Experience

Project GutenbergProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

2.3

Word count: 375K words
Chapters: 38

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.Experience by Catherine CottonAuthor: ,Language: English, Class: PR: Language and Literatures: English literature, Release Date: Jul 8, 2015

Editor's review

This electronic edition contains Catherine Cotton's English novel Experience, a public-domain work of English literature, prepared and released by Project Gutenberg. As one of the earliest representatives of the ebook project, its value lies not only in the text itself but in the way it embodies the lineage of electronic reading since 1971. The work is short, its prose bears the marks of its period, and it serves well as supplementary reading for a sense of English fiction from the late nineteenth to the early twentieth century. As a public-domain electronic text, it has no modern introduction or notes, so readers must enter the narrative on their own terms. It suits readers with an interest in classic English literature who are willing to read lightly on an electronic device, and also those studying the history of public-domain digitization as a sample. Overall, this is not a classic that demands serious study, but a small book to dip into and catch the tone of an older style of storytelling.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers interested in public-domain English literature who want light reading
Those studying the origins of ebooks and Project Gutenberg
Readers used to reading English originals on electronic devices
Those who need short English material for reading practice

Not a good fit for

Beginners expecting modern notes or introductions
Readers who prefer contemporary fast-paced fiction
Those unaccustomed to reading English originals

Reading tips

Read a chapter or two first to get the narrative rhythm before deciding whether to read it through.
Don't pause over unfamiliar expressions; follow the plot first.
Use a dictionary alongside and note old-fashioned English usage as you go.
Treat it as a short read for bedtime or the commute.

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 a complete full-length novel?

From the available information, this is an English literary work by Catherine Cotton, not especially long, and a public-domain electronic text. It has no added introduction such as a modern edition would carry; readers get a relatively plain original, best approached as an old-style English novel rather than expecting an expansive full-length work.

Why is this book connected to Project Gutenberg?

The information shows it was released by Project Gutenberg, an early provider of free ebooks, whose founder Michael Hart created the ebook format in 1971. One significance of this book is therefore that it shows how public-domain works were digitized and distributed free.

What level of English is needed to read this?

The work is an earlier English literary text, and its language habits are distant from contemporary English. Readers with intermediate or higher English reading ability, able to use a dictionary to understand old-fashioned syntax, will find it smoother. Beginners may struggle with vocabulary and sentence structure and should try a sample first.

Comments

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About the author

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Project Gutenberg is not a single author but a nonprofit digital library founded by Michael Hart in 1971 and one of the world's earliest free ebook platforms. It relies on volunteers to digitize, proofread, and freely distribute public-domain works and is now operated by the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Its collection contains 2,692 works, mainly religious texts, epics, and story collections, including the King James Bible and the Douay-Rheims volumes, the epic Mahabharata, a literal translation of the Arabian Nights, and Danish editions of the Old and New Testaments. Public information is limited, and its nature is closer to a public-interest compiling and dissemination body; these texts are open to the public, easy to consult and circulate, and have had a profound influence on the spread of ebooks and the preservation of public-domain resources.