The Merry Anne

Merwin, Samuel, 1874-1936Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

2.9

Word count: 347K words
Chapters: 35

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 Merry Anne by Samuel Merwin. Author: Merwin, Samuel, 1874-1936. Language: English. Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature. Release Date: May 1, 2016

Editor's review

The Merry Anne is an American novel by Samuel Merwin, available in the free Project Gutenberg eBook library. Merwin was active in the early twentieth-century American literary scene, and his work often draws on life at sea and everyday human dealings, written in a realistic style touched with gentle humor. The book revolves around a ship called the Merry Anne, and the title itself suggests a light, lively air of daily life; it suits slow reading in the original English on a commute or before bed. As a public-domain eBook, it lacks the marketing packaging of a modern bestseller, yet it preserves the unhurried narrative pace and finely drawn characters of its era. Readers can use it to observe the language habits and plot structure of early twentieth-century American popular fiction, or as English extensive reading material, building up expressions for maritime and everyday life as the story advances. Note that this is the original English text, not a translation, and basic ability to follow long English sentences is needed before reading.

Who it's for

A good fit for

English-speaking readers who enjoy early twentieth-century American fiction
Learners who want to use a public-domain eBook for English extensive reading practice
Readers interested in maritime subjects and stories of everyday human dealings

Not a good fit for

Readers looking for a Chinese translation
Readers who prefer strong plots and fast-paced modern storytelling
Learners whose English reading is still limited to short sentences

Reading tips

Read the first two chapters first to get familiar with the characters and the ship's name, then proceed chapter by chapter, avoiding switching books midway.
Keep a notebook for maritime vocabulary and period expressions, and review them after finishing.
Use an audiobook or read-aloud software to listen along, reducing the difficulty of long sentences.

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 the original English?

According to Project Gutenberg, this is an original English eBook, with the language marked as English; it is not a Chinese translation. Basic English reading ability is needed before reading.

Can someone with no English foundation read this book?

Not really recommended. This is an early twentieth-century American novel, and its sentence patterns and word choices carry period features; readers with weak English foundations may struggle with long sentences and old-fashioned expressions. It is better to start with simplified versions or bilingual materials as a bridge.

Is this book suitable for learning English?

It can serve as extensive reading material, but not as an introductory textbook. It is best used after building some vocabulary, focusing on the narrative language and the rhythm of dialogue; guess unfamiliar words first and look them up later to keep reading fluent.

Comments

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About the author

Merwin, Samuel, 1874-1936 Author

Samuel Merwin (1874–1936) was an American writer whose life and education are sparsely documented in publicly available sources. Twelve of his works are held in the collection, and their subjects are notably varied: there is the episodic coming-of-age series about Henry Calverly, Henry Is Twenty; there are stories of small-town life and human entanglement such as His Little World and The Whip Hand; and there is the historical adventure novel The Road to Frontenac. He also engaged with social issues, most notably in Drugging a Nation, a book on China and the opium problem that reflects his concern with real-world affairs. On the whole, Merwin's writing combines popular storytelling with social observation; his plain style and his skill at developing plot through his characters' experiences earned him a place in early twentieth-century American popular literature.