An Introduction to the Anthology

Well-regarded book review publications (Kirkus Reviews, Library Journal, and Publishers Weekly) and popular social cataloguing websites (GoodReads, LibraryThing) categorize the books they review into genres. Fiction and Nonfiction are the broadest genre categories. Specialized categories include Mysteries, Children’s Books, and Poetry. Of course, even these sub-genres of Fiction and Nonfiction go by different labels. For example, “Mystery” books at Kirkus Reviews are labeled Mystery and Detective. Publishers Weekly and GoodReads use the label Mystery and Thriller. This public domain anthology, while open to expansion to include additional book genres, such as science fiction or biography and memoir, provides a rich and varied collection of works for novice book critics to develop their skills as reviewers.

A distinctive feature of this anthology is that public domain audio-recordings of most every book in this collection are available for listening at Librivox.org. The Librivox objective is “to make all books in the public domain available, narrated by real people and distributed for free, in audio format on the internet.” Access to these recordings could benefit auditory learners, blind and low-vision readers, and English Language Learners. Combining print and audio would also assist readers in how to pronounce unfamiliar words and to “feel” the cadence and rhythm of sophisticated sentences.

Learn more about the mission and core principles of Librivox.org at

https://librivox.org/pages/about-librivox/