Divided Skates

Raymond, Evelyn, 1843-1910Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

2.5

Word count: 141K words
Chapters: 15

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. Divided Skates by Evelyn Raymond. Author: Raymond, Evelyn, 1843-1910. Language: English. Class: PZ: Language and Literatures: Juvenile belles lettres. Release Date: May 11, 2009

Editor's review

Evelyn Raymond was an author of juvenile fiction in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, and Divided Skates belongs to the category of juvenile literature. Its plot revolves around the specific object of ice skates and has the typical appeal of family and coming-of-age stories of that era. The electronic reprint preserves the original language and chapter structure, and its length makes it suitable as light reading material in the original English. Its value lies in presenting the narrative rhythm of early juvenile fiction: a clear moral and educational intent, clear character relationships, and events driven by everyday details rather than strong suspense. For readers studying the history of children's literature or those who want to practice reading long English works, it can serve as a transitional text; those expecting modern pacing and complex characters will need to adjust their expectations. It is best viewed within the context of English juvenile literature, with attention to gender roles and family values of the period.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Researchers of children's and young adult literature interested in early English juvenile fiction as a sample
Intermediate English learners who want to practice reading long works in the original English
Readers interested in family and coming-of-age stories of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries

Not a good fit for

Contemporary fiction readers seeking strong plots, fast pacing, or complex character arcs
Readers hoping for a Chinese translation or a bilingual edition
Adult readers who are put off by the moralizing tone of an older era

Reading tips

Read the first two chapters first to check the language difficulty, then decide whether to read closely or extensively; there is no need to look up every word.
After each chapter, summarize the events and character relationships in one sentence to maintain continuity in a long read.
Pay attention to the function of the skates as an object in the plot, and to how family and peer relationships drive the story.
If using it for English study, excerpt dialogue and scene descriptions and imitate their narrative sentence patterns in short writing exercises.

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 this book suitable for English beginners?

Not really for complete beginners or elementary learners. The original is an English juvenile novel of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, and its sentence patterns and vocabulary bear the marks of the period. It is advisable to try it after reaching an intermediate reading level, with a dictionary and chapter summaries at hand.

Is the story centered on an ice-skating competition?

It cannot simply be summarized as an ice-skating competition story. The information only shows that it is juvenile literature and uses ice skates as a thread; the specific plot needs to be confirmed by reading the original. Readers should regard it as a family and coming-of-age narrative set in its period, not a sports competition novel.

Does the electronic edition include illustrations or an introduction?

This entry is a Project Gutenberg electronic reprint, and the information does not state whether it includes illustrations or a modern introduction. What readers get should be an electronic presentation of the original text; before reading, they may look up background information on the author and the work as a supplement.

Comments

Find this book

This site is an index: you start “Search all sources” in your browser, and the entries it lists all point to third-party sites; please judge their availability yourself.

About the author

Raymond, Evelyn, 1843-1910 Author

Evelyn Raymond (1843–1910) was an English-language children's author active in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Public information about her life is limited, and her nationality and educational background are not reliably documented. The collection here holds 17 of her works, mainly coming-of-age and family stories set in contexts such as mill work, forest settlement and Western ranches. Representative titles include Reels and Spindles: A Story of Mill Life, A Daughter of the Forest, Jessica Trent: Her Life on a Ranch and The Sun Maid: A Story of Fort Dearborn. Her narratives typically follow young protagonists who achieve self-reliance and moral growth amid hardship, in a bright tone grounded in everyday labor and rural settings, and are suited to young readers.