Recommended by
- Walt Disney: "Young Walt was engrossed by the stories written by Horatio Alger of impoverished young boys who rose to success due to hard work, determination, courage, and honesty." source ↗
Summary
Horatio Alger's nineteenth-century dime novels, featuring impoverished boys who rise from poverty to middle-class respectability through honesty, hard work, and lucky breaks. The 'Horatio Alger myth' — that anyone can pull themselves up by their bootstraps — became a cornerstone of the American dream, even though Alger's stories typically relied more on fortunate coincidences than on effort alone.