The Margenes

De Ford, Miriam Allen, 1888-1975Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

2.8

Word count: 14K 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.The Margenes by Miriam Allen De FordAuthor: De Ford, Miriam Allen, 1888-1975,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: Apr 29, 2019

Editor's review

The Margenes is a short work by Miriam Allen deFord, reissued as a free ebook by Project Gutenberg. Born in 1888, deFord was active in twentieth-century American popular fiction and science fiction, and her work often treats suspenseful or socially satirical subjects in a concise style. The book is short and in English, making it a suitable introductory sample of early American genre fiction and a quick read for those studying the writing styles of American women authors in the first half of the twentieth century. The Gutenberg edition is free and lightweight, readable on a phone or e-reader in a short time. Readers should not expect grand narrative; it is better appreciated as a short piece with the flavor of its era, noting the social attitudes reflected in dialogue and plot turns. For readers seeking low-cost access to public-domain English originals, this small book is a fitting starting point; deeper literary analysis or full author studies will require other materials.

Who it's for

A good fit for

General readers seeking very low-cost access to public-domain English short fiction
Literature enthusiasts interested in twentieth-century American genre fiction and women authors
Students needing lightweight English source material for reading practice
Enthusiasts studying Project Gutenberg catalogs and ebook history

Not a good fit for

Readers seeking full-length narratives or series
Readers who need a Chinese translation and are uncomfortable reading English originals
Researchers seeking authoritative scholarly annotated editions

Reading tips

Read through once to grasp the plot, then revisit dialogue and turning points to appreciate the author's period style.
Suitable for bedtime or commute reading, finished in one sitting rather than spread over days.
Mark unfamiliar words first and look them up afterward to avoid interrupting the reading rhythm.
For English study, excerpt two or three passages of dialogue for retelling practice.

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 novel or a short piece?

According to its Project Gutenberg listing, The Margenes is a short work, suitable for reading in one or two sittings. It is not a novel, and readers should not plan their time around novel-length expectations.

What English level is needed to read this book?

The work was written in the first half of the twentieth century, and the language is generally not difficult; readers with intermediate English can finish it with a dictionary. Those who rarely read English originals may try the opening paragraphs first before deciding whether to continue.

What are the features of the Gutenberg edition?

Project Gutenberg provides a free electronic text that is easy to obtain and small in size, suitable for reading on a phone or e-reader. The edition mainly presents the original text and usually lacks modern scholarly notes or introductions; in-depth analysis requires other sources.

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About the author

De Ford, Miriam Allen, 1888-1975 Author

Miriam Allen De Ford (1888-1975) is an author with limited publicly available biographical information in this Chinese book database, which holds five of her works: Oh, Rats!, The Eel, The Margenes, Where the Phph Pebbles Go, and One Way. These titles are classified here under inspirational and personal growth, though their names suggest short stories with allegorical and fantastical touches rather than straightforward didactic writing. Her style tends toward concise, slightly whimsical narration, using animals, place names, and unfamiliar images to create situations in which readers can reflect on growth and choice. Because public information is limited, her nationality, education, and full career cannot be confirmed; even so, these few works show her ability to condense imagination and meaning into short forms, appealing to readers who enjoy brief fantasy and gentle inspirational fiction.