The Terrible Answer

Hill, Arthur G.Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

2.5

Word count: 19K 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 Terrible Answer by Arthur G. HillAuthor: Hill, Arthur G.,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: Nov 24, 2009

Editor's review

The Terrible Answer is an English literary work by Arthur G. Hill, made available through a public-domain ebook project and classified under American and Canadian literature. Judging by its length and title, it reads more like a short story with a suspenseful or speculative bent; the title itself hints at a heavy or unexpected answer, making it suitable for readers who enjoy short-form narrative and atmosphere. As a public-domain text, its value lies in offering an early sample of English popular literature that Chinese readers rarely encounter, useful for observing the narrative techniques and thematic tastes of its time. There is no need to seek grand themes in it; it works better as a brief literary stroll, attended to how suspense is laid out and how characters face that "terrible answer." For readers studying genre fiction or the English short story, it can serve as supplementary material; for general readers, it is a light but lingering reading experience.

Who it's for

A good fit for

General readers who enjoy English short stories and suspenseful atmosphere
Enthusiasts and researchers of early English popular literature
Learners who want to practice reading with short English originals
Organizers looking for public-domain texts as book-club discussion material

Not a good fit for

Readers who prefer long, complex plots and deep character development
Readers who struggle with English originals and need a translation
Readers expecting contemporary subjects and fast-paced narrative

Reading tips

Read through once to grasp the direction of the suspense, then revisit the foreshadowing and setup.
Note unfamiliar words and period expressions while reading the English original to build a feel for the language.
Compare with other public-domain short stories from the same project to compare narrative techniques.
Write down your understanding of the answer in the title afterward for book-club discussion.

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 story?

The materials do not specify the exact length, but given the usual form of public-domain ebooks and the style of the title, it is closer to a short story or novella. Readers are advised to approach it as a brief read rather than expecting the complex structure of a novel.

What level of English is needed to read it?

As an early English literary text, its vocabulary and sentence patterns carry period features, so intermediate English reading ability is recommended. If the goal is reading practice, work through it section by section with a dictionary and annotation tools.

Is this book suitable for classroom use?

As a public-domain short text, it is easy to obtain and distribute, making it suitable as supplementary material for English reading or genre fiction. Teachers can design discussion questions around the setup of suspense and the handling of the ending.

Comments

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About the author

Hill, Arthur G. Author

Arthur G. Hill is an author about whom little public information is available; his dates of birth and death, nationality, and main life experiences are all unknown. At present, only one work can be confirmed under his name, namely The Terrible Answer. Because biographical information is lacking, it is impossible to determine the span of his writing career, the literary school to which he belonged, or the background of his creative work, and it is also difficult to compare him with other writers of his time. Judging from what the title suggests, the work may carry elements of suspense, speculation, or warning, but its specific subject matter and style must still be judged on the basis of the original text. For an author with such scant information, readers would do better to turn directly to the work itself rather than focus on his life, and to appreciate his narrative approach and expressive intent in the text. His influence and standing also await clarification through more historical materials and research.