"The Adventures of Peregrine Pickle" by T. Smollett is a picaresque novel first published in 1751. It follows an egotistical young gentleman rejected by his cruel mother and raised by the eccentric Commodore Hawser Trunnion. Through Peregrine's adventures across 18th-century European society—from Oxford to France to debtors' prison—Smollett satirizes human cruelty, stupidity, and greed. The novel depicts elaborate practical jokes, colorful misanthropes, and a journey from youthful arrogance to eventual repentance and love. (This is an automatically generated summary.)
These books are free to read. Each is in the public domain in the United States; check your own country's rules before you copy or share one.
