Dream Days

Kenneth GrahameProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

4.1

Word count: 217K words
Chapters: 22

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. Dream Days by Kenneth Grahame. Author: Grahame, Kenneth, 1859-1932. Language: English. Class: PR: Language and Literatures: English literature. Release Date: Feb 6, 2011.

Editor's review

Dream Days is a collection of prose reminiscences by Kenneth Grahame, recalling from a child's perspective the fantasies, games, and family happenings of childhood. Grahame's prose is elegant and full of humor, adept at capturing in ordinary scenes the imagination and stubbornness peculiar to children, and adult readers will often smile in recognition. The book shares a style with the author's better-known work but leans more toward fragmentary essays, suited to slow, savoring reading. As a free eBook from Project Gutenberg, it is easily accessible and a light choice for English literature lovers to read in the original, and also a reference for readers studying narrative perspective in children's literature. While reading, notice how the narrator looks back on childhood as an adult, and savor that nostalgic tone hovering between reality and illusion.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers who enjoy English prose and childhood reminiscence
Literature lovers interested in children's narrative perspective
Advanced learners who want light reading in English originals
Parents seeking classic literature for their children

Not a good fit for

Readers seeking strong plot and dramatic conflict
Novel readers who need a systematic storyline
Beginners with very little experience reading English

Reading tips

Read piecemeal by chapter, pausing after each to savor the tone and humor.
Mark sentences describing children's psychology as you read, and note shifts in narrative perspective.
Read alongside the author's other works to appreciate the consistency of his style.
English learners can start with the shorter chapters, then try retelling the gist.

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 an essay collection?

It is closer to fragmentary childhood reminiscence essays; each chapter centers on children's lives and fantasies, with little continuous plot, emphasizing verbal wit and scene description, and is best read slowly as essays.

Can I understand it without having read the author's other works?

Yes. The chapters are relatively independent and do not depend on prior events from other works. Still, familiarity with the author's overall style makes it easier to appreciate his humor and nostalgic tone, for a fuller reading experience.

Is it difficult to read with average English proficiency?

The prose is elegant but the sentences are rather literary, and the vocabulary is somewhat difficult. It is recommended for readers with intermediate English reading ability; slow down on long sentences and use a dictionary and context to aid comprehension.

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About the author

Kenneth Grahame Author · British (Scottish) · 1859–1932

Kenneth Grahame (1859–1932) was a British (Scottish) writer, born in Edinburgh; after losing his mother in early childhood, he moved to England with his grandmother. He worked for a long time at the Bank of England and rose to become its secretary. Grahame first won recognition for his nostalgic prose collections of childhood, The Golden Age and Dream Days, which are gentle in tone and observe the adult world through a child's eyes. The Wind in the Willows, published in 1908, is his masterpiece of children's literature. It creates vividly characterised figures such as Mole, Rat, Badger and Toad, sets their adventures against the pastoral life of riverbank and woodland, and blends humour, friendship and adventure in clear, rhythmic prose. It has become a classic of English children's literature and has deeply influenced later animal stories and children's fantasy.