Emily Jane Brontë (, commonly ; 30 July 1818 – 19 December 1848) was an English novelist and poet who is best known for her only novel, Wuthering Heights, now considered a classic of English literature. She also published one book of poetry with her sisters Charlotte and Anne titled Poems by Currer, Ellis and Acton Bell with her own poems finding regard as poetic genius. Emily was the third-eldest of the four surviving Brontë siblings, between the youngest Anne and her brother Branwell. She published under the pen name Ellis Bell.

Emily Brontë

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights, one of the most famous novels of Victorian literature.
 
As Emily Brontës sole work, Wuthering Heights unveils the harsh reality behind a toxic and abusive relationship, in which the complex characters are unpredictable. Moreover, Brontë’s lyrical and mystic novel allows the reader to explore various interpretations and metaphors. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Brontë’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:
 
- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As
 
The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë

Harry Sinclair Lewis (February 7, 1885 – January 10, 1951) was an American novelist, short-story writer and playwright. In 1930, he became the first writer from the United States (and the first from the Americas) to receive the Nobel Prize in Literature, which was awarded "for his vigorous and graphic art of description and his ability to create, with wit and humor, new types of characters." His works are known for their critical views of American capitalism and materialism between the wars. He is also respected for his strong characterizations of modern working women. H. L. Mencken wrote of him, "[If] there was ever a novelist among us with an authentic call to the trade ... it is this red-haired tornado from the Minnesota wilds." He has been honored by the U.S. Postal Service with a postage stamp in the Great Americans series.

Sinclair Lewis

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Sinclair Lewis’s Babbitt, a novel that contributed to Lewis’ eventual Nobel Prize award. 

As a satirical novel of the roaring twenties, Babbitt addresses the “American Dream” as was idolized by the middle class in early 20th century America. Moreover, this satirical work points to the attitudes, values, and beliefs of the American middle class living in such a prosperous time, with an emphasis on security and conformity. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Lewis’ classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Babbitt by Sinclair Lewis

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Petronius’ Satyricon, a once hardly-known work that has become one of the most popular and certainly one of the most influential books of our time.
 
As a collection of prose and passages of first-century A.D. Rome, Satyricon continues to inspire avant-garde novelists, film-makers, playwrights, and poets. Moreover, Pentronius provides an early written text that includes literary techniques such as burlesque, epics, romance, and elements of picaresque novels. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Pentronius’ classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Satyricon by Petronius

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Beowulf, considered by some to be representative of the earliest stage in the development of oral poetry.
 
As one of the most well-known works of early Anglo-Saxon literature, Beowulf is one of the earliest records of standard Old English. Moreover, this epic is studied for its use of fusing pagan and Christian elements through the lens of a hero’s struggles. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Beowulf as a classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:
 
- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As
 
The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Beowulf

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Erich Maria Remarque’s All Quiet on the Western Front, written in 1929 as a reflection of WWI.
 
As a work considered to be historical fiction, All Quiet on the Western Front focuses less on the story of war and more on the mental and physical destruction of those involved. Moreover, as a WWI veteran himself, Remarque delivers authentic and raw accounts of war using various techniques. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Remarque’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:
 
- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As
 
The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Toni Morrison’s Beloved, a Pulitzer Prize winner and regarded as one of the greatest works of American Literature.
 
As a novel set after the American Civil War, Beloved acknowledges the millions of lives taken on the Atlantic slave trade and recognizes the hardships that faced freed slaves. Moreover, Morrison encompasses the supernatural, community, self and women-empowerment, and overall culture of both post-Civil War and post-Civil Rights America. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Morrison’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Beloved by Toni Morrison

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Joseph Heller’s Catch-22, which eponymously coined the term so frequently used today to describe the predicament of being trapped by contradictory rules.  

As a novel of post-World War II America, Catch-22 is profound in its conception, complex in its artistry, and radical in its message. Moreover, in some colleges it is studied as the modern counterweight to Homer's Iliad. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Heller’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Catch-22 by Joseph Heller

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (, also  ; ; 28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German writer and statesman. His works include: four novels; epic and lyric poetry; prose and verse dramas; memoirs; an autobiography; literary and aesthetic criticism; and treatises on botany, anatomy, and colour. In addition, numerous literary and scientific fragments, more than 10,000 letters, and nearly 3,000 drawings by him have survived.

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Johann Wolfgang von Goethe’s Faust, the poetic drama that establishes Goethe as a renowned Romantic author.
 
As a play written in poetic verse of the Romantic era, Faust is a universally meaningful story of man's attempts to gain knowledge, wisdom perfection, and of the eternal frustration of this striving. Moreover, the character of Dr. Faust has inspired literature across centuries—beginning with a German practitioner of magic arts said to have made a pact with the devil in the late fifteenth century. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Goethe’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Faust by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Margaret Mitchell’s Gone with the Wind, a Pulitzer Prize winner, one of the bestselling novels of all time, and heralded by readers everywhere as The Great American Novel. 
 
As a novel of the Great Depression era, Gone with the Wind is a coming-of-age story of a spoiled daughter of a plantation owner set during the Civil War and Reconstruction Era. Moreover, Mitchell was hit by a taxi walking across the street with her husband and suffered severe head injuries, never regaining consciousness. Her death caused world-wide notice and expressions of regret, much of which centered on the theme of her having written only one book. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Mitchell’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell

Jonathan Swift (30 November 1667 – 19 October 1745) was an Anglo-Irish satirist, essayist, political pamphleteer (first for the Whigs, then for the Tories), poet and cleric who became Dean of St Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin, hence his common sobriquet, "Dean Swift".

Jonathan Swift

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Jonathan Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels, an immediate popular success when it was published as Travels Into Several Remote Nations of the World in 1726. 
 
As a novel of eighteenth century Britain, Gulliver’s Travels was a satire on human nature and a parody of the "travellers' tales" literary subgenre that was popular at the time. Moreover, Swift has given us a book which helps us measure our achievements, our failures and our predicaments against those of another age and another set of values. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Swift’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift

Charlotte Brontë (, commonly ; 21 April 1816– 31 March 1855) was an English novelist and poet, the eldest of the three Brontë sisters who survived into adulthood and whose novels became classics of English literature.

Charlotte Brontë

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Charlotte Brönte’s Jane Eyre, a story of a young woman who challenged social norms.
 
As a classic novel written in the Victorian era, Jane Eyre is thought to be one of the reasons women equality has progressed to the extent that it has. Moreover, the novel discusses still-relevant social issues such as women’s employment, genteel poverty, marriage, and education. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Brönte’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:
 
- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As
 
The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë

Victor Marie Hugo (; 7 Ventôse year X (26 February 1802) – 22 May 1885) was a French poet, novelist, and dramatist of the Romantic movement. Hugo is considered to be one of the greatest and best-known French writers. Outside France, his most famous works are the novels Les Misérables, 1862, and The Hunchback of Notre-Dame (), 1831. In France, Hugo is renowned for his poetry collections, such as  (The Contemplations) and  (The Legend of the Ages).

Victor Hugo

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Victor Hugo’s Les Misérables, arguably one of the most recognized novels to come from the 19th century and is still studied today.
 
As a novel of both the Romantic and Realism literary movements, Les Misérables captures the history of France through the lens of political chaos, liberty, and individualism. Moreover, Hugo is considered to have dominated French literature during the entire 19th century. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Hugo’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Les Misérables by Victor Hugo

Kenneth Elton Kesey (; September 17, 1935– November 10, 2001) was an American novelist, essayist, and countercultural figure. He considered himself a link between the Beat Generation of the 1950s and the hippies of the 1960s.

Ken Kesey

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Ken Kesey’s One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, which was an immediate critical success upon its release in 1964.
 
As a novel of the late 1900s, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest was a product of Kesey's drug stimulated imagination, and much of the original material was written under the influence of LSD and peyote which Kesey took to induce in himself a state of mind similar to that of his narrator, the schizophrenic Indian Chief Broom. Moreover, Time magazine called it "a roar of protest against middlebrow society's Rules and the invisible Rulers who enforce them." This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Kesey’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Isak Dinesen’s Out of Africa, one of the last books to come out of British Colonization in Africa. 
 
As an autobiographical narrative of the mid-twentieth century, Out of Africa is a coming of age story with ideas of serenity in the wilderness, the courage and simplicity of primal peoples, and nature as a moral force. Moreover, Dinesen explores various literary techniques and blurs the lines between narrative, memoir, and prose pastoral. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Dinesen’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Out of Africa by Isak Dinesen

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for E. L. Doctorow’s Ragtime, published the year the Vietnam War came to a close in 1975.
 
As a work of historical fiction, Ragtime uses a turn-of-the-century America as a pedestal to showcase issues such as freedom, identity, and justice. Moreover, Doctorow was one of the first to use magic realism to discuss and dissect the nature of change. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Doctorow’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:
 
- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As
 
The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Ragtime by E. L. Doctorow

Theodore Herman Albert Dreiser (; August 27, 1871 – December 28, 1945) was an American novelist and journalist of the naturalist school. His novels often featured main characters who succeeded at their objectives despite a lack of a firm moral code, and literary situations that more closely resemble studies of nature than tales of choice and agency. Dreiser's best known novels include Sister Carrie (1900) and An American Tragedy (1925).

Theodore Dreiser

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Theodore Dresier’s Sister Carrie, known by many to be the greatest of the American urban novels. 
 
As a novel of the turn of the 20th Century, Sister Carrie moved away from Victorian era values and towards naturalism, realism, and instincts of human thought and behavior. Moreover, this first novel introduces readers to a common theme Dresier addresses: the individual against universal forces. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Dresier’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Sister Carrie by Theodore Dreiser

Kurt Vonnegut Jr. (; November 11, 1922 – April 11, 2007) was an American writer. In a career spanning over 50 years, Vonnegut published fourteen novels, three short story collections, five plays, and five works of non-fiction, with further collections being published after his death. He is most famous for his darkly satirical, best-selling novel Slaughterhouse-Five (1969).

Kurt Vonnegut

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse-Five, an instant success across all popular media. 
 
As an anti-war novel of the 1960s, Vonnegut wrote Slaughterhouse-Five as a double story: the main character suffers from the traumatic effects of war; the author struggles with the effects of war on both the character and the author. Moreover, his writing shows his belief that art is no longer a finished product, but it is an ongoing process. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Vonnegut’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Eldridge Cleaver’s Soul on Ice, written during his time in Folsom State Prison in 1965.
 
As a memoir and collection of short stories, Soul on Ice guides the reader through the thoughts and experiences of former Black Panther Eldridge Cleaver. Moreover, Cleaver uses various literary devices and techniques to craft a story of change and redemption. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Cleaver’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:
 
- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As
 
The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Soul on Ice by Eldridge Cleaver

Kate Chopin (, also ; born Katherine O'Flaherty; February 8, 1850 – August 22, 1904) was an American author of short stories and novels based in Louisiana. She is now considered by some scholars to have been a forerunner of American 20th-century feminist authors of Southern or Catholic background, such as Zelda Fitzgerald, and is one of the most frequently read and recognized writers of Louisiana Creole heritage.

Kate Chopin

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Kate Chopin’s The Awakening, one of the earliest American novels that focuses on women's issues without condescension.
 
As a feminist novel of the American South at the end of the nineteenth century, The Awakening  highlights individual expression and freedom and what the desire for it can cost the person who wants it. Moreover, Chopin was reviled and ostracized by polite society in St. Louis because of the actions of The Awakening’s main character. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Chopin’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to The Awakening by Kate Chopin

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for John Gay’s The Beggar’s Opera, without a doubt the most popular drama written during the hundred years between 1700 and 1800.
 
As a comedy of the Restoration period of British drama, the humor in The Beggar’s Opera serves as a medium for carrying the author's meaning - social satire - which is applicable in all countries at all times. Moreover, the basis of the play's success rests on three factors: its artistic merit; its originality (this is in part measured by the number of later dramas which clearly display the influence of its innovations); and its pervasive humor. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Gay’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to The Beggar’s Opera by John Gay

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Geoffrey Chaucer (;  – 25 October 1400) was an English poet and author. Widely seen as the greatest English poet of the Middle Ages, he is best known for The Canterbury Tales. Chaucer has been styled the "Father of English literature". He was the first writer buried in Poets' Corner of Westminster Abbey. Chaucer also gained fame as a philosopher and astronomer, composing the scientific A Treatise on the Astrolabe for his 10-year-old son Lewis. He maintained a career in the civil service as a bureaucrat, courtier, diplomat, and member of parliament. 

Geoffrey Chaucer

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales, arguably the most famous of all Middle English literature.
 
As a series of twenty-four stories, The Canterbury Tales was written in 1392 and tells of the pilgrimage of thirty people from various social classes to Canterbury. Moreover, Chaucer uses each story to represent a theme in order to exemplify the changing of societal roles. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Chaucer’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:
 
- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As
 
The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Nathanael West’s The Day of the Locust, one of West’s great novels that comments on the social and cultural properties of American life. 

As a novel of the post-Great Depression era, The Day of the Locust depicts the failure of one popular conception of the “American Dream.” Moreover, West’s novels highlight and intensify aspects of American life to show what it is, as opposed to what it ought to be, or even what it
could be.

This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Nathanael West’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to The Day of the Locust by Nathanael West

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Anne Frank’s The Diary of a Young Girl, arguably one of the most powerful Holocaust memoirs of the World War II era.
 
As an historic account of World War II, Anne Frank’s diary has provided a firsthand account of a life in hiding as a Jew in Nazi Germany. Moreover, the journal has kept alive the spirit of an exceptional young person whose thoughts have broadened the perspective of millions. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Frank’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:
 
- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As
 
The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank

Henry Brooks Adams (February 16, 1838 – March 27, 1918) was an American historian and member of the Adams political family, descended from two U.S. Presidents.

Henry Adams

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Henry Adams’ The Education of Henry Adams, an autobiography from a great-grandson of the second president of the United States John Adams.
 
As an autobiography of the late 19th century, Adams’ book gives readers interesting perspective on educational theory and practice and Aristocracy leading into the turn of the century. Moreover, his life gives a glimpse at the immense weight of tradition in political families, as well as insight into the long-standing question of whether these families will know the values of liberty and choice. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Adams’ classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to The Education of Henry Adams by Henry Adams

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Doris Lessing’s The Golden Notebook, regarded by The Oxford Companion to English Literature as one of the key texts of the women’s movement of the 1960s.
 
As a uniquely structured four-part novel published in 1962, The Golden Notebook focuses on the idea of fragmentation, both in the structure of the book and the content. Moreover, the novel discusses big picture topics such as mental health, communism, and women’s sexuality. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Lessing’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:
 
- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As
 
The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to The Golden Notebook by Doris Lessing

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Ursula Le Guin’s The Left Hand of Darkness, a book that pioneered the feminist science fiction movement.
 
As a science-fiction, fantasy novel of the mid to late 1900s, The Left Hand of Darkness explores androgyny, tragedy, and love. Moreover, Le Guin’s writing shows that in fantasy, journeys into outer space are often metaphors for journeys inward. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Le Guin’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula Le Guin

Edward Everett Hale (April 3, 1822– June 10, 1909) was an American author, historian, and Unitarian minister, best known for his writings such as "The Man Without a Country", published in Atlantic Monthly, in support of the Union during the Civil War. He was the grand-nephew of Nathan Hale, the American spy during the Revolutionary War.

Edward Everett Hale

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Edward Everett Hale’s The Man Without a Country, a short story written during the Civil War.
 
As a work of patriotic literature, The Man Without a Country bolstered support across the U.S. for the Union in the North. Moreover, Hale uses irony, mystery, and realism to tell the gripping story of a man who feels seemingly no patriotism or connection to his country during a war in which he must take part. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Hale’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:
 
- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As
 
The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to The Man Without a Country by Edward Everett Hale

George Meredith  (12 February 1828 – 18 May 1909) was an English novelist and poet of the Victorian era. He was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature seven times.

George Meredith

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for George Meredith’s The Ordeal of Richard Feverel, published in 1859 and regarded as his best work.
 
As a philosophical novel, The Ordeal of Richard Feverel tells the story of an abusive father and his son who fell in love with a girl of a lower social class. Moreover, Meredith uses intellectualism, satire, and poetry to explore human motive and rationalization. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Meredith’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:
 
- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As
 
The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to The Ordeal of Richard Feverel by George Meredith

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Walter Van Tilburg Clark’s The Ox-Bow Incident, said to be one of the greatest Western novels ever written.
 
As a classic novel set in 1885 but written in 1938, The Ox-Bow Incident draws parallels between Nazi brutality and the vigilantes showcased in the novel in order to communicate unjust violence can occur anywhere at any time. Moreover, the novel serves as a great example of realism, having been written during the realist movement. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Clark’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:
 
- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As
 
The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to The Ox-Bow Incident by Walter Clark

William Dean Howells (; March 1, 1837 – May 11, 1920) was an American realist novelist, literary critic, and playwright, nicknamed "The Dean of American Letters". He was particularly known for his tenure as editor of The Atlantic Monthly, as well as for his own prolific writings, including the Christmas story "Christmas Every Day" and the novels The Rise of Silas Lapham and A Traveler from Altruria.

William Dean Howells

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for William Dean Howells’s The Rise of Silas Lapham, one of the many in Howells’ movement into strong
anti-romantic realism and social criticism.
 
As a novel of the realism movement, The Rise of Silas Lapham began Howells’ trend of incorporating Christian Socialism in his writing—a theory that the common welfare could be improved along guidelines of Christian ethical principles. Moreover, Howells is considered to be the father of American realism. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Howells’ classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to The Rise of Silas Lapham by William Dean Howells

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Simone de Beauvoir’s The Second Sex, the book that arguably stands as the stepping stone for all
other feminists' work.
 
As a work of post-WWII, The Second Sex stirred up controversary as women in France and America had just earned their right to vote and men who fought on the front returned home to reclaim the jobs that had been filled by women. Moreover, the fight for liberation and equality for women continues to impact politics and philosophy even today. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of de Beauvoir’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to The Second Sex by Simone de Beauvoir

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Günter Grass’s The Tin Drum, the most widely read postwar German novel.
 
As a novel, The Tin Drum is a memoir of a man living in an insane asylum with supernatural powers who grew up in Nazi Germany. Moreover, Grass uses allusion and metaphor to comment on modern society, history, the individual, and the government. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Grass’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:
 
- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As
 
The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to The Tin Drum by Gunter Grass

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Burdick and Lederer’s The Ugly American, with commentary on Nationalism, Communism, foreign policy, and diplomacy across America, Europe, and Southeast Asia.
 
As a classic account and document of America’s role in French Colonialism, The Ugly American was frequently referenced by Presidents John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon in their conversations on foreign policy, and hit bestseller lists when it was nearly banned overseas. Moreover, the political novel shows how time and war impact cross-cultural relationships. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Burdick and Lederer’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:
 
- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As
 
The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to The Ugly American by Burdick and Lederer

Owen Wister (July 14, 1860– July 21, 1938) was an American writer and historian, considered the "father" of western fiction. He is best remembered for writing The Virginian and a biography of Ulysses S. Grant.

Owen Wister

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Owen Wister’s The Virginian, considered by many to be the first fictional western written. 
 
As a fictionalized historical account of post-Civil War Western America, The Virginian gives readers a social picture of the West in the late l9th century. Moreover, Wister’s writing encourages discussion concerning the concepts of equality, social standards, and law and justice and reveal the fundamental philosophy which directed society at that time and place. These concepts and philosophies continue to affect politics today. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Wister’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.



Study Guide to The Virginian by Owen Wister

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings’ The Yearling, a 1938 Pulitzer Prize winner.
 
As an expositional novel of the 1930s, Rawlings wrote of the Florida Crackers, wildlife, and vegetation of the region in such minute detail that readers become intimately acquainted not only with the people of the region and their customs and way of life, but with the physical and natural surroundings. Moreover, she shows in the manner of a reporter how to remain objective and detached, making no real judgment on the people. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Rawlings’ classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to The Yearling by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart, regarded as one of literature’s first counter narratives.
 
As a classic novel written two years before Nigeria’s independence, Things Fall Apart showcases a pre-colonized Nigeria and the transformation of culture after English colonization. Moreover, Achebe is a colorful and gifted storyteller, allowing readers to experience a culture they otherwise might not have the pleasure of knowing. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Achebe’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:
 
- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As
 
The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe

Laurence Sterne (24 November 1713 – 18 March 1768) was an Irish novelist and an Anglican clergyman. He wrote the novels The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman and A Sentimental Journey Through France and Italy, and also published many sermons, wrote memoirs, and was involved in local politics. Sterne died in London after years of fighting tuberculosis.

Laurence Sterne

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Laurence Sterne’s Tristram Shandy, thought to be a trailblazer for other books of its time and inspired by the great novelists: Francois Rabelais, Miguel de Cervantes, Michel de Montaigne, and Robert Burton.
 
As a nine-volume novel of the 18th century, Tristram Shandy was ahead of its time for its use of humor and satire and stories about scandalous and taboo topics. Moreover, the stories included make us consider the limitations of the logic in which we put such trust, the value of theories which remain purely theoretical, and the absurdity of our ideas of time in a world where everything is relative. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Sterne’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Tristram Shandy by Laurence Sterne

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Malcolm Lowry’s Under the Volcano, ranked number 11 on the Modern Library’s list of the 100 best English-language novels of the twentieth century.
 
As a novel of the mid-twentieth century, Under the Volcano is an almost autobiographical tale of self-destruction inspired by Lowry’s real experiences. Moreover, the text is considered one of literature's most powerful and lyrical statements on the human condition, and a brilliant portrayal of one man's constant struggle against the elemental forces that threaten to destroy him. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Lowry’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Under the Volcano by Malcolm Lowry

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Thomas More’s Utopia, originally written in Latin in 1516 and considered a great political and philosophical satire.
 
As a rhetorical work from the early 16th century, there has been much debate amongst scholars on what More’s intentions were for writing. Moreover, Utopia makes a mirror so that readers may be able to see themselves more clearly and more realistically. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of More’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Utopia by Thomas More

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Nikos Kazantzakis’ Zorba the Greek, the internationally acclaimed novel of opposing forces.  
 
As a tale of Greek’s Great Famine during WWII, Zorba the Greek gives a fresh perspective on the duality between body and mind, beauty and pain, feeling and thinking. Moreover, Kazantzakis empowers readers to pursue life like Zorba. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Kazantzakis’ classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Zorba the Greek by Nikos Kazantzakis

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Charles Dickens’s A Tale of Two Cities, a unique storytelling that expands the understanding of the French Revolution.

As a novel written in 1859 but set in the years leading up to the French Revolution, the major theme of social injustice that is portrayed in this famous work allows readers to relate to the current political unrest. Moreover, this historic novel uses unique storytelling through scene-changing syntax to broaden the perspective of time. to broaden the perspective of the time. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Dickens’ classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work 
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper into their understanding by including essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Charles Dickens’s Bleak House, said to be one of Dickens’s most powerful novels due to the way it challenged Britain's court system and caused legal reform in the 1870s.

As an 1830 novel set in London, Bleak House unveils a different way of life where the court system is corrupt and ruled by the affluent. Moreover, the struggles throughout the story highlight the love between the characters and the push for a change in the legal system. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Dickens’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Bleak House by Charles Dickens

Charles John Huffam Dickens  (; 7 February 1812– 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian era. His works enjoyed unprecedented popularity during his lifetime, and by the 20th century, critics and scholars had recognised him as a literary genius. His novels and short stories are still widely read today.

Charles Dickens

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Charles Dickens’s David Copperfield, an autobiographical novel of the main character.

As an 1800s English work, David Copperfield shows how power leads to corruption, a still-relevant theme today. Moreover, the novel draws from several of Charles Dickens’s own personal experiences and demonstrates the harsh life caused by greed along with the hope that is born from love. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Dickens’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to David Copperfield by Charles Dickens

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Charles Dickens’s Great Expectations, a novel that influenced many future authors with its unique storytelling and themes. 
 
As a novel of nineteenth-century England, wealth determines power, and Dickens comments on how the former does not produce happiness. Dickens explores themes in this novel by commenting on the society of 19th century England. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Dickens’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Great Expectations by Charles Dickens

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Charles Dickens’s Hard Times, a novel that brought to light the harsh conditions of factory workers during the nineteenth century.
   
As a novel set in nineteenth-century England, many lower class citizens worked factory jobs and were very poorly treated. Dickens comments on this treatment and the abuse of power regarding the wealthy. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Dickens’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Hard Times by Charles Dickens

Daniel Defoe (; c. 1660 – 24 April 1731), born Daniel Foe, was an English trader, writer, journalist, pamphleteer and spy. He is most famous for his novel Robinson Crusoe, which is second only to the Bible in its number of translations. He has been seen as one of the earliest proponents of the English novel, and helped to popularise the form in Britain with others such as Aphra Behn and Samuel Richardson.  Defoe wrote many political tracts and was often in trouble with the authorities, and spent a period in prison.  Intellectuals and political leaders paid attention to his fresh ideas and sometimes consulted with him.

Daniel Defoe

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Daniel Defoe’s Moll Flanders, an autobiographical novel of a scandalous, thieving woman.
 
As a novel set in the early 1600s, Moll suffers a life of misfortune after her mother is sentenced to death, and her first husband dies. Moreover, she makes a way for herself and her children through lies and deceit as Defoe portrays an unconventional life in the 1600s for an unusual woman.This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Defoe’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Moll Flanders by Daniel Defoe

Émile Édouard Charles Antoine Zola (, also , ; 2 April 184029 September 1902) was a French novelist, playwright, journalist, the best-known practitioner of the literary school of naturalism, and an important contributor to the development of theatrical naturalism. He was a major figure in the political liberalization of France and in the exoneration of the falsely accused and convicted army officer Alfred Dreyfus, which is encapsulated in the renowned newspaper headline J'Accuse…! Zola was nominated for the first and second Nobel Prize in Literature in 1901 and 1902.

Émile Zola

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Emile Zola’s Germinal, a classic piece of literature due to its historically factual description of the class differentiation in France during the 1800s.
 
As a nineteenth century fictional documentation of France, Germinal describes the impact of class differentiation on a striking coal miner’s family. Moreover, it outlines and highlights the mistreatment of the lower class and how they were forced into poverty by their superiors through the example of the miners. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Zola’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:
 
- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As
 
The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Germinal by Emile Zola

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Eugene O’Neill’s Strange Interlude, a literary classic that challenged social norms of the US in the 1920s.
 
As a romance of the mid-twentieth century, Strange Interlude describes the many hollow and unhealthy relationships Nina had in order to cope with her grieving. Moreover, the theme of contentment and happiness versus morality is very present throughout the novel, as sometimes the most therapeutic solution for Nina was not necessarily the most morally right. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of O’Neill’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:
 
- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As
 
The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Strange Interlude by Eugene O'Neill

Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky (; ; 11 November 18219 February 1881), sometimes transliterated Dostoyevsky, was a Russian novelist, short story writer, essayist, journalist and philosopher. Dostoevsky's literary works explore human psychology in the troubled political, social, and spiritual atmospheres of 19th-century Russia, and engage with a variety of philosophical and religious themes. His most acclaimed works include Crime and Punishment (1866), The Idiot (1869), Demons (1872), and The Brothers Karamazov (1880). Dostoevsky's body of works consists of 11 novels, three novellas, 17 short stories, and numerous other works. Many literary critics rate him as one of the greatest psychologists in world literature. His 1864 novella Notes from Underground is considered to be one of the first works of existentialist literature.

Fyodor Dostoyevsky

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Fyodor Dostoyevsky's The Idiot, a literary classic due to Dostoyevsky’s unique shifting writing styles and characterizations.
 
As a mid-nineteenth century European work, The Idiot aims to highlight perfection in an imperfect world as a major theme. Moreover, this classic will encourage students to think in a more philosophical manner and look for a deeper theme in other works and real world situations. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Dostoyevsky’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:
 
- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As
 
The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to The Idiot by Fyodor Dostoyevsky

George Bernard Shaw (; 26 July 1856 – 2 November 1950), known at his insistence simply as Bernard Shaw, was an Irish playwright, critic, polemicist and political activist. His influence on Western theatre, culture and politics extended from the 1880s to his death and beyond. He wrote more than sixty plays, including major works such as Man and Superman (1902), Pygmalion (1912) and Saint Joan (1923). With a range incorporating both contemporary satire and historical allegory, Shaw became the leading dramatist of his generation, and in 1925 was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature.

George Bernard Shaw

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for George Bernard Shaw’s Major Barbara, considered a literary classic due to the novel’s religious themes contradicting the religious ideas of the time period.
 
As an early nineteenth century play, Major Barbara provides political commentary on the matter of whether it is morally right or wrong to obtain something that is used for a good cause from death and destruction. Moreover, it encourages conversation among students about whether a charitable act maintains its value even when its roots were immoral. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Shaw’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Major Barbara by George Bernard Shaw

Durante di Alighiero degli Alighieri (; ), commonly known by his pen name Dante Alighieri or simply as Dante (, also , ;  – 1321), was an Italian poet. His Divine Comedy, originally called  (modern Italian: Commedia) and later christened  by Giovanni Boccaccio, is widely considered the most important poem of the Middle Ages and the greatest literary work in the Italian language.

Dante Alighieri

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Dante’s The Divine Comedy, a defining work of religious literature for the Renaissance time period.
 
In Pilgrim’s exploration through the Inferno, Purgatory, and Heaven, Dante takes readers on a religious journey of the soul as defined by the Renaissance era. In doing so, his work also displayed the dominant views of the culture and organized religion for that time period. Moreover, The Divine Comedy demonstrates for students the numerous new ideas which originated during the Renaissance, as well as how the time period influenced Catholicism. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Dante’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:
 
- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As
 
The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to The Divine Comedy by Dante

Thomas Hardy  (2 June 1840 – 11 January 1928) was an English novelist and poet. A Victorian realist in the tradition of George Eliot, he was influenced both in his novels and in his poetry by Romanticism, especially William Wordsworth. He was highly critical of much in Victorian society, especially on the declining status of rural people in Britain, such as those from his native South West England.

Thomas Hardy

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Thomas Hardy’s Far from the Madding Crowd, the publication attributed with Hardy’s achievement of literary success.
 
As a novel of Victorian England, Far from the Madding Crowd tells the realities of living in the idyllic farming communities of southwest England. Moreover, Hardy is acknowledged for his use of Victorian and modern literary techniques with traditional constructed plots, yet modern psychological development of his characters and reflection of modern problems. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Hardy’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Far from the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Thomas Hardy’s Jude the Obscure, the last novel written by Hardy before he moved his concentration to poetry. 
 
As a satirical novel of the late nineteenth century, the themes of marriage and religion were perceived negatively. When the novel was published, Hardy’s contemporaries reacted bitterly, and a bishop ordered the text to be publicly burned. Moreover, Jude the Obscure is to be considered a tragedy, inspired by the great Greek dramatists, Aristotle and Aeschylus. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Hardy’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Jude the Obscure by Thomas Hardy

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Thomas Hardy's Tess of the d'Urbervilles, one of Hardy’s most recognizable novels featuring a strong heroine.  
 
As a novel of the Victorian era, Tess of the d’Urbervilles was first published as a censored series in the British magazine, The Graphic. When it was published later as a single novel, it was received with mixed criticisms: one side saying the book strained ideas of credibility and another saying the book was too pessimistic. Moreover, Hardy was and is extremely readable, and the general public has been attracted and held by his exciting plots and his deep feelings for the poor, for women, for animals, and for all those other persons who somehow have been dealt losing hands of life. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Hardy’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Tess of d’Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Thomas Hardy's The Mayor of Casterbridge, the most controversial of Hardy’s works as it toes the line between Victorian and modernism literature.
 
As an author who lived to see both literary time settings, Hardy was often criticized during his lifetime for combining elements of realism and fantastic coincidences. Moreover, The Mayor of Casterbrige was Hardy’s attempt at using poetic techniques and psychology to create a more in-depth, psychological story. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Hardy’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to The Mayor of Casterbridge by Thomas Hardy

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Thomas Hardy’s The Return of the Native, arguably the most popular of Hardy’s 14 Wessex novels. 
 
As a novel first published in the magazine Belgravia, popular for its sensationalism, Hardy classified The Return of the Native as a “Novel of Character and Environment.” Moreover, themes from Hardy’s novels draw interesting conversations around the power of imagination. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Hardy’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to The Return of the Native by Thomas Hardy

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Miguel de Cervantes’s Don Quixote, one of the most widely read texts from Spanish literature.
 
As a novel of chivalry from Spain in the mid-sixteenth century, Don Quixote is a by-product of Renaissance idealism and the trend to narrate the extraordinary adventures of knights-errant. Moreover, critics have argued about the satirical nature of the book, wondering if its intent was to parody chivalrous novels from the years before. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Cervantes’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Pearl Buck’s The Good Earth, the winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1932.
 
As a novel of the mid-twentieth century, The Good Earth was inspired by Buck’s experience living in China during the Boxer rebellion with her missionary parents. Moreover, the novel shows the author’s intense interest for people through description of the cycle of life. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Buck’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to The Good Earth by Pearl Buck

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Stephen Crane’s The Red Badge of Courage, the supreme example of Crane’s war stories.
 
As a novel set during the American Civil War, The Red Badge of Courage is known for realism and naturalism. Moreover, the novel sets itself apart from other war novels as it focuses on the thoughts and experiences of the protagonist, instead of the outside world. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Crane’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.



Study Guide to The Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane

Herman Melville (born Melvill; August 1, 1819– September 28, 1891) was an American novelist, short story writer and poet of the American Renaissance period. Among his best-known works are Moby-Dick (1851), Typee (1846), a romanticized account of his experiences in Polynesia, and Billy Budd, a posthumously published novella. Although his works were not widely appreciated at the time of his death, the centennial of his birth in 1919 was the starting point of a Melville revival in which critics re-evaluated his work and his novels became recognized as world classics.

Herman Melville

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Herman Melville's Moby Dick, deemed by author Raymond Weaver as “indisputably the greatest whaling novel.”
 
As an 1851 tragic epic, Moby Dick tells the story of a captain’s expedition to track down and seek revenge on a whale from the point of view of one of the sailors. Moreover, Melville uses allusion, simile, and metaphor to showcase themes such as revenge, sanity, and human limitations. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Melville’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:
 
- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As
 
The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Moby Dick by Herman Melville

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for J.D. Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye, regarded by The New York Times as one of the 100 best English-language novels since 1923.
 
As a 1951 coming-of-age novel, The Catcher in the Rye tells of the crises of a youthful teenage protagonist, Holden Caulfield. Moreover, Salinger’s work is filled with rebellion and angst, which can be seen through themes such as the protection of innocence, death, and insincerity. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Salinger’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:
 
- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As
 
The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger

Count Lev Nikolayevich Tolstoy (; Russian: , tr. ; ;  ), usually referred to in English as Leo Tolstoy, was a Russian writer who is regarded as one of the greatest authors of all time. He received multiple nominations for the Nobel Prize in Literature every year from 1902 to 1906, and nominations for Nobel Peace Prize in 1901, 1902 and 1910, and the fact that he never won is a major Nobel prize controversy.

Leo Tolstoy

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Leo Tolstoy's Anna Karenina, which he claimed as his first true novel despite having written several before it.
 
As an 1877 realist novel, Anna Karenina follows a Russian wife in the midst of a love affair, who risks all she has for a lover. Moreover, Tolstoy discusses the betrayal by weaving in themes such as forgiveness, social class, and jealousy. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Tolstoy’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:
 
- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As
 
The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath, which was the best selling book in 1939 and won the National Book Award. 
 
As a 1939 American realist novel, The Grapes of Wrath follows a struggling family on their search for work, success, and safety during the Great Depression. Moreover, Steinbeck discusses social philosophy by weaving in themes such as family, betrayal, and change. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Steinbeck’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:
 
- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As
 
The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck

Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835– April 21, 1910), known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, entrepreneur, publisher, and lecturer. He was lauded as the "greatest humorist this country has produced", and William Faulkner called him "the father of American literature". His novels include The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876) and its sequel, the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884), the latter often called "The Great American Novel".

Mark Twain

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Mark Twain's The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, the best-selling of Twain’s work.
 
As a novel written in 1876, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer follows the antics of a young boy during his childhood on the Mississippi River. Moreover, Twain examines the carefree spirit of children, manipulation, and race in this lighthearted novel through the use of imagery and symbolism. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Twain’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:
 
- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As
 
The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for by Gabriel García Márquez’s One Hundred Years of Solitude, considered a classic due to its effective use of magical realism and winner of The Rómulo Gallegos International Novel Prize. 
 
As a novel of the mid-twentieth century, One Hundred Years of Solitude is a work of magical realism, which proved to be a bold statement during that time period, as it allowed for Marquez to bend time and reality. Moreover, One Hundred Years of Solitude is a fine example to show the birth of creative writing without limits. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Márquez’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez

Benjamin Franklin "Frank" Norris Jr. (March 5, 1870 – October 25, 1902) was an American journalist and novelist during the Progressive Era, whose fiction was predominantly in the naturalist genre. His notable works include McTeague: A Story of San Francisco (1899), The Octopus: A Story of California (1901) and The Pit (1903).

Frank Norris

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Frank Norris’s The Octopus, a novel based on the Mussel Slough Tragedy of 1880.
 
As a powerful work of fiction, The Octopus tells of the conflict between a railway company and ranchers in a fight for land rights. Moreover, Norris’s novel serves as a great example of romanticism, as he navigates the metaphor between an octopus and monopolization. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Norris’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:
 
- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As
 
The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to The Octopus by Frank Norris

William Somerset Maugham  ( ; 25 January 1874 – 16 December 1965) was an English playwright, novelist, and short story writer. He was among the most popular writers of his era and reputedly the highest-paid author during the 1930s.

William Somerset Maugham

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for W Somerset Maugham’s Of Human Bondage, agreed to be Maugham’s most noted and most important work.
 
As a bildungsroman of the early 20th century, Of Human Bondage is Maugham’s strongly autobiographical story of the evolution of a young man through the storm and stress of youth.  Moreover, Maugham writing is an example of finding serenity despite haunting and imperfect pasts. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Maugham’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to Of Human Bondage by W Somerset Maugham

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Leo Tolstoy's War and Peace, with adaptations in film, radio, theatre, opera, and rock music.
 
As a work of 1869 historical fiction, War and Peace showcases a Russia before, during, and after the invasion by Napoleon. Moreover, Tolstoy writes of the glory of epic struggle, the horror of man-to-man combat, and the loveliness of peace. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Tolstoy’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:
 
- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As
 
The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy

Upton Beall Sinclair Jr. (September 20, 1878– November 25, 1968) was an American writer who wrote nearly 100 books and other works in several genres. Sinclair's work was well known and popular in the first half of the 20th century, and he won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1943.

Upton Sinclair

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle, a novel portraying the harsh conditions and exploitation of immigrants in major US cities in the early twentieth century.
 
As a novel of the turn of the twentieth century, The Jungle reflects not only the American scene of Sinclair's young manhood but also many of his own life circumstances. It becomes important to view the novel in terms of both his life and his times. Moreover, Sinclair’s journalistic background provided him with the opportunity to expose corruption in business and government. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Sinclair’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to The Jungle by Upton Sinclair

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for JRR Tolkien’s The Fellowship of the Ring, the first of one of the most well-known series in the world—Lord of the Rings Trilogy.
 
As an epic novel of the mid twentieth century, Tolkien used elements of Nordic folk, Christianity, and realism to create the Middle-earth world. Moreover, The Lord of the Rings Trilogy was written in long-hand, revised, and then the whole work was rewritten backwards due to the first-time authors lack of funds and showing the author’s skill as a writer and scholar. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Tokien’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:

- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As

The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including 
essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to The Fellowship of the Ring by JRR Tolkien

A comprehensive study guide offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep for Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, winner of the Pulitzer Prize in 1961.
 
As a novel of the Civil Rights era, To Kill a Mockingbird tells the story of a lawyer who represented an African American accused of rape. Moreover, Lee weaves the theme of honor throughout the book and explores human dignity through her debut novel. This Bright Notes Study Guide explores the context and history of Lee’s classic work, helping students to thoroughly explore the reasons it has stood the literary test of time. Each Bright Notes Study Guide contains:
 
- Introductions to the Author and the Work
- Character Summaries
- Plot Guides
- Section and Chapter Overviews
- Test Essay and Study Q&As
 
The Bright Notes Study Guide series offers an in-depth tour of more than 275 classic works of literature, exploring characters, critical commentary, historical background, plots, and themes. This set of study guides encourages readers to dig deeper in their understanding by including essay questions and answers as well as topics for further research.


Study Guide to To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Bright Notes Study Guide series provides comprehensive study guides offering in-depth explanation, essay, and test prep.  Each clear and complete guide includes author biographies,  character summaries, plot guides, section and chapter overviews, a test essay, and study questions and answers.

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