The Poacher; Or, Joseph Rushbrook

"The Poacher; Or, Joseph Rushbrook" by Frederick Marryat is an early 19th-century tale about Joseph Rushbrook, a soldier back from service who picks up poaching to support himself in his home village. The book looks at what it takes to survive, right and wrong, and the tricky parts of social classes when poaching laws were really tough. The story starts on a dark, late-autumn night in Devonshire, focusing on three men who drank too much ale and are struggling to get back home; among them are a teacher and a traveling salesman who argue about how alcohol affects people while they help their very drunk friend, Joseph Rushbrook. But, Rushbrook isn't really drunk at all, and he's getting ready for a secret poaching plan. The stress between the people and Rushbrook's problems, along with signs of his intelligence and hidden desperation, sets things up for a captivating story about his experiences and what he has to face as a husband and a poacher.