The Messengers

Davis, Richard Harding, 1864-1916Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.2

Word count: 26K words
Chapters: 3

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 Messengers by Richard Harding DavisAuthor: Davis, Richard Harding, 1864-1916,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: May 12, 2006

Editor's review

The Messengers is another English-language work by Richard Harding Davis, digitized and released by Project Gutenberg. Davis's short stories and novellas are known for event-driven plots and characters who act decisively, and this work continues that highly readable narrative style. As a public-domain eBook, it has no modern introduction or annotations; readers get a fairly raw text, well suited as English extensive reading material or as a sample of older popular fiction. It is not long, making it convenient to read in segments on a commute or before bed. Do note that this is an English original, and the Gutenberg edition prioritizes text readability rather than instructional support; if you are looking for a Chinese translation, detailed background analysis, or classroom discussion materials, you will need to prepare those separately. Overall, it is best suited to readers who are strong independent readers and willing to verify background information on their own while reading.

Who it's for

A good fit for

General readers who are used to verifying information on their own and are willing to read English originals
Language learners looking for short English extensive reading material
Readers interested in the narrative style of older popular fiction
Readers who want to read English works in short segments during spare moments

Not a good fit for

Readers who need a Chinese translation or bilingual side-by-side reading
Readers who rely on modern annotations, introductions, and instructional support materials
Readers who expect systematic literary criticism or academic research support

Reading tips

Read in segments by chapter, and after each segment summarize its core events in one sentence.
Mark unfamiliar older expressions as you go, and look them up together after finishing the chapter.
Try reading dialogue passages aloud to feel the characters' tone and the narrative rhythm.
After finishing, write a brief reading response in English to check comprehension and reinforce expression.

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 suitable for English beginners?

This is an English original with moderate language difficulty, not written specifically for beginners. Readers with basic grammar and some vocabulary can read it with a dictionary tool; complete beginners are advised to start with graded readers or bilingual editions before attempting a public-domain original like this.

Does the Gutenberg edition have a table of contents and annotations?

Project Gutenberg mainly provides free public-domain eBooks. Editions usually retain the original body text and focus on textual completeness and readability; they generally do not include modern annotations, introductions, or detailed table-of-contents notes. Readers can use their e-reader's table-of-contents and dictionary functions to assist reading.

Do I need to know the author's background to read this book?

You can read it through without knowing the author's background; the work itself is primarily driven by narrative. If you want a deeper understanding of the historical context and the writing's appeal, you can briefly look up the author's life and period beforehand, but you need not rely on external materials—looking things up as you read also works.

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About the author

Davis, Richard Harding, 1864-1916 Author

Richard Harding Davis (1864–1916) was an American writer and war correspondent, with 49 works held in this collection. Public information is limited, yet the range of his writing can be seen from the titles listed here: he wrote both war reportage and fiction and character sketches. Notes of a War Correspondent records a reporter's firsthand experiences in the field, Real Soldiers of Fortune tells of adventurous soldiers, while Gallegher and Other Stories and Van Bibber and Others show his skill in the short story, with a light touch and a gift for portraying city life and a variety of characters. His works are often classed as inspirational coming-of-age reading and have circulated among young readers, combining the immediacy of journalism with the readability of fiction; they have influenced later war reporting and popular narrative.