L. P. Hartley Books

On her husband's death Lady Franklin dropped her friends and wrapped herself in a penitential garment of grief. Two years later, on a visit to Canterbury Cathedral, she impulsively began to unburden her soul to the driver of the hired car. Leadbitter, a lonely, cynical ex-soldier, responded by trying to distract her with tales of his imaginary wife and family. So begins a dangerous game, played by inhabitants of different planets. And in mid-journey the story plunges down a turning where all the sign-posts point to disaster.

A man in his 60s looks back on his boyhood for the first time in 50 years, recalling events that took place on a summer visit to a Norfolk country house at the turn of the century.

The three books gathered together as Eustace and Hilda explore a brother and sister's lifelong relationship. Hilda, the older child, is both self-sacrificing and domineering, as puritanical as she is gorgeous; Eustace is a gentle, dreamy, pleasure-loving boy: the two siblings could hardly be more different, but they are also deeply devoted. And yet as Eustace and Hilda grow up and seek to go their separate ways in a world of power and position, money and love, their relationship is marked by increasing pain. L. P. Hartley's much-loved novel, the magnum opus of one of twentieth-century England's best writers, is a complex and spellbinding work: a comedy of upper-class manners; a study in the subtlest nuances of feeling; a poignant reckoning with the ironies of character and fate. Above all, it is about two people who cannot live together or apart, about the ties that bind--and break.

It is the summer of 1900 and Leo is staying with his friend Marcus. Leo likes Marcus's beautiful older sister, Marian very much. He becomes a secret messenger for her and a local farmer. But when he realizes what the messages they send each other are about, he is shocked and confused

The story explores the evolving relationship between Fergus, a bookish teenager, and Fred, his father's rugged chauffeur, as they bond through boxing lessons. Initially intended to toughen Fergus up, their time together unexpectedly blossoms into a deep friendship, hinting at romantic feelings. This unexpected connection challenges the Colonel's perceptions of masculinity and reveals the complexities of identity and emotional growth in a young man navigating his self-worth.

Emotionally paralyzed by grief at her husband's death, Lady Franklin, an eligible young widow, unburdens herself to Leadbitter--a gallant, hard-bitten ex-soldier who has invested his savings, and himself, in the car he drives for hire--as he takes her on a series of journeys. He in turn beguiles her with stories of his nonexistent wife and children thereby weaning her from her self-absorption, but creating for himself a dreamlife with Lady Franklin at the heart of it. Half-hoping to make his dream come true, Leadbitter takes a bold step which costs him her company and brings the story to a dramatically unexpected end. "The Hireling" was made into a 1973 film starring Sarah Miles and Robert Shaw.

It is the summer of 1900 and Leo is staying with his friend Marcus. Leo likes Marcus's beautiful older sister, Marian very much. He becomes a secret messenger for her and a local farmer. But when he realizes what the messages they send each other are about, he is shocked and confused.

Set in a post-World War III society, the narrative explores a dystopian world governed by a hidden dictator who enforces extreme equality to avert conflict. Individuality is suppressed, with beauty, intelligence, and personality considered threats to the regime. Punishments for dissent range from death to a chilling fate known as being "emptied," where victims lose their essence. This chilling backdrop raises questions about conformity, freedom, and the cost of peace in a society that prioritizes uniformity over humanity.

It is the summer of 1900 and Leo is staying with his friend Marcus. Leo likes Marcus’s beautiful older sister very much. To make her happy, he becomes a secret messenger for her and a local farmer. But then he realises what their messages are about, and his whole life begins to change. Penguin Readers are written by specialist ELT authors. The language, vocabulary, style and content of every book is carefully graded to make sure it suits the learner's own language ability. Every Penguin Reader has a range of activities in the book and accompanying Factsheet to help increase comprehension and develop reading, writing, listening and speaking skills.