Chapters from fourteen best-selling classic novels published between 1842 and 1919 are compiled here for today's readers. The selections not only give a rare un-stereotyped look at the day-to-day life in grandma's time but also reveal a wealth of good reading that has long been forgotten.

Tales about sheepherding contest, a family Sunday evening around the fireplace, a great snowstorm, a new minister in town, an American who inherits an English estate, and a look at Victorian-age generation gap have been selected from a variety of books ranging from classic novels to light, humorous works.

Many of the novels so captured the fancy of public in their day that they were published in several languages, performed as plays, and later, as movies. Lorna Doone, Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch, Old town Folks, Tom Brown at Oxford, T. Tembarom and Bob, son of Battle represent some of the books that will stir the memories and capture the interest of many readers.

Containing some of the most beloved writing of the 50-year period preceding World War I, this tome is for those readers of the supersonic age who do not want to lose sight of humbler era.