The Apple-Tree Table, and Other Sketches

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Melville, Herman, 1819-1891

Contributor:

Chapin, Henry, 1893-1983

Language:

English

Physical Description:

1 online resource : multiple file formats

Place of Publication:

Salt Lake City, UT : Project Gutenberg,

Summary:

"The Apple-Tree Table, and Other Sketches" by Herman Melville is a collection of short stories written in the mid-19th century. The opening portion introduces readers to a peculiar apple-tree table with a storied past, enticing them into a blend of the supernatural and domestic life, as the main character navigates his fascination with this seemingly haunted piece of furniture. Melville's characteristic wit and philosophical musings come to life through the narrative, which revolves around the tensions created by the table's mysterious qualities. At the start of the book, the narrator recounts the discovery of the old apple-tree table in a dusty attic, igniting a mix of intrigue and discomfort. The protagonist's family, particularly his daughters, are unnerved by the table's cloven feet and its eerie origins, leading to humorous exchanges about superstition and domesticity. As tensions rise, a ticking sound is heard emanating from the table, stirring both curiosity and fear, eventually culminating in the discovery of a living insect emerging from it, providing a blend of comedy and the grotesque. This whimsical yet unsettling beginning sets the tone for the other sketches in the collection, which offer further explorations into the intersections of the ordinary and the extraordinary. (This is an automatically generated summary.)

Contents:

The apple-tree table

Hawthorne and his Mosses

Jimmy Rose

I and my chimney

The Paradise of Bachelors and the Tartarus of Maids

Cock-a-doodle-doo

The fiddler

Poor man's pudding and rich man's crumbs

The happy failure

The 'Gees.

Credits:

Chris Whitehead, Mary Glenn Krause, David Edwards, Eric Lehtonen and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team

Notes:

Reading ease score: 69.6 (8th & 9th grade). Neither easy nor difficult to read.

Release date is 2017-01-01