author
Edward Albert
1890–1944
Best known for writing a clear, wide-ranging guide to English literature, this Scottish teacher turned generations of readers toward the major writers and movements of the tradition. His work became a lasting classroom companion because it made a huge subject feel approachable.
1 Audiobook
A history of English literature : A practical text-book
by Edward Albert
About the author
Edward Albert was a Scottish teacher and literary historian, born in 1890. Records from the National Library of Scotland note that he graduated with a Master of Arts in English from the University of Edinburgh in 1908 and spent his professional life as an English master at George Watson's College in Edinburgh.
He is best remembered for A History of English Literature, a survey of English writing that was first published in the 1920s and went on to circulate widely in later editions. The book earned a long life with students because it aimed to explain literary periods, authors, and major works in a practical, readable way.
Albert died in 1944, but his name remained closely tied to the study of English literature through the continuing use of his textbook. Even when later editors revised and expanded the work, its reputation rested on his gift for organizing a large subject into something clear and usable.