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Beowulf is a long narrative poem composed in Old English some time in between the 8th and 11th century AD. The only surviving manuscript that contains the poem is preserved in the British Library and it too was badly damaged by fire in 1731. It is considered to be the oldest surviving work of poetry in English and one of the rare pieces of vernacular European literature that has survived since Medieval times. A prince arrives to rid a neighboring country of a terrible monster. He mortally wounds the horrendous creature and it retreats to die in its lair in the remote mountains. The monster's even more terrifying mother swoops down on the kingdom, prepared to destroy everything in a vengeful frenzy. The valiant prince slays her too and becomes a celebrated hero. Laden with gifts, he returns home to rule his kingdom wisely and well, till suddenly one day, he receives news of a dreadful and powerful dragon attacking the borders of his prosperous kingdom... There is no evidence to show the authorship of the poem and the manuscript reveals that it was hand-written by two different scribes. The poem originally had no title and it began to be called after its hero Beowulf the Prince of Geats in southern Sweden, only in the 19th century. The manuscript was in the possession of a scholar Lawrence Nowell and survives in a very delicate condition after so many centuries of neglect and mishaps. Beowulf recounts the story of the valiant warrior of Geats who comes to the aid of his neighbor, King Hrothgar whose mead hall is being attacked by a dreadful creature called Grendel. The mead hall was the big feasting hall of the king and sometimes even served as a living quarter for the king and his noblemen in medieval times in Scandinavia and the German parts of Europe. The monster is vanquished, but the next night, the warriors are stunned by the arrival of Grendel's even more loathsome mother, who wreaks havoc on the sleeping victors. Beowulf uses a magical sword to destroy her and returns to his kingdom where he achieves great success and renown as a just and brave ruler. Half a century later, another supernatural creature descends on the peaceful kingdom and Beowulf again takes up arms to ride in to battle. The poem can be seen as actual history, or as a lyrical ode to a brave king. It has had enormous impact on modern-day fantasy writers and continues to be a seminal work of early English literature.

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Comprised of four parts, Gulliver’s Travels documents the bizarre, yet fascinating voyages of Lemuel Gulliver as he makes his way through several uncharted destinations, experiencing the lives of the small, the giant, the scientific, and downright eccentric societies. Narrated in first person, Swift successfully portrays Gulliver’s thoughts and reactions as he faces struggles of integration throughout his travels. Beginning with the introduction of Gulliver, an educated ship’s surgeon, who after a series of unfortunate events is victim to repeated shipwrecks, desertions, and set adrift. His first of several misadventures sees him washed up on the shores of Lilliput, home to the less than six inches tall Lilliputians, where he wakes up to the sounds of scurrying beneath him. However, roles are reversed when his misfortunes lead him to Brobdingnag, a land occupied by giants where he must experience life as an inferior and fragile being. Subsequently, he comes across a society of oppressive theoreticians, and finally an intellectual, superior race. Divided between the known and the unknown, Gulliver must put aside his prejudgments and experience the unfamiliar societies first hand. As the novel gradually progresses, the transformation of the narrator becomes evident as he draws conclusions from each and every one of his adventures. Written by the master of satire, Jonathan Swift has not only created a story of adventure, but also cunningly attacks the mere nature of society in between its lines. Abuse of power, criticism of human nature, politics, and individualism are just some of the themes explored during the enlightening journeys of the venturesome Gulliver. Swift’s witty use of metaphors and satirical style serves as a puzzle waiting to be solved. An adventure story for the young, but a critical piece for the mature, the novel has a bit of everything and appeals to all age groups. The details in which the locations are described, the escapism it offers, and its openness to interpretation is what makes Gulliver’s Travels a timeless piece of literature.

His name has become a metaphor for one who will never grow old. Peter Pan by JM Barrie is the story of a boy who remains a boy while the world around him changes. Sir James Mathew Barrie was a Scottish playwright and novelist whose works were received with great critical and commercial success in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. He discovered the main inspiration for his creative genius in his friendship (and later guardianship) with the children of Arthur and Sylvia Llewellyn-Davies. The Llewellyn-Davies boys, five in number and related to the famous Du Maurier family, featured in many of Barrie's stories and plays and some of these works were written specifically for them. Peter Pan was first introduced as a character in one of Barrie's stories, The Little White Bird in 1901. Consequently, he appeared in a few other stories and plays and finally in 1904 made his debut in a full length play, Peter Pan or The Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up. Following the phenomenal success of the play, Barrie transformed it into a novel in 1911 entitled Peter and Wendy. Peter Pan is pure and delightful fantasy. Peter's character is far from a “perfect child.” He is selfish, foolish, thoughtless and ignorant and this is where the real appeal of the book lies. Readers are preconditioned to believe that childhood and children must always be portrayed as good and innocent. However, Barrie portrays Peter in all his authentic humanity and that's what makes him so endearing because we truly see ourselves in Peter Pan. The descriptions are fascinating in their detail and intricacy, the dialog and conversations are absolutely spot on and Neverland is a brilliant example of the Utopia we all seek in its perfection and completeness. Captain Hook is a truly evil villain, while Tinkerbell shines in all her haughty magic. For readers who have only seen the saccharine sweet Disney version, the original Peter Pan may come as a surprise! Peter Pan cajoles Wendy Darling and two more boys to fly with him to Neverland to become the surrogate family of the Lost Boys there. A series of adventures follows, including scary encounters with Captain Hook and the vicious Tiger Lily. In fact, many readers have found the tale to be quite a disturbing Victorian fantasy about motherhood and emotional immaturity. Whatever the interpretation, Peter Pan remains one of the most brilliant and definitive portrayals of childhood and children.

Two writers, famous in their own countries for creating immortal characters: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in England and Maurice Leblanc in France. Their literary creations, Sherlock Holmes and Arsene Lupin are at two ends of the criminal spectrum. Holmes is a sleuth while Lupin is a burglar. When Maurice Leblanc introduces Sherlock Holmes in one of his Arsene Lupin stories, Conan Doyle is outraged. He sues Leblanc, who promptly changes the character's name to “Herlock Sholmes” and continues featuring him in more stories with typical French insouciance! The Extraordinary Adventures of Arsene Lupin, Gentleman-Burglar by Maurice Leblanc marks the debut of this suave, debonair crook who is considered to be the French answer to Sherlock Holmes. Arsene Lupin is a gentleman, who “operates only in châteaux and salons” and “man of a thousand disguises: in turn a chauffeur, detective, bookmaker, Russian physician, Spanish bull-fighter, commercial traveler, robust youth and decrepit old man.” This master thief is a Robin Hood like figure who steals not just for his own gain, but for the ultimate good of someone else. In this book, we find the urbane scoundrel engaged in a series of amusing shenanigans. The stories are sequential in nature, but can be enjoyed as stand alone tales too. First serialized in the French magazine Je Sais Tout in 1905, the Arsene Lupin stories soon caught the public imagination on both sides of the Channel. The collection includes nine stories dealing with various complicated plots in which Lupin proves himself to be the consummate escape artist. In the first story titled The Arrest of Arsene Lupin, told by a man who comes to admire the gentleman burglar, Lupin is apprehended on board a cruise ship. The later stories deal with his prison term, escape from jail and further adventures. One of the most famous Arsene Lupin stories, The Queen's Necklace is also included here. The two immortals meet in the ninth story, Sherlock Holmes Arrives Too Late and naturally, Lupin manages to outwit the English bloodhound! With the pervading interest in crime and detection stories at that time, Maurice Leblanc cashed in with more than twenty-one Arsene Lupin novels and collections of short stories. Though like Holmes, he ultimately became too famous to eliminate, Arsene Lupin provided his creator with fame and fortune. Based in part on real characters who were in the news at the time, Arsene Lupin remains an amusing, lovable and quick-witted knave whose exploits are enjoyed even today by readers of all ages.