Aunt Crete's Emancipation

Hill, Grace Livingston, 1865-1947Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.0

Word count: 155K words
Chapters: 16

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.Aunt Crete's Emancipation by Grace Livingston HillAuthor: Hill, Grace Livingston, 1865-1947,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: Dec 4, 2014

Editor's review

This novel comes from Grace Livingston Hill, an American writer of popular fiction, and belongs to the domestic fiction and women's growth themes she excelled in. The "emancipation" in the title points to the process by which the heroine, Aunt Crete, gradually reclaims her sense of self-worth from a situation in which she is overlooked by her family and bound by trivial duties. The book's readability lies in its finely drawn relationships and the emotional tension hidden within everyday scenes; readers can feel, as the plot advances, how a person chooses between endurance and awakening. Hill's style is gentle yet sharp, her dialogue natural, and the book suits continuous reading in quiet hours. As a public-domain eBook, it lacks the aids of modern typesetting, but for that very reason it suits readers willing to read slowly and attend to the characters' psychological shifts. While reading, note the interactions between Crete and the younger generation—they are the key clue to understanding the book's theme. For readers curious about how women were portrayed in early twentieth-century American popular fiction, this moderately long novel offers an approachable entry point.

Who it's for

A good fit for

General readers who enjoy domestic fiction and stories of women's growth
Literature enthusiasts interested in the character of early twentieth-century American popular fiction
Readers seeking gentle, emotionally rich material for relaxation
Learners who study public-domain eBook texts and are used to reading English originals

Not a good fit for

Readers who prefer fast-paced plots and strong conflict
Readers sensitive to religious elements or depictions limited by their era
Beginners who want modern annotations and introductory guidance

Reading tips

Read the first few chapters to sort out the family relationships, then follow the main thread of Crete's psychological change.
Read one or two chapters a day, pausing at dialogue to feel the restraint and turns of tone.
After finishing, revisit the opening description of Crete's daily situation and compare it with the ending to understand what "emancipation" means.
If reading the English original, keep a simple dictionary at hand and pay attention to everyday expressions and household vocabulary.

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 the English original, and how difficult is it to read?

This is an English public-domain eBook released by Project Gutenberg. The language is early twentieth-century American English, with uncomplicated sentence structures and plenty of everyday dialogue; readers with intermediate English can finish it with the help of a dictionary.

What exactly does "emancipation" in the title mean?

The available information shows that the novel centers on Aunt Crete, and that "emancipation" points to her gradual move from a state bound by household chores and others' expectations toward autonomy. The specific plot must be experienced by reading the original; it should not be over-interpreted apart from the text.

Does this eBook have modern typesetting or annotations?

As a Project Gutenberg public-domain eBook, it consists mainly of the original text and usually comes without a modern introduction or detailed annotations. Readers who need background can look up information on the author and the period themselves.

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About the author

Hill, Grace Livingston, 1865-1947 Author

Grace Livingston Hill (1865–1947) was an American writer of popular fiction. Fifteen of her works are included in this collection, commonly categorized as inspirational and coming-of-age reading. Public information about her is limited, so the details of her life are difficult to set out; however, representative works such as The Man of the Desert, Marcia Schuyler, Cloudy Jewel, The Witness, The Mystery of Mary, Lo, Michael!, The City of Fire, and A Voice in the Wilderness show that she excelled at weaving tests of faith and morality into romantic stories. Her plots are brisk, her characters clearly divided between good and evil, and her language plain and accessible. Her books were aimed at ordinary readers, especially young women, and had a certain influence on American popular and Christian fiction in the first half of the twentieth century; they are still read as popular works that illuminate the family ethics and faith life of their time.