Stella Benson

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the "public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the "public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

Pull Devil, Pull Baker is one of the oddest autobiographies ever written. The novelist Stella Benson first encountered an eccentric Russiannobleman, Count Nicolas de Toulouse Lautrec De Savine in the pauper’sward of a Hong Kong hospital. Striking up a friendship, she foundherself fascinated by the Count’s garrulous memoirs, written in a uniqueblend of English, French, and Russian. The Count’s adventures included a stint as a Russian cavalry officer,gold mining in California, a failed attempt to establish himself as Czar ofBulgaria, get-rich-quick schemes, and countless romanticentanglements. Were these all inventions of his fervid mind, like alatter-day Baron Munchausen? Were they true? Could they be both? In Pull Devil, Pull Baker, Stella Benson not only collected the Count’srecollections but provided a running commentary that reflects on thenature of memory, truth, and the power of storytelling. In the process,she created a book that anticipates by decades the ”new nonfiction”school of such bestsellers as The Lifespan of a Fact and the work ofGeoff Dyer, W. G. Sebald and others who weave together fiction and fact. Pull Devil, Pull Baker exemplifies the unique and remarkable booksbeing brought back to print by Recovered Books, the new series fromBoiler House Press that celebrates the gems that have been lost to thechanging tides of critical and popular taste. Pull Devil, Pull Baker is easily the most exceptional and genre-busting reissue of 2022.

Living Alone (1919) is a novel by Stella Benson. Considered a pioneering work of fantasy fiction, Living Alone is a story of magic set in London during the First World War. Benson’s meditative, diaristic prose guides the reader alongside her protagonist, a young woman introduced to a world of witchcraft and wizardry at “the House of Living Alone.” “Nothing else happened in that room. At least nothing more important than the ordinary manifestations attendant upon magic. The lamp had tremulously gone out. Coloured flames danced about the Stranger's head. One felt the thrill of a purring cat against one's ankles, one saw its green eyes glare. But these things hardly counted.” Guided by her political commitments, Sarah Brown dedicates herself to charity work during the First World War. When a witch invites her to stay in a mysterious home, Sarah embarks on the adventure of a lifetime with her loyal dog David. Described by its author in playfully mysterious terms—“This is not a real book.”—Living Alone is a unique and haunting masterpiece that looks upon a tumultuous historical period with fresh perspective, presenting a story of growth and identity in an intoxicating world of magic and mystery. With a beautifully designed cover and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of Stella Benson’s Living Alone is a classic work of British literature reimagined for modern readers.

This Is the End (1917) is a novel by Stella Benson. Based on the author’s experience in the movement for women’s suffrage, This Is the End is a story of identity and social class set in the London neighborhood of Hackney. As Jay attempts to break from her restrictive past, her brother Kew returns from the First World War scarred by his experiences and disillusioned with life at home. Benson’s meditative, diaristic prose guides the reader along the paths of change and confrontation faced by her protagonists, immersing them in the tumultuous decade in which the novel was written. “This is the end, for the moment, of all my thinking, this is my unfinal conclusion. There is no reason in tangible things, and no system in the ordinary ways of the world. Hands were made to grope, and feet to stumble, and the only things you may count on are the unaccountable things. System is a fairy and a dream, you never find system where or when you expect it. There are no reasons except reasons you and I don't know.” Guided by a philosophical sense of the world, Jay—formerly Jane Elizabeth—longs to escape the confines of her life in the countryside. Without telling her family, she leaves for London and adopts a new identity, exposing herself for the first time in her life to the rhythms of working-class existence. When her brother Kew returns from the Great War and fails to find her at home, he comes to the city in search of his sister. Bonded by tragedy, the two orphans grow to respect one another as adults, both of them scarred in their own way by the expectations placed on young men and women in a decade of tremendous cultural change. With a beautifully designed cover and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of Stella Benson’s This Is the End is a classic work of British literature reimagined for modern readers.

Living Alone (1919) is a novel by Stella Benson. Considered a pioneering work of fantasy fiction, Living Alone is a story of magic set in London during the First World War. Benson’s meditative, diaristic prose guides the reader alongside her protagonist, a young woman introduced to a world of witchcraft and wizardry at “the House of Living Alone.” “Nothing else happened in that room. At least nothing more important than the ordinary manifestations attendant upon magic. The lamp had tremulously gone out. Coloured flames danced about the Stranger's head. One felt the thrill of a purring cat against one's ankles, one saw its green eyes glare. But these things hardly counted.” Guided by her political commitments, Sarah Brown dedicates herself to charity work during the First World War. When a witch invites her to stay in a mysterious home, Sarah embarks on the adventure of a lifetime with her loyal dog David. Described by its author in playfully mysterious terms—“This is not a real book.”—Living Alone is a unique and haunting masterpiece that looks upon a tumultuous historical period with fresh perspective, presenting a story of growth and identity in an intoxicating world of magic and mystery. With a beautifully designed cover and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of Stella Benson’s Living Alone is a classic work of British literature reimagined for modern readers.

Twenty (1918) is a poetry collection by Stella Benson. Largely recognized for her work as an activist in the women’s suffrage movement and for her popular novels, Benson was also an accomplished poet. Twenty, her debut volume, is a collection indebted to symbolism in which Benson reflects on her experiences as a young woman in a rapidly changing world. In “The Secret Day,” Benson muses on the impossibility of peace in a time that refuses to slow: “My yesterday has gone, has gone and left me tired, / And now to-morrow comes and beats upon the door / […] / So I have built To-day, more precious than a dream; / And I have painted peace upon the sky above.” Responding to the horrors of a decade torn by war, Benson does what she can to maintain her own personal calm, to build a safe space apart from the world. In “Redneck’s Song,” she laments the years of her life spent obeying “the laws of men / Who worshipped law,” declaring instead that “Those laws are dust / To-day…” In these poems shaped by her experience as an activist and pioneering feminist, the personal is inseparable from the political. Benson’s identity, her present and her future, depend on this revolutionary thrust—no longer will she “shut [her] eyes” and “hold [her] tongue.” It may be “their path,” but she will make her own “groove,” her own way through life. With a beautifully designed cover and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of Stella Benson’s Twenty is a classic work of British literature reimagined for modern readers.

This Is the End (1917) is a novel by Stella Benson. Based on the author’s experience in the movement for women’s suffrage, This Is the End is a story of identity and social class set in the London neighborhood of Hackney. As Jay attempts to break from her restrictive past, her brother Kew returns from the First World War scarred by his experiences and disillusioned with life at home. Benson’s meditative, diaristic prose guides the reader along the paths of change and confrontation faced by her protagonists, immersing them in the tumultuous decade in which the novel was written. “This is the end, for the moment, of all my thinking, this is my unfinal conclusion. There is no reason in tangible things, and no system in the ordinary ways of the world. Hands were made to grope, and feet to stumble, and the only things you may count on are the unaccountable things. System is a fairy and a dream, you never find system where or when you expect it. There are no reasons except reasons you and I don't know.” Guided by a philosophical sense of the world, Jay—formerly Jane Elizabeth—longs to escape the confines of her life in the countryside. Without telling her family, she leaves for London and adopts a new identity, exposing herself for the first time in her life to the rhythms of working-class existence. When her brother Kew returns from the Great War and fails to find her at home, he comes to the city in search of his sister. Bonded by tragedy, the two orphans grow to respect one another as adults, both of them scarred in their own way by the expectations placed on young men and women in a decade of tremendous cultural change. With a beautifully designed cover and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of Stella Benson’s This Is the End is a classic work of British literature reimagined for modern readers.

"I stole this bun," she explained frankly. "There is an uninterned German baker after me." "And why did you steal it?" asked Miss Ford, pronouncing the H in "why" with a haughty and terrifying sound of suction. The Stranger sighed. "Because I couldn't afford to buy it." "And why could you not afford to buy the bun?" asked Miss Ford. "A big strong girl like you." You will notice that she had had a good deal of experience in social work. The Stranger said: "Up till ten o'clock this morning I was of the leisured classes like yourselves. I had a hundred pounds.

The Book collects 14 short stories written by British authors, they are: 01. The Size of a Pocket Handkerchief 02. On the Contrary 03. Many Are Disappointed 04. When Greek Meets Greek 05. Patricia, Edith, and Arnold 06. The Black Madonna 07. The Man in the Moon 08. The Fishing Boat Picture 09. The Will of Allah 10. Mrs Wilmington Sat Alone 11. A. P. 12. Kidney Soup 13. The Jay 14. I Can Play 'Schools'