Order from a Major Online Bookstore
Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine
Save Your Time And Money
| AnyBook4Less.com | Order from a Major Online Bookstore |
|
| Home | Store List | FAQ | Contact Us | | ||
| Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine Save Your Time And Money |
||
 |
Title: King Solomon's Mines (Longman Classics, Stage 4) by Henry Rider Haggard, D.K. Swan, Michael West ISBN: 0-582-01821-8 Publisher: Addison-Wesley Pub Co Pub. Date: May, 1989 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $9.53 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.54 (37 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: A true classic
Comment: I was required to read King Solomon's Mines at school (about three thousand years ago), and was delighted to see that there's a new edition in the Oxford World's Classics series. And indeed this is a true classic adventure, somewhere between Treasure Island and Around The World in Eighty Days. Though some of the language may now seem a little stereotyped and cliched, it was certainly not that way when it was written over 100 years ago, and the real cliches are resident with modern imitations, like Indiana Jones. However, since imitation is the most sincere form of flattery, I guess we shouldn't complain.
Sir Henry Rider Haggard (1856-1925) is best known for his African adventure novels, notably King Solomon's Mines and She (1886). Their strengths are that they are not only undeniably amongst the most exciting and thrilling adventures ever written, but that they capture the very essence of the colonial empires - an attitude that is stubbornly maintained today by American imperialism - of treating the natives fondly, but with a certain superiority and disdain.
The essence of the story is the adventure of an elephant hunter as his safari heads into the interior of South Africa in search of a fabled diamond mine, and to rescue the missing brother of an English gentleman who accompanies him. They are aided by an enigmatic native guide who is more than he seems. As they stumble into Zulu territory, they are drawn into the local politics and discover that their European methods are less effective here, and that they need to learn new tricks. Quickly, they find themselves in deadly peril from a merciless king and a malevolence sorceress who conspires against them.
In the end, King Solomon's Mines is more than just the sum of all its parts because Haggard's intelligent and observant characterizations give him the opportunity to put together a revealing social commentary about race and class, while still telling a captivating story. Against the conventional wisdom of the time, Haggard treats his black characters sympathetically, and even dares to suggest that English society might be less than perfect (an audacious heresy in Victoria's reign). So, like Gulliver's Travels, King Solomon's Mines not only tells a great adventure story, it leaves the reader with something more robust to think about.
Rating: 5
Summary: If you are thinking Debra Kerr you will be shocked.
Comment: I grew up on the movie so it was quit a shocker to read the book. As stated in the beginning there are no petticoated women in this book. It is a men's adventure written by a man for men. You can not miss the hand of H. Rider Haggard as he has a unique sense of humor that pops up at the strangest times. He may be a little verbose but every word has a use. And as with written stories this one is much more intricate than the movie adaptations. You will find many assumptions of the time such as any complex construction must have been built by white people and natives on their own may turn savage.
The story is told first person by Allan Quartermain. Nevil is off to make his fortune by finding King Solomon's lost diamond mines. Allan sends him a map to help. This is the last anyone heard from Nevil. Turns out that Nevil is really the estranged brother of Henry Curtis. Sir Henry Curtis now wants to make amends and he with his friend Captain John Good, bribe Allan Quartermain to take them across an endless desert and trough impassible mountains to an adventure that will hold you to the very end. Along with them is their self imposed helper Umbopa who carries a secret of his own.
If you get a chance to also hear the recording, an added plus is narration by John Richmond; He brings the characters to life and adds to the mystique that this story has been passed down.
Rating: 5
Summary: The Dark Continient
Comment: "King Solomon's Mines" is an excellent adventure, a classic ranking with Edgar Rice Burroughs "Tarzan, Lord of the Jungle". Allen Quartermain is hired by Mr. Curtis and Cpt. Good to find Curtis's long lost brother who disapeared in an uncharted part of Africa, looking for the mythic Solomon's dimond mines. Along the way they become involved in some lost tribes' civil war, and then become victoms of their own greed. This novel is a likley sourse of the Indiana Jones adventures of today. Although the characters are a bit older than we imagine heros to be (they are all in they 50s and 60s), they are much more able bodied than you would think. This is just a great classic pulp adventure that (as stated above) inspired Indiana Jones, Conan the Cimmerian, and Tarzan. Enjoy. It is, however, not like the movie that Richard Chamberlin stared in the 80s, so be warned.
Thank you for visiting www.AnyBook4Less.com and enjoy your savings!
Copyright� 2001-2021 Send your comments
