Philosopher Jack

Robert Michael BallantyneProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

2.8

Word count: 268K words
Chapters: 27

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971, and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today. Philosopher Jack by R. M. Ballantyne. Author: Ballantyne, R. M. (Robert Michael), 1825-1894. Language: English. Class: PZ: Language and Literatures: Juvenile belles lettres. Release Date: Jun 7, 2007.

Editor's review

Philosopher Jack is a juvenile adventure novel by the Scottish author R. M. Ballantyne, released here as a free eBook by Project Gutenberg. Ballantyne is known for desert-island adventures such as The Coral Island, and this book continues his signature theme of growth through adventure, exploring courage, responsibility, and character through the experiences of a young protagonist. As the earliest provider of free eBooks, Project Gutenberg offers readers barrier-free access to nineteenth-century English originals. The book can serve as a graded reader for English learners and as a sample of Victorian juvenile literature for readers interested in the narrative style and values of the period. When reading, pay attention to the protagonist's moral growth and to the language conventions of the era; the book works both as light adventure entertainment and as a window into nineteenth-century English children's literature.

Who it's for

A good fit for

English learners who want to improve their reading through original English texts
Literature enthusiasts interested in nineteenth-century juvenile adventure fiction
Readers and educators in need of free eBook resources
Researchers of Victorian children's literature

Not a good fit for

General leisure readers looking for a Chinese translation
Readers who prefer fast-paced plots or modern writing styles
Young children who would struggle to read an English original on their own

Reading tips

Read one chapter straight through first, mark unfamiliar words and long sentences, then look them up and reread to improve comprehension.
Use the Project Gutenberg plain-text edition and adjust font size and typeface on an e-reader.
Note the protagonist's key decisions as you read and reflect on what the book's moral themes mean today.
If you are reading only to learn English, read a short section each day and briefly retell it.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this book in Chinese?

No. According to Project Gutenberg, this is an English original, labeled as English and classified under juvenile literature within language and literature. Readers need some foundation in English; there is no Chinese translation, so a dictionary or translation tool can help.

What are the features of the Project Gutenberg edition?

Project Gutenberg is the earliest project to offer free eBooks, founded by Michael Hart in 1971. This edition is a free electronic text that is easy to download, search, and copy, suitable for reading on a computer or e-reader and convenient for teachers to use in class or for English study.

What age group is it suitable for?

The metadata classifies it as juvenile literature, so the subject matter suits young readers and above. Because it is an English original, the actual difficulty depends on the reader's English level. Upper-grade students with a solid English foundation can try it, and adult English learners will find it suitable as well.

Does the book contain violence or unsuitable content?

The available information only identifies the book as a juvenile adventure story and gives no plot details, so no definitive judgment about the content can be made. Ballantyne's works usually combine adventure with moral instruction; adult readers may wish to skim it first before deciding whether to recommend it to younger readers.

Comments

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About the author

Robert Michael Ballantyne Author · United Kingdom · 1825–1894

Robert Michael Ballantyne (1825–1894) was a Scottish writer of children's literature, born in Edinburgh. At sixteen he went to Canada and worked for the Hudson's Bay Company for six years, an experience that later supplied material for his adventure stories; after returning to Scotland in 1847 he devoted himself to writing and produced more than a hundred adventure novels, of which ninety-seven are held in this collection. His representative works include The Coral Island, The Dog Crusoe and his Master, Black Ivory, The Lighthouse and Martin Rattler, mostly drawing on seafaring, desert-island and frontier adventure, with tight plots and solid detail that combine instruction with appeal for young readers. He was also skilled in watercolour painting. Public information on his early education and private life is limited.