by Jean Lee Latham
This is in part the real story of Nathanial Bowditch, a poor New England boy living in post Revolutionary Salem, MA. He is quite intelligent, but instead of getting to go to school, he is indentured out to a chandelry. During his indentured period, he learns many things through self study includin...
Nat has every reason to expect that he will be able to attend college and go on to a happy professional life. Then everything is taken away from him. His father has a tragedy at sea and is forced to leave his life as a captain and become a menial worker. His mother dies and his father takes his sorr...