In this dizzyingly rich novel of ideas, Mann uses a sanatorium in the Swiss Alps--a community devoted exclusively to sickness--as a microcosm for Europe, which in the years before 1914 was already exhibiting the first symptoms of its own terminal irrationality. The Magic Mountain is a monumental work of erudition and irony, sexual tension and intellectual ferment, a book that pulses with life...

Once the walls come down, all sorts of problems start to crop up. Rotten wood, toxic mold, unwelcome critters, and something even more sinister all make Greg and his family wonder if the renovations are worth the trouble. When the dust finally settles, will the Heffleys be able to stay . . . or will they need to get out of town?

Vladimir Mayakovsky (1893–1930) is one of the most important poets of the 20th century. His works, addressed to the adult reader, have become classics of Soviet literature. But Mayakovsky is no less famous as the author of poems for children. Cheerful, mischievous, playful, in an entertaining way they teach children to distinguish good from bad, to be kind and honest, not to be lazy, to strive...

Published on the eve of World War I, a decade after Buddenbrooks had established Thomas Mann as a literary celebrity, Death in Venice tells the story of Gustave von Aschenbach, a successful but aging writer who follows his wanderlust to Venice in search of spiritual fulfillment that instead leads to his erotic doom.

Strange things are afoot in the cosmopolitan city of Lviv, western Ukraine. Seagulls are circling and the air smells salty, though Lviv is a long way from the sea.

The cultural dialogue between Russia and America has been going on for centuries, despite all the historical obstacles. Writers and philosophers from both countries closely followed each other's political, social, and artistic experiments.

The adapted text of the popular mystery novel. The text supplies with the stress, questions and tasks, including testes, keys, English-Russian dictionary, illustrations.

The story based on Belyaev's novel 'Professor Dowell's Head.' The reader is illustrated with photos from the popular film.

The adapted text of the great novel classics of XIX century. The reader contains comments, test tasks, the dictionary, illustrations (photos from the recent movie series based on the novel).