Loaded Dice

Ellery Harding ClarkProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

2.6

Word count: 430K words
Chapters: 43

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.Loaded Dice by Ellery H. ClarkAuthor: Clark, Ellery H. (Ellery Harding), 1874-1949,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: Jan 2, 2012

Editor's review

Loaded Dice is a novel by Ellery H. Clark, available free to readers as a public-domain eBook from Project Gutenberg. Clark lived from 1874 to 1949, and his writing spans the late nineteenth to the first half of the twentieth century, carrying the narrative rhythm and language style of American literature of that era. The book is classified under American and Canadian literature and suits readers interested in early American fiction and public-domain literary resources. Project Gutenberg was founded by Michael Hart in 1971 and was the world's first provider of free electronic books—a background that gives the book not only literary value but also significance as a sample for studying the history of digital humanities and open-access publishing. When reading, consult the English original and pay attention to period-specific wording and plot devices; don't judge its pacing by the standards of contemporary genre fiction. For readers studying popular narrative or doing extensive English reading, this is a lightweight and freely accessible text.

Who it's for

A good fit for

English-language readers interested in early American fiction and public-domain literature
Learners who want to use free eBooks for extensive English reading
Researchers interested in Project Gutenberg and the history of digital publishing
Readers who want to understand the popular narrative style of the first half of the twentieth century

Not a good fit for

Readers who need a Chinese translation or a bilingual edition
Readers who prefer fast-paced contemporary genre fiction
Beginners who find reading the English original too difficult

Reading tips

Read the opening chapters first to gauge the narrative pace and language difficulty, then decide whether to read closely or extensively.
Read with an English dictionary at hand and note unfamiliar words and expressions from the historical context.
Use it as a sample of a Project Gutenberg public-domain book and learn about the history of the eBook project along the way.
If used in a class or reading group, design discussion questions around the historical background and narrative techniques.

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 in Chinese or English?

According to the source, the book is in English, falls under American and Canadian literature, and is released as a free eBook by Project Gutenberg. Chinese readers need some English reading ability; the source does not indicate that a Chinese translation is available.

What is Project Gutenberg?

Project Gutenberg is the earliest project to provide free eBooks. It was founded by Michael Hart in 1971, and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies. This book is one of the public-domain eBooks released by the project.

Do I need to know the author's biography to read this book?

Not necessarily. The source only indicates that the author is Ellery H. Clark (1874–1949) and provides no further biographical details. Readers can start directly with the text; those who want a deeper understanding of the historical background can consult reliable literary histories separately.

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About the author

Ellery Harding Clark Author · American · 1874–1949

Ellery Harding Clark (1874–1949) was an American writer, lawyer, and athlete. A Harvard graduate, he won both the high jump and the long jump at the first modern Olympic Games in Athens in 1896, and later served as a track coach, teacher, and Boston city councillor. He wrote in his spare time, leaving about 19 works, four of which are held in this collection: The Carleton Case, The Money Gods, Loaded Dice, and Dick Randall, the Young Athlete. His fiction draws heavily on sports but also touches on law and business, with plots built around suspense and the predicaments of his characters; the prose is plain and readable, combining popular appeal with a documentary sense of the period. Public information is limited, so his creative career and influence await further study, yet these works already reflect a distinctive voice that fuses an athlete's keen observation with a lawyer's rigorous thinking.