Under the Rose

Frederic Stewart IshamProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.1

Word count: 492K words
Chapters: 50

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.Under the Rose by Frederic Stewart IshamAuthor: Isham, Frederic Stewart, 1866-1922,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: Dec 2, 2007

Editor's review

Under the Rose is a novel by Frederic Stewart Isham (1866–1922), made available as a public-domain ebook by Project Gutenberg. Its classification places it in American and Canadian literature, indicating that it is a work of English-language fiction rather than nonfiction or theory. As the work of an early twentieth-century American popular novelist, its value lies mainly in literary history and popular reading: it offers a way to observe the narrative interests, character setups, and language style of fiction of that period. The public-domain electronic edition is easy to obtain and search, making it suitable as extensive reading material in English literature or as a sample for studying popular fiction. One caveat: the available information provides neither a plot summary nor a thematic description, so readers should not approach it with expectations of a specific story; moreover, the language habits of early fiction are distant from those of contemporary readers, and reading it requires a certain amount of endurance with English.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers doing extensive reading in English literature who want to expand their range of public-domain novels
Scholars studying early twentieth-century American popular fiction and literary history
Readers who enjoy old-fashioned English narrative and are willing to accept the distance of period language
Those who need public-domain English texts for language learning or textual analysis

Not a good fit for

Readers who prefer fast-paced contemporary narrative and lack patience for old-fashioned style
Beginners with limited English reading ability who need notes and introductions
People who want a clear plot summary and thematic interpretation before deciding to read

Reading tips

Read the opening chapters first to get a sense of the language style and narrative pace, then decide whether to read it through or selectively.
Keep an English dictionary or electronic look-up tool at hand for period usage and unfamiliar expressions.
Read alongside materials on American literary history, placing the work back in the context of the popular fiction of its time.
If using it for language learning, close-read passages dense with dialogue and skim the rest to move forward.

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

What story does this book tell?

The available information only identifies it as a novel by Isham classified under American and Canadian literature and provides no plot summary. It is advisable to read the opening chapters of the electronic edition or consult reliable public-domain catalog information before deciding whether the content suits your interests.

Can readers with average English proficiency read this book?

It is somewhat challenging. The work dates from an earlier period, its language habits differ from contemporary English, and public-domain electronic editions usually lack notes and introductions. Readers with average English proficiency are advised to read chapter by chapter with a dictionary, or to start with an annotated edition before approaching the original text.

What is the reading experience of the public-domain electronic edition like?

Project Gutenberg texts are easy to download, search, and copy, making them suitable for reading on electronic devices and for textual analysis. However, the formatting is plain and there is no publisher's note or background introduction, so readers need to supplement the relevant literary-historical information themselves.

Comments

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About the author

Frederic Stewart Isham Author · American · 1866–1922

Frederic Stewart Isham (1866–1922) was an American novelist, journalist and playwright, born in Detroit, Michigan. He worked for about ten years at newspapers including the Detroit Free Press before turning to writing full time. He is known for historical romances and comedies, including The Strollers, Under the Rose, Black Friday and Nothing but the Truth, whose plots often turn on mistaken identity, coincidence and romantic entanglement, combining popular storytelling with a strong sense of stagecraft. Several of his works were produced on Broadway and in London and adapted into films, showing how widely his stories reached readers and audiences of his day. Isham died in New York in 1922. Beyond these outlines, public information is limited, and a full account of his work remains to be assembled.