Queechy, Volume II

Warner, Susan, 1819-1885Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.0

Word count: 760K words
Chapters: 76

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. Queechy, Volume II by Susan Warner. Author: Warner, Susan, 1819-1885. Language: English. Class: PZ: Language and Literatures: Juvenile belles lettres. Release Date: Jun 26, 2006.

Editor's review

As the second volume of Susan Warner's Queechy, this work continues the narrative tradition of nineteenth-century American sentimental fiction, unfolding its characters' fates and moral trials with delicate brushwork. Warner excels at portraying inner struggle within everyday scenes; this volume advances the plot by deepening emotional accumulation and character relationships rather than through dramatic external conflict. For readers studying nineteenth-century American women's literature, the sentimental tradition, or Warner's development, this volume offers a complete sample of her narrative pacing and values. The Project Gutenberg edition is easy to search and compare, making it suitable as course material or a scholarly reference text. Reading it alongside Volume I is recommended, with attention to how the author interweaves themes of family, faith, and class. Note that the book is in English and dates from an early period, so its pacing differs markedly from contemporary fiction; readers need some patience and background in literary history.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Scholars and students of nineteenth-century American women's literature
Literary history enthusiasts interested in the sentimental novel tradition
Readers of the English originals seeking the full arc of Warner's work
Teachers needing a public-domain English text for course materials

Not a good fit for

Readers who prefer fast-paced contemporary fiction with strong plot conflict
Beginners with limited English reading experience who need annotated support
Readers impatient with religious didacticism and sentimental tone

Reading tips

Read Volume I first before entering this volume, so character relationships and plot threads remain intact.
Pair it with histories of nineteenth-century American women's literature to understand sentimental narrative conventions.
Note passages on characters' moral choices for comparison with how Warner's contemporaries handled similar material.
For courses, select chapters on domestic scenes and faith themes for close-reading discussion.

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

Can this book be read on its own, or must I read Volume I first?

Reading Volume I first is recommended. This volume continues the previous volume's character relationships and plot threads; read alone, the broad story is comprehensible, but character motivations and emotional buildup may seem abrupt. Reading both volumes together better reveals Warner's narrative design.

What are the features of the Project Gutenberg edition?

It is a free public-domain ebook from Project Gutenberg, easy to search, copy, and compare, suitable for scholarly citation and course use. It contains no modern annotations or introduction, so readers must supply background material themselves.

What background knowledge is needed to read this novel?

Familiarity with the nineteenth-century American sentimental novel tradition, its religious atmosphere, and family values helps. Those who know Warner's major work The Wide, Wide World will more easily grasp the continuity of her moral concerns and character portrayal.

Comments

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About the author

Warner, Susan, 1819-1885 Author

Susan Warner (1819-1885) was a nineteenth-century American author known for inspirational coming-of-age fiction; her name and dates of birth and death appear in library catalog records. Public information about her is limited, and details of her life and education are difficult to establish with certainty, yet the library holds thirty-one of her works, which indicates a prolific and steady writing career. The Wide, Wide World is her best-known work, alongside Queechy, Diana, Nobody, Daisy, The End of a Coil, and Hills of the Shatemuc. Her fiction generally centers on young people's growth, family life, and moral trials, with a gentle and detailed style that emphasizes inner change and the formation of character. She found readers in the popular fiction market of her time and contributed to the later tradition of the coming-of-age novel.