A runaway bestseller on its publication in 1887, H. Rider Haggard’s She is a Victorian thrill ride of a novel, featuring a lost African kingdom ruled by a mysterious, implacable queen; ferocious wildlife and yawning abysses; and an eerie love story that spans two thousand years. She has bewitched readers from Freud and Jung to C. S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien; in her Introduction to this Modern Library Paperback Classic—which includes period illustrations by Maurice Greiffenhagen and Charles H. M. Kerr—Margaret Atwood asserts that the awe-inspiring Ayesha, “She-who-must-be-obeyed,” is “a permanent feature of the human imagination.”
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“A strange book . . . full of hidden meaning.” —Sigmund Freud
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A runaway bestseller on its publication in 1887, H. Rider Haggard?s She is a Victorian thrill ride of a novel, featuring a lost African kingdom ruled by a mysterious, implacable queen; ferocious wildlife and yawning abysses; and an eerie love story that spans two thousand years. She has bewitched readers from Freud and Jung to C. S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien; in her Introduction to this Modern Library Paperback Classic?which includes period illustrations by Maurice Greiffenhagen and Charles H. M. Kerr?Margaret Atwood asserts that the awe-inspiring Ayesha, ?She-who-must-be-obeyed,? is ?a permanent feature of the human imagination.?
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12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Into the fire of pure desire...,
By A Customer
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This review is from: She: A History of Adventure (Modern Library Classics) (Paperback)
Oh, thou-who-hast-not-read-this-book, you know not what you're missing! H. Rider Haggard's "She" is one of the best adventure novels of all, and it is one that inspired some of the best adventure stories of all, like, say, the Indiana Jones series.A mysterious iron box that cannot be opened for twenty years... a 2,000-year-old quest for revenge... a lost civilization in the depths of Africa... and a mysterious queen called "She." The story covers a vast landscape that will delight your imagination, and the main characters are distinct and likeable, sturdy partners in this most thrilling of adventures. The story is so exciting and full of action, it's tempting to write it off as pure pulp fiction, hacked out with little intellgence or deeper meaning. You can read the book this way and still come away having a good time. But, if you're looking for that rare adventure novel with a meaningful subtext, "She" delivers on this level, too. I won't give too much away, but I think it's one of the greatest books ever written that demonstrates the total control desires have over man. Arthur Schopenhauer would approve. Sigmund Freud called it a book "full of hidden meaning." C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien read it and loved it. Give this one a try, and you, too, might become forever fascinated with "She."
7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Page turner,
By A Customer
This review is from: She: A History of Adventure (Modern Library Classics) (Paperback)
Books don't usually show up on your kitchen counter uninvited but this one did with a note tucked inside saying all in the family must read this. One by one we all read "She" reserving judgement until everyone had finished. Chomping at the bit those who had read it could barely wait for the moment when it could be discussed openly. When the last reader closed the book and placed it on the living room table the comments flew."I thought I'd hate it...the writing was so Victorian" "How did Haggard come up with those wild scenarios"
9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Okay, I'll admit I bought this because of Rumpole's habit...,
By E. T. Ashworth "tompaine47" (Richmond, Virginia United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: She: A History of Adventure (Modern Library Classics) (Paperback)
... of referring to his wife, covertly, as She-Who-Must-Be-Obeyed.I had every reason to dislike this -- dated, predictable, wordy. But I found it to be a compelling read, one that I'm passing on to friends who might not have bothered to try it. As when reading of Holmes or Father Brown -- I found myself yearning for times during which I didn't live, nostalgic for things I've never known. Recommended; the Modern Library Classics is a fairly nifty little edition of it. It is not, however, recommended that you begin to refer to your wife as She-Who-Must-be-Obeyed. Mine didn't care for it at all.
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Inside This Book
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First Sentence:
There are some events of which each circumstance and surrounding detail seem to be graven on the memory in such fashion that we cannot forget them. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
bethink thee, iron chest, black goat, rocky floor Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Rider Haggard, Egyptian Amenartas, Uncle Horace, Leo Vincey New!
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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Surprise Me!
There are some events of which each circumstance and surrounding detail seem to be graven on the memory in such fashion that we cannot forget them. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
bethink thee, iron chest, black goat, rocky floor Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Rider Haggard, Egyptian Amenartas, Uncle Horace, Leo Vincey New!
Books on Related Topics | Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Surprise Me!
Citations (learn more)
This book cites 42
books:
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31
books
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- Allan Quartermain by H. Rider Haggard in Front Matter (1), and Front Matter (2)
- Allan Quatermain by H. Rider Haggard in Front Matter (1), and Front Matter (2)
- On the Origin of Species (Penguin Classics) by Charles Darwin in Back Matter
- Treasure Island by Louis Robert Stevenson in Front Matter
- Treasure Island (Signet Classics) by Robert Louis Stevenson in Front Matter
See all 42 books this book cites
- Youth of Darkest England: Working-Class Children at the Heart of Victorian Empire (Children's Literature and Culture) by Troy Boone in Back Matter (1), Back Matter (2), and Back Matter (3)
- H. Rider Haggard on the Imperial Frontier: The Political And Literary Contexts of His African Romances (British Authors Series, 1880-1920) by Gerald Monsman in Front Matter, page 180, and Back Matter
- Silent Voices: Forgotten Novels by Victorian Women Writers (Contributions in Women's Studies) by Brenda Ayres on page 136, and Back Matter
- The Ruling Passion: British Colonial Allegory and the Paradox of Homosexual Desire by Christopher Lane in Back Matter (1), and Back Matter (2)
- The Collector's Voice: Critical Readings in the Practice of Collecting : Imperial Voices (Perspectives on Collecting) by Susan M. Pearce on page 213, and Back Matter
See all 31 books citing this book
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