Record Number: 11367
Reading Experience:
Evidence:
'Maybe to neutralise the Penny Dreadful, Cassells brought out the Penny Classics. These had a bluish-green cover and were world famous novels in abridged form, but sixty or seventy pages. And W.T. Stead brought out the Penny Poets. The covers of these were pimply surface-paper, a bright orange colour, and they contained selections from Longfellow, Tennyson, Keats, and many others. I first read "Hiawatha" and "Evangeline" in the Penny Poets and thought them marvellous; so marvellous that I began to write 'poetry' myself. Stead also brought out another penny book; this had a pink cover and contained selections from the ancient classics: stories from Homer, the writings of Pliny the younger, Aesop's "Fables". I took a strong fancy to Aesop, he was a Greek slave from Samos, in the sixth century BC, and workpeople were only just beginning to be called "wage slaves". I read all these; non-selective and Catholic my reading...'
Century:1850-1899, 1900-1945
Date:unknown
Country:England
Timen/a
Place:n/a
Type of Experience(Reader):
silent aloud unknown
solitary in company unknown
single serial unknown
(Listener):
solitary in company unknown
single serial unknown
Reader / Listener / Reading Group:
Reader: Age:Child (0-17)
Gender:Male
Date of Birth:n/a
Socio-Economic Group:Labourer (non-agricultural)
Occupation:ironmoulder, later writer
Religion:n/a
Country of Origin:England
Country of Experience:England
Listeners present if any:e.g family, servants, friends
n/a
Additional Comments:
n/a
Text Being Read:
Author: Title:[unknown]
Genre:Poetry
Form of Text:Print: Book
Publication DetailsW.T. Stead's Penny Poets edition
Provenanceowned
Source Information:
Record ID:11367
Source:Joseph Stamper
Editor:n/a
Title:So long ago
Place of Publication:London
Date of Publication:1960
Vol:n/a
Page:162
Additional Comments:
n/a
Citation:
Joseph Stamper, So long ago, (London, 1960), p. 162, http://www.open.ac.uk/Arts/reading/UK/record_details.php?id=11367, accessed: 07 October 2024
Additional Comments:
None