Project Gutenberg 2016-05-09 Public domain in the USA. 152 Mackay, William 1846 Unvarnished Tales A queer quest -- The Sawdust man's curse -- Lord Lundy's snuff-box -- "One was rent and left to die" -- The Grigsby living -- Res est sacra miser -- Mr. Grey -- The prodigal's return -- A philanthropic "masher" -- A dishonoured bill -- A man of genius -- A dignified dipsomaniac -- "Old Boots" -- A missing heiress -- Teddy Martin's brief -- Bluebeard's cupboard -- True to poll -- John Philp, master carpenter -- Pictures on the line -- The devil's playthings -- Love and a diary. Transcribed from the 1886 edition by David Price "Unvarnished Tales" by William Mackay is a collection of short stories likely written in the late 19th century. The narratives encompass various characters and situations, reflecting on themes such as human nature and social dynamics, intertwined with elements of satire and humor. The opening portion introduces us to Mr. White, a novelist who, after receiving a lackluster review in the "Times", decides to study human nature to add depth to his characters. Despite his initial enthusiasm, he becomes overwhelmed by the mundanity and brutality of real-life characters, leading to an unsettling experience when these individuals seem to turn the tables and scrutinize him in return. This sets the tone for the series of tales that follow, hinting at a blend of existential exploration and comedic turns that deliver insight into human behavior and societal quirks. (This is an automatically generated summary.) Reading ease score: 71.8 (7th grade). Fairly easy to read. en Fiction Short stories PR Text Category: Short Stories Category: Humour 291247 2025-09-21T03:36:27.587960 text/html 295998 2016-05-09T15:30:42 text/html 164587 2025-09-21T03:36:32.421910 application/epub+zip 163772 2025-09-21T03:36:28.369889 application/epub+zip 146460 2025-09-21T03:36:27.963899 application/epub+zip 265148 2025-09-21T03:36:35.468890 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 224469 2025-09-21T03:36:31.921899 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 209091 2022-09-23T17:52:18.329616 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 255360 2025-09-21T03:36:26.967895 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 255524 2016-05-09T15:27:01 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 18148 2025-09-21T03:36:35.601849 application/rdf+xml 16454 2025-09-21T03:36:28.042882 image/jpeg 2798 2025-09-21T03:36:28.001906 image/jpeg 100647 2016-05-09T15:31:48 application/octet-stream application/zip 145129 2016-05-09T15:31:48 application/octet-stream application/zip 146554 2025-09-21T03:36:27.617910 application/octet-stream application/zip Archives containing the RDF files for *all* our books can be downloaded at https://book.klll.cc/wiki/Gutenberg:Feeds#The_Complete_Project_Gutenberg_Catalog