Library of the World's Best Literature, Ancient and Modern, volume 12 is a comprehensive collection of literature from various time periods and authors. This anthology features a diverse range of genres, including poetry, fiction, essays, and drama, making it a valuable resource for those interested in exploring different literary works.

One of the standout features of this book is the inclusion of both ancient and modern literature, providing readers with a snapshot of the evolution of writing over the centuries. The selections are well curated and showcase the talent and creativity of each author, offering a blend of well-known classics and lesser-known gems.

The book is well-organized, with each piece accompanied by helpful introductions and notes that provide context and background information. This makes it easy for readers to navigate the collection and gain a deeper understanding of the works presented.

Overall, Library of the World's Best Literature, Ancient and Modern, volume 12 is a valuable addition to any bookshelf, offering a rich and diverse selection of literature that is sure to entertain and enlighten readers of all tastes.

Book Description:
The Library of the World's Best Literature, Ancient and Modern, is a work of enormous proportions. Setting out with the simple goal of offering "American households a mass of good reading", the editors drew from literature of all times and all kinds what they considered the best pieces of human writing, and compiled an ambitious collection of 45 volumes . Besides the selection and translation of a huge number of poems, letters, short stories and sections of books, the collection offers, before each chapter, a short essay about the author or subject in question. In many cases, chapters contemplate not one author, but certain groups of works, organized by nationality, subject or period; there is, thus, a chapter on Accadian-Babylonian literature, one on the Holy Grail, and one on Chansons, for example. The result is a collection that holds the interest, for the variety of subjects and forms, but also as a means of first contact with such famous and important authors that many people have heard of, but never read, such as Abelard, Dante or Lord Byron. According to the editor Charles Dudley Warner, this collection "is not a library of reference only, but a library to be read." This twelfth volume contains chapters from "Diderot" to "Duruy".