A Literary Selection from Popular Fiction Books

By Matt Gailliot

About the Book
A Literary Selection from Fiction Books contains the most interesting writing author Matt Gailliot could find. Inside, discover several entertaining and pleasurable pieces of writing at your disposal, whether you wish for entertainment, inspiration, or instruction.

About the Author
Matt Gailliot graduated with a Ph.D. in social psychology in 2007 from Florida State University. He ended up getting schizophrenia and his career in psychology didn't work out. He was reading through some books when he started saving good pieces of writing. He eventually had enough for a literary selection which he decided to publish in A Literary Selection from Fiction Books. Gailliot has lived in many places, including Hollywood, Las Vegas, Amsterdam, and New York City. He enjoys skateboarding, music, short film, and science.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Dorrance Publishing Company
• Release date: Mar 3, 2023
• ISBN: 9798885275194

Book preview

Gaillott_Title_Page.eps

The contents of this work, including, but not limited to, the accuracy of events, people, and places depicted; opinions expressed; permission to use previously published materials included; and any advice given or actions advocated are solely the responsibility of the author, who assumes all liability for said work and indemnifies the publisher against any claims stemming from publication of the work.

All Rights Reserved

Copyright © 2023 by Matt Gailliot

No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted, downloaded, distributed, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, including photocopying and recording, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented without permission in writing from the publisher.

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Visit our website at www.dorrancebookstore.com

ISBN: 979-8-8852-7400-5

eISBN: 979-8-8852-7519-4

A Literary Selection

from

Fiction Books

Life is great when you have a good book. I wanted to create a book readers will really enjoy. I wanted to give the general public something really interesting to read. I hope readers will find the selection pleasurable and entertaining.

I was new to the town of Ellensburg, Washington, staying there a few months. I didn’t know anyone there, but I had a few conversations with the owner of the local bookstore. He said I could have some of the books from out back, so I took a look at them. There I found books that had intrigue and seemed interesting. Several of the books I found are included in the selection here. I was looking through a book and found it neat to make some suggestions to the text. I did this a couple more times and started saving the pages, keeping many pages that had the best writing I could find. I got another book and found even more, repeating the process until you have the final selection presented here. It was good to discover a new hobby putting the book together because I had found myself with free time on my hands. I gave the owner an early draft I made before I moved.

 I’ve read several great books in my life. I wanted to show readers what I have known to be really good writing and give the same experiences I had while reading. I’ve read and re-read the selection many times because I like it so much. I had a lot of fun doing the work and learned to be efficient at it. The book presents the writings in a compelling order that highlights their eclectic nature. Readers who have taken a literature class will recognize various literary techniques, including several themes and motifs. I hope my example inspires others to edit passages in a fun and easy way for a hobby or to make their own selection.

Books educate us and teach us about the world. Books bring people together and offer companionship in solitude. They show us other people’s lives and take us into other worlds. Reading is an escape or break from reality, from the stressors and demands of everyday life. Everyone and anyone will enjoy this book. The style of writing is clear and easy to understand, appropriate for a wide range of reading experience. Adults can read it on an airplane, the elderly can read it while sipping lemonade on the porch, and families can enjoy reading it together in the living room.

Books are good for our health and help us keep our sanity. They stir our creativity and the imagination of our minds. There are many good fiction novels, but sometimes it can be tough to find a book that suits you best. I really like the included writings. I wanted to provide more writing to the public that is in this fashion or style.

Self-expression is good for you and feels great. This book motivates people to start writing and shows them how to start writing when they haven’t yet found words to put on paper. The quality and diversity of the writing samples gives early authors something to learn from. Established authors can learn to take up a new style or get some fresh ideas. The reader gains an appreciation for literature, as well as for science, history, religion and other reappearing themes.

The sample is from different books and authors. For the writings especially well liked, the reader may wish to buy the book the writing came from. I think the reader will find more books to read by reading the books I chose to include in the selection. I hope readers use the book as a guide to advance their reading. The book gets people into literature and reading, including people who haven’t read that much before or haven’t particularly found a liking for it yet. I wanted to share my personality with the reader so they could see things my way and share in my opinion of what good writing is - about what is interesting, intelligent, humorous, or even brilliant.

Part One

The Shrouded Walls and The Dark Shore

by Susan Howatch

A Lantern in Her Hand

by Bess Streeter Aldrich

Night Trains

by Barbara Wood and Gareth Wootton

Tell No Man

by Adela Roger’s St. Johns

 Hour of Gold, Hour of Lead

by Anne Morrow Lindbergh

Breaking Out

by Derek Maitland

An Area of Darkness

by V.S. Naipaul

Children of Dune

by Frank Herbert

People of the Book

by Geraldine Brooks

Cereus Blooms at Night

by Shani Mootoo

Texas

by James A. Michener

Smiley’s People

by John le Carre

The Last Mafioso

by Ovid Demaris

Rendezvous with Rama

by Arthur C. Clarke

Thy Father’s House

by Monique Raphel High

The Ordeal of Andy Dean

by Douglas Hirt

The Damnation of Theron Ware

by Harold Frederic

Virginia

by Cathy Mary Hake

That night Sylvester died in his sleep. . . the night of the day of the Feast of the Dead. He would have