Perez the Mouse

Luis Coloma RoldánProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.2

Word count: 19K words
Chapters: 2

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.Perez the Mouse by Luis ColomaAuthor: Coloma, Luis, 1851-1915,Language: English, Class: PZ: Language and Literatures: Juvenile belles lettres, Release Date: Jul 18, 2009

Editor's review

Perez the Mouse is a classic children's story by the Spanish author Luis Coloma. This English public-domain eBook from Project Gutenberg opens a window for Chinese readers onto late nineteenth-century Spanish children's literature. Centered on a little mouse named Perez, the story follows his adventures and encounters in simple language and lively imagination, rich in fairy-tale color and moral instruction. Its value as a public-domain eBook lies in being free, easily accessible, and complete, making it suitable as introductory extensive reading for English learners and as a sample of early Spanish fairy tales for researchers of children's literature. Readers need not look for complex or profound plotting, but should note the folk-tale tradition in the narrative voice and how the author uses animal figures to convey expectations about children's character. For those who want easy access to a foreign classic fairy tale, or a short English book for children, it is a light and practical choice.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Parents and teachers looking for short English fairy tales for children
English beginners who want to try extensive reading of public-domain classics
Researchers interested in Spanish children's literature and the fairy-tale tradition
General readers who enjoy animal fables and prefer light reading

Not a good fit for

Adult fiction readers seeking complex plots and strong dramatic conflict
Readers who need a modern Chinese translation and do not want to read the English original
Academic readers expecting a long series or in-depth literary analysis

Reading tips

Read through once to grasp the plot, then pick out dialogue passages for English reading-aloud practice.
Parents can read a short section to their children each night and ask them to retell Perez's experiences afterward.
Keep a notebook to record recurring animal figures and moral expressions, building up common fairy-tale phrasing.
For research, compare with European fairy tales of the same period to examine the narrative function of animal protagonists.

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 suitable for readers with limited English?

The story is short and the language relatively simple, suitable for readers with basic English reading ability. If vocabulary is limited, read paragraph by paragraph with a dictionary, focus on the plot, and do not worry about every new word; the overall difficulty is lower than that of a full-length English novel.

Is this a Chinese translation or the English original?

This is an English public-domain eBook released by Project Gutenberg; the text is in English, not a Chinese translation. Chinese readers can use it as English reading material or rely on辅助 tools to understand the content.

What age of children is the story suitable for?

Given its subject and length, it is better suited to children in the lower and middle primary grades who have begun learning English, and can be read with parents. Younger children should mainly listen and imagine from pictures rather than be expected to finish it independently.

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About the author

Luis Coloma Roldán Author · Spanish · 1851–1915

Luis Coloma Roldán (1851–1915) was a Spanish writer, journalist, and Jesuit, born in Jerez de la Frontera and died in Madrid. He is best known for his children's literature; his tale of Ratón Pérez (Perez the Mouse) became a beloved figure in the Spanish-speaking world. His novel Pequeñeces is noted for its social satire, while his biography Jeromín reflects his interest in historical figures. He also wrote The Story of Don John of Austria. In 1908 he was elected a member of the Royal Spanish Academy, a testament to his standing in the literary world. The library holds four of his works, including Chinese translations of the above-mentioned children's story and biography.