Maruja

Harte, Bret, 1836-1902Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.1

Word count: 241K words
Chapters: 25

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. Maruja by Bret Harte. Author: Harte, Bret, 1836-1902. Language: English. Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature. Release Date: May 1, 2000

Editor's review

Maruja is a novel by Bret Harte, published as part of Project Gutenberg's free eBook program. Harte is known for his depictions of life in the American West, and this work continues his interest in regional atmosphere and human fate. As a public-domain eBook, its value lies in giving readers low-cost access to a strand of nineteenth-century American literature that is often overlooked: it is neither as polished as the canonical literature of the East nor merely an adventure story, but rather uses plot development to bring out local color and observations of human nature. It need not be read as a classic; it is better approached as an entry point into the tradition of American Western narrative. The English original is moderate in length, its language bears the marks of its era, and it suits reading in short sessions; it can also be read alongside Harte's other Western works to appreciate the common features of his narrative rhythm and characterization.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers who want low-cost access to nineteenth-century American literature in the original
Readers interested in American Western fiction and regional narrative
People with a basic grounding in English who are willing to read public-domain eBooks
Self-learners who need short, segmented reading material

Not a good fit for

Readers looking for a Chinese translation or a bilingual edition
Readers who prefer fast-paced contemporary narrative and have little patience for older styles
Readers with weak English who need annotations to get through the original

Reading tips

Read the opening chapters first to gauge the style and pace, then decide whether to read the whole book.
Keep pen and paper to note character relationships and avoid confusion over names and old-fashioned expressions.
Read alongside other public-domain Western novels and compare narrative differences.
Read one chapter at a fixed time each day, using a dictionary tool for unfamiliar expressions.

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 information, the book is an English-language work by Bret Harte, released as an eBook by Project Gutenberg with the language marked as English. Readers need English reading ability; the information provides no Chinese translation.

Why does the publication information list Project Gutenberg?

Project Gutenberg was an early provider of free eBooks, founded by Michael Hart in 1971. The information shows that it released this book, with the year marked as 2019; this is a public-domain eBook re-release, not a traditional commercial press print book.

Can someone without English basics read this book?

Not really recommended. The information states that the book is in English and is the work of a nineteenth-century author, whose style and wording bear the marks of the era. Readers with weak English will face considerable difficulty; they might first look for a Chinese translation, or read gradually with the help of dictionaries and辅助 tools.

Comments

Find this book

This site is an index: you start “Search all sources” in your browser, and the entries it lists all point to third-party sites; please judge their availability yourself.

About the author

Harte, Bret, 1836-1902 Author

Bret Harte (1836-1902) was an American writer best known for his stories of life during the California Gold Rush. He portrayed the varied characters of mining towns with a style that blends humor, sentiment, and realism, often using unexpected turns to reveal both the warmth and the absurdity of human nature. The collection here includes sixty-three of his works, among them The Luck of Roaring Camp and Other Tales, Tennessee's Partner, Frontier Stories, Selected Stories of Bret Harte, East and West: Poems, Salomy Jane, and the Complete Poetical Works, covering both short fiction and poetry. These works draw largely on the everyday life and legends of the western frontier and have influenced later American Western literature. Public information on his life and education is limited, so no conjecture is offered here.