The Green Mouse

Chambers, Robert W. (Robert William), 1865-1933Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.4

Word count: 280K words
Chapters: 29

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 Green Mouse by Robert W. ChambersAuthor: Chambers, Robert W. (Robert William), 1865-1933,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: Dec 1, 2003

Editor's review

This work comes from the American writer Robert W. Chambers and belongs among his early fiction with elements of fantasy and the grotesque. Chambers, known for works such as The King in Yellow, excelled at embedding supernatural fissures within everyday scenes, and this book continues that interest. The story unfolds around a chain of events set off by a green mouse, with a tone that moves between lightness and eeriness; it can be read as diverting fantasy and also offers a glimpse of the narrative rhythms of early twentieth-century American popular literature. As a free Project Gutenberg eBook, the English original is available at no cost, making it a suitable entry point for readers new to Chambers's non-horror work and a useful example for observing how genre fiction of the period combined different modes. There is no need to look for heavy themes in reading it; treat it as an urban tale with a mysterious air, well suited to fragmented reading time on a commute or before sleep.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers who enjoy British and American fantasy fiction from the late nineteenth to early twentieth century
Readers who want to sample Chambers's work in the original English at little cost
Readers interested in weird and urban-tale short narratives
English learners who need light English reading material for extensive reading practice

Not a good fit for

Serious literary readers expecting deep social critique or weighty themes
Beginner readers who need a Chinese translation or bilingual support
Readers of purely realistic fiction who have no interest in supernatural premises

Reading tips

Read the first two chapters to see whether the narrative pace suits your taste, then decide whether to read straight through or skip around.
Use the eBook search function to mark recurring images and observe how the author builds atmosphere.
If reading in English is difficult, learn a little about Chambers's life and literary background before starting the main text.

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 in the same style as The King in Yellow?

Not entirely. The King in Yellow leans more toward horror and an eerie atmosphere, while this book has more fantasy and a lighter tone. It suits readers who want to see the range of Chambers's work, but it should not be read with the expectation of a horror novel.

How difficult is the original English?

The book was written in the early twentieth century. Its sentence patterns are somewhat traditional but not especially difficult overall. Readers with reading ability at or above the level of CET-4 can get through it with a dictionary; the main difficulties lie in the period background and a few old-fashioned expressions.

What are the features of the Gutenberg edition?

Project Gutenberg provides a free electronic text that is easy to obtain and search on a computer, phone, or e-reader. It suits readers on a limited budget or those who want to sample the book quickly, but it usually does not include modern notes or an introduction.

Comments

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About the author

Chambers, Robert W. (Robert William), 1865-1933 Author

Robert W. Chambers (1865–1933) was an American novelist active in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. His birth and death years and nationality are relatively clear in public sources, though detailed biographical information and educational background remain limited. He was a prolific writer, with 38 works held in the collection. He is best known for the short-story collection The King in Yellow, which blends weird, horror, and supernatural elements and became an important early work of weird fiction, exerting a certain influence on later horror and fantasy writing. Beyond weird fiction, his works also span romance, historical, and popular fiction, including Athalie, The Mystery of Choice, The Hidden Children, The Common Law, The Dark Star, In Search of the Unknown, and The Slayer of Souls, demonstrating a diversity of subjects and styles. Overall, his writing is notable for atmospheric construction and narrative tension, securing him a place in popular literature and the weird tradition.