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·  Geoffrey Chaucer was one of the greatest poets of the late Middle Ages and he is often called “the father of English poetry”.

·  He was born in 1343 in London. Chaucer read a lot of books in his childhood and he was fluent in French, Italian, Latin.

·  In 1366 he married Philippa de Roet and had 2 sons and 2 daughters.

·  Chaucer also had extensive knowledge of jurisprudence, psychology, astrology, astronomy, medicine, physics.

·  According to the legend on his Westminster Abbey tomb, Chaucer died on 25 Oct. 1400.

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•     H. G. Wells was talented and prolific in many genres: novels, short stories, works of social commentary, satire, biography and autobiography.

•     He is remembered for his science fiction novels and is often called the “father of science fiction”, along with Jules Verne and the publisher Hugo Gernsback.
•     When he broke his leg in 1874, he began to read books from the local library, brought to him by his father. They stimulated his desire to write.

•     With a first class degree in biology, he briefly became a teacher. His career in the classroom was ended by a sharp kick in the kidneys from a pupil. As a result, he became unable to continue teaching.

•     He married twice and got a reputation of a womaniser.

•     He joined socialist circles and used fiction to explore his political ideas.

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•     Griffin

•     Mr. and Mrs. Hall

•     Marvel Thomas

•     Dr. Kemp

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On a cold winter day, a stranger comes through the snowfall and stays in the inn “Coach and Horses”. The stranger is wrapped from head to foot and nobody can see his face. He demands to be left alone and spends most of his time in his rooms working with a set of chemicals and laboratory apparatus, going out only at night. One day, when the stranger is not at his room, there happens a theft in the house of Buntings. Mr. and Mrs. Hall enter his room and become shocked to see the bed sheets dancing. Griffin is banished from the inn.

Then Griffin meets Mr. Marvel, a tramp and a migrant worker by occupation. Griffin confesses to him that he is invisible and forces Marvel to become his assistant. They return to Iping to take Griffin’s 3 notebooks and some other things. Since he has no clothes on, he cannot be seen by anyone.

Later Marvel goes to the police and tells them about this “invisible man”, then requests to be locked up in a high-security jail. Griffin takes shelter in a nearby house that belongs to Dr. Kemp, his acquaintance from medical school, which Griffin left, so that he can devote himself to optics. Griffin reveals his true identity to Kemp and recounts how he invented the chemicals capable of rendering bodies invisible, and, on impulse, performed the procedure on himself. He tells Kemp his plan to begin a “Reign of Terror” by using his invisibility in order to terrorise the nation.

In the final chase, the Invisible Man is caught by the road workers with the help of Dr. Kemp and beaten to death. Upon his death, his body becomes visible.

Marvel opens the "Invisible Man Inn" with the money stolen from Griffin. He also keeps Griffin’s notes and tries to decipher the formulas in the hope that one day he will be able to recreate Griffin’s work.

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The “Invisible man” was written in the era of Realism. This is a science fiction novel based on fantasy. Despite the fact that it is a fiction, all the characters and their attitudes are seen as if they were taken from a real life. That’s why, the style of the novel can be considered as Grotesque Realism.

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In my opinion, this book is worth reading and won’t leave anybody indifferent. The author gave a convincing picture of his main character’s vices. Griffin was a genius, but the goals he pursued were immoral. He was obsessed with becoming powerful and rich and, as a result, lost everything, and his life in the end.

The main idea of the novel is that evil ambitions full of hatred never bring happiness, success and power. No matter what, people should always remain people of honour.

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·  Thomas Hardy was an English novelist and poet, a Victorian realist. He was highly critical of many phenomena in Victorian society, especially of the declining status of rural people in Britain.

·  Hardy wrote poetry throughout his life and regarded himself primarily as a poet, but his 1st collection wasn’t published until 1898.

·  Among his famous novels are “Tess of the D’Urbervilles” (1891), “Jude the Obscure” (1895).

·  During his lifetime, Hardy’s poetry was acclaimed by younger poets who viewed him as a mentor.

·  After his death his poems were highly appreciated by Ezra Pound, W. H. Auden and Philip Laerkin.

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·         Tess Durbeyfield

·         Alec D’Urberville

·         Angel Clare

·         John Durbeyfield

·         Joan Durbeyfield

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John Durbeyfield, Tess’s father, is a poor man. He is tunned to find that he belongs to an ancient noble family. He sends Tess to D’Urbervilles’ palace to make fortune but she doesn’t like this idea, she finds that her family have no relation with D’Urbervilles – the owner of the palace Simon Stokes just changed his name to D’Urbervilles after retirement. Alec, Simon’s son, gets Tess a job in the palace. After some hesitation, she agrees. He seduces her in the woods. Tess returns home and gives birth to a boy named Sorrow. Sorrow dies soon after he is born. Some years later Tess falls in love with Angel Clare, who learns farming from her employer. On their wedding night Tess tells him about her past, as a result he leaves her. She is forced by the needs of her family into the protection of d’Urberville. When her husband returns from Canada, he finds her living with Alec. Heart-broken Tess kills Alec as she longs to be with Angel. When the owner of her boarding house finds Alec’s dead body, she raises an alarm. Tess seeks help from Angel and they both hide in an empty mansion. After a while she is arrested and executed.

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“Tess of the D’Urbervilles” was written by Thomas Hardy in the era of Victorian Realism. The most obvious aspect of Realism in this novel is the author’s particular attention to historical reality of the places where the events of the novel are. It is a novel with real events and ordinary heroes. Tess is taken out of her fanciful, dream-filled inner world and force to face the tough real life.

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I must admit, I have mixed feelings about this novel because the book is too upsetting for me. It’s a book without happy end. I am used to the fact that good triumphs over evil and the characters live happily ever after but it is not that case. I still sympathize with Tess because she is forced to take extreme measures in the name of love. Although the author wanted to show her innocence and that she was a victim of circumstances, I don’t support her decisions and I think you can become happy in a different way. I definitely recommend reading this book as it is really exciting and the events are very unpredictable. The novel teaches us that it’s important to think twice before taking an action.

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· William Shakespeare was born and raised in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire. His father John was the son of a farmer who became a successful tradesman; his mother Mary Arden was gentry.

·  At the age of 18, he married Anne Hathaway, they had 3 children. Sometime between 1585 and 1592, he began a successful career in London as an actor, writer and part-owner of a playing company called the Lord Chamberlain’s Men, later known as the King’s Men. At the age of 49 he returned to Stratford, where he died 3 years later. William Shakespeare is count as England’s national poet and the “Bard of Avon”.

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·         Hamlet

·         King Claudius

·         Queen Gertrude

·         Polonius

·         Ophela

·         Poor Yorick

·         Laertes

·         Horatio

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The Prince of Denmark, Hamlet, is abroad, studying in Germany, when his father, the king, dies. He goes back home to attend his father’s funeral. He is shocked to see his mother Gertrude already married his uncle. So it means that his uncle, King Claudius, sits upon the throne instead of Hamlet, the legal heir. Hamlet smells a rat and doubts his uncle.

One night his father’s ghost visits Prince Hamlet and tells him that he was murdered by his uncle. When he was asleep in the garden, Claudius put poison in his ear. The ghost commands Hamlet to seek revenge for the murder. Later Hamlet pretends

to be mad to make sure of the King’s guilt. When Hamlet and the queen are in the private chamber, Polonius spies on them, so Hamlet has to kill him. Hamlet is punished for killing Polonius and he is sent to England. Claudius is shocked by Polonius’s death, Gertrude lies for her son, saying that he is just went mad. Then she drinks a poisoned cup which was meant for her son and dies. Hamlet fences against Laertes and he is cut by his sword. As Hamlet’s dying, he stabs King Claudius with the sword. He tells Horatio not to commit suicide and to have Fortinbras as the next king of Denmark.

Fortinbras arrives and arranges a royal funeral for the slain Prince Hamlet.

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· Charles Dickens was a prolific and highly influential 19 century British author, who penned acclaimed works like "Oliver Twist", "A Christmas Carol", "David Copperfield" and "Great Expectations". Throughout his career, Dickens published a total of 15 novels.

· He was born in Portsmouth on the southern coast of England. He left school to work in a factory when his father was incarcerated in a debtors' prison.

·  Dickens's literary success began with the 1836 serial publication of the Pickwick Papers. Within a few years he had become an international literary celebrity, famous for his humour, satire, and keen observation of character and society.

· Charles Dickens married Catherine Hogarth soon after his first book, Sketches by Box, was published. The couple had a brood of 10 children. He died at his residence, Higham, near Rochester, 9 June 1870, aged 58 years.

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·         David Copperfield

·         Mr. Dick

·         Miss Betsy

·         Mr. Murdstone

·         James Steerforth

·         Tommy Traddles

·         Dora Spenlow

·         Wilkins Micawber

·         Agnes Wickfield

·         Mr. Wickfield

·         Clara Peggotty

·         Daniel Peggotty

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David Copperfield is brought up in an incomplete family because his father died before his birth. He doesn't get on with his father's aunt Betsy Trotwood, an old woman, who had an unsuccessful marriage, so she hates all men. After a divorce she regains her maiden name and moves to live on the outskirts of the city. Miss Betsy expects her sister to deliver a girl, and when a boy is born, she leaves the house without saying goodbye. David's childhood is filled with his mother's love, she tries to give him all the best. Then his mother decides to marry for the second time. The newly minted couple goes on a honeymoon, and the boy leaves with the nanny for her relatives.
When David returns home, he notices everything has changed. Now he is not embraced, not kissed, because his stepfather, Mr. Murdstone, adheres to firmness in education. Hardness turns into tyranny, mother cannot object to her husband and his sister. Being in constant fear, David begins to learn poorly, as a result he is sent to a boarding school. Here, despite the oppression of teachers, he finds consolation in his friends James Steerforth and Tommy Traddles. In the meantime his mother dies, and Murdstone sends him to work at a factory in London. There he stays in the house of Wilkins Micawber, who, despite being terribly poor, always remains optimistic. When Micawber goes into debt prison, David dares to flee to his aunt.
By the end of the book David becomes a brilliant young writer. He falls in love with naive Dora Spenlow, who becomes his wife. Then she dies and David finds happiness with Mr. Wickfield's noble daughter Agnes. Peggotty nurses David's children. Traddles also marries and becomes happy.

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“Hamlet” was written in the era of Renaissance that means “rebirth”. Hamlet, the main character, is solidly connected with the ideals of Renaissance. His philosophical movement is referred to Renaissance Humanism. At first, Hamlet didn’t consider revenge as it conflicted with his ideals. Hamlet is not a fighter by nature, but he decides to fight. This character is actually many-sided.

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I want to say that I enjoyed this book at least because it was undeniably exciting to read it. Shakespeare was definitely brilliant at creating ambiguous characters and Hamlet was one of them. I like this character because I appreciate what he stands for. He is very courageous and he doesn’t want to go against his ideals but he has to.

He believed that he was born to set the world right. This man, who is a philosopher and a humanist, has to break his ideals

and fight in order to right the wrong. So he wins and that means that he is overcome his own doubts. I like the way Shakespeare treats eternal themes in the play: revenge, betrayal, Love. I also like the variety of characters and their ambiguity.

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"David Copperfield" was written in the era of Realism. This is a story told by a child about his unhappy childhood. This is a realistic novel, where you can find events associated with Dickens's own life, and it is often considered his veiled autobiography. That was his favourite among his own novels. It contains detailed true-to-life descriptions of child exploration and abuse, some of them are based on his own childhood experiences, and the other - on published reports.

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I should say that this novel impressed me. I was struck and felt depressed and could not keep from crying when I was reading about cruelty and injustice that poor children faced. The variety of Dickens's characters is also impressive. I like the main character and sympathize with him. Despite the fact that he was born in a rich family, he had to overcome all hardship of the cutthroat life. This novel will appeal to everyone because it is very realistic and autobiographical. It is a novel about the development of the personality, about its evolution. The description of a child's inner world cannot leave a reader indifferent.

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·         The Miller

·         The Reeve

·         The Man of Law (or Sergeant of Law)

·         Roger, the Cook

·         The Wife of Bath (Alisoun)

·         Hubert, the Friar

·         The Summoner

·         The Clerk

·         The Merchant

·         The Squire

·         The Franklin

·         The Shipman

·         The Prioress (Madame Eglantine)

·         The Physician

·         The Pardoner

·         The Monk

·         The Nun's Priest

·         The Second Nun

·         The Canon and the Canon's Yeoman

·         The Manciple

·         The Parson

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While going on a journey to the shrine of Thomas Becket, the pilgrims, who belong to various classes of the society of the 14 century England, decide to tell the tales to one another in order to pass the time.
Their stories cover many genres of medieval literature and reveal the lively characters of the tale-tellers. Some pilgrims are faithful to Christ and his teachings, while other characters openly disobey the church and its laws of faithfulness, honor and modesty.
The pilgrimage begins in April, time of happiness and rebirth.
The Knight first begins his story of Theseus. He killed the evil Creon, and imprisoned his friends. They fell in love with Emelye (sister of Theseus's wife), so Theseus allows them to fight for Emelye's hand. At the end, Palomon and Emelye got married.
Miller talked about the student who had outwitted a carpenter and got his wife. His story differ's from the Knight's one because it's focused on dishonor.
The Clerk tells the story of a marquis named Walter of Saluzzo Italy that was a noble and honorable man.
In Monk's tale, we encounter a  series of tragedies preaching us to beware of fragility of fortunes and not to fall for prosperity blindly.
Between each tale, pilgrims tell about themselves.
Chaucer concludes his tales with a Retraction, asking for forgiveness from those whom he may have offended along his storytelling and pilgrimage.
He thanks Jesus Christ for his translation of Boece and the books of saints' legends.

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"The Canterbury Tales" was written during the Middle English Period. Secular and religious aspects are of primary importance in these tales. Chaucer described a great mirror of that time, using irony, which is his favourite way of portraying people connected with religion.
"The Canterbury Tales" represents all types of stones that existed in the Middle Ages.  It illustrates all the major types of medieval literature. They are defined as romance, myth, sermon, exemplum, legends, miracle stories and many others.

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The first thing I want to say is that I'm very disappointed that "The Canterbury Tales" is not fully completed. The author died before he could finish it. This book has made a great contribution to the moral development of society. This is actually amazing how Chaucer was able to unite stories of different styles in one collection. He also showed that people from different classes, having different backgrounds and attitudes to life, can find common topics for conversation.
I cannot say that this is one of the most exciting books I've ever read but it is really worth reading as it teaches us important moral values.