Some more obscure 1923 Books (List)

Suggest and discuss books to read (all languages welcome!)
TriciaG
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Post by TriciaG »

OK, so by now everyone knows about The Prophet and Emily of New Moon. Here are some less well-known works first published in 1923, with links to scanned versions that are OK to use:

HISTORY:

A History of the Canadian Pacific Railway
by Harold Adams Innis, 1894-1952
https://archive.org/details/historyofcanadia00inniuoft/page/n7

Woodrow Wilson and World Settlement. Written from His Unpublished and Personal Material
by Ray Stannard Baker, 1870-1946; Woodrow Wilson, 1856-1924
https://archive.org/details/woodrowwilsonwor01bakeuoft/page/n11

A History of California: the Spanish Period
by Charles E. (Charles Edward) Chapman, 1880-1941
https://archive.org/details/historyofcalifor00chapuoft/page/n11
Adopted!

Pagan Ireland
by Eleanor Hull, 1860-1935
https://archive.org/details/paganireland00hulluoft/page/n5

The Mexican Nation, a History
by Herbert Ingram Priestley, 1875-1944
https://archive.org/details/mexicannationhis00prie/page/n7

The Covenant of the League of Nations
by League of Nations Union
The "constitution" of the L of N, established after WWI and precursor to the United Nations. 16 pages
https://archive.org/details/covenantofleague07leag
Adopted!

Mussolini as revealed in his political speeches, (November 1914 - August 1923)
(Before and during his time as Prime Minister, before he became dictator of Italy)
https://archive.org/details/mussoliniasrevea00mussuoft/page/n11
Adopted!


EXPLORATION, ARCHAEOLOGY:

The Romance of Excavation: a Record of the Amazing Discoveries in Egypt, Assyria, Troy, Crete, etc.
by David Masters, 1883-1965
https://archive.org/details/romanceofexcavat00mastuoft/page/n7
Adopted!


Tutankhamen: and the Discovery of His Tomb by the Late Earl of Carnarvon and Mr. Howard Carter
by Sir G. Elliot (Grafton Elliot) Smith, 1871-1937
About 21,000 words, or about 2 hours
https://archive.org/details/tutankhamendisco00smituoft/page/n5
Adopted!

The Last Secrets; the Final Mysteries of Exploration
by John Buchan, 1875-1940
"It is a detailed record of some of the main explorative achievements of the first two decades of the twentieth century. Contents include: Lhasa, The Gorges of the Brahmaputra, The North Pole, The Mountains of the Moon, The South Pole, Mount McKinley, The Holy Cities of Islam, The Exploration of New Guinea, and Mount Everest." (from Goodreads)
https://archive.org/details/lastsecretsfinal00buchuoft/page/n7
Adopted!

Into the Frozen South
by "Scout" Marr, 1902-; Frank H. (Frank Hubert) Shaw, b. 1878
Memoir of a Boy Scout who was with Shackleton on the voyage to Antarctica. Bit of a synopsis here: http://tomcreandiscovery.com/?page_id=173
https://archive.org/details/intofrozensouth00marruoft/page/n5
Adopted!

Shackleton's last voyage. The story of the Quest
by Frank Wild 1873-1939; from journal & diary of Dr A.H. (Alexander Hepburn) Macklin, 1889-1967
Same voyage as the above.
https://archive.org/details/shackletonslastv00wilduoft/page/n7


SOCIAL SCIENCE, PHILOSOPHY, PSYCHOLOGY:

The Hobo: the Sociology of the Homeless Man
by Nels Anderson, 1889-1986
"This book shows the experiences of a hobo and pictures of life in the main stem of State Street and Halsted Street in Chicago." (from Amazon)
https://archive.org/details/hobosociologyofh00ande/page/n5

Cosmology, an Introduction to the Philosophy of Matter, vol 1: The Greeks and the Aristotelian Schoolmen
by John O'Neill, 1880-
https://archive.org/details/cosmologyanintro01oneiuoft/page/n5

Scepticism and Animal Faith: Introduction to a System of Philosophy
A couple reader reviews here: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23433845-scepticism-and-animal-faith
by George Santayana, 1863-1952
https://archive.org/details/scepticism00santuoft/page/n3

Psycho-analysis and Everyman
by D. N. Barbour
"Were the applications of psycho-analysis confined to extreme cases of mental disease, the educated layman, for whom this book is intended, might well ask why he should concern himself with a difficult, and, by popular report, somewhat unpleasant, branch of medical science. On the contrary, psycho-analysis affects by implication our whole conception of Life, our ideas of right and wrong, our morals, our religion." (from the book)
https://archive.org/details/psychoanalysisev00barbuoft/page/n5

The Claims of the Coming Generation: a Consideration by Various Writers
by Sir James Marchant, 1867-1956
Topics Eugenics, Children, Sex instruction
https://archive.org/details/claimsofcomingge00marcuoft/page/n5

The Decay of Capitalist Civilisation
by Sidney Webb, 1859-1947; Beatrice Potter Webb, 1858-1943
1923 Newspaper review here: http://archive.spectator.co.uk/article/21st-april-1923/16/the-decay-of-capitalist-civilization-tiiere-are-ma
https://archive.org/details/decayofcapitalis00webbuoft/page/n5

Christmas and Christmas Lore
by T. G. (Thomas George) Crippen (1841–1929/30)
Just about everything you'd want to know about Christmas traditions
https://archive.org/details/christmaschristm00crip_0/page/n9
Adopted!

Poison mysteries in history, romance and crime
by C.J.S. (Charles John Samuel) Thompson, 1862-1943
https://archive.org/details/poisonmysteriesi00thomuoft/page/n7

The World Crisis
by Winston Churchill, 1874-1965
"Winston Churchill's superlative account of the prelude to and events of the First World War. . . . Rich with personal insights, the first part of Churchill's magisterial book covers the years 1911-1914 and includes Ireland and the European balance, the mobilization of the Navy, the invasion of France, and Turkey and the Balkans." (Goodreads)
Volume 1 (1911-1914): https://archive.org/details/worldcrisis00chur/page/n7


BIOGRAPHY:
St. Francis of Assisi
by G. K. (Gilbert Keith) Chesterton, 1874-1936
https://archive.org/details/stfrancisofassis00chesuoft/page/n5
Adopted!

SHORT STORIES (ADULT):

Episodes Before Thirty
by Algernon Blackwood, 1869-1951
Blog review here: https://notagainlola.wordpress.com/2014/09/24/episodes-before-thirty-algernon-blackwood/
https://archive.org/details/episodesbeforeth00blacuoft/page/n7
Adopted!

The Black Dog, and Other Stories
by A. E. (Alfred Edgar) Coppard, 1878-1957
https://archive.org/details/blackdogothersto00coppuoft/page/2
Adopted!

Sailor Town Days
by C. Fox. (Cicely Fox) Smith, 1882-1954
"Cicely (pronounced 'sigh-sli' as in precisely) has produced some excellent poetry books and contributed to many more. She is best known as a writer of maritime poetry and as a knowledgeable writer on maritime themes." - https://allpoetry.com/Cicely-Fox-Smith
https://archive.org/details/sailortowndays00smituoft/page/n7

Fantastica; Being the Smile of the Sphinx, and Other Tales of Imagination
by Robert Malise Bowyer Nichols, 1893-1944
"Nichols wrote several prose fictions, including The Smile of the Sphinx, a fantasy set in the Middle East and Golgotha & co., a satirical fantasy featuring the Wandering Jew, the return of Christ and a future war. These fictions were collected in Nichols' book Fantastica." (Wikipedia)
https://archive.org/details/fantasticabeings00nichuoft/page/n7

The Left Leg
by Theodore Francis Powys, 1875-1953
https://archive.org/details/leftlegthe00powyuoft

Circular Saws
by Humbert Wolfe, 1885-1940
https://archive.org/details/circularsaws00wolfuoft/page/n5


ESSAYS:

On
by Hilaire Belloc, 1870-1953
https://archive.org/details/onbelloc00belluoft/page/n5
Adopted!


NOVELS:

The Rover
by Joseph Conrad, 1857-1924
"A novel of naval life in Napoleonic France. After forty years of piracy on Eastern seas, Citizen Peyrol returns to his native France, a country now ravaged and scarred by revolution and war. Looking for peace in which to end his days, he withdraws to a safe harbor in a remote farmhouse on Escampobar Peninsula, which looks out to the distant Mediterranean, where the lovely Arlette lives with her aunt and the revolutionary Scevola. But the arrival of young Lieutenant Real calls Peyrol once again to action in a mission of danger, patriotism and heroism." (Goodreads)
https://archive.org/details/rovercon00conruoft/page/n5
Adopted!


MEMOIRS:

Talks with Tolstoi
by Aleksandr Borisovich Goldenveizer, 1875-1961; S. S. (Samuel Solomonovitch) Koteliansky, 1880-1955; Virginia Woolf, 1882-1941
"A selection from vol. 1 of the diary of the well-known Russian musician, A.B. Goldenveizer, which was published at the end of 1922 in Moscow under the title Vblizi Tolstovo (literally, Near Tolstoi)". - Translator's note
https://archive.org/details/rstalkswithtolst00golduoft/page/n5

Recollections of Imperial Russia
by Meriel Buchanan, 1886-
"The daughter of the last British Ambassador to Imperial Russia, she wrote a number of articles and books about her experiences during that time, most notably: Recollections of imperial Russia ( 1923) and Ambassador's daughter (1958)." (Wikipedia)
https://archive.org/details/recollectionsofi00buchuoft/page/n13
Adopted!
Serial novel: The Wandering Jew
Medieval England meets Civil War Americans: Centuries Apart
Humor: My Lady Nicotine
Carolin
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Post by Carolin »

Wooow Tricia, that looks great :clap:
Carolin
pschempf
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Post by pschempf »

Cane by Jean Toomer should be on this list, but I can't find a digital copy. :hmm:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cane_(novel) ADOPTED!
Fritz

"A small daily task, if it be really daily, will beat the labors of a spasmodic Hercules."

Trollope
TriciaG
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Post by TriciaG »

pschempf wrote: January 2nd, 2019, 9:30 am Cane by Jean Toomer should be on this list, but I can't find a digital copy. :hmm:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cane_(novel)
Yes, that will be the hard part at first. :) It's on HathiTrust: https://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/001417524?type%5B%5D=all&lookfor%5B%5D=jean%20toomer&ft=ft
Serial novel: The Wandering Jew
Medieval England meets Civil War Americans: Centuries Apart
Humor: My Lady Nicotine
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Post by pschempf »

Hi Tricia-

Are all texts on Hathitrust PD? I see the copyright on the Toomer novel on their site was renewed in 1951. Also, I note the use of texts from the Faded Page website for other projects. They say all their texts are PD in Canada. Are they PD in the US as well?
Fritz

"A small daily task, if it be really daily, will beat the labors of a spasmodic Hercules."

Trollope
TriciaG
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Post by TriciaG »

pschempf wrote: January 2nd, 2019, 5:48 pm Hi Tricia-

Are all texts on Hathitrust PD?
The ones that are Full View are PD in the US. Limited View or Search Only aren't (or they've mistakenly made them not Full View).
I see the copyright on the Toomer novel on their site was renewed in 1951.
That's OK - it's PD now! If it hadn't been renewed in '51, it would have been PD already.
Also, I note the use of texts from the Faded Page website for other projects. They say all their texts are PD in Canada. Are they PD in the US as well?
Not necessarily. Depends on the book edition they used for their text. There's some discussion behind the scenes about whether we can "trust" them when they say the edition is 1923, so for now, best to stick to actual scans.
Serial novel: The Wandering Jew
Medieval England meets Civil War Americans: Centuries Apart
Humor: My Lady Nicotine
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Post by pschempf »

Thank you! Happy New Year :thumbs:
Fritz

"A small daily task, if it be really daily, will beat the labors of a spasmodic Hercules."

Trollope
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Post by msfry »

The Smithsonian, January/February 2019 issue, page 20, has a 2 page article called "Let It Snow, This New Year a blizzard of creative works lose their copyrights -- including a beloved Robert Frost poem". It explains why the 20 year delay, and lists some "overlooked gems".
ChuckW
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Post by ChuckW »

TriciaG wrote: January 2nd, 2019, 12:14 pm
pschempf wrote: January 2nd, 2019, 9:30 am Cane by Jean Toomer should be on this list, but I can't find a digital copy. :hmm:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cane_(novel)
Yes, that will be the hard part at first. :) It's on HathiTrust: https://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/001417524?type%5B%5D=all&lookfor%5B%5D=jean%20toomer&ft=ft
This is one of my all time favorite books. I hope someone does it soon. :-)
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Post by WiltedScribe »

ChuckW wrote: January 4th, 2019, 3:02 pm This is one of my all time favorite books. I hope someone does it soon. :-)
I've been thinking of BCing it, but I also think some of the later stories should be treated as dramatic readings (since they take the form of a script), and I don't know how well that will go. Maybe I'd have to launch those stories as an entirely separate project, compile them there, and then bring them back into the original project when they're edited.
Tomas Peter
ChuckW
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Post by ChuckW »

WiltedScribe wrote: January 4th, 2019, 3:23 pm
ChuckW wrote: January 4th, 2019, 3:02 pm This is one of my all time favorite books. I hope someone does it soon. :-)
I've been thinking of BCing it, but I also think some of the later stories should be treated as dramatic readings (since they take the form of a script), and I don't know how well that will go. Maybe I'd have to launch those stories as an entirely separate project, compile them there, and then bring them back into the original project when they're edited.
That might honestly be the only way to get this into the catalogue -- I know we've done things like that in the past with longer anthologies (and, full disclosure, it's something I'll do next year with Back to Methuselah when GB Shaw's works lapse into the public domain in Europe). Either way, I hope you'll consider doing this one. I'd selfishly love to hear it. :-P
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Post by pschempf »

I worked on a collaborative project that had sections of poetry, prose and one dramatic reading here -

https://librivox.org/the-works-of-edgar-allan-poe-raven-edition-volume-5-by-edgar-allan-poe/

For me as a reader it worked fine, but it may have been a headache for the BC. And there was only one dramatic reading so you didn't have to deal with a cast of thousands and try to keep straight who did what where..
Fritz

"A small daily task, if it be really daily, will beat the labors of a spasmodic Hercules."

Trollope
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Post by mightyfelix »

WiltedScribe wrote: January 4th, 2019, 3:23 pm
ChuckW wrote: January 4th, 2019, 3:02 pm This is one of my all time favorite books. I hope someone does it soon. :-)
I've been thinking of BCing it, but I also think some of the later stories should be treated as dramatic readings (since they take the form of a script), and I don't know how well that will go. Maybe I'd have to launch those stories as an entirely separate project, compile them there, and then bring them back into the original project when they're edited.
You could run it somewhat like the one act play collections are organized, yes?
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Post by WiltedScribe »

mightyfelix wrote: January 4th, 2019, 9:14 pm You could run it somewhat like the one act play collections are organized, yes?
As in, treating stories that read like DRs as one-act plays of a sort? I would think so. :hmm: As in any play, the roles would be claimed in separate sections, readers would hand in their files and in the end someone would edit together the final product.

This is just an idea. The easier thing would be to let a solo reader handle all the DR-formatted stories themselves. I thought it might sound awkward as an audiobook, and that having different voices would enhance the experience. This is such a multifaceted text, with interesting formal experimentation, and maybe it's worth trying to honor that aspect.

One thing's for sure: a collaborative version would work better than a solo. I'd feel kinda uneasy as a white man reading an entire text so seminal to African-American literature. As a collaborative venture, there's a chance we can attract readers of all races to help out. That would be fairer.
Tomas Peter
ChuckW
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Post by ChuckW »

I'm updating the Early Science Fiction list with some of the newly available 1923 offerings and thought I should add them here as well. Some of them are quite appealing:

- Black Oxen by Gertrude Atherton [COMPLETE]
http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/25542

- Idealia, a Utopian Dream; or, Resthaven by Mrs. Harriet Alfarata Thompson
https://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/002985058

- Men Like Gods by H.G. Welles [COMPLETE]
https://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/003563127?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Men_Like_Gods
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