E. K. Means

Means, E. K. (Eldred Kurtz), 1878-1957Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

2.3

Word count: 509K words
Chapters: 51

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.E. K. Means by E. K. MeansAuthor: Means, E. K. (Eldred Kurtz), 1878-1957,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: Mar 24, 2019

Editor's review

This is a public-domain electronic edition of the collected works of Eldred Kurtz Means, an American author, classified under American and Canadian literature. Means is known for depicting rural Southern life and local characters; his narratives often carry colloquial humor and gentle satire, with lively dialogue and strong local color. The book serves as a sample for understanding early twentieth-century American popular literature and Southern narrative, and is useful for those studying regional literature, folk speech, and short-story structure. Readers need not look for strong dramatic plotting; it is better appreciated for the narrator's voice, character types, and period context. As a public-domain reset e-book, it is plainly formatted and lacks a modern editor's introduction, so readers must supply their own background on the author and Southern literature. It is not for readers seeking the fast pace of contemporary bestsellers, nor should its character portrayals be taken directly as conclusions about social history. It is best entered selectively: begin with shorter, tightly focused pieces to feel the rhythm of the language, then expand.

Who it's for

A good fit for

American literature enthusiasts who want to learn about early twentieth-century Southern regional narrative and popular short fiction
Readers studying dialect writing and the humor tradition who need textual samples
Readers who enjoy slow-paced character sketches and do not require strong plot
Teachers who need public-domain English texts for language or literature course materials

Not a good fit for

Readers expecting modern urban themes or strong suspense plots
Beginners unaccustomed to English dialect spelling and colloquial narrative
Researchers hoping for an author biography and detailed annotations

Reading tips

Read one or two short pieces first to get a feel for the narrative voice, then decide whether to read the whole book.
Do not agonize over dialect spelling; grasp the character's tone and the scene's atmosphere first.
Learn some background on Southern American literature and local-color writing before reading for smoother understanding.
Read this book alongside short stories by Southern contemporaries to observe similarities and differences in narrative tradition.

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

What kind of work is this book?

It is a collection by Eldred Kurtz Means, belonging to American literature, mainly short narratives and local character sketches with colloquial humor and Southern local color; it is not a novel.

Do I need to know Southern American history to read it?

Not necessarily, but background knowledge makes it easier to understand character relationships and narrative tone. It is advisable to first learn the basic features of early twentieth-century rural Southern society and local-color literature before entering the text.

How difficult is the English?

The text contains a lot of colloquial dialogue and dialect spelling, which is somewhat difficult for non-native readers. It is advisable to read narrative passages first to grasp the plot, then return to dialect expressions in dialogue without checking every word.

Does the electronic edition have annotations and an introduction?

Project Gutenberg public-domain e-books usually provide only the text, lacking modern editorial notes and an introduction. Readers who need the author's biography, work background, and textual collation information should consult literary history materials or scholarly editions separately.

Comments

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About the author

Means, E. K. (Eldred Kurtz), 1878-1957 Author

E. K. Means (Eldred Kurtz Means, 1878–1957) is an author about whom little biographical information survives. Only two of his works are currently held in the library, the representative titles being More E. K. Means and E. K. Means. Because public information is limited, details of his nationality, education, career, and writing life cannot be confirmed, and this introduction makes no speculative additions. Judging from the available bibliographic records, his works were published under his personal name, with titles that directly use the author's name and its continuation, giving them a certain recognizability among comparable books. Such naming is often found in volumes centered on an author, suggesting that the contents may relate to the author's own observations, essays, or narrative writing, though the specific subject matter and genre would require further examination of the original books. On the present evidence, his writing style and influence cannot be adequately assessed, and readers may learn more from the two works held in the library.