Family, neighbors, and schoolmates recalled that his reading included the King James Bible, Aesop's Fables, John Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress, Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe, and The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin.
fˈæmɪli, nˈeɪbɚz, ænd skˈuːlmeɪts ɹᵻkˈɔːld ðæt hɪz ɹˈiːdɪŋ ɪŋklˈuːdᵻd ðə kˈɪŋ dʒˈeɪmz bˈaɪbəl, ˈiːsəps fˈeɪbəlz, dʒˈɑːn bˈʌnjənz ðə pˈɪlɡɹɪmz pɹˈɑːɡɹɛs, dˈænjəl dᵻfˈoʊz ɹˈɑːbɪnsən kɹˈuːsoʊ, ænd ðɪ ˌɔːɾoʊbaɪˈɑːɡɹəfi ʌv bˈɛndʒəmɪn fɹˈæŋklɪn.