Jerry

Webster, Jean, 1876-1916Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.5

Word count: 218K words
Chapters: 22

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.Jerry by Jean WebsterAuthor: Webster, Jean, 1876-1916,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: Jan 14, 2007

Editor's review

Jerry is a light-hearted novel by Jean Webster beyond Daddy-Long-Legs, continuing her forte of young women's growth and European travel. The story revolves around the protagonist's experiences and emotions in a foreign environment, with a humorous tone and lively dialogue; characters often advance the plot through letters or everyday conversation, making it an easy yet observant read. Webster excels at capturing young women's wavering between traditional expectations and self-choice, and this book also shows her gentle satire on travel, social life, and family relations. As a Project Gutenberg public-domain eBook, it preserves the original English text, suitable as leisure reading for English light novels and for readers studying early twentieth-century American popular literature. When reading, pay attention to differences in narrative perspective and character language, and appreciate how the author shapes personality through everyday details; reading it alongside Daddy-Long-Legs reveals Webster's enduring interest in girls' narratives.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers who enjoyed Daddy-Long-Legs and want to read more by Webster
Middle school or college students looking for light English original reading
Readers interested in early twentieth-century American popular fiction
Learners who need short English novels for extensive reading practice

Not a good fit for

Readers who prefer serious literature or strong plot conflicts
English beginners who need detailed annotations and vocabulary lists

Reading tips

Use it as extensive reading material, read one or two chapters a day, keep a steady pace, and don't look up every word.
While reading, notice differences in the tone of characters' dialogue; you can excerpt favorite sentences for spoken English practice.
If interested, read it alongside Daddy-Long-Legs and compare the girl characters and narrative styles in the two works.

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 Jerry similar in style to Daddy-Long-Legs?

Both belong to Webster's light-hearted girls' narratives, with humorous language and rich everyday details, but Jerry is not mainly epistolary, and its plot and character setup differ; it can be seen as another independent work in the same author's vein.

Can I read this novel if my English is average?

The novel's language is fairly everyday and sentences are not long, suitable for extensive reading by learners with some foundation. If your vocabulary is limited, consider reading a Chinese translation first to understand the plot, then return to the original and use context to guess words and keep reading.

Does this edition have annotations or an introduction?

The Project Gutenberg edition mainly provides the public-domain original text and usually does not include detailed annotations or an introduction. If you need background material, you can look up the author's biography and introductions to early twentieth-century American society and culture.

Comments

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About the author

Webster, Jean, 1876-1916 Author

Jean Webster (1876–1916) was an American author. Public information about her education, awards and specific life experiences is limited; what can be confirmed is chiefly her literary output. Sixteen of her works are held in this collection, including Daddy-Long-Legs, Dear Enemy, Jerry, and Setä Pitkäsääri, Vadertje Langbeen, Het John Grier Home, Much Ado About Peter and Paras vihollinen, several of which are different-language versions of the same titles. Her writing often uses the epistolary form and a light, humorous tone, focusing on orphanages, the growth of young women and education, with lively dialogue and gentle social concern. Daddy-Long-Legs is her most widely circulated work and the one for which later readers remember her.