Greenmantle (Oxford World's Classics) [Paperback]

John Buchan (Author), Kate Macdonald (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 2, 1999 | Series: Oxford World's Classics

In Greenmantle (1916), a classic tale of espionage and adventure, Richard Hannay, hero of The Thirty-Nine Steps, travels across war-torn Europe on the trail of a German plot and an Islamic Messiah. He is joined by three more of Buchan's heroes: Peter Pienaar, the old Boer scout; John S. Blenkiron, the American determined to fight the Kaiser; and Sandy Arbuthnot--Greenmantle himself--a character modelled on Lawrence of Arabia. Together they move in disguise through Germany to Constantinople and the Russian border in order to face their enemies: the grotesque Stumm and the evil femme fatale Hilda von Einem.

Editorial Reviews

Review

'Readers who fancy another look at John Buchan's originals, with their matchless suspense and gormless opinions, can find new editions ... in Oxford World's Classics.' Boyd Tonkin, New Statesman and Society

'An exciting First World War thriller.' Observer

About the Author

John Buchan, 1st Baron Tweedsmuir, was a Scottish novelist and politician who served as Governor General of Canada.

Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA (December 2, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0192836846
• ISBN-13: 978-0192836847
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,834,503 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Racy espionage thriller, May 5, 2001

By 

TheIrrationalMan - See all my reviews

This review is from: Greenmantle (Wordsworth Classics) (Wordsworth Collection) (Paperback)

"Greenmantle", by John Buchan, is actually based on a remarkable, if little-known, aspect of German propaganda during World War I. It involved Kaiser Wilhelm declaring himself a convert to Islam, a leader of "jihad", as a tactic for winning the support of the Muslim territories under British control and thus fomenting an anti-British revolution. Richard Hannay, Buchan's intrepid hero from "The Thirty-Nine Steps", is the man entrusted to stop this plan from being carried out, and his adventure takes him from London, to Holland and Turkey and finally to the Russian border for a spectacular climax. Complaints have been made about Buchan's racist and jingo-imperialist biases, as the novel easily betrays the sentiments of a la "dominion over palm and pine." However, a fiction-writer may, under a certain poetic license, attack creeds, doctrines, persons and institutions with impunity; moreover, a writer must be seen as a product of his age. This racy, lively, energetic novel is best appreciated as an excellent work of light literature. The conclusion is an undeniably exciting confrontation, including the charge of Cossack cavalry, as Hannay engages in the final showdown between the two German villains, the gross Stumm and the evil beauty, Hilda von Einem.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A fine little thriller, May 27, 2001

By 

J. Rabideau (Stuck in the Loser State) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Greenmantle (Wordsworth Classics) (Wordsworth Collection) (Paperback)

...and a harmless read (recommended for train trips through particularly tedious or repetitive countryside, or long plane flights spent wedged into economy class). "Greenmantle" is another of Buchan's Richard Hannay novels (the same protagonist as in "The Thirty-Nine Steps"); in it Hannay must track and foil a plot by the Kaiser to foment Jihad. I confess to being particularly drawn to this book as, well, an example of WWI-era pulp. It is sufficiently plot-driven, and entertaining enough to while happily away a few hours. Decidedly fun.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Dull and Delicious, September 15, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Greenmantle (Oxford World's Classics) (Paperback)

You know, I really don't like war stories (although I do tend toward wartime authors) and I wouldn't have read this book if I hadn't been bored. But I did, and I've been thankful ever since. Yes, it contains racism, but it is simply the way people thought then. Yes it does tend to get technical, but John Buchan was doing the best thing a writer can do and "writing what he knew". And yes, the philo/psycological discusions can get old after a few readings, but I found them another interesting look at the thought life of wartime Europe. The characters are all well developed (I can't stand characters that all act the same), so well that I can't say who is my favorite (permit me a feminine little sigh, however, over the heartbreaking Sandy. But if I did that I'd have to giggle over Peter and argue about Blenkiron and hold my breath with Richard Hannay). The book does seem to start out slow, but keep on going, and don't skip a thing. I'll tell you a secret, though, despite all I just said, I really read this book for the last three pages! The thing is, you can't really "get" all the beauty and relief and grandur of it unless you read the rest, there's just something missing in it, believe me, I've tried.