Thomas Hardy's last finished novel, Jude the Obscure, tells the story of Jude Fawley, a working-class man who dreams of becoming a scholar, and of his doomed relationships with the seductive Arabella Donn and the true love of his life, Sue Bridehead.

Set in 17th century Puritan Massachusetts Bay Colony, the novel tells the story of Hester Prynne who conceives a daughter through an affair and then attempts to create a new life of dignity. Hester, her estranged lover, and the town itself, all struggle with morality, sin and guilt during a strict religious time period in American history. 

Slaughterhouse-Five follows the life and experiences of Billy Pilgrim as he finds himself "unstuck in time". The book is centered around his time as an American soldier during World War II, his capture by the German Army, and his survival of the Allied firebombing of Dresden as a prisoner-of-war - an experience which Vonnegut himself lived through as an American serviceman. Vonnegut offers a multi-dimensional view of fantasy and rock-hard reality.

The story of Huck Finn is about a fun-loving risk-taker youth and his adventures on the Mississippi River with a runaway slave named Jim. A blossoming friendship ensues on their freedom seeking voyage and beyond. Huckleberry Finn is most commonly viewed as a satire of racism, religion, morality, and social attitudes of the time, making it Twain's most notable work and one of the great American novels. 

This classic tale is about a youthful trickster, Tom Sawyer and his adventures in the antebellum south. From treasure hunting and playing pirates to church pranks and schoolhouse crushes, Tom Sawyer's childish antics make him Twain's standout character. Although his mischief starts out as mere entertainment, it soon turns into danger as he and his band of friends, witness a murder. 

Enjoy this "irrevocably" humorous compilation of outtakes featuring amusing mistakes and mishaps from Host, Frank Lavallo and Readers: Elizabeth Flood, Phil Setnik, Peter Toomey, & Katie Smith, which occurred during the making of Season 5 of the Novel Conversations Podcast.

This early 19th century novel tells the story of Victor Frankenstein, a young scientist who creates a hideous creature in an unorthodox scientific experiment. Unbeknownst to the obsessed scientist, the creature is intelligent and longs for a mate. Tormented by isolation and loneliness, the once-innocent creature turns to evil and unleashes a campaign of murderous revenge against his creator, Frankenstein.

This old-fashioned, sweet novella is about Helen, a governess turned adventurer, who hops on a traveling book-selling wagon as a way to escape the monotony of farm-life. Her brother, Andrew, unexpectedly becomes a celebrity author and leaves Helen chained to chores… until Roger Mifflin shows up with Parnasuss on Wheels and offers her a thrilling life on the road selling books and beyond.  

Twain's last completed novel, published when he was 61 years old, recounts the life of Joan of Arc through a fictional character (invented by Mark Twain) - The Sieur Louis de Conte. Joan of Arc, at the age of seventeen, fights for French independence from the English in the 15th century under Charles VII. Louis accompanies Joan as her secretary through the battles and witnesses her trial and execution at the hands of the English.

Plot: This adventure story details White Fang's journey to domestication in Yukon Territory and the Northwest Territories during the 1890s Klondike Gold Rush. The young pup, who is part wolf and part dog, struggles to survive after he is separated from his mother. White Fang eventually finds his life in the hands of a young gold hunter, Weedon Scott, who purchases the pup and attempts to tame him. After a long, patient effort, Scott succeeds.