Study guides: books, letter d

Daisy Miller by Henry James

Those of you who think that novellas are something that only TV production can offer will be surprised to read “Daisy Miller” by Henry James. It is a pretty love story about a man courting a woman. The text is full of flirting, adventure and fun, but it also has a lot of deep meaning behind the plot. The protagonists of the book are Annie Miller, who is also called Daisy, and...

David Copperfield by Charles Dickens

The story of a neglected boy written by Charles Dickens breaks the hearts and glues them together for generations. The novel covers the life of David from early childhood to the middle age, when he reflects on his life, thinking about his biggest gains and losses and the dearest people life gave to him. The total unfairness of life and the complete recklessness of the adults who just throw David...

Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather

Despite the intriguing name, the Grim Reaper himself doesn’t feature in the book. It is the story based on the real biography of the Archbishop John-Baptiste Lamy and sheds light at his mid-to-later age and his legacy. The protagonist of the story, John Latour repeats the steps of his real-life counterpart, though maybe in a little bit more heroic way. John Latour leaves France to travel...

Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller

Who said that drama died together with Shakespeare? Arthur Miller proved that it’s still alive and kicking with his majestic play “Death Of A Salesman” that won numerous prizes and has been performed almost a thousand times.  Reading this book is a tough thing to do – because you just can’t resist the temptation to be in the theatre among the spectators of this...

Demian by Hermann Hesse

We all know the novel “Siddhartha” by Hermann Hesse, written in 1922, his interpretation of the journey of a young Indian Prince from his life of luxury to his ultimate enlightenment and becoming a Buddha. But only a few of the readers know that it wasn’t the first work of the author dedicated to the theme of search of self and one’s meaning. Demian, written in 1919 is...

Doctor Faustus by Thomas Mann

“The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus” or simply “Doctor Faustus” is a tragedy written by Christopher Marlowe. Mr. Marlowe lived in the same period as William Shakespeare and it’s hard to compete with the fame of the latter. But he was very famous in the circles of Queen Elizabeth and his works were widely popular. The idea of a person selling the soul to the...

Don Juan by George Gordon Byron

“Don Juan” is traditionally portrayed as a satirical poem, but it also can be seen as a tragedy. The author presents the story of a legendary lover from the unusual angle, showing him not as a selfish seducer who breaks the hearts of the countless women and then forgets their names, but as a victim of his own love, passion and stunning appearance. We see Don Juan as a person capable...

Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra

One thing Spanish culture is famous for, after delicious food, is chivalric romances. And then comes the legendary “Don Quixote”. Written in the beginning of the 16th century, the book conquered its place among best literature fiction works and was referenced by numerous authors in later years.  Inspired by the great novels and even greater stories, a middle-aged gentleman...

Dracula by Bram Stoker

Bram Stoker wrote “Dracula” in 1897 turning folk myth into a literary character and it turned out one of those cases when the protagonist became way more famous than the author himself. The popularity of the book opened the floor to the abundance of the vampire fiction novels and films that followed in the 20th and 21st century. Count Dracula invites London lawyer Jonathan Harker to...

Dubliners by James Joyce

Those of you who think that reading James Joyce is a challenging endeavor should start with his early works, like “The Dubliners”. This collection of short stories was published at the beginning of the 19th century when the nationalist movement was intense in Dublin.   The fifteen stories are narrated by different characters and have different themes. The first ones are told by...