
SWATTY - A Story of Real Boys
By Ellis Parker Butler
With Illustrations
HOUGHTON MIFFLIN COMPANY 1920
SWATTY - A STORY OF REAL BOYS
I. THE BIG RIVER
II. MAMIE'S FATHER
III. THE “DIVORCE”
IV. THE STUMP
V. SCRATCH-CAT
In a lively little town, a trio of boys—Swatty, the narrator, and the lanky Bony—navigate the everyday dramas of school life. Their days are filled with daring bets, playful rivalries, and the ever‑present threat of Miss Murphy, the iron‑fisted teacher who seems ready to “lick” anyone who steps out of line. The narrative captures the humor and tension of childhood mischief as the boys test the limits of authority.
Beyond the classroom, family ties and budding romances add another layer of intrigue. The narrator’s sister Fan is tangled up in a quarrel with her fiancé Herb, while Swatty’s brother becomes an unexpected link in the tangled web. These personal entanglements spill into the boys’ adventures, turning ordinary schoolyard scuffles into moments that feel both comic and oddly tender.
Listeners will be drawn into a nostalgic world where loyalty, rivalry, and the simple joys of growing up collide, all narrated with a witty, colloquial voice that makes the early‑20th‑century setting feel surprisingly fresh.
Language
en
Duration
~6 hours (400K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Credits
Produced by David Widger
Release date
2013-11-10
Rights
Public domain in the USA.

1869–1937
Best remembered for the wildly funny "Pigs Is Pigs," this prolific American humorist turned everyday mix-ups and small-town characters into lasting comic fiction. Across a career of more than forty years, he produced thousands of stories and essays with a light touch that still feels lively.
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by Ellis Parker Butler

by Ellis Parker Butler

by Ellis Parker Butler

by Ellis Parker Butler

by Ellis Parker Butler

by Ellis Parker Butler

by Ellis Parker Butler

by Ellis Parker Butler