A story about the time when desires are still alive but one’s strength is already waning—and about a strange, almost mystical love that overtakes a man at the end of a wasted life filled with dreary work and tawdry, casual sex.

Is there life on Mars? Yes, there is—in Kurt Vonnegut’s science fiction novel *The Sirens of Titan*, the reader can visit not only Mars but also Mercury and Titan alongside the protagonist: Malachi Constant, a wealthy American playboy. On Mars, Malachi is transformed into ‘Uncle,’ loses his memory and everything he owns, and is forced to obey the orders of those who have implanted a chip in his...

Simón Bolívar. The Liberator, the greatest hero of the War of Independence, a legendary figure. A ruler who voluntarily relinquished power. Only recently, he had commanded armies and held sway over nations, and then, suddenly—resignation. The final months of Bolívar’s life are a period about which historians know almost nothing. Yet, under the pen of the greatest master of magical realism,...

The lives of the inhabitants of the English estate are trivial and unremarkable; their interests—personal comfort, ambition, and money—are petty and insignificant. Lies, hypocrisy, and sanctimony destroy the well-being and order of the Mansfield Park household, depriving its owners, their children, and their relatives of mutual understanding and unity. How is one to live? How can a sense of...

Nerves are raw, passions run high, and emotions are heightened. Nothing can be undone now—the final line is fast approaching. Yet, it is still possible to understand and empathize with those destined to walk the sinister Green Mile into the void...

*The Alchemist* is the most famous novel by Brazilian writer Paulo Coelho and a beloved book for millions of people around the world. In their youth, people are not afraid to dream; everything seems possible to them. But as time passes, a mysterious force begins to suggest that their desires are unattainable.

H.G. Wells (1866–1946) was an English writer and a ‘founding father’ of the science fiction genre. Although H.G. Wells’s novels lack the trappings of the modern world—such as computers, space shuttles, and particle accelerators—they continue to be read with undiminished interest and will never disappear from bookshelves.

‘Nausea is the essence of existence for those trapped in the 'bustle of the day'—people abandoned to the mercy of an alien, ruthless, and bleak reality. Nausea is the impossibility of love and trust; it is, quite simply, the inability of a man and a woman to understand one another. Nausea is that very 'other side of despair'—the side where Freedom lies.

A novel that has become a defining symbol of Franz Kafka’s body of work. Interestingly, Kafka left no clues that might allow one to reconstruct the novel's plot; the chapters were unnumbered and kept in separate envelopes. Josef K. is a rational protagonist set against an absurd society. His unremarkable—even somewhat banal—life was proceeding as usual until he was informed that proceedings had...

*The Queen of Spades* is one of Alexander Pushkin’s most enigmatic novellas. Pyotr Tchaikovsky’s opera of the same name, frequent stage productions, and numerous screen adaptations bear eloquent witness to the work’s immense popularity; indeed, the famous three, seven, ace are known even to those unfamiliar with the story of Hermann. Rivaling it in popularity and literary significance are the...