Overcoming handicaps by Archer Wallace
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"Overcoming handicaps" by Archer Wallace is a collection of inspirational biographical sketches written in the early 20th century. It gathers true stories of men who rose above poverty, illness, disability, and other setbacks to make notable contributions in science, art, letters, and public life, aiming to encourage young readers facing difficulties. The opening of the book sets a motivational tone through Rev. Frank Langford’s introduction, urging boys not to be daunted by
slow school progress or hard circumstances and noting that these real-life stories first appeared in a Canadian boys’ paper. It then launches into brisk sketches: Charles Steinmetz, the hunchbacked immigrant who became a leading electrical authority at General Electric; Arthur Kavanagh, born without limbs, who rode, hunted, traveled the East, managed his Irish estates humanely, and served in Parliament; John Flaxman, a frail child who, through perseverance and study (and work with Wedgwood and years in Italy), became England’s leading sculptor; Robert Louis Stevenson, lifelong invalid yet joyous storyteller and “Tusitala” in Samoa; Ludwig van Beethoven, who composed towering works despite deafness; Michael Pupin, the penniless Serbian immigrant who educated himself to become a prominent Columbia University scientist; Jean Lemoidant, renowned Breton painter blinded and maimed in war, who returned home to teach art with remarkable cheer; Michael Faraday, the poor bookbinder’s apprentice who rose to world renown in electricity; Thomas A. Edison, the deaf former newsboy whose grit and tireless experimentation fueled prolific invention; and John Davey, an unlettered farmhand who educated himself and became a pioneering “tree doctor.” A contents list hints at further chapters of similar spirit, but the provided portion closes as the next profile, of sculptor Ivan Meštrović, begins. (This is an automatically generated summary.)
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About this eBook
| Author | Wallace, Archer, 1884-1958 |
|---|---|
| Author of introduction, etc. | Langford, Frank Henry, 1882-1941 |
| Title | Overcoming handicaps |
| Original Publication | New York: Doubleday, Doran & Company, Inc., 1927. |
| Contents | The little cripple with the giant mind [Charles Steinmetz] -- The amazing story of Arthur Kavanagh -- The delicate boy who became England's greatest sculptor [John Flaxman] -- Brave Tusitala, the teller of stories [Robert Louis Stevenson] -- The composer who could not hear his own music [Ludwig van Beethoven] -- The thrilling story of an immigrant boy [Michael Pupin] -- A great artist and a great hero [Jean Lemoidant] -- From bookbinder's errand boy to great scientist [Michael Faraday] -- The newsboy who became a great inventor [Thomas Alva Edison] -- The unlettered boy who became a tree doctor [John Davey] -- The peasant boy who made his dreams come true [Ivan Mestrovic] -- The boy whose difficulties made him determined to succeed [Jacob Kindleberger] -- Kindergarten pupil at twenty-five: college professor at fifty [Aaron Drucker] -- A poor Negro boy who thrilled a king [Harry Burleigh] -- A Quaker boy who astonished the world [Benjamin West]. |
| Credits | Carol Brown, Tim Miller and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive) |
| Language | English |
| LoC Class | CT: History: Biography |
| Subject | Biography -- Juvenile literature |
| Category | Text |
| eBook-No. | 77199 |
| Release Date | Nov 9, 2025 |
| Copyright | Public domain in the USA. |
| Downloads | 197 downloads in the last 30 days. |
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