author
Ruel Perley Smith
1869–1937
Best known for the lively Rival Campers books, this American writer brought outdoor adventure and newsroom energy to his fiction. He also worked as a newspaper editor, giving his stories a brisk, clear style that still feels inviting.
4 Audiobooks
The Rival Campers Afloat; or, The Prize Yacht Viking
by Ruel Perley Smith
The Rival Campers; Or, The Adventures of Henry Burns
by Ruel Perley Smith
The Rival Campers Ashore; or, The Mystery of the Mill
by Ruel Perley Smith
Jack Harvey's Adventures; or, The Rival Campers Among the Oyster Pirates
by Ruel Perley Smith
About the author
Born in Bangor, Maine, Ruel Perley Smith was an American novelist and newspaper editor who lived from 1869 to 1937. He is chiefly remembered for the Rival Campers series of boys' adventure books, published in the early 1900s, along with other historical and juvenile fiction.
Smith built much of his career in journalism in New York. That background seems to fit the straightforward, fast-moving tone of his writing, which often favors action, friendship, and outdoor life over heavy moralizing.
For listeners and readers interested in classic adventure fiction, his work offers a snapshot of popular American storytelling from the turn of the twentieth century: energetic, accessible, and shaped by the tastes of young readers of his day.