The Sketch Book: The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Other Stories

Rating:
Summary: An Under-appreciated Gem
Review: Washington Irving's Sketch Book is not only a literary document, with more import than just what literary scholars can glean, but also an ambitious work by a young author. Like reading any first work, observing the chances Irving takes with these articles and stories is revealing and rewarding.

Sketch Book has more than just scary tales, like Sleepy Hollow, but also has travel pieces, period literary criticism, and insightful social analyses. Irving honestly contrasts British and Continental cultures with nascent American currents. The theme of the book is the uniqueness of American culture, but also its continuities with European trends. The Sketch Book is commentary on a very ambitious scale. It is a model for anyone writing a travel memoir, either non-fiction or fictionalized.

Irving's style is also very ornate, but economical and organized, and his range of subjects is vast. Any one interested in 19th-century history or culture will find this independent work revealing.