Henry David Thoreau (1817-62) was born in Concord, Massachusetts and educated at Harvard. He became a follower and a friend of Emerson, and described himself as a mystic and a transcendentalist. Although he published only two books in his lifetime, Walden (from which this book is taken) is regarded as a literary masterpeice and one of the most significant books of the 19th century.

• Walden and Civil Disobedience - Henry David Thoreau Introduction by Michael MeyerSuggestions for Further ReadingA Note on the TextsWaldenEconomyWhere I Lived, and What I Lived ForReadingSoundsSolitudeVisitorsThe Bean-FieldThe VillageThe PondsBaker FarmHigher LawsBrute NeighborsHouse-WarmingFormer Inhabitants; and Winter VisitorsWinter AnimalsThe Pond in WinterSpringConclusion"Civil Disobedience"Notes for WaldenNotes for "Civil Disobedience"