Book Description

"There is a certain relief in change, even though it be from bad to worse; as I have found in traveling in a stage coach, that it is often a comfort to shift one's position and be bruised in a new place." ― Washington Irving, Tales of a Traveller This is a collection of short stories that the author wrote while living in Europe. It begins with a series of ghost stories, then tells the back stories of s number of people from literary scholars to Italian bandits, and finishes with a group of stories about treasure hunting in New England. An impressive read of portraits of lives from all parts of the world and many different walks of life. Washington Irving was an American author, essayist, biographer and historian of the early 19th century. He began his literary career at the age of nineteen by writing newspaper articles under the pseudonym Jonathan Oldstyle. In 1809, he published The History of New York under his most popular public persona, Diedrich Knickerbocker. Irving is best known for his short stories The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Rip Van Winkle, both of which appear in his book The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent., which he published in 1819. Irving's historical works include a five volume biography of George Washington (after whom he was named) as well as biographies of Oliver Goldsmith, Muhammad, and several histories of 15th-century Spain dealing with subjects such as Christopher Columbus, the Moors, and the Alhambra. Irving felt a strong connection to Spain and was appointed by President John Tyler to serve as the first Spanish speaking U.S. minister to Spain from 1842 to 1846.