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the experience of reading in Britain, from 1450 to 1945...

Reading Experience Database UK Historical image of readers
 
 
 
 

Record Number: 29005


Reading Experience:

Evidence:

'He [Joseph Conrad] would read to me for long periods and make birds and other things out of sheets of paper which he folded with great dexterity. [...] His choice of books always met with my approval; I believe he must have read them all during his youth and enjoyed re-reading them almost as much as I enjoyed listening. Among them were Charles Kingsley's "Greek Heroes", Fennimore [sic] Cooper's "The Last of the Mohicans", "[The] Deerslayer", "The Pathfinder" and Captain Marryat's "Peter Simple", "[Mr] Midshipman Easy",etc.[...] Some of these volumes [...] are still on my bookshelves here with his signature inside the cover.'

Century:

1900-1945

Date:

Between 23 May 1907 and 19 Aug 1907

Country:

Switzerland

Time

n/a

Place:

city: Champel-les-Bains
specific address: Hôtel-Pension de la Roseraie
location in dwelling: probably child's bedroom

Type of Experience
(Reader):
 

silent aloud unknown
solitary in company unknown
single serial unknown

Type of Experience
(Listener):
 

solitary in company unknown
single serial unknown


Reader / Listener / Reading Group:

Reader:

Joseph Conrad

Age:

Adult (18-100+)

Gender:

Male

Date of Birth:

3 Dec 1857

Socio-Economic Group:

Gentry
'Szlachta', or Polish landed gentry/nobility

Occupation:

Master mariner and author

Religion:

Roman Catholic

Country of Origin:

Poland

Country of Experience:

Switzerland

Listeners present if any:
e.g family, servants, friends

Borys Conrad


Additional Comments:

n/a



Text Being Read:

Author:

Frederick Marryat

Title:

Mr Midshipman Easy

Genre:

Fiction, Children's Lit

Form of Text:

Print: Book

Publication Details

first published 1836

Provenance

owned


Source Information:

Record ID:

29005

Source:

Print

Author:

Borys Conrad

Editor:

n/a

Title:

My Father: Joseph Conrad

Place of Publication:

London

Date of Publication:

1970

Vol:

n/a

Page:

54

Additional Comments:

n/a

Citation:

Borys Conrad, My Father: Joseph Conrad, (London, 1970), p. 54, http://www.open.ac.uk/Arts/reading/UK/record_details.php?id=29005, accessed: 10 November 2024


Additional Comments:

This experience can be dated to the period during which Borys Conrad was recovering from whooping cough and rheumatic fever.

   
   
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