The Man Who Couldn't Sleep
by Arthur Stringer (1874–1950)
- Free to read
- 6 hours to read
- 11 chapters
- Reading level: 6th grade
"The Man Who Couldn't Sleep" by Arthur Stringer is a novel written in the early 20th century. The story centers around Witter Kerfoot, a Canadian author who has found success writing tales set in Alaska, despite his inexperience with the region. As his personal life and career begin to crumble under the weight of his deceitful past, Kerfoot faces the unraveling of his sanity and self-worth, prompting him to navigate a world of societal expectations and personal ambition. The opening of the novel introduces Witter Kerfoot, who reflects on his life as an author and the precarious facade he has managed to maintain among New York's elite. As he grapples with a growing sense of failure and insomnia, the narrative reveals his internal struggles while immersing him in a complicated web of relationships and aspirations, particularly regarding his love for Mary Lockwood, a wealthy woman who challenges him to pursue more meaningful work. The tension escalates when Kerfoot inadvertently gets embroiled in a violent incident, leading to a night of turmoil and self-discovery that will force him to confront the specter of his own life choices.
- New York (N.Y.)
- Adventure stories
- Crime
Read the opening
Chapter I
RUNNING OUT OF PAY-DIRT
To begin with, I am a Canadian by birth, and thirty-three years old. For nine of those years I have lived in New York. And by my friends in that city I am regarded as a successful author.
There was a time when I even regarded myself in much the same light. But that period is past. I now have to face the fact that I am a failure. For when a man is no longer able to write he naturally can no longer be reckoned as an author.
I have made the name of Witter Kerfoot too well known, I think, to explain that practically all of my stories have been written about Alaska. Just why I resorted to that far-off country for my settings is still more or less a mystery to me. Perhaps it was merely because of its far-offness. Perhaps it was because the editors remembered that I came from the land of the beaver and sagely concluded that a Canadian would be most at home in writing about the Frozen North. At any rate, when I romanced about the Yukon and its ice-bound trails they bought my stories, and asked for more.
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About this edition
This free edition of The Man Who Couldn't Sleep by Arthur Stringer comes from Project Gutenberg eBook #33645, released 2010-11-25. It is in the public domain in the United States, so you can read it here in full at no cost, on any phone, tablet or computer. Genre: Novels, American Literature.
Summary provided by Project Gutenberg (automatically generated).
