The Enchanted Canyon

Honoré Willsie Morrow (née McCue)Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.0

Word count: 613K words
Chapters: 62

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.The Enchanted Canyon by Honoré MorrowAuthor: Morrow, Honoré, 1880-1940,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: Oct 16, 2005

Editor's review

Honoré Morrow's The Enchanted Canyon is a novel set in the American West, belonging to the frontier narrative vein common in early twentieth-century American popular fiction. The "canyon" of the title is both a geographical space and a hint of the psychological and fateful turns characters meet after entering unknown territory. Morrow's narration is plot-driven, skilled at using landscape description to heighten suspense and writing natural scenery as a force that moves the story. As a public-domain ebook, its main value is as a sample of how American popular fiction of the time wrote the West and shaped narratives blending adventure and romance; it suits readers interested in early American genre fiction, Western themes, or women authors' writing. Two things to watch: how the canyon space is given symbolic meaning, and how characters' choices in isolation reflect the gender and moral views of the time. It is not for readers seeking deep literary experimentation, but as material for understanding early twentieth-century American popular reading tastes, it is moderate in length and easy to enter.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers interested in early twentieth-century American popular fiction and Western themes
Literature enthusiasts studying genre writing by early American women authors
Readers of English public-domain books who prefer plot-driven narrative
Cultural researchers interested in how Western landscape was literaryised

Not a good fit for

Readers seeking modern literary experimentation and complex narrative structure
Readers sensitive to racial and gender stereotypes in Western fiction
Nonfiction readers expecting rigorous historical accuracy or real Western history

Reading tips

Read the opening chapters, noting how canyon description plants seeds for later conflict.
Record characters' changes before and after entering the canyon to grasp the space-psychology correspondence.
Consult background on early twentieth-century American popular literature to understand genre conventions.
For research, mark passages on gender roles and frontier morality.

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 kind of novel is this?

It is closer to early twentieth-century American popular fiction's Western adventure and romance narrative; the plot advances through environmental suspense and characters' choices rather than modern psychological realism. Knowing this helps adjust expectations: view it within the genre writing of its time rather than measuring it by contemporary literary standards.

Does "enchanted" in the title mean fantasy elements?

From the available material, the title points to the canyon's mysterious atmosphere and the attraction characters feel within it, not to explicit fantasy. It is more likely a literary naming of space to reinforce a sense of the unknown and of fate. Watch how the author uses natural landscape to create a "magical" psychological effect.

Does this electronic edition have notes or an introduction?

This is a public-domain ebook released by Project Gutenberg, typically providing only the original text without modern scholarly notes, introduction, or historical background. For period language or cultural background difficulties, readers must consult relevant materials themselves or read alongside American Western literary history.

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About the author

Honoré Willsie Morrow (née McCue) Author · American · 1880–1940

Honoré Willsie Morrow (née McCue, 1880–1940) was an American novelist, short-story writer, and magazine editor, born in Ottumwa, Iowa, and a graduate of the University of Wisconsin. She is known for her fiction set in the American West and for historical novels. Her stories often draw on places she traveled and on her firsthand experience of frontier life, using concrete landscape and local detail to create atmosphere. Seven of her works are held in the collection, including Benefits Forgot, The Forbidden Trail, The Heart of the Desert, Judith of the Godless Valley, The Enchanted Canyon, Still Jim, and Lydia of the Pines, which range across Western pioneer themes and historical narrative. Her best-known work, the "Great Captain" trilogy, centers on the life of Abraham Lincoln, reflecting her sustained interest in historical figures and their times. She also served for five years as editor of The Delineator, an experience that informed both her writing and her editorial career.