Helping Himself

Description

Helping Himself is an amazing novel for young adults about character maturation by Horatio Alger, Jr., one of the most important and most prolific writers in 19th century American literature. The novel was published posthumously, in 1900, one year after the author’s death.

The book discusses themes that can be familiar for readers from many other novels by Horatio Alger, themes that the author took from his own life experience – loyalty, perseverance, virtue, a positive attitude even in harsh times and hard work are always rewarded with success in Alger’s stories and in most of his stories, including this one, the young hero is offered help by an older, wealthy mentor.

The novel is about a young and talented boy called Grant who lives with his family among modest circumstances. A rich relative wants to help him continue his studies, but Grant’s decision whether to grab the opportunity or not is not simple at all: he knows that his minister father would not be able to support the family on his own, should Grant leave the parental home to study. Grant makes his decision: he starts work with a broker and works his way up to success, helping himself, as the title says, but not only. As he goes from one adventure to the other, he also helps others around him, befriending a sickly boy and encouraging him to enjoy life more and making life easier for others around him, too.

Grant is ambitious and changes a lot during the story, but he has some characteristics that destine him to greatness even before he sets off on his adventurous journey. He is always honest and he is very much aware of the value of hard work right from the beginning, so he never chooses the easier path. Grant’s story is a real rags-to-riches story, ending in a positive note that nothing is impossible for those who have determination and a pure heart.
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