Much Darker Days

Lang, Andrew, 1844-1912Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.0

Word count: 79K words
Chapters: 8

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.Much Darker Days by Andrew LangAuthor: Lang, Andrew, 1844-1912,Language: English, Class: PR: Language and Literatures: English literature, Release Date: Jun 25, 2007

Editor's review

Much Darker Days is a work by Andrew Lang, published as a public-domain title in English literature. Lang is known for his research in folklore and mythology as well as his literary writing, and this book reflects his narrative wit and craft. As a free Project Gutenberg e-book, it offers readers zero-cost access and serves as a supplementary read for understanding the diversity of late nineteenth-century English literature. The book carries Lang's characteristic humor and imagination, making it rewarding for readers who enjoy Gothic style, parody, or Victorian popular fiction. Note that this is an English-language original e-book, and Lang's writing is embedded in its period context, so some expressions require background knowledge. It is best treated as extended reading rather than a first choice for beginners; reading with a guide or annotations works better, and it also suits classroom discussion in comparative or genre literature.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers who enjoy Victorian English literature and the Gothic style
Fans of Andrew Lang and his folklore background
Students who need free English e-books for extended reading
Readers interested in late nineteenth-century popular fiction and parody

Not a good fit for

Beginners with limited English reading ability who need a Chinese translation
Readers who want tightly plotted modern novels
Researchers who only want the author's biography and scholarly works

Reading tips

First look up Andrew Lang's life and folklore research background to better understand the book's allusions.
Prepare an English dictionary or an annotated edition, read chapter by chapter, and note unfamiliar expressions.
Read alongside Gothic or pseudo-Gothic works of the same period to compare styles.
After reading, write brief notes to sort out the relationship between narrative technique and period context.

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 in Chinese or English?

This is an English-language original e-book released by Project Gutenberg, with no Chinese translation included. Chinese readers need some English reading ability or should use a dictionary, annotations, and guide materials.

Who is Andrew Lang, and do I need to know about him before reading?

Andrew Lang was a late nineteenth-century British writer and folklorist known for his research on myth and folk tales. Knowing his scholarly interests helps grasp the imaginative and folk elements in the book, but it is not a prerequisite; you can read the text first and fill in the background later.

Is it suitable as an introductory reader for English literature?

Not very suitable for complete beginners. The book has period language and cultural allusions, so the threshold is relatively high. If you already have some English foundation and an interest in Victorian literature, it can serve as extended material, preferably with annotations and a guide.

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About the author

Lang, Andrew, 1844-1912 Author

Andrew Lang (1844–1912) was a British writer, poet and folklorist best known for compiling collections of fairy tales and myths. The library holds 77 of his works, including The Blue Fairy Book, The Red Fairy Book, The Yellow Fairy Book, The Violet Fairy Book and The Brown Fairy Book, as well as Tales of Troy and Greece and The Homeric Hymns. He gathered, edited and retold folk tales from Europe and around the world, naming the volumes by colour; his clear, fluent prose served both children and folklore scholarship. These collections preserved a wealth of oral material and shaped the modern English-speaking world's image of fairy tales, leaving a lasting influence on fairy-tale publishing and comparative story research. Public information on his life is limited, so this note focuses on his editorial and literary contributions.