Chap-books of the Eighteenth Century With Facsimiles, Notes, and Introduction

"Chap-books of the Eighteenth Century" by John Ashton is a historical account that showcases the world of cheap, popular books from the 1700s. This collection, put together in the late 1800s, preserves these chap-books, showing them as important cultural items from a time when regular folks depended on them for reading material. The book shines a light on what these little books meant to society, containing stories of love, danger, lessons about right and wrong, and old legends that show what mattered to everyday people back then. The introduction explains how chap-books came to be, how they were made, and the different kinds of stories they told. It talks about the traveling salesmen who took these stories to the countryside, bringing literature to people who didn't have much access. Ashton points out that chap-books were a key way for many to learn and have fun, especially before there were lots of newspapers and fancy books. The book also works to sort these chap-books into groups, underlining that they ranged from religious stories to romances, and it brings to life the almost-forgotten skill of storytelling found in these simple, yet fascinating tales.