Alger's success stories provided material for satirists. One of the earliest satires is William Dean Howells' "The Minister's Charge; or, The Apprenticeship of Lemuel Barker" (1887). This novel satirizes in a serious, realistic way Alger's "country boy makes good" theme. Stephen Crane satirizes the Alger success story with a ridiculous version of one in "A Self-Made Man: An Example of Success That Anyone Can Follow" (1899).