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The Complete Idiot's Guide to English Literature
Explore the canon of great writers.
In this incredible volume, English professor Jay Stevenson teaches readers everything they want?and need?to know about English literature. From Chaucer, Shakespeare, Milton, and Keats, to more modern figures like Nabokov, Salinger, Morrison, and Updike, this handy guide also includes information on periods, time frames, every type of criticism, the differences and similarities of the literature on each side of the Atlantic, and more.
?Fascinating, fact-filled writing that explores English literature as it is studied right now
?Terrific supplementary reading for AP English Lit students
?Helps readers explore and study fiction, plays, poems, and prose
In this incredible volume, English professor Jay Stevenson teaches readers everything they want?and need?to know about English literature. From Chaucer, Shakespeare, Milton, and Keats, to more modern figures like Nabokov, Salinger, Morrison, and Updike, this handy guide also includes information on periods, time frames, every type of criticism, the differences and similarities of the literature on each side of the Atlantic, and more.
?Fascinating, fact-filled writing that explores English literature as it is studied right now
?Terrific supplementary reading for AP English Lit students
?Helps readers explore and study fiction, plays, poems, and prose
- GenresCollegeBooks About Books
352 pages, Paperback
First published March 1, 2005
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70 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
March 21, 2018
I didn't like how this guy presented things. He sounded condescending at times and arrogant. Didn't cover things as well as the other literature books I read for this exam.
April 10, 2021
Simple, fact-filled book that covers a lot of material in a short period of time, meaning little commitment or time to this book.
Like when I read the books on Opera, it again reminds me how much the arts played into government, religion, control, and world events. Just as opera houses closed and were controlled by the government – also telling stories – so did the theaters in the mid 1600’s when the monarchy was overthrown during the Puritan Revolution.
The book would have been much stronger had it mentioned the role of women in literature.
While I’ve read a couple of these ‘Idiot’ books before, I found this one more technical and less fun, more dry and less interesting.
Like when I read the books on Opera, it again reminds me how much the arts played into government, religion, control, and world events. Just as opera houses closed and were controlled by the government – also telling stories – so did the theaters in the mid 1600’s when the monarchy was overthrown during the Puritan Revolution.
The book would have been much stronger had it mentioned the role of women in literature.
While I’ve read a couple of these ‘Idiot’ books before, I found this one more technical and less fun, more dry and less interesting.
November 26, 2015
I like the concept of being able to pick up something as if I were a complete idiot -- even if in reality, I am -- probably like most other Complete Idiot Guide readers -- perhaps more precisely a partial idiot on a given topic rather than being EITHER expert or truly totally clueless.
Why does that matter? Well, how one reacts to what one has read is likely to be influenced by multiple factors -- one being what one already knows or what one was expecting; an expert in the field might know what to expect content-wise and be able to opine with a certain credibility about the accuracy or scope of the content whereas a truly clueless sort won't have the least notion about what the content might or ought to be.
So, I am not an expert so I can't say much about the accuracy or scope or thoroughness of this guide. However, I can say something about my expectations.
In this case, my expectations were a little off from the start because of the title: The word English here in the title was slightly confusing -- maybe ? so I could feel at least like an idiot (partial if not complete) from the get-go ???-- in that the English Literature in the title doesn't refer to literature written in the English Language anywhere in the world.
The guide in early paragraphs alerted me that the guide would really be looking at BRITISH literature. Okay. Okay. Maybe I was momentarily thrown off guard. (I looked later and found out there is a Complete Idiot's Guide to American Literature and another on Literary Criticism.)
Maybe other folks would't be surprised that something titled English Literature would mean British Literature but why oh why oh why throw in a list of literature titles at the END of the book that aren't all British literature (you know American writers and their books) with no explanation or rationale that is apparent? That threw me.
I was NOT reading this in preparation for any test of any sort -- and I can't say whether it would be useful or NOT useful, but it didn't purport to be written for test-takers. More importantly, I would not particularly recommend using this for test preparation (unless you are a student in a class taught by the author who said he would be making a test based on the guide, for some odd reason).
I was just reading this because I bumped into this book on a shelf and dumped it into my bag, thinking I'd learn a little bit about literature --and then after seeing an early paragraph amended my expectation to thinking I'd learn a little bit about BRITISH literature. And I did.
Why does that matter? Well, how one reacts to what one has read is likely to be influenced by multiple factors -- one being what one already knows or what one was expecting; an expert in the field might know what to expect content-wise and be able to opine with a certain credibility about the accuracy or scope of the content whereas a truly clueless sort won't have the least notion about what the content might or ought to be.
So, I am not an expert so I can't say much about the accuracy or scope or thoroughness of this guide. However, I can say something about my expectations.
In this case, my expectations were a little off from the start because of the title: The word English here in the title was slightly confusing -- maybe ? so I could feel at least like an idiot (partial if not complete) from the get-go ???-- in that the English Literature in the title doesn't refer to literature written in the English Language anywhere in the world.
The guide in early paragraphs alerted me that the guide would really be looking at BRITISH literature. Okay. Okay. Maybe I was momentarily thrown off guard. (I looked later and found out there is a Complete Idiot's Guide to American Literature and another on Literary Criticism.)
Maybe other folks would't be surprised that something titled English Literature would mean British Literature but why oh why oh why throw in a list of literature titles at the END of the book that aren't all British literature (you know American writers and their books) with no explanation or rationale that is apparent? That threw me.
I was NOT reading this in preparation for any test of any sort -- and I can't say whether it would be useful or NOT useful, but it didn't purport to be written for test-takers. More importantly, I would not particularly recommend using this for test preparation (unless you are a student in a class taught by the author who said he would be making a test based on the guide, for some odd reason).
I was just reading this because I bumped into this book on a shelf and dumped it into my bag, thinking I'd learn a little bit about literature --and then after seeing an early paragraph amended my expectation to thinking I'd learn a little bit about BRITISH literature. And I did.
July 31, 2009
lots of help in writing my book, I can't afford a English lit class so my step mom and my Dad are helping and I am reading lots of books. at the same time.
I feel OMG OMG OMG...... BOOKS, BOOKS, BOOKS AND MORE BOOKS. AHHHHHH
i WILL NEVER READ THEM ALL BUT I HAVE TO READ THEM ALL.. ALLL GIVE ME MORE TIME.
I am sure there has to be some avid book lovers out there like me .
have a great day.
I feel OMG OMG OMG...... BOOKS, BOOKS, BOOKS AND MORE BOOKS. AHHHHHH
i WILL NEVER READ THEM ALL BUT I HAVE TO READ THEM ALL.. ALLL GIVE ME MORE TIME.
I am sure there has to be some avid book lovers out there like me .
have a great day.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews