Frank Armstrong, Drop Kicker

Matthew M. Colton (pseudonym of Walter Camp)Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.0

Word count: 323K words
Chapters: 33

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.Frank Armstrong, Drop Kicker by Matthew M. ColtonAuthor: Colton, Matthew M., 1859-1925,Language: English, Class: PZ: Language and Literatures: Juvenile belles lettres, Release Date: May 2, 2015

Editor's review

This is a young-adult school sports novel by the early twentieth-century American author Matthew M. Colton, a rare football-themed work in public-domain literature. The story centers on Frank Armstrong, a young man skilled at the drop kick, and through training, matches and teammates' relationships presents the techniques and tactics of early American football and its school sports culture. The prose is plain and the pace brisk, with clear marks of its era; it is a useful reference for understanding the narrative methods and sporting attitudes of English-language young-adult fiction a century ago. As a Project Gutenberg electronic text, it is easy to obtain, search and quote, making it suitable as extensive English reading material, a supporting text for the study of sports history and young-adult literature, and for general readers interested in early American school novels to read in segments on a commute or before bed. Note that some expressions and values reflect the limits of their time and are best read with historical context in mind.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Middle-school to university learners who want to improve extensive reading with original English novels
Readers interested in the history of American football and early school sports culture
Enthusiasts studying early twentieth-century American young-adult literature and public-domain texts
Casual readers who prefer brisk, plot-driven sports coming-of-age stories

Not a good fit for

Readers who want a systematic study of modern football rules and tactics
Beginners impatient with the English usage and narrative pace of a century ago
Serious novel readers expecting deep psychological description or complex literary structure

Reading tips

Learn early football terms such as the drop kick first; this reduces obstacles when reading through.
Read chapter by chapter, retelling the plot in your own words after each to combine extensive reading with comprehension.
Annotate with the period of composition in mind, noting the era's sporting attitudes and gender roles.
Compare with school sports novels of the same period to observe similarities and differences in their conventions.

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

What is this book mainly about?

It is a school sports novel centered on Frank Armstrong, a young man skilled at the drop kick. It revolves around football training, matches and teammates' relationships, showing the techniques and tactics of early American football and its school sports culture, with a plain plot and brisk pace.

What English level does it roughly suit?

As early twentieth-century young-adult reading, its sentences are generally short and the plot moves directly, but it contains some football terminology and period usage. It suits readers with intermediate English who can use a dictionary; beginners should learn the relevant terms first.

Can I learn modern football knowledge from this book?

It should not be used as a textbook of modern football rules. It reflects the play and terminology of a century ago, such as the drop kick, and has historical rather than instructional value. For modern rules and tactics, find specialized materials.

What reading approach suits the electronic edition?

The Project Gutenberg text is easy to search and excerpt, suiting segmented reading and keyword lookup. You can read chapter by chapter on a commute or before bed, or use search to locate football terms and match passages, annotating as you go for extensive English reading practice.

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About the author

Matthew M. Colton (pseudonym of Walter Camp) Author · American · 1859–1925

Matthew M. Colton (1859–1925) was a pen name used by the American writer Walter Camp. A Yale graduate hailed as the "Father of American Football," Camp published the Frank Armstrong series of juvenile sports novels under this pseudonym, including Frank Armstrong at Queens, Frank Armstrong, Drop Kicker, and Frank Armstrong at College. He is said to have concealed his real name because he regarded such popular fiction as inferior to his main work. Public information about the Colton pen name itself is limited; the value of these works lies chiefly in their campus and football settings for young readers, with plots centered on the growth and competitions of young athletes, offering a glimpse of early American school sports fiction.