Free summaries
Adventure — page 85
5,964 public-domain adventure books, summarised. Page 85 of 125.
The Rover Boys in the Jungle
Edward Stratemeyer
A trio of spirited brothers trades the regulated life of a military academy for the untamed wilds of Africa to rescue their long-lost father.
The Six River Motor Boat Boys on the St. Lawrence
Harry Gordon
HOOK Four boys and their pets navigate the treacherous waters of the St. Lawrence River, pursued by criminals and mystery alike. They seek a fabled lost channel and the secret treasures hidden within.
The Sugar Creek Gang Goes North
Paul Hutchens
The Sugar Creek Gang returns to the Minnesota wilderness, where a simple summer vacation turns into a high-stakes search for a missing child. This wholesome, suspenseful adventure chronicles how a group of boys navigates danger while learning lessons about faith, morality, and the consequences of one's actions.
The valley of Arcana
Arthur Preston Hankins
A young widow seeking high-stakes adventure plunges into the California wilderness, only to find that nature’s beauty conceals mortal dangers and the tests of true companionship.
The Wilderness Trail
Francis William Sullivan
The Northland demands everything—courage, silence, and the strength to survive the iron cold—as a young factor is caught in a web of corporate vengeance and family secrets.
Timothy's Quest: A Story for Anybody, Young or Old, Who Cares to Read It
Kate Douglas Smith Wiggin
A courageous young boy searches for a home for his baby charge, only to discover that the most unlikely hearts are often the ones most in need of opening.
Tom Fairfield's Pluck and Luck
Allen Chapman
Tom Fairfield returns to Elmwood Hall to find his reputation under siege, requiring both physical stamina on the gridiron and quiet investigative persistence to clear his name of malicious accusations.
Vanderdecken
H. De Vere (Henry De Vere) Stacpoole
A bored young millionaire and a savvy adventurer set sail in a creaky schooner to track down a legendary pirate, only to find their voyage upended by a stowaway and a sea full of mysteries.
Adventures in the Canyons of the Colorado, by Two of Its Earliest Explorers
William Wallace Bass
The Colorado River’s depths hold secrets that defy official records, challenging our understanding of who truly first braved its treacherous waters and survived the descent.
Before Egypt
Robert Bloch
Lost on a dark, fatal orbit in space, a hard-bitten charter pilot and his alien quartermaster hunt the space pirates who kidnapped their client’s father and stole his decoded map to a distant world.
Ben Burton: Born and Bred at Sea
William Henry Giles Kingston
Born to a sailor's wife in the middle of a sea battle, Ben Burton enters the world surrounded by cannon smoke, rogue waves, and the unpredictable turns of life in the Royal Navy.
Curly Locks
Anonymous
Curly Locks is a gentle, moralizing portrait of a young girl whose goodness and love for the natural world serve as a blueprint for the ideal Victorian childhood.
Dusky Dick
Jos. E. (Joseph Edward) Badger
This is a high-stakes tale of frontier survival where a settler’s household must outmaneuver a vengeful outcast and his marauding allies. It is a classic narrative of flight, pursuit, and the desperate defense of family.
Girl Scouts in Arizona and New Mexico
Lillian Elizabeth Roy
HOOK A determined troop of Girl Scouts ventures into the rugged, sun-drenched beauty of the American Southwest, discovering ancient mysteries and modern landscapes alongside a dedicated guide.
Harley Greenoak's Charge
Bertram Mitford
A seasoned hunter takes a reckless young Englishman under his wing to explore the wild frontier, only to find himself embroiled in the volatile politics of colonial South Africa and an impending tribal war.
Harper's Round Table, December 17, 1895
Various
This collection offers a vibrant snapshot of late nineteenth-century youth culture, weaving together adventurous fiction, moral fables, and the energetic, earnest correspondence of a widespread community of young readers.
Harper's Round Table, February 4, 1896
Various
This nineteenth-century miscellany offers a window into the Victorian imagination, blending historical accounts of colonial frontier life with playful domestic anecdotes, instructional hobbyist guides, and the earnest curiosities of a bygone reading public.
In furthest Ind
Sydney C. Grier
A young man’s pursuit of fortune in the East India Company spirals into a harrowing struggle for survival against the Inquisition and the political schemes of his own countrymen. Through years of exile and near-death, he seeks to reconcile his youthful ambitions with the weight of honor and duty.
In the Wonderful Land of Hez
Cornelius Shea
Deep in the Florida Everglades, a party of explorers discovers an ancient, hidden civilization governed by mysterious traditions and the promise of eternal youth. Their journey into the subterranean world is a race against both hostile inhabitants and their own survival.
J. Poindexter, Colored
Irvin S. (Irvin Shrewsbury) Cobb
This picaresque narrative follows a resourceful Southern valet who navigates the glittering, predatory landscape of 1920s New York, using his wits to protect his naive employer from a ring of sophisticated swindlers.
John Frewen, South Sea Whaler: 1904
Louis Becke
A whaling officer, driven from his ship by a brutal captain, finds his life irrevocably linked to a stranded widow, a mutinous crew, and the complex loyalties of the South Pacific.
Left Behind
James Otis
When a lost, well-to-do boy is stranded on the streets of nineteenth-century New York, two street-smart newsboys take him in, sharing their cramped sleeping quarters and teaching him the art of survival.
Little Jack Rabbit and Uncle John Hare
David Cory
A curious rabbit ventures through a whimsical landscape of talking animals and fairy-tale archetypes, navigating dangers with his uncle in a magical car.
Pemrose Lorry, Radio Amateur
Isabel Hornibrook
HOOK A young radio enthusiast uses her technical skills and an adventurous spirit to rescue a friend kidnapped by a mysterious, eccentric relative in the rugged Green Mountains.
Pep: The Story of a Brave Dog
Clarence Hawkes
A brave bull terrier navigates the perils of the First World War to reunite with his master, proving that loyalty transcends the boundaries of species.
Prince Jan, St. Bernard
Forrestine C. (Forrestine Cooper) Hooker
Born to the noble duty of alpine rescue, a St. Bernard puppy is torn from his snowy home and sent into a confusing, snowless world. Across years of loss, cruelty, and unexpected devotion, he must discover what it truly means to save a life.
Ray's Daughter: A Story of Manila
Charles King
A spirited, cross-continental chase involving a young soldier, a missing recruit, and a brave army daughter unfolds against the backdrop of the Philippine-American War.
Sharp Eyes, the Silver Fox: His Many Adventures
Richard Barnum
A young fox learns the precarious value of his rare silver coat while navigating a world of traps, hunters, and newfound friends. This classic tale celebrates the resilience of a small creature seeking his way home.
The Cruise of the Dolphin
Thomas Bailey Aldrich
The sea is a constant, alluring presence for the boys of Rivermouth, promising adventure to those brave enough to test its depths. But when a day of youthful exploration turns into a tragedy, the world changes forever.
The Cruise of the Nonsuch Buccaneer
Harry Collingwood
A young captain leads a daring rescue mission into the heart of the Spanish Main, risking everything to reclaim his brother from the clutches of a brutal empire.
The Light That Lures
Percy James Brebner
The life of a young Virginian is upended by the chaos of the French Revolution when he ventures into the heart of Paris to rescue a woman from the shadow of the guillotine.
The Lighthouse
R. M. (Robert Michael) Ballantyne
A young sailor’s journey from forced service to the construction of a legendary lighthouse reveals the resilience required to tame the sea and secure a peaceful home.
The rider of the Mohave
James Fellom
An adventurous tale of a desert fugitive and the daughter of a rancher, this story captures the tension of the American West as a man seeks redemption from a life of crime.
The Shipwrecked Orphans: A true narrative of the shipwreck and sufferings of John Ireland and William Doyley, who were wrecked in the ship Charles Eaton, on an island in the South Seas
John (Seaman) Ireland
The sea is a place of absolute indifference, where the difference between a life saved and a life lost often hangs on the smallest, most frantic decision. This account charts the harrowing journey of two survivors who transitioned from the wreckage of a British ship to the uncertain mercy of indigenous islanders in…
The Space Between
Robert E. Gilbert
The voyage of the space-freighter The Box is interrupted by a bizarre, piratical boarding party, forcing a meek ore-hauler to confront both a physical threat and his own fraying relationship with his vanity-obsessed wife.
The Weathercock: Being the Adventures of a Boy with a Bias
George Manville Fenn
The village of Mavis Greythorpe serves as the stage for a young inventor’s restless mind, where mechanical curiosity and clashing personalities turn a quiet life into a series of unintended, high-stakes adventures.
Tom Akerley: His Adventures in the Tall Timber and at Gaspard's Clearing on the Indian River
Theodore Goodridge Roberts
The story follows a weary airman who trades the violence of the Great War for the quiet, rugged life of the Canadian wilderness. It is an exploration of healing, found family, and the stubborn persistence of honor.
Westy Martin in the Yellowstone
Percy Keese Fitzhugh
After a chance encounter with a cynical filmmaker, three young Boy Scouts find themselves thrust into a perilous series of adventures deep within the wild, vast reaches of Yellowstone National Park.
Adventures of the runaway rocking chair
Howard Roger Garis
A creaky wooden rocking chair sneaks out the back door to escape a heavy grandmother and finds a world of talkative woodland animals and snowy roads.
Bumper the White Rabbit in the Woods
George Ethelbert Walsh
A young rabbit enters the wild and ascends to leadership by learning the value of wit over instinct. His journey proves that true authority requires mercy, not just the ability to outrun one’s foes.
Children of the moor
Laura Fitinghoff
When a winter of terrible famine leaves seven Swedish siblings orphaned, the eldest boy leads them on a desperate foot journey south to escape the parish poor-auction.
Christmas at Cedar Hill
Lucy Ellen Guernsey
A sudden train mix-up on a frozen afternoon strands a group of young travelers in a snowdrift, where the long hours of waiting are transformed by shared tales of wild wolf chases, loss, escape, and unexpected grace.
Crown and Anchor: Under the Pen'ant
John C. (John Conroy) Hutcheson
Stepping aboard a nineteenth-century Royal Navy vessel means entering a world of iron discipline, roaring seas, and sudden, heartbreaking loss.
Dick Prescott's Second Year at West Point
H. Irving (Harrie Irving) Hancock
The life of a military cadet is a grueling gauntlet of discipline, intense labor, and unyielding honor. This narrative follows three friends navigating the rigorous demands of their sophomore year at the United States Military Academy.
Gypsies of the Air
Bess Moyer
When two young pilots vanish during a transatlantic attempt, the race is on for their twin sisters to find them before rival aviators can leverage the disappearance for ransom. This high-stakes rescue mission takes the girls from the familiar skies of home to the rugged, fog-bound cliffs of Newfoundland.
Harper's Young People, February 15, 1881: An Illustrated Weekly
Various
A vibrant, turn-of-the-century collection of stories, puzzles, and letters, this periodical captures the spirited curiosity and daily adventures of American youth through the lens of a winter afternoon in 1881.
In the tiger's lair
Leo E. (Leo Edward) Miller
Trapped in a hidden valley of the Andes, two young American airmen must outwit a ruthless Inca king, ancient beast-men, and prehistoric sabre-toothed tigers to survive and claim their fortune.
New History of the Life and Adventures of Tom Thumb
Unknown
A tiny hero born to a plowman’s cottage seeks his fortune at the court of King Arthur. Through narrow escapes and miraculous rescues, this miniature knight discovers that size is no barrier to a legendary life.