The Floating Press imprint: 2252 books

Does the mere thought of engaging in small talk strike fear into your heart? Do you ever steer clear of social events just so you'll be able to avoid the awkward silence that inevitably descends when you run out of chit-chat? If so, you need the comprehensive and straightforward advice that Mary Greer...

In this uproarious short play from the "Dean of American Letters," goodhearted but impractical protagonist Edward Roberts sets out to lighten his wife's domestic workload by hiring a household cook. A series of increasingly absurd difficulties rear their heads, and Roberts' quest fails in a rather spectacular fashion.

Scholar and self-taught ethnographer Lafcadio Hearn spent much of his life documenting and interpreting Japanese culture for Western audiences. His observations and essays in Glimpses of an Unfamiliar Japan offer an exciting look into the daily lives of the Japanese in a bygone era.

A traveler with insatiable wanderlust, journalist and ethnographer Lafcadio Hearn spent much of his life journeying to new and unfamiliar cultures. After spending some time in New Orleans, Hearn became interested in the fate of a barrier island off the Gulf Coast that had been destroyed by a tropical storm. It is this doomed island that forms the centerpiece of Hearn's engrossing novel Chita.

In this novella from Honore de Balzac, an impoverished mother and daughter slave away as embroiderers but are barely able to evade starvation. Finally, what seems to be a blessing enters into their lives -- an older gentleman falls in love with the daughter, Caroline, and whisks her away to a fine country estate. Will Caroline get the happily-ever-after she so richly deserves?

The first prominent female writer working in English, author Aphra Behn lived a fascinating life, spending time as a spy for the U.K. before turning her attention to literary pursuits. This novel tells the tale of a young woman who is seduced by her loutish brother-in-law and then goes to extreme lengths to secure their unholy union.

"Keeping Watch" is another in a series of W. W. Jacobs' tales that are the reminiscences of an on-duty nightwatchman. In this story, the guard catches a glimpse of a passing couple and is reminded of his own run-in with a seemingly innocent young woman whose coy beauty concealed a secret.

In this clever but decidedly un-jolly tale set at Christmastime, rough-and-tumble miner Tom Gannett emerges from a long stretch of work under the surface of the Earth to discover that a few things have gone awry in his absence. Under an ominously peculiar-looking sky, Gannett sets out to determine what's going on.

Though recognized primarily as a writer of 'weird' horror fiction for adults, Algernon Blackwood also wrote a number of delightful tales for children and young adults. A Prisoner in Fairyland is an engaging and imaginative romp through a mystical dimension that served as the basis for the popular children's play The Starlight Express.

Born in Russia to British parents, Fred Whishaw's family returned to England soon after his birth. However, at age 16, Whishaw decided to reacquaint himself with his country of origin and struck out for St. Petersburg on his own. This immersion in Russian culture and politics proved to be enormously...

Canadian-born memoirist Mary MacLane broke significant literary ground in the early twentieth century with her disarmingly frank and candid autobiographical writing. In this volume, MacLane probes her relationship with a young woman she calls Annabel Lee. Considering their passionate bond from many different angles, MacLane delves deeply into the mysterious magnetism of her enchanting companion.

Many of us assume that thinking is an inborn process that occurs naturally, without conscious effort on our parts, and as such, there are no "right" and "wrong" ways of going about it. However, as author Aaron Martin Crane explains in this book, most of us have established a vast repertoire of thinking...

What starts as a new beginning for British diplomat Sir Arthur Byrne soon turns into a tragedy with mysterious overtones. In the aftermath of his new wife's fatal illness, Byrne is prepared to accept responsibility for her adopted daughter Juliet. But a little digging into Juliet's background and identity raises more questions than it answers.

With the memoir A Padre in France, Irish clergyman James Owen Hannay (who used the pseudonym "George A. Birmingham") takes a break from the humorous political satires that were his typical stock in trade. Still, Hannay's characteristic wit and lighthearted take on life shine through in this firsthand account of his stint as a chaplain during World War I.