Gun [Hardcover]

C. S. Forester (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1940 | ISBN-10: 0884116344 | ISBN-13: 978-0884116349

Abandoned by the retreating Spanish Army during the Peninsular war, the gun was an eighteen pounder bronze cannon, thirteen feet long, a foot in diameter at the muzzle, and weighing three tons. When a group of Spanish partisans come across it two years later they see in it a chance for victory against the French. But first they must take it a hundred miles across the mountains, with nothing but a handful of donkeys and half-starved oxen to haul it. First they must gather forces...On its epic journey over the mountains, the ornamented bronze cannon begins to gain almost mystical significance for the ever-swelling force that surrounds it. With the gun going on before them they are no longer a mere band of Spanish irregulars, they are an army. With the might of the gun on their side they can take on the cream of Napoleon's troops, they can march openly across the plains, they can batter great fortresses into subjection...

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

Review

'A brief but well crafted tale from the pen of a first class storyteller' SOUTH WALES ARGUS --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

From the Publisher

7 1-hour cassettes --This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.

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Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: Amereon Ltd (June 1940)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0884116344
• ISBN-13: 978-0884116349
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.8 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,490,035 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

C. S. Forester (1899-1966) wrote several novels with military and naval themes, including The African Queen, The Barbary Pirates, The General, The Good Shepherd, The Gun, The Last Nine Days of the "Bismarck," and Rifleman Dodd. But Forester is best known as the creator of Horatio Hornblower, a British naval genius of the Napoleonic era, whose exploits and adventures on the high seas Forester chronicled in a series of eleven acclaimed historical novels. Over the years Hornblower has proved to be one of the most beloved and enduring fictional heroes in English literature, his popularity rivaled only by Sherlock Holmes.

Born Cecil Louis Troughton Smith in Cairo, Egypt, Forester grew up in London. At the start of World War II he traveled on behalf of the British government to America, where he produced propaganda encouraging the United States to remain on Britain's side. After the War, Forester remained in America and made Berkeley, California, his home.

The character of Horatio Hornblower was born after Forester was called to Hollywood to write a pirate film. While the script was being drafted, another studio released Captain Blood, starring Errol Flynn, based on the same historical incidents about which Forester was writing. Rather than seek another movie project, and to avoid an impending paternity suit, Forester jumped aboard a freighter bound for England. By the end of the voyage he had outlined Beat to the Quarters, which introduced the now legendary character Hornblower, Bush, and Lady Barbara.

Forester died in 1966 while working on Hornblower During the Crisis.

Back Bay's editions of the Hornblower novels are numbered according to the chronology of Hornblower's life and career, not according to the sequence in which they were written. The series is comprised of the following titles:


Mr. Midshipman Hornblower
Lieutenant Hornblower
Hornblower and the Hotspur
Hornblower During the Crisis
Hornblower and the Atropos
Beat to Quarters
Ship of the Line
Flying Colours
Commodore Hornblower
Lord Hornblower
Admiral Hornblower in the West Indies

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Treatise on the Use of Force, January 6, 2007

By 

J. Brian Watkins (Laie, Hawaii) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Gun (Cassell Military Paperbacks S.) (Paperback)

Here is a book that is not exactly a novel, not exactly a history, not exactly an adventure tale; in fact, the main character is literally three tons of finely worked brass. I prefer to view the work as an examination of the use of force. Not being particularly well read or skilled in military strategy, I will leave it to other reviewers to judge as to whether it succeeds as an exposition of method but I will say that it was a very interesting read.

The Gun is, of course, the force. Dropped along a mountain road by a retreating army it is picked up by Spanish guerillas fighting against the French occupation of Spain and the later history of the Gun becomes the book. What is startlingly modern about this book is that it demonstrates conclusively that war requires the will to match forces. When one side is allowed to retain an advantage the fighting concludes. For some reason not quite explained, the French have been allowed uncontested possession of a fertile plain in the south of Spain. When guerillas manage to obtain this huge piece of artillery, figure out how to obtain ammunition, as well as how to move the thing, they promptly upset the balance of power by assaulting the hitherto untouchable French fortifications. Their efforts throw both sides into disarray. The Gun provides a focus to the Spanish attack as well as the necessary power to press the advantage. Instructively, the very existence and control of power, i.e. the weapon, is itself the source of further power--the allegiance of other irregulars who are emboldened by their newfound ability to succeed. The means whereby the Gun is brought to bear are thought-provoking and lead one to ponder on the usefulness of modern weaponry given the utter lack of societal will to bring any force to bear on the problems at hand. The will to fight with nuclear and chemical weapons (chemical weapons make a surprising and gruesome appearance in this work) is thankfully gone--but have we risked descending into a perpetual detente only to be nibbled continually at the edges by less-circumspect powers?

Perhaps some readers find the denouement of the book somewhat unsettling. The ending is quite abrupt. But by the time you reach the end you realize that you have been exposed to various styles of leadership--some more successful than others, various kinds of battle--again with varying degrees of success, siegecraft, the use of artillery, etc. Forester is a gifted author--his narrative decisions are purposeful and directed towards an end that seems to be lost on many readers. In my opinion the author's purpose was to use this interesting episode in a very long conflict to invite debate on leadership styles and the very nature of war itself.

I found the book fascinating and it has sparked a desire to read more military history as it is clear that as a country and people we Americans at least are continuing to place ourselves into situations that require an historical context in order to understand the value of the position. Absent a context in history, we risk being diverted from worthly goals by a cost that is misunderstood. Wars are fought for a reason that has not disappeared with the rise of modern technology. We cannot win merely by churning out fantastic weaponry--"The Gun" teaches that it is not enough to merely possess force, once must understand how best to press the advantage thereby created.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A wonderful book, June 26, 2003

By 

tony rodgers (Orlando, FL United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Gun (Paperback)

The tale of a large cannon that falls into the hands of Spanish Guerilla's during the Napoleonic war. This books provides great insight into the conditions during the Peninsular War. It is not a dry history and not your typical Forester book. It focuses on the cannon's impact on many people instead of one individual like the Hornblower series. I have enjoyed rereading this book several times over the years.

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A novel set in Spain during the Napoleonic wars, August 8, 2004

By 

Fred Camfield (Vicksburg, MS USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Gun (Paperback)

This is a much overlooked novel by the author. Most people are familiar with the Hornblower novels, but the author also wrote other novels set in the same time period including "Rifleman Dodd" and "The Gun."

I first read this novel many years ago, and the plot has stayed in my mind (the sign of a good novel). A large gun is acquired and moved with great difficulty to assault a fortress. Alas, the best made plans of mice and men... The story is in the attempt, rather than its success or failure.