The Young Buglers

Henty, G. A. (George Alfred), 1832-1902Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.1

Word count: 566K words
Chapters: 57

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 Young Buglers by G. A. HentyAuthor: Henty, G. A. (George Alfred), 1832-1902,Language: English, Class: PZ: Language and Literatures: Juvenile belles lettres, Release Date: Jan 1, 2006

Editor's review

The Young Buglers is a historical adventure novel written by the English author G. A. Henty in the nineteenth century, belonging to the tradition of historical narrative for young readers that he excelled in. Using young buglers as its thread, the work carries readers into marching columns, battlefields, and the life of discipline, emphasizing courage, duty, and comradeship. Henty's method is information-dense, interweaving historical background with fictional characters, and the book serves as a useful entry point into Victorian historical fiction for young readers. This edition comes from Project Gutenberg and is a public-domain eBook, freely available and convenient for classroom excerpts or self-study reading. There is no need to read for plot suspense; what repays attention is how the author uses a boy's perspective to present war and growing up, along with the values and narrative conventions of the period. For readers studying the history of children's literature, historical fiction, or English extensive reading, this work has value as a textual sample; those expecting modern pacing or complex psychological characterization should adjust their expectations.

Who it's for

A good fit for

English-language readers who enjoy Victorian historical adventure fiction
Learners who need public-domain English texts for extensive reading or classroom excerpts
Researchers studying narrative in early historical fiction for young readers
General readers interested in coming-of-age stories set against war

Not a good fit for

Readers who prefer modern fast-paced suspense or strong plot twists
Contemporary fiction readers seeking multi-perspective psychological depth
Beginners whose English reading ability is not yet sufficient for nineteenth-century narrative sentences

Reading tips

Read chapter titles and the opening first, sorting out historical background and character relationships before entering the main text
Make brief marginal notes for unfamiliar military ranks or place names rather than checking every word, so as not to break the rhythm
Select passages on the young buglers' actions for close reading, observing how the author shapes courage and discipline
If used in class, pair the reading with background materials on nineteenth-century children's literature for comparison

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

Do I need to know the specific historical background first?

You do not need to study the history systematically first. The work proceeds from a boy's perspective, and the core plot can be understood on its own; but knowing the war or period background involved in the story in advance makes it easier to grasp the author's portrayal of discipline, courage, and allegiance. It is enough to note key place names and military ranks as you read.

Is the Project Gutenberg edition suitable for direct citation?

Project Gutenberg provides public-domain electronic texts suitable for personal reading, classroom excerpts, and general citation. For formal academic publication, you should still verify the specific edition information and page numbers and follow your institution's citation rules; do not treat electronic text page positions as corresponding to printed page numbers.

What English level is roughly required?

The text is nineteenth-century English with long sentences and period military vocabulary, generally above contemporary young adult fiction. It suits readers with intermediate or higher English reading ability who can use notes to understand long sentences; beginners can start with short chapters and read with a dictionary and background notes.

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About the author

Henty, G. A. (George Alfred), 1832-1902 Author

George Alfred Henty (1832–1902) was a well-known British writer of historical adventure novels for young readers in the nineteenth century. The collection here contains 107 of his works, most of them drawn from major historical events in Europe and the Americas: By Right of Conquest is set during Cortez's conquest of Mexico, Under Wellington's Command takes the Peninsular War as its background, and For the Temple deals with the fall of Jerusalem. He typically placed a young hero at the centre of real historical scenes, weaving military campaigns and political struggles together with personal adventure. The plots are tightly paced and rich in detail, and they reflect a distinctly British outlook and the moral tastes of the Victorian age. His output was considerable, and his books had a lasting influence on later historical adventure fiction. Public information about his family, education and career is limited, so no speculation is offered here.