The Radio Boys Under the Sea or, The Hunt for Sunken Treasure

Duffield, J. W.Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

Rating 2.4
Word count
277K words
Chapters
28

Tags

English Originals Foreign LiteratureChildren's Literature Wireless CommunicationDeep Sea QuestScience EnlightenmentAdventure JourneySunken TreasureSci-Fi AdventureHeroismSuspenseful PlotYouth AdventureYouth Reading

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.The Radio Boys Under the Sea; or, The Hunt for Sunken Treasure by J. W. DuffieldAuthor: Duffield, J. W.,Language: English, Class: PZ: Language and Literatures: Juvenile belles lettres, Release Date: Mar 15, 2014

Editor's review

This is one of the more representative early juvenile adventure novels, centering on a group of young radio enthusiasts who go to sea in search of sunken treasure, combining the radio technology of the day with imaginative ocean adventure. Its value lies not in literary craft but in its period flavor: it preserves a sample of how juvenile reading a century ago presented courage, comradeship, and scientific curiosity, and is of reference value to those studying popular juvenile literature or old-style adventure narrative. The language is English, with period-flavored syntax and diction; the plot advances through coincidence and action scenes, making it suitable as light reading in the original. Read it as a cultural document, noting how radio was regarded as cutting-edge technology at the time and the role divisions common in adventure stories. Those expecting complex characters or tightly reasoned mystery may find it thin; those willing to accept the pace and pleasures of an old work will enjoy a relaxed, retro reading experience.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Not a good fit for

Reading tips

  1. Read the chapter titles first to grasp the treasure-hunt throughline, then read chapter by chapter without dwelling on obscure archaic words.
  2. Skip over radio and nautical terms at first to keep the story coherent, and look them up afterward.
  3. Read alongside juvenile adventure novels of the same era to observe the common formulas of the genre.

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.

Contents

  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4
  5. 5
  6. 6
  7. 7
  8. 8
  9. 9
  10. 10
  11. 11
  12. 12
  13. 13
  14. 14
  15. 15
  16. 16
  17. 17
  18. 18
  19. 19
  20. 20
  21. 21
  22. 22
  23. 23
  24. 24
  25. 25
  26. 26
  27. 27
  28. 28

FAQ

Is this book suitable for English beginners? Not really for absolute beginners. The original is in English with period-flavored diction and fairly long sentences, which can frustrate beginners. It suits intermediate readers with some English reading ability who can accept old-fashioned expression; when encountering unfamiliar words, guess from context first and keep the reading rhythm.
Are the radio elements in the story important? Radio is an important device that drives the plot and reflects young people's interest in emerging technology at the time, but the work does not explain technical principles in depth. Readers need no radio knowledge; simply understand it as the boys' tool for adventure and a marker of their identity.
Why does the version information emphasize Project Gutenberg? Project Gutenberg was an early provider of free electronic books, and this book comes from its public-domain electronic text. This means readers get a freely readable electronic edition, but usually without modern annotations or an introduction, so they need to supply background themselves.

This site is an index: you start “Search all sources” in your browser, and the entries it lists all point to third-party sites; please judge their availability yourself.

About the author

Duffield, J. W. Author

J. W. Duffield is an early English-language author of juvenile fiction about whom little public information is available; details such as nationality, dates of birth and death, and professional career remain unrecorded. Judging from the nine works held in the collection, he wrote mainly about youthful adventure and school sports. Representative titles include Bert Wilson at the Wheel, Bert Wilson on the Gridiron, and The Radio Boys Under the Sea or, The Hunt for Sunken Treasure. These books mostly appeared as series, following the hero Bert Wilson through motor racing, football, marathons, baseball, and adventures in Panama, combining land-based competition with treasure-hunting at sea. Aimed at young readers, the stories are brisk and accessible, emphasizing courage, teamwork, and exploration—typical of early twentieth-century American boys' series fiction.