The Lost World
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3.7 • 105 Ratings
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Publisher Description
An Apple Books Classic edition.
Both Pompeii and Petra were excavated in the 1800s, and as explorers were searching for (and finding) more mysterious ancient cities, authors were finding new inspiration. Among them was Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, already famous for his Sherlock Holmes mysteries. In 1912, he published The Lost World, branching out into the popular genre of adventure fiction and crafting a story that will appeal to fans of Jurassic Park.
Ned Malone is a reporter who’s just been told by the love of his life that she wants a man who embraces danger. And so, he does what any man would do: He gathers a crew and sets off on an expedition with a professor who claims to have discovered living dinosaurs. What follows is a suspenseful story with hints of science fiction and Conan Doyle’s flair for mystery. After landing on a South American island untouched by time, the crew faces a betrayal that leaves them stranded amid terrifying dangers. Will they escape—and do they ever find dinosaurs? We’re not telling. You’ll just have to read the book.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In 1912, Doyle took his Victorian readers deep into the South American jungles where, high atop a treacherous plateau, a small band of British explorers encountered a terrifying world of prehistoric creatures long thought lost to the sands of time. The adventurers included a young newspaper reporter, Ed Malone; the swashbuckling aristocrat, Lord Roxton; the skeptical scientist, Professor Summerlee; and the brilliant and bombastic Professor Challenger, who leads the party. Doyle unfolds high adventure at its best with fantastic encounters with pterodactyls, stegosaurs and cunning ape -men. Glen McCready's performance captures the time and tone of Doyle's material perfectly without straying into melodrama. He nicely balances Malone's sense of youthful wonder with the professors' scientific pragmatism, while fully exploiting the humor spread strategically throughout, planting numerous chuckles among the thrills. McCready's entertaining reading more than fulfills the author's introductory wish to "give one hour of joy to the boy who's half a man, or the man who's half a boy."
Customer Reviews
The Lost World
In The Lost World, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's creative narration once again captures and boggles my mind. His talent is definitely not limited to murder and mystery as we all know of his most famous detective, Sherlock Holmes. I am so fascinated by this character that I have passed on my tomes to my children. They too enjoy these.
Sir Conan Doyle is a master story teller capable of weaving such a riveting tale set in a prehistoric land. His attention to detail, picturesque description interspersed with scientific names blended so as not to sacrifice the tone and pace of the story. The manner in which journalist Mr. Malone faithfully set forth their adventures and misadventures fascinates me for he does it with variable degrees of aplomb or great emotion. His knowledge of the so called trivial, such as being able to identify different flora is a sure indication of proper upbringing and classical education. Today, it would be such gem to come across such an individual.
The professors are a riot in their unending desire at out doing each other at the beginning of the story. Their cantankerous behavior is so realistically painted that one can relate to them. The brilliance of Sir John is admirable, especially his generosity and bravado.
I do hope that this tome will find its way in many a nursery and library. Such literature should be shared and passed on to generations. I definitely will share it with my children.
I am thankful for the people responsible for Project Gutenberg. For if it were not for their efforts such classics would be undiscovered and inaccessible to mere morals like me.