The Sketch-Book of Geoffrey Crayon

About the book

Writing through the persona of Geoffrey Crayon, Washington Irving brings together travel sketches, reflective essays, and tales. English villages, churches, inns, literary associations, and Christmas customs invite an affectionate, sometimes melancholy attention to the survival of the past. Alongside these observations stand 'Rip Van Winkle' and 'The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,' whose American settings turn local storytelling into memorable mixtures of humor and the uncanny. The collection's variety is central to its character: a scene of rural life may give way to literary speculation, a personal sorrow, or an elaborate legend. Crayon's observant, leisurely voice connects these different forms, making the book a journey through remembered traditions and the imaginative uses people make of them.

• Tradition and memory
• Transatlantic observation
• Storytelling

Why read it

Read it for the wider world of sketches and reflections surrounding two of Irving's most familiar tales.

English text