{"title":"Charles Twain","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"six-wives-of-henry-viii-book-charles-twain-9781611042511","title":"The Six Wives of Henry VIII","description":"First written by a Tudor scholar in the 1800's, this classic account of The Wives of Henry VIII tells the story of each queen consort, from the time they first met Henry VIII to their (sometimes) early demise. Descriptions of the appearance of Henry VIII and each of the wives, written by their contemporaries, add color to this already vividly descriptive, fascinating book. The twists and turns of Henry's marriage to Katharine of Arragon, the rise and spectacular fall of the beautiful Ann Boleyn, and the reason for her demise (the affair with Jane Seymour) are all wonderfully told. Readers with an inkling of sympathy for the first three will smile at the vivid account of Henry VIII's eager anticipation at meeting his fourth wife (Anne of Cleves, who had arrived through an arranged marriage), and his consternation at finding her looks to be really quite plain. Anne of Cleves was also apparently less than thrilled with the arrangement, and managed to save her head by graciously agreeing to divorce after only six months. Unfortunately Cromwell and another gentleman who was intimately involved in arranging that marriage, weren't so lucky. Henry VIII's marriage to the young and beautiful Katharine Howard, though incredibly happy in the beginning, didn't last long. In a fit of jealousy, the king sent her to the chopping block after only 16 months. Like Ann Boleyn, she met her fate graciously-even spending hours the night before her execution practicing how best to lay her head on the block  The Wives of Henry VIII also tells the story of the final of Henry's three Katharine's (Katharine Parr), who, being tipped off about the king's violent intentions towards her, narrowly escaped execution by talking her way back into his good graces. All in all, a spectacular tale with details sure to enthrall any student of the House of Tudor.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"GB \/ VERY_GOOD \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":49572779622673,"sku":"GOR011644570","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"US \/ GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":50385236590865,"sku":"CIN1611042518G","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"US \/ VERY_GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":50385240817937,"sku":"CIN1611042518VG","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"GB \/ GOOD \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":51503449800977,"sku":"GOR014305991","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/1611042518.jpg?v=1750799276"},{"product_id":"scarlet-letter-book-charles-twain-9781611044980","title":"The Scarlet Letter","description":"Set in 17th-century Puritan Boston during the years 1642 to 1649, The Scarlet Letter tells the story of Hester Prynne, who conceives through an adulterous affair and struggles to create a new life of repentance and dignity. The story begins during the summer of 1642, near Boston, Massachusetts, in a Puritan village. A young woman, Hester Prynne, has been led from the town prison with her infant daughter in her arms. On the breast of her gown is a rag of scarlet The Scarlet Letter cloth that assumed the shape of a letter. It is the uppercase letter A. The Scarlet Letter A represents the act of adultery that she has committed, and it is to be a symbol of her sin-a badge of shame-for all to see. The Scarlet Letter was published as a novel in the spring of 1850 by Ticknor \u0026amp; Fields, beginning Hawthorne's most lucrative period as a writer. When he delivered the final pages to Fields in February 1850, Hawthorne said that some portions of the book are powerfully written but doubted it would be popular. In fact, the book was an instant best-seller though, over fourteen years, it brought its author only $1,500. Its initial publication brought wide protest from natives of Salem, who did not approve of how Hawthorne had depicted them in his introduction The Custom-House. A 2,500-copy second edition of The Scarlet Letter included a preface by Hawthorne dated March 30, 1850, that stated he had decided to reprint his introduction without the change of a word... The only remarkable features of the sketch are its frank and genuine good-humor... As to enmity, or ill-feeling of any kind, personal or political, he utterly disclaims such motives. The Scarlet Letter was one of the first mass-produced books in America. Into the mid-nineteenth century, bookbinders of home-grown literature typically hand-made their books and sold them in small quantities. The first mechanized printing of The Scarlet Letter, 2,500 volumes, sold out within ten days, and was widely read and discussed to an extent not much experienced in the young country up until that time.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"- \/ - \/ -","offer_id":51039481659665,"sku":"","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"US \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":51039484870929,"sku":"NIN9781611044980","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/1611044987.jpg?v=1750720233"},{"product_id":"way-of-life-in-today-s-english-book-charles-twain-9781611040654","title":"A Way of Life (in Today's English)","description":"A Way of Life is the text of an address that Sir William Osler gave at Yale University in 1913. He recommends approaching life as a series of day-tight compartments, which he likens to the water-tight compartments that keep a ship afloat. (an Interesting analogy just a year after the sinking of the Titanic sank). William Osler's point is that worrying about either the past or the future is a burden that does nothing but reduce your effectiveness. If you focus your attention on what you have to do today, then over time, a string of successful days will make for a successful life. He quotes Thomas Carlyle: Our main business is not to see what lies dimly at a distance, but to do what lies clearly at hand. William Osler primarily attributes his own success not to talent or intelligence, but to good habits, consistently practiced, day after day after day. This is a small book filled with simple, eloquent wisdom that is every bit as applicable today as it was in 1913.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"US \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":51039496831249,"sku":"NIN9781611040654","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/1611040655.jpg?v=1750895204"},{"product_id":"alice-adams-book-charles-twain-9781482021066","title":"Alice Adams","description":null,"brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"- \/ - \/ -","offer_id":51644272017681,"sku":"","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"US \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":51644272214289,"sku":"NIN9781482021066","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/1482021064.jpg?v=1751085286"}],"url":"https:\/\/www.worldofbooks.com\/collections\/author-books-by-charles-twain.oembed","provider":"World of Books ","version":"1.0","type":"link"}