Cressy

Harte, Bret, 1836-1902Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.0

Word count: 316K words
Chapters: 32

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Cressy by Bret HarteAuthor: Harte, Bret, 1836-1902,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: Mar 27, 2006

Editor's review

Cressy is a full-length work by Bret Harte, an author known for writing about the American West, and this book carries his characteristic local color and sense of a varied cast of characters. The story revolves around the relationships and daily life of people in a frontier community, touching on themes such as emotional choices, community opinion, and personal circumstances. The narrative offers both light sketches of social manners and observations on the warmth and coldness of human relations. As an English public-domain eBook provided by Project Gutenberg, it suits readers interested in American Western literature, nineteenth-century American fiction, and regional narrative. Readers should not expect tight adventure plotting; it is better approached as a genre painting of frontier society, with attention to character interactions and the author's mildly humorous tone. The length is moderate and the chapters proceed at a gentle pace, making it one of the accessible entry points for understanding Harte's narrative style.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers interested in literature about the American West
Readers who want to understand Bret Harte's narrative style
Those who enjoy regional customs and group portraits of characters
Readers with some English proficiency willing to read public-domain originals

Not a good fit for

Readers expecting high-density action and adventure plots
Those unaccustomed to the pacing of nineteenth-century English novels
Beginner readers who want a Chinese translation and prefer not to look up words

Reading tips

Learn the background of the frontier community where the story takes place before entering the character relationships; reading will be smoother.
Proceed chapter by chapter and pay attention to characters' casual talk and public opinion, as these passages often carry key information.
Treat the book as a sample of Harte's western narrative; do not rush toward a plot climax.
When reading in English, skip over regional expressions at first and return to the context after finishing the chapter.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is Cressy an English original?

Yes, this is an English public-domain eBook released by Project Gutenberg, with the main text in English. It suits readers with some English reading ability who wish to engage with the original.

Is this a typical Western adventure novel?

Not entirely. Harte's works often focus on the relationships and customs of frontier communities rather than continuous adventure action. This book is closer to regional narrative, and readers should pay attention to character interactions and the social atmosphere.

Do I need to read other works by Harte first?

No. This book can be read independently and does not depend on the plots of other works. If you have read other Western stories by Harte first, it will be easier to become familiar with his narrative voice and thematic preferences.

What is the reading experience of the public-domain electronic edition like?

Public-domain eBooks are often plain text with simple formatting, and chapter markers and paragraph formats may be less refined than commercial editions. It is advisable to use reading software with adjustable font size and to use bookmarks to record your reading position.

Comments

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About the author

Harte, Bret, 1836-1902 Author

Bret Harte (1836-1902) was an American writer best known for his stories of life during the California Gold Rush. He portrayed the varied characters of mining towns with a style that blends humor, sentiment, and realism, often using unexpected turns to reveal both the warmth and the absurdity of human nature. The collection here includes sixty-three of his works, among them The Luck of Roaring Camp and Other Tales, Tennessee's Partner, Frontier Stories, Selected Stories of Bret Harte, East and West: Poems, Salomy Jane, and the Complete Poetical Works, covering both short fiction and poetry. These works draw largely on the everyday life and legends of the western frontier and have influenced later American Western literature. Public information on his life and education is limited, so no conjecture is offered here.