Ragged Dick

By: Horatio Alger Jr.

Narrated by: Don Hagen

Ragged Dick is the story of a young bootblack living and working in the streets of a post-Civil War New York City. It follows his rise from a street kid to the respectable middle class. The original publication, released as a six volume series, came to depict a time of post-war struggle through the eyes of its young victims, vagabond children. Originally written as young-adult moral tales using the classic rags-to-riches theme, Ragged Dick is also Algers' timeless snapshot into an all but forgotten period in American history, and the ever relevant struggle for economic and social status.

Horatio Alger was born on January 13, 1834 in Chelsea, Massachusettes. Alger began writing in earnest and being a published author at the age of 17. After graduating from Harvard, Alger obtained a position in ministry in a Unitarian Church, but was dismissed on scandalous and incriminating charges. Around 1866, Alger moved to New York, a time that marked the beginning of a very successful writing career. Around this time, the Ragged Dick series was being published as a serial, and in 1868 it was published as a complete novel. In New York City, Alger took a special and personal interest in the street children and became a frequent visitor to their popular haunts. Perhaps this is what gave him a clear insight into their trials and tribulations and aided in creating the simple yet timeless story of Ragged Dick. Eventually, Alger took two street children into his home and informally adopted them.

Public Domain (P)2013 Ennunciation LLC

A good story about a time the is long past.

What made the experience of listening to Ragged Dick the most enjoyable?

I enjoyed the spoken word of the time.

What did you like best about this story?

This was a good example of how people could and should treat each other.

Have you listened to any of Don Hagen’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

This was my first time I listening to Don Hagen and I look forward to finding something of interest with that has him performing.

Timeless

Horatio's writing never gets old. I thought I would not get the same pleasure as when I read it long ago, but boy was I wrong. in audio was just as amazing as when I read it the first time.

Full of great wisdom!

A must read for everyone wanting to improve themselves no matter where you came from.

Character Builder

Love the character and the good character of Ragged Dick. He is who he is, all the way through, in his amazing transformation!

EXCELLENT

Very well done. This classic rags to riches story for young men, is more than a good story with good morals and teaching.

The reader did a fantastic job, definitely want to hear more from the reader!

Well done indeed!

excellent reader

I really enjoyed this reader, and the story is one of Horatio alger's best. This is book 1 of 2

Integrity Is Reinforced or Degraded Each Day

Good story for middle school students and advanced elementary school students. Public, private and home- schooled.

great book about growing up right

A boy on the street since he was 7 on his own. No one to feed him or make sure he is clean or has a place to sleep. But with a good work ethic a kind heart he makes friends and gets a head. He works hard and people Along the way try to help him. He has all kinds of adventures and you really pull for him along the way. He has a good humor through out. A humor I heard in my own youth as we were very poor and I just didn't know it at the time. My mom worked 2 jobs and most of my clothes were from thrifts stores or cast offs from cousins or people my mom worked with. Mom tried to buy me at least one out fit for my birthday every year. But my shoes cost so much as I had to have brace in them till I was 12 so they cost 5 times as much as normal shoes cost. Our theme song was "We ain't got a barrel of money, Maybe we're ragged and funny. But we'll travel along singing our song side by side". So I guess I relate to this character a bit. I always worked hard and had people help me along the way too. He had integrity and that is hard to find. I always had it and it paid off for me but it is very hard to find in todays world. "It's do unto others before they do it to you." The world would be better off with more Raggedy Dick's in it.

I loved it!

This is not a genre I usually read and I was expecting to be bored but this story is so funny and inspiring I want to recommend it to everyone I know. Wonderful narration too!

Ragged Dickens

Horatio Alger’s Ragged Dick hasn’t aged well. What impressed me was how bad the writing is and how popular the author was. His writing is didactic, preachy. His dialogue is stilted as if from a Sunday School sermon. Speaking of which, when historians discovered that he had confessed to molesting two boys in his church in 1866, and had to leave town and the ministry, this shed a dark light on his paeans to plucky street urchins, two of whom he was known to have adopted. Upon his death, he left specific instructions to his sister to burn his papers. People are correct to reassess his writing and his myth of the self-made boy helped by rich male benefactors. Ragged Dick does not hold up to Charles Dickens, whom he outsold in America for a time. Horatio Alger was the Michael Jackson of his time—extremely popular but hiding a dark secret. Avoid this book and read his betters.