11 May 2013
The Tom Swift Excerpt Generator
After a great deal of work, the next stage of my online book generators is finally up and running. The Tom Swift generator used to give you book titles and book summaries, but it now has an extra feature: book excerpts! If you run the generator you will get a book title, a book summary, and a list of excerpts from it. It’s actually kind of cool.
You can find the generator here:
It’s written entirely in Javascript and should run on just about anything, anywhere. Here is an example of the output:
TOM SWIFT AND HIS ELECTRIC EXOSUIT
by Victor Appleton IIAn unmarked bus attacks Washington D.C. and vanishes before Tom can track it down. Shortly after comes the terrible news that an Umbriel rocket, carrying priceless artifacts, has been lost in space. Tom is confident that with his latest invention — the electric exosuit — he can avert a catastrophe. But a series of disasters threatens his plan. A cryptic warning prompts Tom to accept an invitation from a Scottish barber named Maxwell to visit him in a forgotten canal in Lebanon.
Tom finds himself facing an exciting challenge – hunting for a lost race of aliens that is rumored to be on Umbriel. The technical challenges and environmental hazards are enormous, so the young inventor plunges himself into building his electric exosuit. He soon realizes that the environmental dangers are the least of his problems. Powerful rebels have arrayed themselves against him, and are determined to stop him at all costs!
Every scientific detail of this exciting story has been carefully checked. Tom Swift’s inventions may be years ahead of the time, but they are all plausible and some day you may see them in use.
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Here are some exciting excerpts from the book!
“Dad!” cried Tom in a stricken voice, as he rushed to his father’s side.
Doc Simpson followed. “Your dad must have been jolted off his feet and knocked out,” he said, examining an ugly bruise on the scientist’s forehead. “Help me carry him to a bunk.”
The young medic worked over Mr. Swift for several minutes but failed to restore him to consciousness.
“What do you think the trouble is?” Tom asked anxiously.
“I’m afraid that he may have a concussion,” Doc replied gravely. “I’m hoping I’m wrong, but we’d better get him to a hospital as quickly as possible.”
. . . . .
“How’s Lyons coming?” Tom inquired.
“Not too good. I’m forced to keep him under sedation. When I don’t, he becomes violent.”
“What’s your diagnosis?”
The medic groaned. “Hard to say exactly. He shows definite schizophrenic symptoms.”
“Does that mean that he was mentally unbalanced even before this happened?” Tom asked.
“Not necessarily. It could have been brought on by drugs, such as lysergic acid or one of the adrenalin derivatives. I have a hunch someone may have doped him, in order to give him enough courage to smash your invention.”
Tom asked how soon the effects of such drugs would wear off.
“It should be fairly soon now,” Doc replied. “Perhaps within the next day or two.”
. . . . .
One day Tom looked up from his work and smiled. He had just heard the sound of a booming voice and high-heeled cowboy boots.
“Well, brand my three-toed bronc, what kind o’ doo-funny you workin’ on now, Tom?”
The speaker was Chow Winkler, a bowlegged, weather-beaten, roly-poly former range cook from Texas. Now the head chef for all Swift expeditions, he had been vacationing since the last trip.
“Hi, Chow!” Tom grinned. The sight of the lovable, good-natured Westerner always cheered him up when he was troubled by tough, scientific problems. “I just got a brilliant idea!”
“Let’s hear it.”
“We’ll take out a patent on that shirt you’re wearing and put it on the market as a sure cure for color blindness!”
Chow chuckled as he looked down at his loud red-yellow-and-purple Western-style shirt. Far from taking offense, he was proud of his spectacular shirt collection.
. . . . .
That evening a farewell party was held at the Swift home, attended by Bud and the Newtons. There were bright decorations and rousing songs. But there was an underlying note of sadness.
“Do you think you can be home by Christmas, son?” Mrs. Swift asked, trying hard to keep her voice cheerful.
“I’m afraid not, Mother,” Tom replied. “But you can be sure of one thing-I’ll come back just as fast as I can!”
. . . . .
Mr. Swift was shocked. “Tom, this is outrageous! The results might have been fatal for every American!” After a worried pause, he added, “The State Department has made a protest to Brungaria but so far has received no reply.”
“What if they shoot at us again, Dad?”
“Don’t start a war at any cost!”
To read more of this thrilling adventure, go to your local bookstore and pick up a copy of TOM SWIFT AND HIS ELECTRIC EXOSUIT! It’s available wherever this book is sold.
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