Popular American essayist, novelist, and journalist CHARLES DUDLEY WARNER (1829-1900) was renowned for the warmth and intimacy of his writing, which encompassed travelogue, biography and autobiography, fiction, and more, and influenced entire generations of his fellow writers. Here, the prolific writer turned editor for his final grand work, a splendid survey of global literature, classic and modern, and it's not too much to suggest that if his friend and colleague Mark Twain-who stole Warner's quip about how "everybody complains about the weather, but nobody does anything about it"-had assembled this set, it would still be hailed today as one of the great achievements of the book world.
Volume 42 is Part One of a dictionary of authors-from Alexis Aar to Juvenal-that serves as a handy, condensed reference to the authors quoted in the first 40 volumes, as well as a guide to thousands more authors whose works are notable but not featured in this set.