The White Shield

Reed, Myrtle, 1874-1911Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.0

Word count: 315K words
Chapters: 32

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 White Shield by Myrtle ReedAuthor: Reed, Myrtle, 1874-1911,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: Nov 17, 2014

Editor's review

The White Shield is a novel by Myrtle Reed (1874–1911), made available as a free eBook by Project Gutenberg. Reed's works are known for delicate emotional description and a female perspective, and this book is no exception: it centers on its characters' choices between morality and emotion, written in graceful prose and a leisurely pace. As a public-domain eBook, its value lies in giving readers zero-cost access to early 20th-century American popular fiction and a sense of how women writers of the period wrote and what their readers enjoyed. The book contains much dialogue, and the plot advances through conversation and psychological portrayal; it suits reading in sections on a quiet afternoon and works as supplementary material for English literature courses. Because it was published long ago, some expressions and values carry the marks of their time, and readers would do well to view them in literary-historical terms. Overall, this is a classic English novel for literary enthusiasts to sample rather than a tightly plotted page-turner.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers who enjoy early 20th-century American popular fiction and want to learn about women writers' styles
Students with upper-intermediate English who want to practice reading English through public-domain novels
Digital humanities enthusiasts studying Project Gutenberg and early eBook culture
Teachers or book club organizers looking for short English literary texts

Not a good fit for

Readers who prefer fast-paced modern fiction with strong plots
Beginners with weak English who need annotations or a translation
Readers sensitive to the values and expressions of an older era

Reading tips

Read the first two chapters to check whether the language difficulty and narrative pace suit you before deciding to read the whole book
Keep pen and paper handy to note character relationships and key dialogue, which helps trace the plot
Read alongside a Chinese translation or literary history materials to understand the period background
Read one or two chapters at a time and jot down a few thoughts to avoid fatigue from long sessions

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?

Not really. This is an early 20th-century English novel with period sentence patterns and vocabulary, and the Project Gutenberg edition has no annotations or glossary. Beginners would look up words constantly and lose the reading rhythm; starting with bilingual editions or simplified versions is recommended.

Why is this book a free eBook?

It is published by Project Gutenberg, a platform that provides eBooks whose copyright has entered the public domain. Myrtle Reed died in 1911, so her works are in the public domain in the United States and can be obtained and read legally for free.

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

Not strictly, but it helps. Knowing that Myrtle Reed was a bestselling American woman writer of the early 20th century helps in understanding the female perspective and emotional narrative of the book. General readers can start with the text itself, while researchers can consult literary history for background.

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About the author

Reed, Myrtle, 1874-1911 Author

Myrtle Reed (1874–1911) was an American writer; public information about her is limited, and many details of her life remain unclear. Fourteen of her works are held in this collection, mainly novels and essays, including Lavender and Old Lace, At the Sign of the Jack O’Lantern, Old Rose and Silver, Master of the Vineyard, A Spinner in the Sun, and The Master’s Violin. Her writing draws largely on everyday domestic life and emotional relationships, with a gentle, delicate style that uses flowers, old objects, and light to create a quiet, slightly melancholy atmosphere; her plots unfold slowly and dwell on her characters’ inner feelings. Some works carry a light touch of fantasy and humor, such as The Book of Clever Beasts: Studies in Unnatural History, which portrays animals in an anthropomorphic and inventive way. Her books were popular among early twentieth-century American readers of popular fiction and offer a useful sample of women writers’ work of that period.