W. Somerset Maugham

Of Human Bondage charts the life of Philip Carey, a sensitive and introspective individual born with a clubfoot. Orphaned at a young age, Philip searches for meaning through pursuits such as religion, art and medicine, but much of his early life is marked with emotional turmoil.

This is the story of an artist who was willing to sacrifice everything for the sake of art. In much of its general outline, this famous novel follows the life of Paul Gauguin, famous French post-impressionist painter, but it is not a novelized biography of Gauguin. Rather it is a...

A compelling novel of self-discovery and the search for meaning from the author of The Painted Veil The Great War changed everything and everyone, and Larry Darrell is no exception. Though his physical wounds from the war heal, his spirit is changed almost beyond recognition. He leaves his...

When noted English writer William Somerset Maugham set off for the South Seas to regain his health, he gathered the materials and wrote the stories represented here. These are among Maugham's best, and the best stories ever written about the exotic South Seas. "Macintosh" is a taut psychological...