Tales of a Traveller

Tales of a Traveller, by Geoffrey Crayon, Gent.
Volume 1 of the first US edition.
AuthorWashington Irving
LanguageEnglish
GenreEssays & Short stories
PublisherJohn Murray (London)
H.C. Cary & I. Lee (Philadelphia)
Publication date
1824
Publication placeUnited States/England
(concurrently published)
Media typePrint (Hardback & Paperback)
ISBN0-940450-59-3 (reprint)
OCLC22207793
813/.2 20
LC ClassPS2052 1991
Preceded byBracebridge Hall 
Followed byA History of the Life and Voyages of Christopher Columbus 

Tales of a Traveller, by Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. (1824) is a two-volume collection of essays and short stories composed by Washington Irving while he was living in Europe, primarily in Germany and Paris. The collection was published under Irving's pseudonym, Geoffrey Crayon, Gent.

Contents

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VOLUME I

After the introductory "To the Reader", Tales of a Traveller is composed of four "Parts."

Part I: Strange Stories by a Nervous Gentleman

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  • "The Great Unknown"
  • "The Hunting Dinner"
  • "The Adventure of My Uncle"
  • "The Adventure of My Aunt"
  • "The Bold Dragoon; or, the Adventure of My Grandfather"
  • "The Adventure of the German Student"
  • "The Adventure of the Mysterious Picture"
  • "The Adventure of the Mysterious Stranger"
  • "The Story of the Young Italian"

Part II: Buckthorne and His Friends

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  • "Literary Life"
  • "A Literary Dinner"
  • "The Club of Queer Fellows"
  • "The Poor-Devil Author"
  • "Notoriety"
  • "A Practical Philosopher"
  • "Buckthorne; or, the Young Man of Great Expectations"

VOLUME II

  • "Grave Reflections of a Disappointed Man"
  • "The Booby Squire"
  • "The Strolling Manager"

Part III: The Italian Banditti

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  • "The Inn at Terracina"
  • "The Adventure of the Little Antiquary"
  • "The Belated Travellers"
  • "The Adventure of the Popkins Family"
  • "The Painter's Adventure"
  • "The Story of the Bandit Chieftain"
  • "The Story of the Young Robber"
  • "The Adventure of the Englishman"

Part IV: The Money Diggers

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Reception

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Irving thought highly of Tales of a Traveller, saying: "I think there are in it some of the best things I have ever written". He was therefore disappointed by the book's generally poor critical reception.[1] Critic John Neal was severe in his critique,[2] saying in American Writers: "We hardly know how to speak of this sad affair .... No wonder that people have begun to question his originality".[3] By the early 20th century, critics generally ranked it lower than The Sketch Book.[4]

References

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  1. ^ Cairns, William B. (1922). British Criticisms of American Writings 1815–1833: A Contribution to the Study of Anglo-American Literary Relationships. University of Wisconsin Studies in Language and Literature Number 14. Madison, Wisconsin: University of Wisconsin. p. 50. OCLC 1833885.
  2. ^ Cairns, William B. (1922). British Criticisms of American Writings 1815–1833: A Contribution to the Study of Anglo-American Literary Relationships. University of Wisconsin Studies in Language and Literature Number 14. Madison, Wisconsin: University of Wisconsin. p. 86. OCLC 1833885.
  3. ^ Neal, John (1937). Pattee, Fred Lewis (ed.). American Writers: A Series of Papers Contributed to Blackwood's Magazine (1824–1825). Durham, North Carolina: Duke University Press. pp. 138–139. OCLC 464953146.
  4. ^ Cairns, William B. (1922). British Criticisms of American Writings 1815–1833: A Contribution to the Study of Anglo-American Literary Relationships. University of Wisconsin Studies in Language and Literature Number 14. Madison, Wisconsin: University of Wisconsin. p. 50. OCLC 1833885.
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