Real Life Comics #35

Rudyard Kipling's journey from a schoolboy at Westward Ho! to one of the English-speaking world's most beloved writers unfolds in this biographical account, tracing his formative years in India, his early success as a journalist and storyteller, and his creative peaks with works like the Jungle Books and Just-So Stories. The narrative follows his marriage to Carolyn Balestier and his time in Vermont, his triumphant return to England, and the personal sorrows that marked his later years. Through it all, Kipling's tireless dedication to his craft and his deep love for storytelling shine as the defining forces of his remarkable life.

Captain Martin Scott was a sharpshooter whose marksmanship became the stuff of legend in early nineteenth-century Vermont—so much so that a raccoon supposedly surrendered rather than face his rifle. This is the true story of how Scott's reputation for accuracy, born from youthful hunts and military marksmanship contests, eventually led to his service in the Mexican War, where his skill and courage would be tested in ways that went far beyond the hunting grounds of his youth.

Brigham Young arrives as a Vermont carpenter eager to join the Mormon movement in 1831, becoming the right hand of founder Joseph Smith—and the subject of a prophecy that he will lead his people to freedom. When troubles force the Mormons westward, Young rallies his followers on an epic two-thousand-mile trek across untamed wilderness, facing floods, hostile Indians, and a government conscription demand that tests his leadership and faith. Through sheer determination and vision, he guides them to the Great Salt Lake, where desert becomes fertile farmland and a thriving city rises from nothing.

John S. Mosby was a commissioned Confederate cavalry officer whose irregular guerrilla regiment—operating from saddles with no permanent headquarters—terrorized Union forces across Virginia and beyond with lightning raids on supplies and encampments. Led by the resourceful Virginia lawyer, Mosby's men earned grudging respect from their Federal opponents and became legends of the Civil War, pulling off audacious strikes like the capture of Brigadier-General Stoughton himself. This story chronicles how an unorthodox soldier and his devoted band turned the tide of countless skirmishes through cunning, speed, and the loyalty of local farmers who sheltered them from relentless pursuit.

When Napoleon's armies threaten to conquer Spain in 1808, the town of Zaragoza prepares for a desperate defense—and a young woman named Agostina finds herself at the Postillo Gate as the French close in. As the Spanish gun crew falls under heavy bombardment, Agostina takes up a dead gunner's torch and fires the cannon herself, rallying her countrymen to hold their ground. This is the true story of how courage and defiance helped Zaragoza resist, earning Agostina her place in Spanish legend.

In 18th-century England, Stephen Hales—a curious young clergyman with a gift for scientific inquiry—takes on the medical establishment's most intractable problems as a sideline passion, from developing theories on dissolving kidney stones to designing ventilation systems that dramatically reduce disease in prisons and ships. What begins as spare-time study earns him recognition from the Royal Society and sets him on a crusade to prove that fresh air and preventive measures can save more lives than the surgeon's blade ever could. His tireless experiments—spanning medicine, public health, and plant science—reshape how people think about wellness and earn him a legacy that endures generations later.

In this tale of wanderlust and discovery, a restless college student named John Ledyard abandons his studies to pursue his dream of exploring the world, embarking on a journey that carries him across oceans and continents alongside Captain Cook himself. From the cannibals of the South Seas to the peaks of Hawaiian volcanoes, Ledyard witnesses wonders few Americans have ever seen, gathering knowledge that will shape his nation's understanding of distant lands. His adventures prove that sometimes the greatest explorers are driven not by official mandate, but by an insatiable hunger to see what lies beyond the horizon.

Commodore Uriah P. Levy earned his fearsome reputation the hard way—with quick fists and quicker wits, from his days as a young cabin boy to commanding the swift brig Argus during the War of 1812, where he snatched prize vessels from under the British Navy's nose. This rough-and-ready seaman's real legacy, though, came from witnessing the brutal punishment inflicted on sailors and vowing to change it, driving him to fight for the law that would abolish flogging in the American Navy. A true naval hero whose courage and conviction helped build America's maritime greatness.

In 1775, young Ethan Allen and his hardy Vermont volunteers—the legendary Green Mountain Boys—undertake a daring mission to capture Fort Ticonderoga, a crucial British stronghold that could turn the tide of the Revolution. What begins as a bold assault becomes just the first chapter in Allen's struggle for American independence, leading him through triumph, capture, and imprisonment as he fights to secure freedom for his country and his men.