Legends That Every Child Should Know: A Selection of the Great Legends of All

Hamilton Wright MabieProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

Rating 3.5
Word count
417K words
Chapters
42

Tags

English Originals Folk LiteratureChildren's Literature Heroic LegendFantasy ImaginationMoral InstructionStory CollectionPopular NarrativeWorld MythologyFolk LegendCross-Cultural ViewParent-Child ReadingYouth Reading

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.Legends That Every Child Should Know; a Selection of the Great Legends of AllAuthor: Mabie, Hamilton Wright, 1846-1916,Language: English, Class: PZ: Language and Literatures: Juvenile belles lettres, Release Date: Oct 1, 2004

Editor's review

This collection of legends, compiled by the American educator and essayist Hamilton Wright Mabie, is a classic title in Project Gutenberg's catalogue of free public-domain ebooks, offering a selection of great legends from around the world for young readers. Its value lies not in a novel edition or scholarly apparatus but in clear, restrained English retellings shaped for young readers, combining storytelling with cultural introduction. As a public-domain electronic text, it is easy to search, cite and distribute in class, and suits family reading aloud or as an entry point for English learners encountering traditional narrative. Read it as cultural background rather than scholarship: read the stories through first, then note the thematic echoes among them, using a map or timeline for context. Editorial note: layout and annotations may vary between electronic editions; choose a well-proofread version and adjust how you read aloud to the child's age, and do not treat the stories as the sole historical record.

Who it's for

A good fit for

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Reading tips

  1. Read the table of contents first; group the stories by region or theme and read one or two at a time, briefly retelling each.
  2. When reading together, summarize in Chinese first, then compare with the English text and discuss shared themes.
  3. Keep a world map at hand and mark each legend's region after reading it to build a sense of place.
  4. Note any puzzling plot points and check reliable notes or introductions later; do not treat the stories as historical fact.

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.

Contents

  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4
  5. 5
  6. 6
  7. 7
  8. 8
  9. 9
  10. 10
  11. 11
  12. 12
  13. 13
  14. 14
  15. 15
  16. 16
  17. 17
  18. 18
  19. 19
  20. 20
  21. 21
  22. 22
  23. 23
  24. 24
  25. 25
  26. 26
  27. 27
  28. 28
  29. 29
  30. 30
  31. 31
  32. 32
  33. 33
  34. 34
  35. 35
  36. 36
  37. 37
  38. 38
  39. 39
  40. 40
  41. 41
  42. 42

FAQ

What age is this book suitable for? The material does not specify an age. Generally, it suits children who can read short English stories independently, with a parent or teacher nearby; younger children are better served by an adult retelling the gist in Chinese first and gradually introducing the English text.
What are the features of the Project Gutenberg edition? Project Gutenberg is a provider of free ebooks, and this book is one of its public-domain electronic texts. Its advantages are easy access, searching and citation; readers should note that layout and proofreading quality may differ between editions from different sources.
Are the legends in this book true history? Legends are traditional narratives that often blend historical memory with imagination and should not be taken as strict fact. Read them as a window into cultural ideas, and consult reliable historical sources for specific historical questions.
Can I read it without any English? You can approach the stories through translations or an adult's retelling, but the main text is in English. To read the original directly, basic English reading ability is recommended, along with a dictionary and introductory notes.

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About the author

Hamilton Wright Mabie Author · American · 1846–1916

Hamilton Wright Mabie (1846–1916) was an American essayist, editor, critic, and lecturer, born in 1846 in Cold Spring, New York. From 1879 he served for many years as editor of the weekly The Christian Union, later renamed The Outlook, and wrote several collections of essays on literature and culture, such as Books and Culture and Essays on Work and Culture. He also edited the "Every Child Should Know" series, including Heroes Every Child Should Know and Legends That Every Child Should Know, which introduced classic stories and heroic figures to young readers. The library holds nine of his works, including three numbers of The Mentor on American novelists, American pioneer prose writers, and Walter Scott. He died in 1916 in Summit, New Jersey.