| | Page |
| Introduction | ix |
| To Get the Spiritual Essence of a Great Book One Must Study the Man Who Wrote It—The Man Is the Best Epitome of His Message. | |
| Macaulay's Essays in European History | 3 |
| Foremost English Essayist—His Style and Learning Have Made Macaulay a Favorite for Over a Half Century. | |
| Scott and His Waverley Novels | 11 |
| Greatest Novelist the World Has Known—Made History Real and Created Characters That Will Never Die. | |
| Carlyle as an Inspirer of Youth | 20 |
| Finest English Prose Writer—His Best Books, Past and Present, Sartor Resartus and the French Revolution. | |
| De Quincey as a Master of Style | 30 |
| He Wrote the Confessions of an English Opium-Eater—Dreamed Dreams and Saw Visions and Pictured Them in Poetic Prose. | |
| Charles Lamb and the Essays of Elia | 38 |
| Best Beloved of All the English Writers—Quaintest and Tenderest Essayist Whose Work Appeals to All Hearts. | |
| Dickens, the Foremost of Novelists | 47 |
| More Widely Read Than Any Other Story-Teller—The Greatest of the Modern Humorists Appeals to the Readers of All Ages and Classes. | |
| Thackeray, Greatest Master of Fiction | 56 |
| The Most Accomplished Writer of His Century—Tender Pathos Under an Affectation of Cynicism and Great Art in Style and Characters. | |
| Charlotte BrontË; Her Two Great Novels | 66 |
| Jane Eyre and Villette are Touched With Genius—The Tragedy of a Woman's Life That Resulted in Two Stories of Passionate Revolt Against Fate. | |
| George Eliot and Her Two Great Novels | 76 |
| Adam Bede and The Mill on the Floss—Her Early Stories Are Rich in Character Sketches, With Much Humor and Pathos. | |
| Ruskin, the Apostle of Art | 87 |
| Art Critic and Social Reformer—Best Books Are Modern Painters, The Seven Lamps and The Stones of Venice. | |
| Tennyson Leads the Victorian Writers | 96 |
| A Poet Who Voiced the Aspirations of His Age—Locksley Hall, In Memoriam and The Idylls of the King Among His Best Works. | |
| Browning, Greatest Poet Since Shakespeare | 106 |
| How to Get the Best of Browning's Poems—Read the Lyrics First and Then Take Up the Longer and the More Difficult Works. | |
| Meredith and a Few of His Best Novels | 115 |
| One of the Greatest Masters of Fiction of the Last Century—The Ordeal of Richard Feverel, Diana of the Crossways and Other Novels. | |
| Stevenson, Prince of Modern Story-Tellers | 123 |
| His Stories of Adventure and Brilliant Essays—Treasure Island and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde His Most Popular Books. | |
| Thomas Hardy; His Tragic Tales of Wessex | 131 |
| Greatest Living Writer of English Fiction—Resenting Harsh Criticisms, the Prose Master Turns to Verse. | |
| Kipling's Best Short Stories and Poems | 140 |
| Tales of East Indian Life and Character—Ideal Training of the Genius That Has Produced Some of the Best Literary Work of Our Day. | |
| Bibliography | 151 |
| Short Notes of Both Standard and Other Editions, With Lives, Sketches and Reminiscences. | |
| Index | 165 |
