Product Description
Are all the lights on?

Is there a parent in the house?

Are the windows shut and locked? Double-check!

They HAVE to be if you are going to read this book, which is undoubtedly the scariest rendition of one of the greatest ghost stories ever told: The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.

While you may have heard of Ichabod Crane, Katrina Van Tassel, and the Headless Horseman, you've never SEEN them quite like this -- through the macabre imagination of the inimitable Gris Grimly.

So, take a deep breath and take a long look. And you may want to bring a flashlight to bed with you tonight.... ... Read more

Customer Reviews (7)

Not Grimly's Best
I assume you already know Washington Irving's classic short story about schoolmaster Ichabod Crane's encounter with the Headless Horseman, so I'll jump to the main feature of this book: the illustrations.I bought the book because I had very much liked Grimly's Poe artwork, and was looking for more of his crazy, ink-spattered visions.But what I got was mediocre: almost comic-book stuff, and apparently intended for younger audiences (perhaps that's why it's so heavily abridged).I wish there were more detailed full-page watercolors and less series of small panel illustrations.But still, Grimly captures the sleepy autumnal mood of the story well with his profuse use of orange and black; and he renders the characters (especially Ichabod) in an exaggerated, humorous way that complements Irving's mild sense of humor.

In short, while you'll probably find this an amusing little book, if you want real Grimly you should check out something like "Edgar Allan Poe's Tales of Mystery and Madness," or "Where Madness Reigns: The Art of Gris Grimly."

Cute and Spooky Story, Beautiful Art
The story is an adaptation of the original, more or less a hybrid of the old Disney cartoon and the Sleepy Hollow movie starring Johnny Depp, but Gris Grimly's art brings this tale to life. The format borders on graphic novel and the hardcover edition is absolutely beautiful. This book is perfect for Halloween, rearing Gothic children or unusual fairy tale collectors like myself.

Legend of Sleepy Hollow
I purchased this book along with several others along the same vane for my Grand Daughters. age 2 and 4 to eventually enjoy as I know they will.I am their Gran Pa and are really looking forward to reading it to them when they are old enough.Great illustrations which go great with a twist of the tale....

Decent, but a little boring
First and foremost, as a child, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, as portrayed by Walt Disney movies, was a rather light and goofy film, having humorous moments even reaching to the end when Ichabod is running away from the headless horseman, he can be seen running with the horse on his back! Oh and just as a general forewarning, the original story is entirely unlike that of the movie, as it plays on the readers' terror which can be attributed to Washington Irving's use of Gothic elements.

Anyways, the original was not that lighthearted nor that funny. Rather it focuses on a love triangle between Ichabod Crane, Brom Bones, and the wealthy Katrina Von Tassel. Set in the dreamy town of sleepy hollow, where imaginations do come to life, this setting makes for the perfect environment to tell their stories and foreshadow the ending. Where Brom Bones, after a series of failed attempts to discourage Ichabod to marry Katrina, he implants the story of the legendary Hessian knight. Bones relies on Ichabod's sensitivity to the paranormal to make him imagine the Horseman. Unlike the Disney movie, who portrays Ichabod as the protagonist and Brom Bones as the antagonist and a jerk, the original one is vice versa, telling a classic tale of city man versus a country man for a hand in marriage. It stays consistent with this theme, as it seems the country man would come out on top in the end.

However, besides that, though the story implies that Brom Bones was the headless knight, the rest is left up to the readers to determine the true whereabouts of Ichabod. This open-ended story may also be Irving's way to in essence "save the city man" from the country. Although it is implied that he dies, if a reader speculates more optimistically, he simply could have just left the town, which was unfit for him right from the beginning.

Overall, I found this book to be rather listless with minimal plot development. All Irving throughout the entire book is set up for the ending, making Ichabod seem like an outcast and extremely in tune with nature, having the town be in a dream-like state, and Ichabod's purely greedy motives. They all serve to build up to the finale. However, Irving drags on much too long with his abundance of imagery; the ending was nothing spectacular.

Can there be negative stars...?
Whoever gives Irving's "The Legend of the Sleepy Hollow" more than one star is just strange. I have not read a more boring or a more pointless story in my life. With themes that require the reader to do tedious research and style that just bores the reader out, I do not advise anyone to read such a horrible story--unless your public library is out of books.

With elongated descriptions and a motionless plot, this short story that would take half an hour to read can take you four hours to comprehend, and when you do finish it (that's if you don't fall asleep in your chair), you will wish time machines existed! Talking about two men's attempts to win over the coquette Katrina Von Tassel, this book attempts to entice the reader but immediately fails to do so when the style kicks in. The page-long references to the lazy town, as well as the redundant descriptions of the characters just discourage the reader from finishing. Set in the sleepy town of, well, Sleepy Hollow, one already asks, why not already choose a happier place for such a romantic story to take place?

The storyline is also a bit disappointing considering all the hail and praise I have heard about this "classic." Ichabod is a schoolteacher who tries to court Katrina but is faced with another suitor--the strong and muscular Brom Bones. To be fair, the most exciting part of the short story is when the legendary Headless Horseman, who many believe might be Brom, chases Ichabod after a Dutch party where the guests engaged in lengthy story telling. To our disappointment, both characters disappear and never return.

The ending is ambiguous as the reader is left to wonder, did the Headless Horseman kill Ichabod? What is the point of having such a character as the Headless Horseman or Ichabod if they will both disappear? If you feel like answering any of these questions, feel free to use your researching skills.

On the positive note, many elements of Dark Romanticism found throughout the plot attempt to entice the reader's morbid curiosity. We see the supernatural Headless Horseman who wanders in graveyards; we see the morbid ending of two major characters; and we see the desolate and isolate setting of the town.

Overall, this book is not that enticing at all. The themes are very subtle and require either close attention or quite a bit of research, both requiring you to waste some precious time that you might, well,enjoy going to the movies with some friends. ... Read more

Product Description
"The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" tells the story of Ichabod Crane, a food loving school master, who, despite warnings, ventured out after dark, never to be seen again. In Tim Burton's film version, Crane becomes a police constable. ... Read more

Product Description
The book has no illustrations or index. Purchasers are entitled to a free trial membership in the General Books Club where they can select from more than a million books without charge. Subjects: Presidents/ United States/ Biography; Generals/ United States/ Biography; Presidents - United States; United States - Politics and government - 1775-1783; United States - Politics and government - 1783-1809; United States - History - Revolution, 1775-1783 - Campaigns; Washington, George; Generals - United States; Presidents; Generals; United States; Biography ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

"Just the same, I can tell you it's nothing to Crockett."
This is the second of Brooks' literary history books that I have read. (The first being The Times of Melville and Whitman). The World of Washington Irving was actually the first in the series (known as his Finders and Makers series), and I suspect that I would have enjoyed The Times of Melville and Whitman much more had I read the books more in the order in which they were written.

As a literary history of a young country, The World of Washington Irving is an excellent book. I found myself taking copious notes about the books which he referenced. (A bibliography would have been a good addition.) I particularly enjoyed the chapters on the individual authors and naturalists-- the section on Audubon was particularly brilliant.

Although Brooks is a good writer, I still find his structure difficult to read. It wanders across subjects-- locations, people, styles-- without a pattern that I was able to discern. That may be my lack rather than that of Brooks, but it often made it difficult to follow as I sought for a logic to the jumps in subject. This occasionally made it hard for me to keep concentration and interest, and that's too bad.

Recommended for readers interested in the early period of US literary history. Brooks was one of my father's favorite writers, which is why I've been exploring his works as I find them.

Description
Excellent survey of the birth of the American intellectual tradition in the period between 1800 and 1840, presented against the backdrop of Washington Irving's literary career. This is one of five volumes in what eventually came to be called the Makers and Finders series, through which Brooks created the first composite picture of America's cultural and literary development. ... Read more

Product Description
This volume is produced from digital images created through the University of Michigan University Library's preservation reformatting program. The Library seeks to preserve the intellectual content of items in a manner that facilitates and promotes a variety of uses. The digital reformatting process results in an electronic version of the text that can both be accessed online and used to create new print copies. This book and thousands of others can be found in the digital collections of the University of Michigan Library. The University Library also understands and values the utility of print, and makes reprints available through its Scholarly Publishing Office. ... Read more

Product Description
In this adaptation of Washington Irving s beloved story, acclaimed painter Thomas Locker takes one of America s favorite legends and weaves in the beauty of the rugged Catskill Mountains. Rip Van Winkle, a poor farmer, is out hunting one day when he comes upon a strange company of men playing ninepins. When Rip samples their brew, he falls into a deep sleep for 20 years, eventually awaking bearded and gray in a vastly changed world. This classic tale is enhanced with the unique artistry of Locker, who has made more than 20 trips to the Catskills to study and paint the magnificent landscape in which the story is set. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (11)

Rackham Drawings
I bought this book primarily for the Rackham drawings which are unique and carry that mystical otherworldly quality. I am well aware of the story; but this take on the storey is really better than most. Well worth the charge. Most people will like it.

Wonderfully Lazy
The character of Rip Van Winkle is like an older version of Peter Pan, overgrown and frumpy.He seeks to enjoy his life and in doing so engages in mostly childish activities.Adulthood bores him, as it should, because he excels at leisure as much as Ben Franklin stands out in industry.

Rip reads well to married people, who seem to be the ideal audience for the story.The detached approach Irving takes in describing the "henpecking wife" and "curtain lectures" is comical to married couples, husbands in particular. It is a great comfort for men in 2005 to learn that the traffic of henpecking was a one-way street then, too. :)

The character of Rip is admirable. How lucky to be free to do nothing and experience no remorse.He is harmless, and a great credit to the community in entertainment value and spontenaity.By enjoying simple things, he understands the best things in life are free, such as the view from the mountain top and pulling a fish out of the stream.He is good for conversation, non-judgmental, agreeable, and rather kind.Strange, but it seems he could be a fine pastor or priest.

The comedy of this story seems to be the escape from his hellish home life.Some have described heaven as a place of rest, away from the burdens of the world.So Rip, on the mountaintop, taking in a beautiful sight, after a day of shooting squirrels, has some delicious liquor, and falls asleep until two tyrants are deposed; his wife and King George.

Mystical Truth For The Humble, But No One Else
Washington Irving's 'Rip Van Winkle' originally appeared in The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. (1819) alongside another evocative piece of Americana, 'The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,' a wondrous story equally set in Irving's beloved Hudson River Valley. Though not as multilayered as its longer and slightly more well known fellow, 'Rip Van Winkle' also has long roots in Old World folklore, which is appropriate, since The Sketch Book was the first book by an American writer to be taken seriously by the European audiences that then set the standard in the West. Like the earlier A Knickerbocker's History of New York (1809), 'Rip Van Winkle' is playfully attributed to Dutch antiquarian "Diedrich Knickerbocker," the most famous and certainly the most charming of several personae Irving adopted as an author.

Written in simple but gorgeously visionary language, 'Rip Van Winkle' is the story of the lazy but warm spirited farmer, who, in an effort to escape the "petticoat despotism" of his "termagant" wife, flees for an afternoon's hunting in the lonely, autumnal Catskill Mountains. Accompanied only by Wolf, his faithful but equally harassed dog, Rip is surprised when he notices an odd figure approaching through the wilderness and calling out his name. The "short, square built old fellow with thick bushy hair and a grizzled beard" is carrying a "stout keg," and gestures to Van Winkle to assist him with his burden.

Taking up the "flagon," Rip hesitantly follows the little man into an isolated ravine, and thus steps unknowingly into fairyland; there he finds himself confronted by a solemn and outlandishly dressed party of dwarfs playing at ninepins. Bewildered, Rip pours out the beverage for the assemblage, but can't resist taking a drink himself. Awaking on the mountainside, Van Winkle, finding Wolf gone and a badly rusted gun at his side, returns to town, where he discovers his home in ruins, his wife dead, his children grown to adulthood, the land of his birth now an independent nation freed from the yoke of the British, and himself a stranger to the villagers, who stare at his tattered clothing and exceptionally long facial hair. After making bewildered inquiries, he comes to accept that twenty years have passed.

As a humble, good hearted, and mild tempered dreamer, Rip is an archetypal fairytale hero, though the only dragon slain is Dame Van Winkle, and she accidentally, by the passage of time itself. Like kindred spirit Ichabod Crane, Rip is not an absolute novice when it comes to the fantastic, for he has enjoyed telling the village children who love him "long stories about ghosts, witches, and Indians."

As in traditional Celtic fairy lore, in which eating or drinking while visiting fairyland is often punished with permanent residency there, Rip had made the honest mistake of partaking of fairy foodstuffs, and thus pays an unintended price for doing so. For Celtic fairy lore also featured multiple variations on the theme of fairy time; one minute of perceived human time might be seven years of fairy time, and a man spending a happy week dancing in fairyland might discover that one hundred years or more has past on earth upon his return. Whether dwarfs, elves, boggarts, or fairies, Irving's little people are first cousins to many of the mythological beings of European mythology. Interestingly, like the literally "solitary" fairies of Ireland and Scotland, who were brusque of manner at best and never seen in groups (as were the far more gregarious "trooping" fairies), the little men Rip holds audience with "maintain the gravest faces, the most mysterious silence," and thus represent "the most melancholy party of pleasure he had ever witnessed."

But Irving, who deftly places his story in the historical setting of pre-Revolutionary America, also shrewdly offers his audience other interpretations for Van Winkle's strange mountain encounter. Though narrator Diedrich Knickerbocker acknowledges early that the Catskills are "fairy mountains," one character, sage Peter Vanderdonk, explains that it was the dead "Hendrick Hudson" himself, who returns with his crew every twenty years "to keep a guardian eye on the river," whom Rip encountered, while the postscript indeterminably discusses a variety of Indian spirits, including the Manitou, who haunt the region. One fact entirely overlooked by scholars everywhere is that American literature was born in the daimonic, a tradition begun by Irving but enthusiastically continued by Nathaniel Hawthorne and Edgar Allen Poe.

Like most of Irving's work, at present Rip Van Winkle is a grossly underappreciated piece of pure Americana; certainly American literature could have gotten off to a much worst beginning than it did than with its gallant, optimistic, and uncynical founder. For Rip, despite the precariousness of his experience, learns to accept his fate and settles into a comfortable old age as a venerated member of his community. Not that very long ago, there was a time in America when, taking a direct cue from the story itself, some of America's young schoolchildren were fancifully taught that thunder was not the result of lightning, but merely the echo of the elves' occasional game of mountain bowling.

This definitive edition, first published in 1905, features over fifty genuinely "mesmerizing" though somber watercolor illustrations by British master Arthur Rackham, which perfectly suit Irving's text and will captivate both adults and children alike.

Great version of Rip Van Winkle!
I really love this version of the story.I can't wait to share it with my 4th grade students who study New York history.I think it is pretty interesting.

A cool book to read
This book is about a man who runs away from his father because the father does nothing but yell at him.This book is one of my favorites, even though I gave it a four, because it had a lot of action and it made me want to keep reading.Although I still think that the orignal was one of the better ones that have been written. ... Read more

Product Description
A headless horseman haunts Sleepy Hollow! At least thats the legend in the tiny village of Tarrytown. But scary stories wont stop the towns new schoolmaster, Ichabod Crane, from crossing the hollow, especially when the beautiful Katrina lives on the other side. ... Read more

Product Description
First penned in 1820, Washington Irving's humorous, yet haunting, narrative tells of a local schoolmaster whose lonely trot home turns into a night of fright when he is met on the road by the Headless Horseman. Adapted here for younger readers and accompanied by rich acrylics, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow endures as the finest of American ghost stories. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Enjoyable
This version of Irving's tale is designed for younger children.The illustrations are lovely--not scary at all.I do think, however, that the text is a little long for a 4 year old to sit through, especially since some of the vocabulary and sentence structure is a bit advanced.I'd say this was appropriate for 6 and up. ... Read more

Product Description
The works of Washington Irving with active table of contents.Works Include:

Abbotsford and Newstead Abbey
The Adventures of Captain Bonneville
Astoria or Anecdotes of an Enterprise Beyond the Rocky Mountains
Bracebridge Hall or The Humorists
Chronicle of the Conquest of Granada
The Crayon Papers
A History of New-York from the Beginning of the World to the End of the Dutch Dynasty, by Dietrich Knickerbocker
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow
The Life and Voyages of Christopher Columbus, vol 2
The Life of George Washington, vol 1
Little Britain
Old Christmas
Oliver Goldsmith, A Biography
The Sketch-Book of Geoffrey Crayon
Tales of a Traveller
Tales of the Alhambra
Wolfert's Roost and Miscellanies
... Read more

Product Description

This collection was designed for optimal navigation on Kindle and other electronic devices. It is indexed alphabetically, chronologically and by category, making it easier to access individual books, stories and poems. This collection offers lower price, the convenience of a one-time download, and it reduces the clutter in your digital library. All books included in this collection feature a hyperlinked table of contents and footnotes. The collection is complimented by an author biography. Author's biography and stories in the trial version.

Customer Reviews (3)

The collection of Mr. Irving's works
Works of Washington Irving. The Sketch-Book of Geoffrey Crayon (32 stories, includes The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, Little Britain and Rip Van Winkle). Also ... works. Published by MobileReference (mobi)

A treasure chest indeed. I had read all of the old yarns such as Rip Van Winkle and The Legend of Sleepy Hollow during my childhood exposure to literature, but had not read some of the others. This, therefore, was an important undertaking for me, one that I'm glad I took the time to do. I very much enjoy the writers of earlier times for their leisurely pace. This collection of Mr. Irving's works did not disappoint me.

Witty and charming
Works of Washington Irving. The Sketch-Book of Geoffrey Crayon (32 stories, includes The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, Little Britain and Rip Van Winkle). Also ... works. Published by MobileReference (mobi)

Washington Irving's talent will never go out of style. Every line is interesting, captivating. His prose, the descriptive passages as he leads you into the deepest innermost facets of his characters, is truly what great literature is all about. This ebook is highly recommended.

Works of Washington Irving
Complete Works of Washington Irving. FREE Author's biography and Stories in the trial version

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, Rip Van Winkle and much more...
Kindle-friendly ebook! ... Read more

Product Description
from the introductory: I was born among romantic scenery, in one of the wildest parts of the Hudson,which at that time was not so thickly settled as at present. My father wasdescended from one of the old Huguenot families that came over to this countryon the revocation of the edict of Nantz. He lived in a style of easy, ruralindependence, on a patrimonial estate that had been for two or three generationsin the family. He was an indolent, good-natured man, who took the world as itwent, and had a kind of laughing philosophy, that parried all rubs and mishaps,and served him in the place of wisdom. This was the part of his character leastto my taste; for I was of an enthusiastic, excitable temperament, prone tokindle up with new schemes and projects, and he was apt to dash my sallyingenthusiasm by some unlucky joke; so that whenever I was in a glow with anysudden excitement, I stood in mortal dread of his good-humor.

Yet he indulged me in every vagary; for I was an only son, and of course apersonage of importance in the household. I had two sisters older than myself,and one younger. The former were educated at New York, under the eye of a maidenaunt; the latter remained at home, and was my cherished playmate, the companionof my thoughts. We were two imaginative little beings, of quick susceptibility,and prone to see wonders and mysteries in everything around us. Scarce had welearned to read, when our mother made us holiday presents of all the nurseryliterature of the day; which at that time consisted of little books covered withgilt paper, adorned with "cuts," and filled with tales of fairies, giants, andenchanters. What draughts of delightful fiction did we then inhale! My sisterSophy was of a soft and tender nature. She would weep over the woes of theChildren in the Wood, or quake at the dark romance of Blue-Beard, and theterrible mysteries of the blue chamber. But I was all for enterprise andadventure. I burned to emulate the deeds of that heroic prince who delivered thewhite cat from her enchantment; or he of no less royal blood, and doughtyenterprise, who broke the charmed slumber of the Beauty in the Wood!

Product Description
This is an OCR edition without illustrations or index. It may have numerous typos or missing text. However, purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original rare book from GeneralBooksClub.com. You can also preview excerpts from the book there. Purchasers are also entitled to a free trial membership in the General Books Club where they can select from more than a million books without charge. Original Published by: Ginn and company in 1915 in 388 pages; Subjects: Alhambra; Alhambra (Granada, Spain); Architecture / General; Drama / American; Fiction / Literary; History / World; History / Europe / Spain & Portugal; Literary Criticism / American / General; Travel / Europe / Spain & Portugal; ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Great book. Crap printing
I ordered this as a gift for my Ma.

When I visited her a few weeks later I saw something that looked like

a high schooler had copied at kinkos.

The type is blurry and smudged.

Some paragraphs are unreadable.

Will Amazon take it back?

No, it been more than 30 days....40 days to be exact.

I will not purchase gift books from Amazon again...better off going to Borders....get a

clean copy and ship it yourself.

Part Spanish Arabian Nights, Part Travel Writing, All Wonderful
Many Americans know Washington Irving as the author of "the Legend of Sleepy Hollow" and "Rip Van Winkle". Few realize that he was also a world traveler, scholarly fluent in Arabic and Spanish and something of an Hispanophile, to the say least.
Irving's book is largely responsible for the widespread romantic image of Spain. It is a collection of observation, history, fairy tale, written in Irving's unique blend of romanticism and healthy skepticism. It is roughly framed by his journey to the Alhambra and his departure from it, an in between we are given a tour of the grounds and hear a few tales (including tales of Moorish ghosts on headless horses) which are roughly intertwined as in the Arabian Nights. Indeed, this little book is the 'Arabian Nights' of the west.
Before visit the Alhambra read this book. If you are not planning on going, read it and you'll probably change your mind.

Exciting stories, stirring history, and a great guidebook
Irving's book on the Alhambra and the surrounding territory of Granada remains one of the best guidebooks to the region--and one of the most entertaining travelogues ever written. Anyone who has visited (or plans to visit) southern Spain will be thrilled by the account of Irving's trip, but I'll go further: you need not ever go there to enjoy this classic work of history and humor.

Irving stayed at the Alhambra for three months in 1829 and jotted down notes concerning its history and legends. Early in his visit, Irving was accosted by Mateo Ximenes, a credulous and indigent "son of the Alhambra" who soon proves a worthy and endearing companion, a guide to secret chambers, and a conveyor of whimsical traditions. A couple of years later, while in London, Irving wrote "The Alhambra," describing his idiosyncratic hosts, recounting the millennium-old history of the Moorish occupation, and transcribing fresh versions of the palace's medieval legends and myths, many of which resemble stories from the "Arabian Nights." The first edition appeared in 1832, a second American edition was published four years later, but Irving extensively revised and enlarged the book in 1851, incorporating material unavailable or unknown to him in the 1830s. This last edition is the one most commonly available today.

The result is easily Irving's most accessible book, filled with wit and anecdote. Alongside the history of the Moorish kingdom of Granada, Irving intersperses tales (both historical and mythical) of enchanted caves, imprisoned princesses, and buried treasure. His admiration for Islamic heritage is obvious throughout: "The Arab invasion and conquest brought a higher civilization and a nobler style of thinking, into Gothic Spain." And he regularly denounces the prejudices (both medieval and contemporary) "so strongly characteristic of the bigot zeal, which sometimes inflamed the Christian enterprises" and which have prevented his fellow Europeans from studying a rich and justifiably proud tradition.

As Irving accurately summarizes, Moslem Spain was "a region of light amid Christian, yet benighted Europe; externally a warrior power fighting for existence; internally a realm devoted to literature, science, and the arts; where philosophy was cultivated with a passion . . . and where the luxuries of sense were transcended by those of thought and imagination." Plus, the Islamic "occupiers" and Christian warriors certainly knew how to tell a good story. This book will delight both history and literature buffs.

The Alhambra
I don't always like to read classics, but when a friend of mine suggested that I read this book, I decided to try it, and I am very glad that I did. Irving's words, though written so many years before now, still paint eloquent pictures of the Spain of his time. I could almost see what he was seeing. The stories and legends are also wonderful and fascinating. An antique copy of this book is one of my most treasured gifts. ... Read more

Product Description
This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Only for Serious Sir Walter Scott, Washington Irving, and/or Lord Byron Fans...
As part of the great American authors interview great European authors series...

But seriously.

You may not realize that Washington Irving once visited Sir Walter Scott. If you didn't, then this book contains the recanting of that tale, as well as a visit to Newstead Abbey, the home of the late Lord Byron (late even in Irving's day). It is somewhat interesting from a historical standpoint, but there is nothing in this book that is of great interest unless you are a fan of either Sir Walter Scott, Washington Irving, Lord Byron, or some combination of these...

Yet, I am selling short those folks who enjoy reading historical Scottish travelogues. Oh, for shame.

Still, a very unique piece of literature which is short enough, and written well enough that it might be worthy of your time, proving you are an avid reader. ... Read more

Product Description
In The Sketch-Book (1820-21), Irving explores the uneasy relationship of an American writer to English literary traditions.In two sketches, he experiments with tales transplanted from Europe, thereby creating the first classic American short stories, Rip Van Winkle, and The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.Based on Irving's final revision of his most popular work, this new edition includes comprehensive explanatory notes of The Sketch-Book's sources for the modern reader. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (13)

Much More Than Rip Van Winkle or Sleepy Hollow
The Sketch Book by Washington Irving is one of those little gems you occasionally stumble on by accident. While most will be familiar with the two short stories cited above what really captivated me about this collection was Irving's short essays about his observations of life in England while he lived there in the post-colonial period. His musings on English life in both the urban setting of London and his rural pastoral country side reflections capture an England that no longer exists and reminds me of the paintings of landscape artists such as Turner. Irving is a bit idealistic and some of his portrayals seem almost condescending to the poor and the lower classes to a modern sensibility. Nonetheless his prose is beautiful to the ear and he uses descriptive language that is a pleasure to read.
I found it interesting that Washington Irving wrote most of his works while he was living in England since I always considered him the quintessential chronicler of early American life based on the two best known stories that he left us.

Early American short stories by Washington Irving will bring delight to those who peruse his magical pages of poetic prose
Ichabod Crane and Rip Van Winkle are two of the most instantly recognizable characters in all of American fiction. Their creator is Washington Irving (1783-1859). Irving came from a wealthy New York family; he disdained practicing law and was able to indulge his literary genius. His models were Sir Walter Scott and Cervantes.
The Sketchbook of Geoffrey Crayon contain several short stories and sketches composed by Irving and published in 1820. Two of the stories have won immortality: "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" and "Rip Van Winkle."
The former tale concerns the fictional career of Tarrytown New York schoolmaster Ichabod Crane.Crane is scared witless by his midnight meeting with the headless Hessian (or is it his opponent in love the doughty Bram Bones?) while the latter tells of a man who fell asleep prior to the American Revolution. When Rip Van Winkle awakens from a 20 year nap he finds the world he knew a distant memory.These are two of the earliest short stories by a native born American. They were well received making Irving one of our nation's first literary stars.
Included in the collection are such gems as several chapters devoted to English customs especially those celebrating Christmas. We tour Westminster Abbey, Stratford on Avon and old inns in the company of our congenial companion Mr. Irving. We hear ghost stories and meet such famous Indians as King Phillip. Irving understood the plight of native Americans who had been robbed of their lands by greedy whites. We Yankees also become acquainted with that sturdy Britisher John Bull.
Irving's style is easier to read that that of his contemporaries James Fenimore Cooper and Sir Walter Scott. His stories are warm, short and memorable. Irving is also notable in trying to draw America and Great Britian together by better understanding each others nations. He wrote in the era of good feeling with Great Britain following the American Revolution and the War of 1812. Irving is not a profound writer but his quiet, dreamy gentle nature shines through the ages to delight modern readers. Don't look behind you as you conclude this review for the spooky headless horseman may be on your heels!

AnEngaging Read
I've heard so much of Rip Van Winkle and The Legend of Sleepy Hollow over the years that this is the reason I purchased the book. I'm working up in the Catsilll Mountains at the moment and wanted to read something that related to the area. This book is far more than the Catskill Mountains as it discusses many of his ventures in England. I found this book to be engaging and heartfelt. I'm happy to finally know more about Washington Irving and his experiences.

"Warm and cheerful pictures of English life"
Washington Irving's "Sketch Book" is an eccentric mongrel of literary types that mingles travel writing, literary reflections, and tales (fiction and historical); it is most famous for "Rip Van Winkle" and "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow." In 1931, the literary critic Henry Seidel Canby remarked that "without the two Dutch stories, however, 'The Sketch Book' would not have worn so well. They are perfect examples of what Irving loved to do, and naturally he did them well."

Indeed, few readers ever encounter any of the other selections, except perhaps "The Spectre Bridegroom"--a comic tale of mystery and suspense. What may surprise many readers, however, is that nearly all of the book's remaining entries are about England--mostly about rural life and the landed gentry outside London, or (as described by William Cullen Bryant) "warm and cheerful pictures of English life."

Under the pen name of Geoffrey Crayon, Irving details his sea voyage to England, a comical fishing trip inspired by "The Compleat Angler," a walking excursion through Little Britain (a London neighborhood), and a visit to the library at the British Museum, where he "soon found that the library was a kind of literary 'preserve,' subject to game laws, and that no one must presume to hunt there without special license and permission." He attends a rural church service (during which he pays more attention to the congregants than the rites) and even crashes a funeral party. There are two essays on Shakespeare, a sequence of articles describing English Christmas customs, a biographical account of King James I of Scotland, and a tour of the tombs in Westminster Abbey.

From the safe distance of his exile in England, Irving hurls two essays describing sympathetically "the characters and habits of the North American savage." The phrase is jarring to 21st-century ears, but, while Irving repeatedly uses the unfortunate term, he simultaneously condemns that the "the appellations of savage and pagan were deemed sufficient to sanction the hostilities of both [colonists and writers]." Regardless of its bipolar sensitivity to language, the first essay is a rousing defense of Native Americans: "They cannot but be sensible that the white men are the usurpers of their ancient dominion, the cause of their degradation, and the gradual destroyers of their race." The second essay is a portrait of King Philip, or Metamocet of Pokanoket, the 17th-century chief of the Wampanoag tribe whose conflict with the New England settlers resulted in the near-eradication of his people.

Irving has a tendency to dilute his delight with an abundance of detail, but his mastery of the quip and his sarcasm--so abundant in his "History of New York"--is still on display throughout "The Sketch Book." Its unevenness, ponderousness, and lack of thematic coherence can be challenging, however, and those looking for fiction rather than "sketches" may prefer (as I did) Irving's "Tales of a Traveller," which is comprised entirely of ghost stories, pirate adventures, and tall tales.

Washington Irving slept for forty years
My memories of reading ' The Legend of Sleepy Hollow' and ' Rip Van Winkle ' in school are memories of vague misunderstanding, a haze of wondering what they were all about. This is especially true in regard the story of Rip Van Winkle.But there was nonetheless in the atmosphere of the stories, something of the feeling of oldAmerica, the Dutch- English America so present in the Renssaeleer County I grew up in. Later in life returning to Irving's work I read some of the Alhambra Tales and sketches. All the writing seemed to me to come of ' another world and time' a world and time much more leisurely and slow than the America which was to follow. It is hard to believe but it is little more thanthirty-years between Washington Irving's gentelmanly meanderings, and the American Renaissance of Melville, Hawthorne, Emerson, Thoreau and Whitman. Irving is the first American writer known to the world, but he does not really presage the great American creative outburst that is to follow him.
One more point. There is a story from the Talmud about Honi ha- Maagel who goes to sleep for a generation. And when he wakes up finds a wholly new world. He makes then the famous remarks ' Death is preferable to living without friends'. Perhaps Washington Irving too had a sense of being somewhere back in the past, far out of the time of present everyday America. And thus perhaps he suggests that if you sleep too long when you wake up your world is lost and it as if you are dead . i.e. it is as if you have not woken up at all.
Irving in this sense as a writer seems more some one read as a relic than one who gives the kind of inspiring fire his great American successors will provide. ... Read more

Product Description
"The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" is a short story by Washington Irving contained in his collection The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent., written while he was living in Birmingham, England, and first published in 1820. With Irving's companion piece "Rip Van Winkle", "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" is among the earliest examples of American fiction still read today.The story is set circa 1790 in the Dutch settlement of Tarry Town, in a secluded glen called Sleepy Hollow. It tells the story of Ichabod Crane, a sycophantic, lean, lanky, and extremely superstitious schoolmaster from Connecticut, who competes with Abraham "Brom Bones" Van Brunt, the town rowdy, for the hand of 18-year-old Katrina Van Tassel, the daughter and sole child of a wealthy farmer, Baltus Van Tassel. As Crane leaves a party he attended at the Van Tassel home on an autumn night, he is pursued by the Headless Horseman, who is supposedly the ghost of a Hessian trooper who had his head shot off by a stray cannonball during "some nameless battle" of the American Revolutionary War, and who "rides forth to the scene of battle in nightly quest of his head".Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Legend_of_Sleepy_Hollow ... Read more

Product Description
In The Sketch-Book (1820-21), Irving explores the uneasy relationship of an American writer to English literary traditions.In two sketches, he experiments with tales transplanted from Europe, thereby creating the first classic American short stories, Rip Van Winkle, and The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.Based on Irving's final revision of his most popular work, this new edition includes comprehensive explanatory notes of The Sketch-Book's sources for the modern reader. ... Read more

Product Description
Washington Irving (1783-1859) was an American author of the early nineteenth century. Best known for his short stories The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Rip van Winkle, he was also a prolific essayist, biographer and historian. He spoke fluent Spanish, which served him well in his writings on that country, and he could read several other languages, including German and Dutch. His first book was A History of New-York from the Beginning of the World to the End of the Dutch Dynasty, by Diedrich Knickerbocker. He travelled on the Western frontier in the 1830s and recorded his glimpses of Western tribes in A Tour on the Prairies. He spoke against the mishandling of relations with the Native American tribes by Europeans and Americans. He popularized the nickname "Gotham" for New York City, and is credited with inventing the expression "the Almighty dollar". ... Read more