A Study in Scarlet by Arthur Conan Doyle chapter 8 On The Great Alkali Plain by Isaac Birchall Subscribe on YT or Join the Book Club on Patreon and support me as an independent creator :D https://ko-fi.com/theessentialreads https://www.patreon.com/theessentialreads https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfOFfvo05ElM96CmfsGsu3g/join SUMMARY: Part 2 opens on a Dry desert in the state of Utah in 1847. A starving, parched man appears on a mountain hoping to spot some water. Finding none, he sits down and lays his sack on the dirt where a little girl falls out. The man tells her that everyone that was in their party died on their journey through the desert, and now they will probably die too. The girl prays and seems to be happy about seeing her mother again. The man and the girl fall asleep and shortly afterwards a huge caravan of travelers and wagons appear on the plain below them. A young man spies a pink ribbon fluttering in the air and a group goes to investigate, where they find the girl and man. The man awakens and introduces himself as John Ferrier, he claims the girl as his adopted daughter, and then men take them to their caravan. Ferrier realises that they are Mormons, fleeing persecutions in their old home state. Brigham Young, their elder, offers Ferrier and his daughter refuge, provided that they learn, and adopt the Mormon testaments.

The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde chapter 4, narrated by Isaac Birchall Subscribe on YT or Join the Book Club on Patreon and support me as an independent creator :D https://ko-fi.com/theessentialreads https://www.patreon.com/theessentialreads https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfOFfvo05ElM96CmfsGsu3g/join SUMMARY: A month goes by, Dorian has grown closer to Lord Henry. He is waiting for him to come home, and discusses music with Lord Henry's wife, Victoria. When his friend finally comes home, Dorian eagerly tells him that he has fallen in love. The girl, called Sibyl Vane, is an actress who plays all of Shakespeare's heroines in cheap London theatre. Dorian goes to explain that he came upon the place while acting on Lord Henry's advice to "know everything about life." Despite the look of the place, he felt compelled to go in, and found everything to be foul except for Sibyl, who instantly charmed him. Several trips to the theatre later, the foul owner asked Dorian if he wished to meet Sibyl, who was charmed by the attentions of such a handsome gentleman. She refers to him as Prince Charming. Amused by this development, Lord Henry agrees to go to the theatre with Dorian the next day to see the girl play in Romeo and Juliet. Basil is to join them, and has also sent his portrait to Dorian. After leaving, Lord Henry muses on his influence over the boy, fascinated at the psychology of other human beings. He then dresses and goes out to dine. He comes home late to find a telegram from Dorian announcing his engagement to Sibyl Vane.

The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde chapter 3, narrated by Isaac Birchall Subscribe on YT or Join the Book Club on Patreon and support me as an independent creator :D https://ko-fi.com/theessentialreads https://www.patreon.com/theessentialreads https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfOFfvo05ElM96CmfsGsu3g/join SUMMARY: Soon after he meets Dorian Gray, Lord Henry visits his uncle, Lord Fermor, to see what he can tell him about Dorian's history and family. Fermor describes how beautiful Dorian's mother was, and goes on to tell a gruesome tale of hitman for hire when Dorian's mother ran off with a pauper instead of a noble. Dorian's mother was then taken back to live with her father, and very shortly after Dorian's birth she passed away, leaving Dorian to be raised by a loveless guardian. With a fantastic story of tragedy behind him, lord henry becomes even more interested in the boy, and finds some delight in the idea that he could study and manipulate the mind of the boy. Shortly after, Lord Henry heads to his aunt's to dine with Dorian and several other London elites. During the mean Lord Henry bewitches the group with theories of virtues and hedonism and selfishness, saying "I can sympathise with everything except suffering." He goes on to declare that life should be spent appreciating beauty and seeking out pleasures instead of looking for ways to relieve pain. Dorian is fascinated with Lord Henry's words, and leaves the group with him and cancels his plans to meet Basil.