Much Ado About Peter

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

3.5

Word count: 264K words
Chapters: 27

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.Much Ado About Peter by Jean WebsterAuthor: Webster, Jean, 1876-1916,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: May 22, 2013

Editor's review

This work is a light comic novel by Jean Webster, apart from Daddy-Long-Legs, centering on the character Peter and a series of misunderstandings and coincidences; the plot advances through dialogue and clashes of personality, with a distinctly humorous tone. As a public-domain e-book, its greatest value is that it lets readers encounter early twentieth-century American popular fiction at no cost: family life, social interaction, and young people's emotional confusion are all presented in an easy narrative. The work is not long, its language brisk, and it is suitable as introductory material for reading English originals, as well as for readers studying Webster's style in comparison. Note that this is an English original and was written early, so some expressions and values bear the marks of their time and are best read with a historicizing eye. Overall, it is not a heavy or profound work but an entertaining read for odd moments that will draw a smile.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Intermediate English readers who want to try an English-language novel in an easy way
Readers who like Jean Webster's Daddy-Long-Legs and want to explore more of her work
Literature enthusiasts interested in early twentieth-century American popular fiction and domestic comedy
Office workers who need short, light reading for commuting or bedtime

Not a good fit for

Serious literary readers expecting profound social critique or complex narrative structure
Beginners with weak English who cannot yet read English-language novels independently
Readers sensitive to the era-bound expressions in early works who may feel uncomfortable

Reading tips

Read a chapter or two first to gauge the language difficulty, then decide whether to read closely or extensively, rather than looking up every new word from the start.
Use a Chinese translation or synopsis to clarify the character relationships, then return to the original to appreciate the humor in the dialogue.
Jot down the points where misunderstandings arise and are resolved; reviewing them after finishing will make the author's comic structure clearer.
If using it for English study, extract three to five idiomatic expressions per chapter rather than translating sentence by sentence.

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 related to Daddy-Long-Legs?

Both books are by Jean Webster, but their characters and plots are independent, with no sequel relationship. If you like the brisk, humorous tone of Daddy-Long-Legs, this book is similar in language style and can be read as another work by the same author.

Is the English original difficult to read?

Overall it is the language of popular fiction, with short sentences and much dialogue; intermediate English readers can generally make progress with a dictionary. The main difficulties are early everyday expressions and some period background; words that do not affect the general meaning can be skipped to keep the reading rhythm.

What are the features of the Project Gutenberg edition?

This edition is a free public-domain e-book with English text, easy to obtain on a computer, phone, or e-reader. It does not include a modern publisher's introduction or notes; readers who need background explanation can consult materials on the author and work themselves.

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

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.