I've never seen the movie but the little blurb Macmillan gave piqued my interest. Especially since I had read Riddle of the Sands (Also in Macmillan's collector's library) and loved it. I wanted another boat adventure and this one delivered. I even looked up what a steam launch looked like and found out the one used in the movie has been restored and is at Key Largo Florida and you can take an excursion on it.
Even though it is a boat adventure, it is more about the interplay between two different personality types. Rose, the sister of a missionary has been pretty much dominated by the strong personality of her brother. But in fact, she proves to be made of sterner stuff. When she was baulked of her great purpose she had devised for herself, she didn't just give up and pine away like her brother did. Allnutt the pilot of the steam launch is the sort who has let life happen to him. When he visits right after Rose's brother dies, she happens to him. She gets him to go along with a very ill-advised scheme of shooting the rapids of a river in a decrepit boat to go to a lake and destroy a German ship by ramming it. I won't tell you more, you have to read it yourself. Very good read. I think this book would make a great beach read.
Macmillans' Collector's Library editions are such pretty, portable little books. Handy, like a pulp paperback, but made of quality materials to last. The jacket on this one is especially colorful and pretty. I have quite a few volumes in the collection and some of my favorites have been schlepped everywhere and tolerated numerous reads. The size makes them ideal for travel and they don't take up much space in a suitcase.
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Reviews with images
World War I adventure & romance
Now that I’ve read the book I see how perfectly the Katherine Hepburn part was cast. I liked the glimpses into what motivated Charlie & what he was thinking. That is something that always bothered me in the movie. Normally I’m disappointed in movies compared to the book, but the movie was very faithful to the book until abo the last 10 pages. I did like the movie ending slightly better than the book. The chivalry shown by the Germans seems unlikely, yet I know there was quite a bit of chivalry shown by both sides in the Great War as they killed each other in staggering numbers. I read this book because I’ve developed an interest in WWI. It seemed very true to the period.
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Top reviews from other countries
Josh Cozens
An engaging classic to be read by all .
Reviewed in France on August 26, 2019Martin Kragenings
Spannend und zugleich realistisch!
Reviewed in Germany on May 18, 2014
