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Sunday 28 October 2012

Kindle typos



Typos from The Works of Stephen Crane - Kindle edition - a small sample from a text so littered with them that reading it was hard work.

However he saw the driver of the first carriage sud- denly pull up boforg a little blackened coffee shop and inn.

" I don't think there is great danger, but if there is great danger, why * * here I am * ready * with you." [Just a sample of a mysterious asterisk plague]

He released her and vphs

The last named young student of archeology was in a position of temporary leadefship

Nora slipped her arm lovingly through Marjbry's arm.

a thiag that did not meet his approval in any way.

she becamean apostle,

She flushed rosily, and her eyes wavered over the cornpartment.

They carried him to it while he strug. gled madly.

There are probably few stations that would have at all af- fectedthem.

He came tome here in Athens.

"Sir, I thank yod from the bottom of my heart!"

" I judge from your tone that I have not made a mis- take-somcthing which I feared."

I think this is an issue with out of copyright works scanned in via OCR, but with hopelessly inadequate editing. All were taken from the short novel Active Service. The next novel which I'm reading now is The Little Regiment and so far that seems fine.

For Kindle users it's something to be wary of - it can be this bad.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

I haven't mastered 'Kindling' yet but I cannot help noticing an increasing number of typos in ordinary books which, of course, produces the old man's lament, "It wasn't like that when I was a lad."

I will skip quickly past the number of typos on my blog which I only ever spot - and usually correct - days later on a third or fourth reading. Why is self-editing so bloody difficult?

Sam Vega said...

There has to be a place in the English language for "cornpartment".

A type of mediaeval tithe, perhaps? Grain storage rooms in wattle-and-daub houses? A chiropodists' treatment?

Angus Dei said...

I don't "kindle" at all AK, apart from the fact that I have enough trouble reading "proper" books-lack of concentration I think I would rather own what I paid for:)

A K Haart said...

David - I suppose many books may be first editions which always tend to have a few typos.

Sam - I prefer the grain storage, it was the image that popped into my mind.

Angus - many people read more when they buy a Kindle - it seems easier somehow.