One Purple Hope!

Henry Louis HasseProject Gutenberg · United StatesMar 2023

3.1

Word count: 38K words
Chapters: 4

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.One Purple Hope! by Henry HasseAuthor: Hasse, Henry, 1913-1977,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: Feb 17, 2010

Editor's review

One Purple Hope! is an English science fiction short story by Henry Hasse, published in the mid-twentieth century and prepared as an electronic text by Project Gutenberg. It bears the clear marks of the pulp science fiction magazine style: short length, a concentrated premise, fast-moving conflict, and often a single core idea carrying the whole story. Its value lies in offering a window onto early short science fiction writing patterns—functional characters, tight pacing, and endings that often turn on a twist or a conceptual revelation. It suits readers supplementing genre studies or anyone wanting to finish a complete story in a short time. As a historical text, some expressions and characterizations may bear the marks of their era; readers should view it through the lens of genre history rather than judge it by the complexity of contemporary long-form science fiction.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers who want a quick taste of mid-twentieth-century English-language short science fiction
Teachers or students needing a short text for genre fiction classroom discussion
Readers who read in fragments of time and prefer stand-alone stories
Explorers interested in Project Gutenberg's science fiction electronic texts

Not a good fit for

Deep science fiction readers expecting expansive worldbuilding and complex character arcs
Readers sensitive to era-specific expressions in early science fiction who are easily pulled out of the story

Reading tips

Read it through in one sitting, then look back at the opening to see how the author planted the core idea.
After finishing, summarize the conflict and twist in a few sentences to test the short story's structure.
For classroom use, pair it with other science fiction short stories from the same era to discuss genre conventions.
Note expressions that feel dated as material for understanding science fiction history rather than as reading obstacles.

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

What genre is this work?

It is an English science fiction short story. Henry Hasse was active in mid-twentieth-century pulp science fiction magazines, and the work shows clear short science fiction genre features.

Is it long? How long does it take to read?

As a single short story, it is not long and can usually be finished in one or two sittings, making it suitable for reading in fragments of time.

Where can I read it?

The information shows it is released by Project Gutenberg as a freely available electronic text in English.

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About the author

Henry Louis Hasse Author · American · 1913–1977

Henry Louis Hasse (1913–1977) was an American science fiction writer, born in Indiana and died in Los Angeles. He was active during the pulp magazine era, and his best-known works include Pendulum, co-written with Ray Bradbury, and the novella He Who Shrank. Four of his works are included here, such as We're Friends, Now, One Purple Hope!, Walls of Acid, and The Beginning, commonly classified under inspirational growth. Public information about his life and creative career is limited, and existing accounts focus mainly on the works mentioned above. His writing consists chiefly of science fiction short stories and novellas, with themes reflecting the imaginative character of the pulp magazine period, and he left a certain impression on early science fiction readers.