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33 of 34 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Tarzan, the original "real" action hero, May 30, 2000
This review is from: Tarzan of the Apes (Tarzan (Ballantine)) (Mass Market Paperback)
Edgar Rice Burroughs started writing adventure novels nearly 90 years ago. The most famous of his characters is, or course, Tarzan. And this book is the one that got the Tarzan legacy started. In this book you meet Tarzan, learn who he really is, where he came from, how he became lord of the apes and protector of the jungle, and the English Earl of Greystoke. You also learn the story behind the story about Tarzan and Jane. I've been a Tarzan fan for nearly 20 years. I've been collecting Tarzan books (older ones) for the past 15 years. I've read nearly all the books in the series, and this one is probably the best. I'll be the first to admit that if you read a lot of Tarzan books back to back you will see a somewhat formulaic approach to some of the installments. This first book, however, is original, interesting, and immensely entertaining. I encourage you to read the book that got it all started in 1914 -- the premis, the character, and the mystique that spawned numerous films, and other spin-off media, and a series of books that spanned publication dates from 1914 well into the 1940s. Move over Indiana Jones and James Bond -- Tarzan is the real McCoy. He's strong, brave, modest, wise, and good. He's got the attributes that we could sure use in a hero today! Give this book a look. You'll be glad you did. It's a book that you could enjoy reading to your children. 5 stars for story, character development, readability, and content. Is it a literary classic? Yes, in that it holds its own respected place among fictional literature. Will it ever will literary acclaim? I don't think that Joyce or Faulkner need to worry. But, hey, it's a fun read! Give it a try. Alan Holyoak
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22 of 25 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Tarzan Legend Begins, July 13, 2004
This review is from: Tarzan of the Apes (Tarzan (Ballantine)) (Mass Market Paperback)
I felt it would be a good idea to review the original TARZAN OF THE APES by Edgar Rice Burroughs as many are only familiar with how the character has been mishandled for the past seventy or so years. In his original form Tarzan was far from the monosyllabic simpleton as he was so often later portrayed. Instead, Tarzan was a man of aristocratic bearing who wielded great strength of both body and will, spoke several languages fluently, and easily mixed with British society. Although Tarzan first appeared in TARZAN OF THE APES, the plot and some of Tarzan's characteristics were showcased in an earlier Burroughs work called THE MONSTER MEN. But it was the infant heir to a British title that rocketed Burroughs's fame. Tarzan begins as an infant shipwrecked on the coast of Africa. The rest of his family quickly dies but a local anthropoid ape (not a gorilla) who just lost a baby, claims pale, hairless baby and raises it as her own. Tarzan grows but is always weaker than the apes. But when Tarzan finds the hut left by his family he begins learning about his human side. With knowledge Tarzan is able to stand up to the more bullysome apes and life is good. Years later thing change drastically when pirates maroon other humans near Tarzan's home. It is then that Tarzan learns to love Jane and she him although she first knows him as two different people. To her there is the forest god who rescues her and there is Tarzan who leaves her notes. But while Tarzan can read and write English and speak the language of the apes, French is the first human tongue he learns. A tongue that Jane does not understand. But eventually Jane becomes the force that drives Tarzan towards civilization and his birthright among British nobility. In this first Tarzan novel, Edgar Rice Burroughs explores the idea of class as inherent. A British lord will always be a British lord and will always rise to the top no matter how far he has been pushed down. Tarzan, being raised by an unknown species of intelligent apes, has further to rise than any lord in history. But the rise he does because class will always prove itself. This is a popular theme and one that, in detective fiction, shows the difference between the British view and the American view. The British view used to hold that an aristocrat acting as an amateur, with easily best the professional laborer as in the Sherlock Holmes stories. The American view in detective fiction is that the closer to the grit you are the better you are at solving mysteries as in the Colombo or Sam Spade mysteries. But in TARZAN OF THE APES Burroughs takes the British view to its extreme. TARZAN OF THE APES and the other early Tarzan novels are classics of adventure fiction. Lost cities, ancient civilizations, true love, heroism and other qualities of great adventures are all present in these novels. My wife really enjoys the original Zorro stories packed with romance and heroism. But when I lent her some of my Tarzan books she quickly became a fan of his stories as well. If you have never treated yourself to the original and only know what television and Hollywood have done to him, I recommend that you give Tarzan a try. I think you will be surprised.
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A great read for primates of all types, June 9, 2005
I only discovered Edgar Rice Burroughs by accident a couple of years ago when I picked up a copy of this book "just because". It turned out to be far better and far cooler than any expectations I might've had.
If you think you know Tarzan and haven't read this, I've got news for you. YOU DON'T KNOW TARZAN. He's a hundred times more savage and a thousand times more interesting than all those movie versions of the character. He's also surprisingly complex and sympathetic even as he slaughters nearly everything that crosses his path. I'm amazed this book was written nearly a hundred years ago. It's so graphic and unapologetic for Tarzan's bestial nature.
That said, there are a few small flaws. Elements of the plot can be a bit contrived, but since it usually serves to get to more action, I can forgive that. Burroughs's writing, while still engaging, is a little stilted by today's standards. And it doesn't end with Tarzan getting Jane. That's the story of "The Return of Tarzan".
Not ending in a book ALWAYS bugs me. I hate cliffhangers. I don't need to be blackmailed to read the next one. You can read this book and enjoy it without reading the others. Still, even the great Edgar Rice Burroughs loses a star for this flaw because I REALLY HATE CLIFFHANGERS. Sorry, Eddie.
Do yourself a favor and pick this up. It might ruin you for other so-called adventure stories, but it's worth it.
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