Publisher's Synopsis
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow is a short story of speculative fiction by American author Washington Irving, contained in his collection of 34 essays and short stories entitled The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent.Though Irving was American, he wrote "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" while he was living in Birmingham, England in the year 1820. The story is one of the oldest examples of American fiction with persistent popularity, particularly around Halloween. The story takes place in 1790 in a Dutch colony in New York called Sleepy Hollow. The town is haunted by many specters but none as threatening as the Headless Horseman. Ichabod Crane is a superstitious school teacher who competes for the hand of Katrina, the daughter of a rich farmer. One night, he encounters the Headless Horseman, who gives chase. Ichabod thinks he has bested the ghost when it suddenly appears beside him and hurls its decapitated head into his face. Ichabod is never seen again.
