Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. We are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork.

"Men and Women" was Robert Browning's first published work after a self-imposed five year hiatus, and his first collection of shorter poems since his marriage to Elizabeth Barrett in 1846.

Upon publication in 1855, "Men and Women," containing fifty-one seemingly random poems, was not a critical or financial success. During this period, Browning felt overshadowed by the stellar success of his wife. Later in life, renewed public interest in his writing would elevate Robert Browning into the pantheon of greatest poets.

Thirteen years after the publication of "Men and...

Robert Browning was a 19th century English poet and playwright. His mastery of the dramatic dialogue made him a leading author of the Victorian age. In 1846 he secretly married Elizabeth Barrett. Elizabeth Barrett Browning is considered one of the great English poets. This collection of poems was complied with high school readers in mind. A few of the poems in this collection include The pied piper of Hamelin, Incident of the French camp, "How they brought the good news from Ghent to Aix," Herve riel, Pheidippides, My star, Evelyn Hope, Love among the ruins, A woman's last word, Songs from...

Robert Browning was a 19th century English poet and playwright. His mastery of the dramatic dialogue made him a leading author of the Victorian age. In 1846 he secretly married Elizabeth Barrett. Elizabeth Barrett Browning is considered one of the great English poets. Browning is able to represent Euripides play in his own interpretation, within the framework of another speaker's consciousness. The story is set just after the defeat of the Athenian expedition against Sicily in 413 BC. A group of pro-Athenians from Rhodes, inspired by the young girl Balaustion, is intercepted on its voyage to...

Robert Browning's friendship for Isabella Blagden was almost as remarkable as was his love for Elizabeth Barrett. After Elizabeth's death (June 1861), Browning went to England to educate their son, but he hoped eventually to return to Italy, principally so that he might be near his friend "Isa." He asked her to write to him once a month on the twelfth, promising to answer her letter on the nineteenth.

The fulfillment of this obligation resulted in a correspondence which is remarkable from the standpoint of continuity. Most collections of letters suffer from their fragmentary form;...

In Browning's bicentenary year, Shearsman publishes several volumes devoted to his work, starting with a collection of his shorter "long" poems, organised as the poet himself wished. 'The Pied Piper of Hamelin' is here, alongside 'My Last Duchess' and a number of other acknowledged classics, as well as poems that will be less familiar to modern readers. Browning divided his shorter long poems into groups: Dramatic Lyrics, Dramatic Romances, and Men and Women (also the title of one of his verse collections). Master of the dramatic monologue, spoken by a bewildering number of different figures,...

A book-length poem that caused great consternation when it first appeared in 1840, Sordello became a byword for poetic difficulty, both because of its unfamiliar subject-matter (as now, few people had a grasp of the arcana of Italian medieval politics), but also because of Browning's verse style. His language is here impacted, with the reader needing to be alert to follow the twists and turns of the narrative. Sordello is an important work, and crucial in Browning's development. It is also an astonishing work to come from the pen of a 28-year-old, and one can see why Ezra Pound treated it so...

If Sordello is a book-length poem, then The Ring and the Book-in its day regarded as Browning's greatest achievement, but today seemingly out of fashion-is something different. It is in fact a great novel, but one presented in blank verse, almost 21,000 lines of it, and in twelve books, each representing a different view of the action (a court case involving adultery and murder) by one of the protagonists. Why it has been called an "epic poem" is a puzzle; it is epic only in length; it is a poem only because it is in verse. Pushkin's Yevgeny Onegin is everywhere regarded as a novel, although...

Pook Press celebrates the great Golden Age of Illustration in children's literature. Many of the earliest children's books, particularly those dating back to the 1850s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. Pook Press are working to republish these classic works in affordable, high quality, colour editions, using the original text and artwork so these works can delight another generation of children. Arthur Rackham (1867-1939) was one of the premier illustrators of the early 20th Century. He illustrated many books, the first of which was published in 1893. Throughout...

Pook Press celebrates the great Golden Age of Illustration in children's literature. Many of the earliest children's books, particularly those dating back to the 1850s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. Pook Press are working to republish these classic works in affordable, high quality, colour editions, using the original text and artwork so these works can delight another generation of children. Arthur Rackham (1867-1939) was one of the premier illustrators of the early 20th Century. He illustrated many books, the first of which was published in 1893. Throughout...