Wren Winter's Triumph

An orphaned fifteen-year-old sets off on an adventurous journey during which time he has experiences as a bootblack, detective, deckhand, champion whistler, Indian captive, boy philanthropist, and more.


From Brittanica.com:

Horatio Alger was one of the most popular American authors in the last 30 years of the 19th century and perhaps the most socially influential American writer of his generation.


Alger wrote stories of boys who rise from poverty to wealth and fame, stories that were to make him famous and contribute the “Alger hero” to the American language. In a steady succession of books that are almost alike except for the names of their characters, he preached that by honesty, cheerful perseverance, and hard work, the poor but virtuous lad would have his just reward—though the reward is almost always precipitated by a stroke of good luck. Alger’s novels had enormous popular appeal at a time when great personal fortunes were being made and seemingly unbounded opportunities for advancement existed in the United States’ burgeoning industrial cities.