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The Reporter Who Made Himself King: Classic Book Guide and Free Edition

The Reporter Who Made Himself King: author and translator credits, catalogue synopsis, subjects and links to the Gutenberg reading formats.

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The Reporter Who Made Himself King is catalogued by Project Gutenberg with author credits for Davis, Richard Harding (1864–1916).

Catalogue synopsis

Project Gutenberg supplies this automated synopsis of the opening text:

"The Reporter Who Made Himself King" by Richard Harding Davis is a satirical narrative written in the early 20th century. The book follows the misadventures of young Albert Gordon, a keen and ambitious reporter who, seeking a quieter life to focus on writing, unintentionally finds himself appointed as the American consul to an obscure tropical island called Opeki. Through a series of comical and exaggerated events, Gordon transitions from reporter to self-proclaimed king, showcasing the absurdities of colonialism, media sensationalism, and the quest for fame. In the story, after arriving in Opeki, Gordon discovers the island to be quite undeveloped and sparsely populated. His initial dreams of writing a novel soon turn into a wild escapade where he navigates peculiar encounters with local kings, foreign officials, and even a German warship. As he attempts to maintain peace between rival factions and impress the natives, his reporting background comes back into play as he fabricates stories that grab international attention. His actions lead to an unintended escalation, culminating in a mock war and a comical transformation into a self-styled monarch amid a backdrop of political chaos, ultimately critiquing the absurdity of power dynamics and the pressures of journalistic expectations.

Book and edition facts

  • Title: The Reporter Who Made Himself King
  • Author credits: Davis, Richard Harding (1864–1916)
  • Catalogue language: English

Catalogue subjects

  • Journalists -- 19th century -- Fiction
  • Short stories

Gutenberg collections

  • Category: American Literature
  • Category: Humour
  • Category: Novels

Read this edition

View the complete Gutenberg catalogue record. Project Gutenberg identifies this edition as public domain in the United States; that designation does not establish its copyright status in every country.

Source notes

Catalogue metadata is public domain and is supplied through Gutendex, which imports Gutenberg's machine-readable catalogue. The automated synopsis is source-supplied, not an independently verified review. Author dates above describe the credited people; no ebook release date is presented as the book's original publication date.

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