Spain, Vol. 2

De Amicis, Edmondo, 1846-1908Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.6

Word count: 386K words
Chapters: 39

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.Spain, v. 2 (of 2) by Edmondo De AmicisAuthor: De Amicis, Edmondo, 1846-1908,Language: English, Class: DP: History: General and Eastern Hemisphere: Spain, Portugal, Release Date: Dec 20, 2015

Editor's review

This is the second volume of the Spanish travelogue by the Italian writer Edmondo De Amicis, released in English as a public-domain text by Project Gutenberg. Unlike a conventional tourist guide, it reads more like the observations of a nineteenth-century traveler: the author records townscapes, courtly ruins, museum collections, and street life in delicate prose, with literary description and personal impressions throughout. Reading it offers both an evocative sense of Spain's history and geography and a glimpse of the travel eye and aesthetic taste of a nineteenth-century European intellectual. As a public-domain ebook, it is easy to search and excerpt, making it a useful supplementary text for courses in cultural history, travel literature, or Spanish studies. Note that the book's perspective carries clear period limitations; some of its comments on local customs should be read as a historical document.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers interested in Spanish history, culture, and urban landscapes
Readers who enjoy nineteenth-century travel literature and richly descriptive writing
Students and teachers of European travel writing or cultural history
Learners who want to practice reading public-domain texts in the original English

Not a good fit for

Readers seeking practical travel tips, transport, or accommodation information
Researchers expecting contemporary perspectives and up-to-date data on Spain
Beginners unaccustomed to nineteenth-century prose and long English sentences

Reading tips

Read Volume One first for a more coherent thread of itinerary and characters.
Keep a map of Spain at hand and mark place names as you read to build a sense of space.
Compare the observations on local customs with present-day conditions, noting the historical gap.
Look up unfamiliar place names and historical figures as you go, and make marginal notes.

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 a travel guide to Spain?

No. It is a travelogue by the nineteenth-century Italian writer De Amicis, focused on personal observation and literary description. It contains none of the practical information modern travelers need—transport, accommodation, prices—and is better read as cultural history and travel literature.

Why is only the second volume available?

The work was originally published in two volumes, and this entry corresponds to Volume Two, which Project Gutenberg released as a separate electronic text. Reading Volume One first is recommended for a more complete account of the itinerary and narrative.

What level of English is needed to read this book?

The text is in public-domain English with long sentences and literary vocabulary; university-level reading ability is advisable. If you only want to follow the content, read it alongside a Chinese translation and focus on the passages describing cities and museums.

Comments

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About the author

De Amicis, Edmondo, 1846-1908 Author

Edmondo De Amicis (1846-1908) was an Italian writer best known to Chinese readers for his children's book Cuore (often translated as The Heart), subtitled "An Italian Schoolboy's Journal." The library holds 19 of his works, including, besides Cuore, the travel books Morocco, Its People and Places, Spain, v. 1, Constantinople, v. 1, Constantinople, v. 2 and Holland, v. 1, as well as the military sketches La vita militare: bozzetti and the Finnish translation Sydän: Kirja nuorisolle. These works draw on school, family, army life and foreign travel, written in a warm, realistic style that stresses feeling and moral education; Cuore is the most widely read and has had a lasting influence among inspirational coming-of-age books. Public information on his life dates and nationality is limited, so such details are omitted here.