Short Nonfiction Collection, Vol. 042

Eighteen short nonfiction works in the public domain, independently chosen by the readers. Topics include biographies of astronomer Fiammetta Wilson, naturalist Alexander von Humboldt, mountaineer Jacques Balmat, French Revolutionist Camille Desmoulins, and Buddha; a climb of Mt. Fuji by Lafcadio Hearn, reviews of 20th century poetry and of books by E. M. Delafield, Mrs. Gaskell, and Kierkegaard; marriage; motion pictures; color blindness; and an essay on optimism by Helen Keller. (Summary by Sue Anderson)