Short Nonfiction Collection, Vol. 054

Sixteen short nonfiction works in the public domain, independently chosen by the readers. Topics include Science and Exploration–a tribute to Egyptologist Amelia Edwards, and discourses on gravitation and relativity by Georges-Louis Le Sage and Ralph Sampson; Sociology and Society–Julio Guerrero on the Mexican character, reflections on life from Kierkegaard’s Diapsalmata, Immanuel Kant on religious education, the fate of romance in the King of Siam’s harem, nickelodeons, and the tragic results of an 1851 fire on small businesses in New York’s Bowery; Nature–how weeds spread, animal coloration, and mountaineering in the Rockies; as well as a biography of Buster Keaton, and a treatise on British hat making in the age of Top Hats with styles named the Bang-Up and the Vis-a-Vis. (summary by Sue Anderson)