The Cloister and the Hearth: A Tale of the Middle Ages

Reade, Charles, 1814-1884Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

Rating 4.5
Word count
1.5M words
Chapters
155

Tags

English Originals Historical Fiction Historical ReappraisalLegendary LivesFate and FortuneFamily BondsHuman NatureGrowing UpExotic CultureSocial Observation

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 Cloister and the Hearth: A Tale of the Middle Ages by Charles ReadeAuthor: Reade, Charles, 1814-1884,Language: English, Class: PR: Language and Literatures: English literature, Release Date: Feb 16, 2012

Editor's review

Reade's historical novel is set in fifteenth-century Europe and, through the vicissitudes of the protagonist Gerard's life, unfolds a long panorama of medieval towns, monasteries, travel, and domestic life. Its strength lies not in ingenious plotting but in dense detail: guild regulations, religious life, food and daily routines, roads and inns are all woven into the characters' fates, giving a strong sense of immediacy. The novel devotes particular attention to the tension between personal conviction and worldly emotion, and is suitable for readers willing to read slowly and able to appreciate the narrative pace of the Victorian era. As a public-domain e-book, it is easy to carry and read in sections. Note that the language and length pose a certain barrier for modern readers; it is advisable to gain a general understanding of the historical background before starting, or to treat it as a "wandering" novel to accompany you over the long term rather than a fast-paced story.

Who it's for

A good fit for

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Reading tips

  1. Read one chapter first to get a feel for the language rhythm, then decide on a daily reading amount to avoid giving up midway due to length.
  2. Prepare a map of Europe and mark locations as the protagonist travels to enhance spatial awareness.
  3. When encountering passages involving religious institutions or guild customs, pause to check the background before continuing.
  4. Treat the book as a long-term reading project, reading one or two chapters at a fixed time each day to maintain continuity.

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.

Contents

  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4
  5. 5
  6. 6
  7. 7
  8. 8
  9. 9
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  153. 153
  154. 154
  155. 155

FAQ

Can someone without a foundation in medieval history understand this book? Yes, but it is advisable to first understand basic background such as the religious environment, town guilds, and transportation conditions of fifteenth-century Europe, which makes it easier to understand the characters' choices and situations. The novel builds atmosphere through detail; the more background knowledge you have, the smoother the reading experience.
How difficult is the language of this book? The author Reade lived in the nineteenth century, and the writing carries features of Victorian fiction: longer sentences, dense description, and occasional archaic and dialectal coloring. Modern readers may find it slow at first, but after adjusting to the rhythm it is not difficult to understand; the search function of the electronic edition also helps with unfamiliar words.
Is it suitable as an introductory book on medieval history? It is not suitable as an introduction to historical fact. It is first and foremost a literary work; historical details serve character and atmosphere and cannot replace historical scholarship. To learn about the Middle Ages, it can be used as supplementary reading to experience the atmosphere of the era, read alongside general history books.

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About the author

Reade, Charles, 1814-1884 Author

Charles Reade (1814–1884) was an English novelist and playwright of the Victorian era. Fifteen of his works are included in the collection, among them The Cloister and the Hearth: A Tale of the Middle Ages, Hard Cash, It Is Never Too Late to Mend, Peg Woffington, Put Yourself in His Place, A Perilous Secret, and Griffith Gaunt, or, Jealousy. Public information about his life is limited, and biographical details are difficult to verify, yet his works show a gift for blending history with modern social concerns. The Cloister and the Hearth is a meticulously researched medieval tale, while his other novels draw on Victorian social reality, addressing such themes as the law, prisons, money, and marriage with intricate plots and vivid characters. Reade also wrote for the stage, and his works are tightly structured with lively dialogue, combining a sense of theatre with readability and forming a distinctive style between the Victorian novel and drama.