Books by Katharine Prescott Wormeley

Physiology of Marriage in 3 volumes is a treatise by Honoré de Balzac, published under the title Physiology of Marriage or Meditations on eclectic philosophy, on marital happiness and unhappiness, published by a young bachelor. An essay, a meditation and a narrative at the same time, the text oscillates between the study of manners and the analytical treatise and it is part of a genre in developing, that of physiology. The text is divided into several "sections" or meditations. The first several meditations expose the state of marriage in France in the wealthy and idle upper classes, then propose a series of reforms to improve the marital status of women and thus prevent them from cheating on their husbands.

The theme of celibacy was important to Balzac, who gave the name The Celibates to a sub-section of his famous La Comédie humaine. It consists of Pierrette, The Vicar of Tours and The Black Sheep (The Two Brothers). "Pierrette" tells the story of a sweet little orphan girl, Pierrette Lorrain. She gets adopted by her two older cousins, unmarried brother and sister shopkeepers, who become her guardian because they suspect that she has some inheritance coming. Cousins mistreat Pierrette, make her work as a servant and she becomes miserable. Only one who loves and cares for her is her childhood companion Brigaut. "The Vicar of Tours" is the tale of an old other-worldly, gentle, introspective vicar named Birotteau and his silent feud with his younger and ambition driven colleague, Troubert. Both of them are priests at Tours, having separate lodgings in the house of Sophie Gamard. When Birotteau leaves for several days, upon return he finds Troubert installed in his apartments, in full possession of his furniture and his library, whilst he himself has been moved into inferior rooms. Birotteau tries to regain his position, but their personal drama gets increasingly interwoven with the politics of their small city and becomes public. "The Black Sheep (The Two Brothers)" tells the story of the Bridau family, trying to regain their lost inheritance after a series of mishaps. Brothers Phillip and Joseph Bridau lose their father early. Philippe, who is the eldest and his mother''s favourite, becomes a soldier in Napoleon''s armies, and Joseph becomes an artist. After leaving army Philippe becomes a heavy drinker and gambler, while Joseph is a dedicated artist, and the more loyal son, but his mother does not understand his artistic vocation. They get into financial problems which lead to more troubles.

Eugénie Grandet is set in the town of Saumur. Eugénie''s father Felix is a former cooper who has become wealthy through both business ventures and inheritance. However, he is very stingy, and he lives with his family in a run-down old house which he is too miserly to repair. His banker des Grassins wants Eugénie to marry his son Adolphe, and his lawyer Cruchot wants Eugénie to marry his nephew President Cruchot des Bonfons, both parties eyeing the inheritance from Felix. The two families constantly visit the Grandets to get Felix''s favour, and Felix in turn plays them off against each other for his own advantage. On Eugénie''s birthday, in 1819, Felix''s nephew Charles Grandet arrives from Paris unexpectedly, after his father goes bankrupt. Charles is a spoiled and indolent young man who is having an affair with an older woman. Felix considers him to be a burden and plans to send him off overseas. However, Eugénie falls in love with Charles and stir things up.

The Lily of the Valley is a tale about love which parodies and depicts French society in the period of the Bourbon Restoration. It concerns the affection - emotionally vibrant but never consummated - between Félix de Vandenesse and Henriette de Mortsauf.

Lost Illusions - The Two Poets, Eve and David is an unchanged, high-quality reprint of the original edition of 1893.Hansebooks is editor of the literature on different topic areas such as research and science, travel and expeditions, cooking and nutrition, medicine, and other genres. As a publisher we focus on the preservation of historical literature. Many works of historical writers and scientists are available today as antiques only. Hansebooks newly publishes these books and contributes to the preservation of literature which has become rare and historical knowledge for the future.