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Prose

The Sketch Book, fond of new scenes

Author: Washington Irving Year: 1820 Length: 435 characters Difficulty: easy Public domain

Four sentences of moderate length, useful for settling into an even pace with only commas to watch.

I was always fond of visiting new scenes, and observing strange characters and manners. Even when a mere child I began my travels, and made many tours of discovery into foreign parts and unknown regions of my native city, to the frequent alarm of my parents, and the emolument of the town crier. As I grew into boyhood, I extended the range of my observations. My holiday afternoons were spent in rambles about the surrounding country.

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A hay wagon with two horses crosses a shallow river by a cottage under bright clouds, The Hay-Wain, John Constable, 1821.
What you just typedThe Sketch Book, fond of new scenesWashington Irving, 1820
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About this text

This passage opens the piece Irving called The Author's Account of Himself, which stands first in the collection. He wrote the sketches while working in Liverpool and travelling in Britain after his family business failed. The book appeared in parts in 1819 and 1820 under the name Geoffrey Crayon. Project Gutenberg carries the whole collection.

About this text

This passage opens the piece Irving called The Author's Account of Himself, which stands first in the collection. He wrote the sketches while working in Liverpool and travelling in Britain after his family business failed. The book appeared in parts in 1819 and 1820 under the name Geoffrey Crayon. Project Gutenberg carries the whole collection.

What it trains

Four sentences of moderate length, useful for settling into an even pace with only commas to watch.

Public domain

Copyright has expired or never applied, so anyone can copy the text and use it further.

Source: domena publiczna, Project Gutenberg

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