The English Novel
by George Saintsbury 1845–1933
The book, and the century it came out of.
The English novel from Nashe to the Edwardians, in one volume, by a man who appears to have read all of it. Saintsbury was professor at Edinburgh and wrote histories of criticism, of prosody, and of wine; his judgements are brisk, personal and occasionally outrageous, and he is never dull about a book he dislikes. A survey from the last generation of critics who could still hold the whole subject in one head. Illustrated with 60 full-page plates — paintings by Melis, Schneider and Millais among them.
It is somewhat curious that there is, so far as I know, no complete handling in English of the subject of this volume, popular and important though that subject has been.
The English Novel, by George Saintsbury, complete and unabridged. Spelling and punctuation follow present-day American usage; the sentences, the paragraphs and the voice are the author’s, word for word.
It was written in another era and may carry attitudes a reader today will find dated. They are kept for the sake of the work and do not reflect the views of this house.
- Series
- Essays & Criticism
- Format
- Ebook
- Extent
- about 280 pages
- Reading time
- about 6 hours
- Illustrations
- Full-page plates, credited
- Text
- Complete, unabridged
- Language
- en
- This edition
- 2026
- ISBN
- 9785501002593
60 paintings are bound into this edition
Six of them are shown here, taken from the volume itself. Each is reproduced full page and named with its painter and year.
A page from this edition
Not a mock-up: this page is taken from the finished volume. The ornament above the chapter belongs to its shelf and to no other, the opening letter is set as a drop capital, and the plate below carries the name of the painter and the year.
Both photographed from the finished volume.
The English Novel, issued in this edition by Aeneas Press in 2026 on the Essays & Criticism shelf. Newly set, with the ornament of its series above each chapter and a drop capital on the opening page. Illustrated with full-page plates, each named with its painter.
Published as an ebook and not issued in print by this house; it carries one ISBN, 9785501002593, and is supplied worldwide. This edition — its setting, its ornament, its cover art, and the selection and attribution of its plates — © 2026 Aeneas Press.
Questions readers ask
- Is this the whole of The English Novel?
- Yes — complete and unabridged. Nothing is cut, condensed or paraphrased. This is the book, not a summary of it.
- What exactly did you change?
- The spelling and the punctuation follow present-day American usage. George Saintsbury's sentences are untouched — same words, same order, same rhythm.
- Are the pictures really in the book?
- Yes. The edition carries full-page plates bound into the text, each one named with its painter and the year it was made. Six of them are shown on this page.
- How long is it?
- About 280 pages, which is roughly about 6 hours of reading.
- What do I actually get?
- An illustrated ebook with its own ISBN, sold worldwide. One file, yours to keep, readable on any device.
