The Happy Prince, and Other Tales

Oscar Wilde (1854-1900)

Approximate level: B1
Length: 16,426 words
Reading time: 1 h 22 min
Chapters: 5
Language: English
On Project Gutenberg since: 1997

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Oscar Wilde’s late nineteenth-century collection brings together fairy tales and short stories about kindness, poverty, love, loss, and social status. The opening story uses a Swallow and a jeweled statue to introduce a city full of contrasting attitudes. The language is literary but generally clear, with some older expressions and formal words that may be unfamiliar. Sentences vary in length: much of the dialogue is brief, while descriptive and ironic passages are longer and more layered.

7,251 downloads on Project Gutenberg

Subjects

Fairy tales
Children's stories, English
Short stories, English

Questions about this book

What level of English do I need for this book?

The estimate is B1, based on how common the words are and how long the sentences run. It is an approximation, not a test result. With a translation under every sentence you can start one level earlier than you would with a paper copy.

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How long does it take to read?

About 1 h 22 min at a native pace, spread over 5 chapters. In a foreign language plan for more: half an hour a day finishes a book of this size in a few weeks.