Project Gutenberg 2006-02-24 Public domain in the USA. 248 Lillibridge, Will 1878 1909 Lillibridge, William Otis Ben Blair The Story of a Plainsman Produced by Roger Frank and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net "Ben Blair" by Will Lillibridge is a novel written in the early 20th century. The story centers around Benjamin Blair, a young boy navigating a harsh frontier life marked by tragedy and struggle. The opening chapters introduce the reader to the gritty environment of the prairie as well as the complex relationships between the characters that shape Ben’s early experiences. At the start of the narrative, we are introduced to a brutal world where Ben's father, Tom Blair, is depicted as a reckless alcoholic who neglects his family, leading to tragic outcomes. The opening scenes set in Mick Kennedy’s saloon expose the darker aspects of frontier life, illustrating both harsh realities and emotional turmoil, particularly through the eyes of Ben’s sickly mother, Jennie. As she faces her own demise, the boy is confronted with loss and abandonment that propel him into a harsh new life, ultimately leading to his adoption by a different rancher. This establishes a profound foundation for Ben’s character development as he seeks belonging and confronts challenges in this unforgiving landscape. (This is an automatically generated summary.) Reading ease score: 82.8 (6th grade). Easy to read. en Western stories Frontier and pioneer life -- Fiction Cowboys -- Fiction PS Text Category: Novels Category: American Literature 586961 2025-08-07T13:13:37.204460 text/html 594440 2020-06-11T02:45:25 text/html 556652 2025-08-07T13:13:45.386450 application/epub+zip 563300 2025-08-07T13:13:38.719560 application/epub+zip 289195 2025-08-07T13:13:37.830496 application/epub+zip 738977 2025-08-07T13:13:50.392448 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 688486 2025-08-07T13:13:44.623454 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 415700 2022-09-08T13:18:42.511362 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 533178 2025-08-07T13:13:36.007473 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 533121 2006-02-24T04:49:38 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 533114 2006-02-24T04:49:38 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 20194 2025-08-07T13:13:50.535413 application/rdf+xml 18326 2025-08-07T13:13:38.016485 image/jpeg 3264 2025-08-07T13:13:37.933465 image/jpeg 205188 2006-02-24T04:49:38 application/octet-stream application/zip 546248 2020-06-08T00:33:24 application/octet-stream application/zip 205163 2006-02-24T04:49:38 application/octet-stream application/zip 545021 2025-08-07T13:13:37.256528 application/octet-stream application/zip Archives containing the RDF files for *all* our books can be downloaded at https://book.klll.cc/wiki/Gutenberg:Feeds#The_Complete_Project_Gutenberg_Catalog