Death's Wisher

Wannamaker, JimProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.0

Word count: 49K words
Chapters: 5

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.Death's Wisher by Jim WannamakerAuthor: Wannamaker, Jim,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: Apr 15, 2016

Editor's review

Death's Wisher is a short work by the American writer Jim Wannamaker, released free of charge as an English electronic text through Project Gutenberg. Judging from the title and its classification under American literature, it belongs to the vein of mid-twentieth-century popular genre fiction; it is not long and can be finished in a single sitting. The value of such works often lies not in grand narrative but in a concentrated premise or twist that creates reading tension, drawing readers quickly into the situation and prompting them to reflect on the choices and consequences involved. As a public-domain electronic text, it is also a sample of how Project Gutenberg preserves short popular fiction. It is best read as a genre short story with a speculative bent: pay attention to how the narrative perspective controls information and how the ending draws the theme together. Given the limited material available, it is not advisable to approach it expecting extensive world-building or a complex cast; it is better suited to being read as an English short story that can be finished quickly and leaves something to think about.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers who enjoy English-language genre short fiction and want a quick read
Explorers interested in popular literature preserved by Project Gutenberg
Intermediate learners who need short English texts for extensive reading practice
General readers drawn to speculative short stories about life, death, and choice

Not a good fit for

Readers expecting lengthy, complex world-building and multi-threaded narrative
Scholarly readers who need detailed author biographies and background studies
Readers who prefer reading in Chinese and do not wish to read the English original

Reading tips

Read it through in one go first, then revisit how the title resonates with the ending to appreciate the point of the title.
While reading, note the pace at which the narrator reveals information and consider how suspense is sustained.
For extensive reading in English, avoid looking up unfamiliar words at first; after finishing, sort out the key words that affected comprehension.
Compare it with other Project Gutenberg short stories to observe common structures in popular short fiction.

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

How long is this work, and how long does it take to read?

This is a short work collected by Project Gutenberg; it is not long, and most readers can finish it in one or two sittings. The exact page count varies with the electronic layout, but overall it suits a single short reading session.

What kind of fiction is it?

Judging from the title and its classification under American literature, it belongs to the vein of mid-twentieth-century popular genre short fiction, with a speculative and suspenseful flavor. The available material provides no more specific genre label; an open mind and reading it as a concentrated, forceful short story is recommended.

How difficult is the English, and is it suitable for intermediate learners?

As popular short fiction, the language is usually not very difficult and suits intermediate learners for extensive reading. If you encounter historical or genre idiom, skip it for the moment and look up words afterward to keep your reading fluent.

Comments

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About the author

Wannamaker, Jim Author

Jim Wannamaker is an author about whom very little public information is currently available; his nationality, dates of birth and death, and full English name have not been reliably recorded. According to the library's holdings, he has two works, Death's Wisher and Attrition. Judging from the titles alone, his writing may lean toward suspense, thriller, or darkly toned fiction, with images of death and depletion suggesting a tense atmosphere in which characters face persistent crisis and confrontation. Because external information such as translators, publishers, and reader reviews is lacking, it is difficult to assess the specific features of his style or the influence of his works. This introduction is based solely on the library's records and makes no speculation about the author's life; as more bibliographic and edition information emerges, a clearer picture of his writing may come to light.