The Fortunes of Oliver Horn

The Fortunes of Oliver Horn, published in 1902 by Francis Hopkinson Smith, is a bildungsroman set in mid-19th century New York. The novel follows young Oliver Horn as he navigates the tension between his artistic ambitions and his family's expectations for him to pursue a conventional career in law. Through the lens of Oliver's relationship with his father, Richard, an inventor, and his mother, the story explores themes of ambition, identity, and familial duty against a backdrop of societal change.