The Big Book of Swashbuckling Adventure
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- 19,99 €
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- 19,99 €
Beschreibung des Verlags
The word “swashbuckler” conjures up an indelible image: a hero who’s a bit of a rogue but has his own code of honor, an adventurer with laughter on his lips and a flashing sword in his hand. This larger-than-life figure is regularly declared passé, but the swashbuckler is too appealing to ever really die. Who wouldn’t want to face deadly danger with confidence and élan? Who can deny the thrill of clashing blades, hairbreadth escapes, and daring rescues, of facing vile treachery with dauntless courage and passionate devotion?The swashbuckler tradition was born out of legends like the Knights of the Round Table and of Robin Hood, revived in the early 19th century by authors such as Sir Walter Scott, then caught hold with the publication of Alexandre Dumas’ The Three Musketeers in 1844. For the next century, it was arguably the world’s leading form of adventure fiction.Featuring selections by twenty hugely popular writers from the last century including Rafael Sabatini; Johnston McCulley (creator of the Zorro character); Alexandre Dumas, Arthur Conan Doyle; and Pierce Egan, author of Robin Hood, this anthology is dedicated to the swashbuckler’s roots: historical adventures by masters of the genre. Most of these stories have been out of print for decades; some have never before been collected in book form.
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Reviewed by William DietrichA buckler was a round shield about a foot in diameter, held in one fist and popular for five centuries until about 1600. "To swash" was to clash a sword against the buckler to signal challenge or defiance. And indeed, heroes boast, villains boast more, and the bad guys get their comeuppances in this rousing anthology of sword fights, disguises, betrayals, escapes, and bravado from late-19th- and early-20th-century writers.The classic swashbuckler, Ellsworth explains in his introduction, was usually rooted in history and featured an independent and agile rogue, armed with a light rapier for rapid fencing. Robert Louis Stevenson added pirates to the mix, and, in 1919, Arthur Johnston McCulley gave us the Zorro mask. All the protagonists were smart, cheeky, and resourceful.This anthology includes Zorro and Robin Hood, and tales of derring-do by such well-known authors as Alexandre Dumas p re and Arthur Conan Doyle, but the real delight is the rediscovery of largely forgotten bestsellers from days of yore, such as Rafael Sabatini (Captain Blood), Baroness Orczy (The Scarlet Pimpernel), Jeffrey Farnol, H. Bedford-Jones, Harold Lamb, and Marion Polk Angellotti. Their combined historical research is impressive. How well do they wear? At times the anthology is like a primer for Talk Like a Pirate Day. Here's a passage from "Pirates' Gold," an intricately plotted novella by Bedford-Jones: " Pirates, is it?' he maundered, coming toward us. Sink me, but I ha' been cabin boy to Avery, and this is a poor pack o' thieves and woolsack rogues there, ye lousy dogs! Wake up and give tongue! An I had my way ye'd walk the plank come sunup.' " Arrr!Once the reader settles into the dated style, however, the tales are as quick and cutting as a rapier blade. These are stories of pride, loyalty, risk, and courage, well plotted and cleverly inventive. The heroes are sometimes intriguingly tormented, and the lesson is that ill fortune can always turn. The roll of the dice and twists of fate in Stanley J. Weyman's "Crillon's Stake" are fantastic fun. Women are present mostly to be desired and rescued, but many survive on their wits. Villains are bloodily dispatched, not understood. Aye, 'twas a simpler time!Ellsworth offers the reader an excellent and entertaining survey of the genre's roots, a brilliant selection of dash, pluck, skill, yearning, and fortune.William Dietrich's latest Ethan Gage swashbuckler is The Three Emperors.
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