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Tom Swift Sr. #16
Tom Swift and His Giant Cannon, or, the Longest Shots on Record
This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.
154 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1913
About the author
Victor Appleton
583 books49 followersVictor Appleton was a house pseudonym used by the Stratemeyer Syndicate and its successors, most famous for being associated with the Tom Swift series of books.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victor_...
The character of Tom Swift was conceived in 1910 by Edward Stratemeyer, founder of the Stratemeyer Syndicate, a book-packaging company. Stratemeyer invented the series to capitalize on the market for children's science adventure. The Syndicate's authors created the Tom Swift books by first preparing an outline with all the plot elements, followed by drafting and editing the detailed manuscript. The books were published under the house name of Victor Appleton. Edward Stratemeyer and Howard Garis wrote most of the volumes in the original series; Stratemeyer's daughter, Harriet Stratemeyer Adams, wrote the last three volumes. The first Tom Swift series ended in 1941.
In 1954, Harriet Adams created the Tom Swift, Jr., series, which was published under the name "Victor Appleton II". Most titles were outlined and plotted by Adams. The texts were written by various writers, among them William Dougherty, John Almquist, Richard Sklar, James Duncan Lawrence, Tom Mulvey and Richard McKenna. The Tom Swift, Jr., series ended in 1971.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Swift
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victor_...
The character of Tom Swift was conceived in 1910 by Edward Stratemeyer, founder of the Stratemeyer Syndicate, a book-packaging company. Stratemeyer invented the series to capitalize on the market for children's science adventure. The Syndicate's authors created the Tom Swift books by first preparing an outline with all the plot elements, followed by drafting and editing the detailed manuscript. The books were published under the house name of Victor Appleton. Edward Stratemeyer and Howard Garis wrote most of the volumes in the original series; Stratemeyer's daughter, Harriet Stratemeyer Adams, wrote the last three volumes. The first Tom Swift series ended in 1941.
In 1954, Harriet Adams created the Tom Swift, Jr., series, which was published under the name "Victor Appleton II". Most titles were outlined and plotted by Adams. The texts were written by various writers, among them William Dougherty, John Almquist, Richard Sklar, James Duncan Lawrence, Tom Mulvey and Richard McKenna. The Tom Swift, Jr., series ended in 1971.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Swift
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
October 26, 2026
This is the sixteenth novel in the original Tom Swift series of scientific adventure stories for young readers. It was written by popular and prolific juvenile author Howard R. Garis for the Stratemeyer Syndicate and was published by Grosset and Dunlap in 1913, as by the series' house pseudonym, Victor Appleton. Tom is rescued by a man who had been visiting his father with an appeal for financing an exploratory trip to a lost opal mine from an incident involving his aeroplane and some power lines, so he agrees to finance the expedition as a reward. Ned has resigned from the bank and works for the Swifts full time. Mr. Damon (an older friend, an eccentric gentleman whose quirk is that he blesses everything all the time), Koku (a giant he "rescued" from South America), and Eradicate (an unfortunate racial stereotype, but a loyal employee who argues a lot with Koku) are on hand as well, though Mary doesn't participate. The story involves some inept spies (remember it's pre-WWI) and Tom's construction of the titular cannon, which is designed to protect the Panama Canal, which is still under construction. It's a fun and fast-paced story and marks a new direction for the series. Grosset & Dunlap had published five books per year in the series in 1910, '11, and '12, but went to a one-per-year schedule starting with this one. The book is subtitled "Or, The Longest Shots on Record," and it's one of the better stories detailing Tom's inventive process.
June 9, 2012
I read the Tom Swift Sr. books as a child and again when I got my Kindle in 2010. They are an easy read and enjoyable. It is interesting to see how writing has changed since these books were written.
June 5, 2021
Tom Swift doesn’t throw away his shot. He makes the longest shot on record.
In the first chapter of Tom Swift and His Giant Cannon, a man named Alec Peterson tried to convince Tom’s father, Mr. Swift, to invest $10,000 in a search for an opal mine on an island near Panama. Despite the fact that, years ago, Mr. Swift and Mr. Peterson prospected for gold together, Mr. Swift was reluctant. However, during the visit, Peterson managed to rescue Tom from a life threatening situation. So, Alec Peterson did get the $10,000 that he was seeking, as much a reward as an investment.
Meanwhile, Tom was working on his newest project, a giant cannon. He wanted to set a new record for the longest shot and also sell the cannon to the U.S. government to be used in the defense of the Panama Canal which was being built at that time. The copyright date of this Tom Swift book is 1913. The Panama Canal was finished in 1914.
In Tom Swift and His Giant Cannon, there are more technical details than in some previous Tom Swift books. Information is presented about the technology of cannons and associated equipment. This isn’t simply a quest for treasure. It is more a story of invention. Perhaps this is related to the new rate of production of Tom Swift books — one per year. Still, features of the previous books appear here. There are engineering problems to overcome. There is a mysterious adversary trying to prevent Tom from succeeding in his efforts. When there is a crisis, Tom comes to the rescue with his giant cannon. In the last chapter, Mr. Peterson’s story merges with Tom’s story in a somewhat incredible but still satisfying ending. This book is among the best of the Tom Swift books that I have read so far.
As in the preceding books, the great strength of the giant Koku is extremely helpful. His increasing participation corresponds to the decreasing participation of Eradicate Sampson who is getting old. In books, as in the real world, people get older and slow down. It is part of the natural process of life.
In my review of the previous Tom Swift book, I expressed amazement at how much vacation time Ned Newton got from the bank where he worked, even considering that their biggest investors were Mr. Swift and Mr. Damon. Early in this Tom Swift book, it was noted that Ned resigned from his job at the bank and started working for his pal Tom — another step in the evolution of the Tom Swift series. Unfortunately, neither Mary Nestor nor any of her relatives, appear in this book. I hope that she returns. I miss her.
In the first chapter of Tom Swift and His Giant Cannon, a man named Alec Peterson tried to convince Tom’s father, Mr. Swift, to invest $10,000 in a search for an opal mine on an island near Panama. Despite the fact that, years ago, Mr. Swift and Mr. Peterson prospected for gold together, Mr. Swift was reluctant. However, during the visit, Peterson managed to rescue Tom from a life threatening situation. So, Alec Peterson did get the $10,000 that he was seeking, as much a reward as an investment.
Meanwhile, Tom was working on his newest project, a giant cannon. He wanted to set a new record for the longest shot and also sell the cannon to the U.S. government to be used in the defense of the Panama Canal which was being built at that time. The copyright date of this Tom Swift book is 1913. The Panama Canal was finished in 1914.
In Tom Swift and His Giant Cannon, there are more technical details than in some previous Tom Swift books. Information is presented about the technology of cannons and associated equipment. This isn’t simply a quest for treasure. It is more a story of invention. Perhaps this is related to the new rate of production of Tom Swift books — one per year. Still, features of the previous books appear here. There are engineering problems to overcome. There is a mysterious adversary trying to prevent Tom from succeeding in his efforts. When there is a crisis, Tom comes to the rescue with his giant cannon. In the last chapter, Mr. Peterson’s story merges with Tom’s story in a somewhat incredible but still satisfying ending. This book is among the best of the Tom Swift books that I have read so far.
As in the preceding books, the great strength of the giant Koku is extremely helpful. His increasing participation corresponds to the decreasing participation of Eradicate Sampson who is getting old. In books, as in the real world, people get older and slow down. It is part of the natural process of life.
In my review of the previous Tom Swift book, I expressed amazement at how much vacation time Ned Newton got from the bank where he worked, even considering that their biggest investors were Mr. Swift and Mr. Damon. Early in this Tom Swift book, it was noted that Ned resigned from his job at the bank and started working for his pal Tom — another step in the evolution of the Tom Swift series. Unfortunately, neither Mary Nestor nor any of her relatives, appear in this book. I hope that she returns. I miss her.
July 15, 2017
Enjoyed this. I love all the Tom Swift (senior and junior) books. They are very formulaic; each book is pretty much like the last and the next, just different places and situations. But it comes from a time where progress was good and we were unashamed to say we were Americans. (NOTE: The edition I read is not this one exactly but was probably published in the 20's or even 30's.)
January 17, 2017
To appreciate the original Tom Swift books, it is necessary to view them through the eyes of a young reader at the time of publication. Which was in the early years of the twentieth century. Over a century of scientific and social progress has rendered the dialog and the quality of the inventions obsolete. However, to the adolescent child of 1913 when the airplane was brand new, the depictions of Tom flying was incredible.
In this book, Tom creates a powerful cannon capable of firing a shell for thirty miles, it was designated for the defense of the Panama Canal. This is another instance of the fiction predating the fact. In 1918 the Germans used a cannon that fired shells over 80 miles, allowing them to bombard Paris from a distance.
The earliest Tom Swift books portrayed him as more of a mechanic rather than as an original inventor. In this case, Tom is simply improving on a weapon of war, the guns on the battleships of World War I could hit a target nearly eight miles away. The primary engineering problems that Tom needed to solve are the casting of the barrel, finding a powerful enough explosive as well as the best configuration of the charge.
There are also two silly subplots, one involving an opal mine in Central America and the second an inept spy. Both could have been left out with no loss of significance in the story. One of the best things about the lengthy series of books featuring characters such as Tom Swift and the Hardy Boys is that you can read the different iterations and experience the social change over the years. In this case, you are there at the beginning.
In this book, Tom creates a powerful cannon capable of firing a shell for thirty miles, it was designated for the defense of the Panama Canal. This is another instance of the fiction predating the fact. In 1918 the Germans used a cannon that fired shells over 80 miles, allowing them to bombard Paris from a distance.
The earliest Tom Swift books portrayed him as more of a mechanic rather than as an original inventor. In this case, Tom is simply improving on a weapon of war, the guns on the battleships of World War I could hit a target nearly eight miles away. The primary engineering problems that Tom needed to solve are the casting of the barrel, finding a powerful enough explosive as well as the best configuration of the charge.
There are also two silly subplots, one involving an opal mine in Central America and the second an inept spy. Both could have been left out with no loss of significance in the story. One of the best things about the lengthy series of books featuring characters such as Tom Swift and the Hardy Boys is that you can read the different iterations and experience the social change over the years. In this case, you are there at the beginning.
September 28, 2016
This time Tom Sr. designs the largest cannon with the longest range (30 miles+) for the time, in an attempt to help secure the soon to be opened Panama canal. The book is pre-WWI, so the take on foreigners, Germans in particular, is interesting. In all the TSSR books I've read so far, Tom's main motive for inventing is financial, though here is admits that he would only sell his gun to the US, not the highest bidder. Unlike during the time of his son's heyday, when Swift Enterprises seems to have unlimited resources, Tom Sr. is always focused on the monetary aspects of his inventions. Sadly, Tom's and Ned's love interests don't make any appearance in this volume, though, Eradicate "the elderly colored servant" uses more self-referential racist epithets than in some of the other books, while continuing to feud with the big but dumb native Koku whom Tom adopted during some volume I haven't read yet. But other than the usual gut-wrenching dialog (and I mean dialog in the "sho' nuff" sense) this is a somewhat entertaining entry, if only for the window into the times.
January 2, 2016
Really good old classic young readers book about a young inventor that invents this awesome inventions and then goes on these wild and crazy adventures, sometimes getting into trouble in the process.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews