Mugby Junction

Dickens, Charles, 1812-1870Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

4.2

Word count: 274K words
Chapters: 28

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. Mugby Junction by Charles Dickens. Author: Dickens, Charles, 1812-1870. Language: English. Class: PR: Language and Literatures: English literature. Release Date: Jan 28, 2009

Editor's review

Mugby Junction is a collection of Christmas stories written in Dickens's later years, linked by a railway junction setting and comprising several short pieces, the most famous of which, The Signal-Man, renders the fate and terror of the railway age in a gloomy, suspenseful manner and stands as a typical example of Dickens's late style. Published by Project Gutenberg as a public-domain English original, the text is complete, free and easily accessible, making it suitable as an introductory work for understanding Dickens's shorter fiction and Victorian railway culture. Readers can feel the author's concern for the lower classes as well as the loneliness and unease of people amid industrialization. Because it is an English original from the nineteenth century, the language bears the marks of its era; readers with some grounding in English are advised to take it up, optionally with annotated editions or background materials.

Who it's for

A good fit for

English readers who want to know Dickens's shorter fiction and late-period writing
Those interested in Victorian railway culture and ghost stories
University students and literature lovers with some ability to read English originals

Not a good fit for

Readers with no English reading ability who want a Chinese translation
Readers expecting a full-length novel with a continuous plot; this book is a linked collection of short stories
Casual readers impatient with nineteenth-century English expression and background

Reading tips

Start with The Signal-Man to feel Dickens's late suspenseful style, then read the whole book
Note the relationship between railway imagery and characters' fates; keep brief notes on the threads of each story
When blocked by period language, read the paragraph first for the gist rather than looking up every word

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 a complete full-length novel?

No. It is a Christmas story collection made up of several linked short stories that are relatively independent yet share a railway junction as their common setting; The Signal-Man is the best known.

Can I read this book if my English is only average?

This is a nineteenth-century English original whose sentence patterns and vocabulary bear the marks of the era, so readers with only average English will find it difficult; intermediate or better reading ability is advised, or read with annotations and background materials.

What are the features of this edition?

This edition is released by Project Gutenberg as a free public-domain ebook. The text is the English original and easy to read on electronic devices; it contains no modern annotations or introduction.

Comments

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About the author

Dickens, Charles, 1812-1870 Author

Charles Dickens (Dickens, Charles, 1812-1870) is one of the most influential novelists in the history of English literature. The library holds 115 of his works, including novels, novellas and short stories; representative titles include The Pickwick Papers, Oliver Twist, David Copperfield and A Christmas Carol. He was known for serialized fiction, with plot twists and vivid characters, and he used humor and satire to portray Victorian society, paying particular attention to poor children, the lower classes and education, and his works often convey warmth and moral concern. In the library his works are often classified under "inspirational growth," and many of his novels have been adapted for stage and screen and are widely circulated. Public information about the details of his life is limited, so no speculation is offered here.