passing of old Japan By I. William Adams Shibusawa: Or The Passing Of Old Japan is a historical book written by I. William Adams and published in 1906. The book is a biography of Eiichi Shibusawa, a prominent Japanese businessman and statesman who played a significant role in the modernization of Japan during the Meiji era. The book covers Shibusawa's life from his childhood to his rise to power as a successful businessman and influential figure in Japanese politics. It provides a detailed account of his business ventures, including his involvement in the establishment of the first modern bank in Japan, the First National Bank of Japan. The book also explores Shibusawa's role in shaping Japan's economic and political landscape during a period of rapid change and modernization. It highlights his efforts to promote industrialization, modernize Japan's legal and financial systems, and establish trade relations with foreign countries.

White Nights And Other Stories by Fyodor Dostoyevsky In the stories in this volume Dostoevsky explores both the figure of the dreamer divorced from reality and also his own ambiguous attitude to utopianism, themes central to many of his great novels. In White Nights the apparent idyll of the dreamer’s romantic fantasies disguises profound loneliness and estrangement from ‘living life’. Despite his sentimental friendship with Nastenka, his final withdrawal into the world of the imagination anticipates the retreat into the ‘underground’ of many of Dostoevsky’s later intellectual heroes. A Gentle Creature and The Dream of a Ridiculous Man show how such withdrawal from reality can end in spiritual desolation and moral indifference and how, in Dostoevsky’s view, the tragedy of the alienated individual can be resolved only by the rediscovery of a sense of compassion and responsibility towards fellow human beings.

Plutarch's Lives: Volume I by Plutarch Written at the beginning of the second century A.D., Plutarch’s Lives is a brilliant social history of the ancient world by one of the greatest biographers and moralists of all time. In what is by far his most famous and influential work, Plutarch reveals the character and personality of his subjects and how they led ultimately to tragedy or victory. Richly anecdotal and full of detail, Volume I contains profiles and comparisons of Romulus and Theseus, Numa and Lycurgus, Fabius and Pericles, and many more powerful figures of ancient Greece and Rome.