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In the sixteenth century, Machiavelli, a Florentine diplomat pushed out of power, writes this little treatise to explain how a prince seizes power and, above all, how he keeps it. He draws on examples from antiquity and from the Italy of his day, and gives blunt advice: is it better to be feared or loved, to keep your word or to know how to lie? It shows how those who govern, lead or negotiate think: his lessons on power held true then and still do today. The book is so clear-sighted that it gave rise to a word: “Machiavellian”. With the translation always in front of you, you can read this great classic in the language you are learning.

In the America of the Roaring Twenties, the mysterious Jay Gatsby throws huge parties every weekend at his mansion by the water. His young neighbour gradually discovers what lies behind all this luxury: a youthful love that Gatsby has never forgotten. Beyond the love story, this short novel by Fitzgerald paints a critical portrait of a society fascinated by money and appearances. Fitzgerald writes with elegance and clarity, and his novel is a pleasure to read in the language you are learning.

Sunzi, also known as Sun Tzu, a Chinese general and strategist, sets out in thirteen short chapters the principles of war and victory. His central idea is still surprising: the best strategist wins without fighting, by knowing the enemy, knowing himself and choosing the right moment. These principles apply far beyond the battlefield. Today they are used in business, negotiation, sport and everyday life, to anticipate, decide and persuade more effectively. Its short, clear maxims can be read one by one in the language you are learning.

In Marseille in 1815, the young sailor Edmond Dantès is arrested on the day of his engagement, on a false accusation. Locked up without trial in the Château d'If, he meets the Abbé Faria, an old prisoner who educates him and reveals the existence of a hidden treasure. Years later, a rich and mysterious Count of Monte Cristo appears in Paris, among the very people who betrayed him. It is the most famous revenge story in literature, full of disguises and dramatic twists. With its lively dialogue and a new turn in every chapter, the novel is a gripping read in the language you are learning.

As a young boy, Larry Livingston starts out in a brokerage house, chalking up stock prices on a board. He becomes one of the greatest speculators on Wall Street, and tells of his strokes of genius, his bankruptcies, and everything his mistakes taught him about the markets and about himself. A cult book among traders and investors, still read for its lessons on risk, patience and keeping your emotions in check. Told in the first person, like a long conversation, it is easy to read in the language you are learning.

In a quiet little town in the American West at the start of the twentieth century, two childhood friends have an idea: to make everyone believe that the town is going to become a big city. As long as people believe it, land prices rise. They buy land, lay out a new district and bring in the railway. A humorous satire about easy money, friendship and the fever of speculation. Its lively tone and plentiful dialogue make it an enjoyable read in the language you are learning.

In Paris at the end of the nineteenth century, Georges Duroy, a penniless former soldier, runs into an old comrade who has become a journalist and gets him a job on his newspaper. Handsome, with neither talent nor scruples, Duroy soon realises that women can open every door for him. Maupassant paints the portrait of a seducer who will stop at nothing to succeed, and shows plainly what goes on behind the scenes of the press, politics and money. With its lively chapters and clear style, the novel is easy to read in the language you are learning.

The son of a sawmill owner in the Jura, Julien Sorel is poor, proud and ambitious, and secretly admires Napoleon. Taken on as tutor in the household of the mayor of Verrières, he seduces his wife, Madame de Rênal. Then, from the seminary in Besançon to the Paris mansion of the Marquis de La Mole, he climbs through a society that despises him. It is Stendhal's great novel of ambition and love. Julien, alone against a whole society, is one of the most fascinating heroes in literature. With the translation always in front of you, you can read this masterpiece in the language you are learning.

Paris, 1819. In the modest Vauquer boarding house, old Goriot, a retired vermicelli maker, goes without everything for his two daughters, who have married into high society. His young neighbour, Rastignac, a poor student from the provinces, dreams of entering that glittering world. The mysterious Vautrin, another lodger, explains its ruthless rules to him. This novel made Rastignac a common noun in French for an ambitious young man. It is one of the high points of “The Human Comedy”, about money, ambition and a father's love. With the translation always in front of you, you can read this great novel by Balzac in the language you are learning.

Orphaned, Denise arrives in Paris from Normandy with her two young brothers. Her uncle, a small draper, is being ruined by the department store across the road, The Ladies' Paradise. Denise starts work there as a shop assistant, mocked by the other employees, and little by little catches the eye of the owner, the ambitious Octave Mouret. Huge departments, dazzling shop windows, customers spending freely: Zola tells of the birth of the department store, and the story of an upright young woman whom money cannot buy. With the translation always in front of you, this absorbing story is easy to read in the language you are learning.

In the fifth century BC, Athens and Sparta, the two greatest cities of Greece, wage war on each other for almost thirty years. Thucydides, an Athenian general who lived through it, tells of the battles, the plague that strikes Athens, the speeches of Pericles and the disastrous expedition against Sicily. He tries to understand what drives men to war: fear, interest, honour. His lessons still hold: people still speak of the “Thucydides Trap” when a rising power alarms an established one. With the translation always in front of you, you can read this great classic of history in the language you are learning.

In this American novel from 1905, Jimmy Grayson, an almost unknown young lawyer from the West, is unexpectedly chosen as his party's candidate for President of the United States. Harley, a reporter for a New York newspaper, follows his campaign aboard a special train, and falls for Sylvia, the candidate's niece, an independent young woman from Idaho. But powerful financiers in the party want Grayson to keep quiet about tariffs. A lively account of what goes on behind the scenes of an election campaign, and of the price of honesty in politics. Its dialogue and travel scenes are easy to read in the language you are learning.

Benjamin Franklin tells the story of his life to his son, starting from his years as an apprentice in his brother's printing shop in Boston. At seventeen he runs away and arrives in Philadelphia almost penniless, with three large loaves under his arm. There he becomes a printer, publishes a newspaper, founds a library, and sets himself thirteen virtues that he checks every day in a little notebook. It is one of the first stories of success through hard work, and many readers still find in it common-sense advice on getting organised and persuading others. Franklin writes with humour and simplicity, and his book is easy to read in the language you are learning.

Once a red-haired office boy, Torchy has become private secretary to the president of a big New York company. Married to Vee and a young father, he lives in the suburbs at the end of the First World War. At the office as at home, he meddles in the affairs of his colleagues, his neighbours and his friends, especially when love is involved. Seventeen linked comic stories, told by Torchy himself, with his New York straight talk and plenty of humour. Short and lively, they are easy to read in the language you are learning.

In northern Alabama around 1874, a cotton mill from New England has brought into being Cottontown, a mill village where children work from morning till night. Hillard Watts, a former plantation overseer turned preacher, watches over these families. His small congregation calls him “the Bishop”. Meanwhile, Richard Travis, the mill's treasurer, is forever looking for new workers. Mixing humour, faith and melodrama, the book, published in 1906, pleads against child labour, sometimes with the dated outlook of its time. With the translation always in front of you, this novel is easy to read in the language you are learning.