The Young Firemen of Lakeville; or, Herbert Dare's Pluck

Frank V. WebsterProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

Rating 2.7
Word count
227K words
Chapters
23

Tags

English Originals Children's Literature TeamworkSmall-Town LifeFirefighter HeroismHeroismInspirationCourageGrowing UpAmerican BoyhoodBoyhood 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 Young Firemen of Lakeville; Or, Herbert Dare's Pluck by Frank V. WebsterAuthor: Webster, Frank V.,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: Jul 1, 2004

Editor's review

The Young Firemen of Lakeville; Or, Herbert Dare's Pluck is a boys' adventure novel by Frank V. Webster, classified under American literature and released by Project Gutenberg. The word "Pluck" in the title signals the theme: young Herbert Dare grows through his experiences as a fireman in the town of Lakeville, relying on courage and a sense of responsibility. The book moves at a brisk pace, with a plot built around the actions of a young fire brigade, emphasizing teamwork, duty, and composure in the face of danger—qualities that make it well suited for young readers to absorb positive values through easy reading. The language is plain and the chapters are short, making it easy to read in segments. It can serve as an introductory reader in English-language young adult literature and is also suitable for parents to read with their children and discuss courage and responsibility. There is no need to seek literary depth; focus instead on the coming-of-age theme and the characters' choices within the adventure narrative.

Who it's for

A good fit for

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Reading tips

  1. Read chapter by chapter, reviewing the main problems the young fire brigade faces and how they solve them at the end of each chapter.
  2. Watch for Herbert Dare's key choices as you read and think about how "courage" is expressed in the story.
  3. English learners can first read through the plot, then select dialogue passages for close reading and vocabulary building.

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

FAQ

What age is this book suitable for? Judging by subject matter and language difficulty, it best suits readers from upper primary to lower secondary school, or young people with basic English reading ability. The final choice depends on the child's English level and interests; try reading one chapter first.
Does the story contain dangerous scenes that might frighten children? As a boys' adventure novel, it includes firefighting and rescue-related episodes, but the overall tone is positive, emphasizing courage and cooperation rather than horror or gore. Parents can read along and use the story to discuss safety awareness and responsibility.
Can it be used as English learning material? Yes. The language is plain and the chapters are short, making it suitable as introductory material in English young adult literature. Read through first for plot comprehension, then select passages to build vocabulary and sentence patterns; avoid looking up every word, which disrupts reading flow.

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About the author

Frank V. Webster Author · American

Frank V. Webster was not a real person but a collective pen name used by the American Stratemeyer Syndicate for boys' adventure novels. According to available records, the actual books were mostly written by Howard Garis and others, while Webster was presented to the public as a signed author. Between 1909 and 1915, Cupples & Leon published 25 titles in the Webster Series for Boys, of which 19 are held here. The works center on boys' adventures, with settings including warships, pony express riders, lake flying, Alaska treasure hunting, firefighting, and coastal rescue; the plots are fast-paced and stress courage and honor. Representative titles include Two Boys of the Battleship, Jack of the Pony Express, and The Boy Pilot of the Lakes. Public information is limited, and biographical details cannot be verified, but the series behind this pen name is a typical example of early twentieth-century American assembly-line publishing for juvenile adventure fiction.