The Challoners

Benson, E. F. (Edward Frederic), 1867-1940Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.4

Word count: 533K words
Chapters: 54

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.The Challoners by E. F. BensonAuthor: Benson, E. F. (Edward Frederic), 1867-1940,Language: English, Class: PR: Language and Literatures: English literature, Release Date: Apr 19, 2018

Editor's review

The Challoners is a novel by E. F. Benson, part of his social and domestic fiction aimed at adult readers. Benson is known for his fine observation and unhurried tone, and this work likewise turns its lens on the relational tensions within a family: the expectations, misunderstandings, and emotional pulls among its members drive the narrative, while the wider social setting acts as a mirror reflecting the class and attitude behind their choices. Its pleasure lies not in strong plot but in the poise of dialogue and psychological description, suited to readers willing to read slowly and savor an English narrative rhythm. The Project Gutenberg edition makes it easy to trace characters and revisit chapters, and serves as an accessible sample of early twentieth-century English fiction. A caution: the work's period context is distant from today's readers, and some social attitudes need to be understood with historical awareness.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers who enjoy English domestic fiction and delicate psychological description
Literature lovers curious about early twentieth-century English society and family attitudes
Readers accustomed to English originals who prefer a slow-paced narrative
Teachers and students needing a Benson title for an English literature course

Not a good fit for

Genre-fiction readers seeking strong plot, fast pace, and suspenseful twists
Readers hoping for clear social critique or radical positions
Readers with little English reading experience who find long sentences and old-fashioned expression hard going

Reading tips

Chart the family relationships first; keep a character list as you read to avoid confusing forms of address and identities.
Read the dialogue passages slowly; Benson's poise lies largely in tone and what is left unsaid.
At points of social conflict, place them back in the early twentieth-century context before judging them by today's standards.
If the English is hard going, read a chapter of a Chinese translation or a synopsis first to build a frame, then return to the original for close reading.

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 very different in style from Benson's ghost stories?

Markedly different. Benson is famous for his ghost stories, but The Challoners takes the domestic and social route, centered on relationships, dialogue, and psychological nuance rather than an atmosphere of horror. If you expect supernatural thrills, you may find it placid; if you like English domestic narrative, it will suit you better.

Do I need to know British history first to read this book?

No systematic preparation is required, but some familiarity with early twentieth-century English family structure, class manners, and gender roles will make the characters' choices and hesitations easier to understand. If you are entirely unfamiliar, watch for forms of address and social occasions in the dialogue; they often reveal the rules of the period directly.

Is it a good entry choice for reading English originals?

It suits readers with some experience of English fiction; it is rather hard for beginners. Its sentences tend to be long, its narration unhurried, and its period vocabulary takes getting used to. Try a page or two first; if unfamiliar words on every page obstruct the main line of understanding, use a Chinese translation or a bilingual edition to form an overall impression first.

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About the author

Benson, E. F. (Edward Frederic), 1867-1940 Author

E. F. Benson (full name Edward Frederic Benson, 1867–1940) was a British writer, though public information about his life and nationality available in our records is limited. The collection holds 42 of his works, spanning a wide range of subjects: social comedies such as Queen Lucia and Miss Mapp, satirical sketches such as The Freaks of Mayfair, and novels including Scarlet and Hyssop, The Relentless City, The Angel of Pain and An Autumn Sowing. His writing is marked by witty dialogue and gentle satire, and he excelled at portraying comic figures in provincial towns and upper-class social circles. Light in tone and neatly constructed, his work has a distinctive place in early twentieth-century British popular fiction and is still enjoyed by readers today.