Monatsarchive: März 2021

Out Of The Question – William Dean Howells

“Out of the Question” is an amusing trifle, with just a thread of a plot, about the love of a young society girl for a brave young fellow without any social position other than his brains has gained him; the idea of marriage with him is scouted by herself and friends at first as quite “out of the question.” The charm of the story is in the piquant way in which it is handled, and in its bright, clever dialogue.

Out Of The Question.

Format: eBook.

Out Of The Question.

ISBN: 9783849657321

Excerpt from the text:

I. IN THE PARLOR OF THE PONKWASSET HOTEL.

I. Miss Maggie Wallace and Miss

A Counterfeit Presentment – William Dean Howells

Out of a mere thread of a plot and a few characters Mr. Howells weaves a very charming little comedy. His characters consist of Miss Constance Wyatt, her father and mother, a Mr. Bartlett, a painter and his friend Rev. Arthur Cummings. The scene opens in the parlor of the Ponkwasset Hotel, the time being in the fall, and the house almost deserted by boarders. Mr. Bartlett and his friend are in the midst of a discussion of Mr. Bartlett’s affairs, when Gen. Wyatt and his daughter enter the room, having but recently come from Paris. Constance, at the sight of Bartlett, faints and Gen. Wyatt behaves like a crazy man. Bartlett’s anger … Read more.../Mehr lesen ...

A Foregone Conclusion – William Dean Howells

For many readers, this story belongs to Mr. Howells’ most perfect pieces of work. In saying this, these people are not unmindful of the delicious humor and exquisite descriptions of ” A Chance Acquaintance,” of Kitty’s breezy freshness and Mr. Arbuton’s typical Bostonism. But Mr. Howells has lived in Venice till the melancholy beauty of its decay has so taken possession of him that he can describe all phases of its life more perfectly than any other English writer; and against a background of palaces and canals’ he creates a picture of the drama of love, ever old, yet ever new, which causes a soul to dwell among the shadows of that great … Read more.../Mehr lesen ...

Sketch of the life and character of Rutherford B. Hayes – William Dean Howells

Rutherford B. Hayes was the 19th president of the United States from 1877 to 1881, having served in the U.S. House of Representatives and as governor of Ohio. Hayes, a lawyer and staunch abolitionist, defended refugee slaves in court proceedings in the antebellum years. This biography differs chiefly from other biographies in the large use made of original letters, diaries, notebooks and scrapbooks placed at the disposal of the author without restriction and without instruction. Howells has been guided solely by his own sense of fitness and his respect for the just limits of personality.

A Chance Acquaintance.

Format: eBook.

Sketch of the life and character … Read more.../Mehr lesen ...

A Chance Acquaintance – William Dean Howells

In “A Chance Acquaintance” the familiar characters of ” Their Wedding Journey” reappear, but the principal roles are given to Miss Kitty Ellison and her Bostonian adorer, Mr. Arbuton. Readers who can appreciate the sentiment, the style, and the nice discrimination of character, with its quiet humor and good-natured hits at Mr. Arbuton, who was not exactly Mr. Ellison’s ideal of a Bostonman, and still further from that of some of our Southern brethren, will find it very interesting and suggestive. The beautiful style and graphic description give an interest and charm to this book, which holds the attention without the aid of startling incidents or sensational extravagance.

A Chance Acquaintance.

Format: eBook.… Read more.../Mehr lesen ...

Their Wedding Journey – William Dean Howells

The artistic descriptions of characters, places, and incidents; the fine observation, which detects what ordinary spectators either see inadequately or miss altogether; the delightful humor which pervades the whole; and the simple beauty of style-all these combine to render this story by Mr. Howells one of time most attractive ever published in America. This first attempt at fiction greatly increased his public of readers. There is really very little to the book ; two characters, Basil and Isabel, occupy the foreground, and are carefully and faithfully drawn ; they are relieved by a background of pleasing bits of American and Canadian scenery. Such a commonplace subject had never been treated in such an … Read more.../Mehr lesen ...

Suburban Sketches – William Dean Howells

Mr. W. D. Howells’ Suburban Sketches in the neighbor hood of Cambridge and Boston are characterized by many of the same features which are so charming in his well known pictures of Italian life. The fluent style, the kindly humor, the quaint suggestiveness, are all present; we only miss the quality which is superior to them all, the naturalness which was so conspicuous in those sketches and which seems to be in a degree wanting in these. Perhaps it is because of the defect in the matter, but some how or other Cambridge and Boston, and the Horse Railroad which connects the two, which last feature figures very prominently in these sketches, do not … Read more.../Mehr lesen ...

The Leatherwood God – William Dean Howells

‘The Leatherwood God’ is a veritable history , for it tells the truth and more than the truth . It satisfies the reader’ s demand for facts and it fulfills his cravings for fantasy. It convinces us that the novelist is the true historian and the real biographer, and that such a novelist as Mr. Howells, whether or not he wear the aggressive label of realist, will be considered a leading authority upon the American life of which he writes. He has written many novels during his long literary career, he has described and recorded many aspects of humanity in many parts of the world, but when he returns to his native Ohio … Read more.../Mehr lesen ...

The Seen and Unseen at Stratford-On-Avon – William Dean Howells

‘The Seen and Unseen at Stratford-on-Avon’ is a fantasy in which Mr. Howells enjoys the society of the great dramatist while they leisurely go to various pageants and festivities together. Shakespeare becomes his guest for a week-end and the immortal play wright confides that he “Never felt quite happy about the way people talked of Anne.” The dialogue between them is rich in humor and quite as delicious as anything that the distinguished American author has ever done, putting many of his pungent ideas into the mouth of Shakespeare. There are some lovely descriptive nature bits and the atmosphere of English feeling and history. The showery past is wonderfully mirrored … Read more.../Mehr lesen ...

Familiar Spanish Travels – William Dean Howells

In this book of travels Mr. Howells relates the incidents and impressions of his trip through Spain. In a leisurely, discursive fashion he notes what most appealed to him as he journeyed from San Sebastian through Burgos, Madrid, Toledo, Cordova, Seville to Granada, Ronda, Algecirus, and Tarifa. Like a glorified cinemacolor film, he passes in review Spanish scenery, the architecture of cathedrals and palaces; theatres and hotels; picturesque street-scenes, Moorish remains; the King and Queen; beggars and guides; gypsies and donkeys. And back of all this living present, adding richness to the scene like a figured tapestry, is the romantic history of Spain’s past.

Familiar Spanish Travels.

Format: eBook.

Familiar Spanish Travels.

ISBN: … Read more.../Mehr lesen ...