John Carter and Conan's African Daddy

H. Rider Haggard's King Solomon's Mines (1885) is worth listening to if for no other reason than because of its seminal influence on the adventure genre, especially of the "lost world" or "planetary romance" variety wherein an intrepid hero explores an exotic hidden civilization in an inaccessible place and thereby acts as a catalyst for Big Change, ala Edgar Rice Burroughs and Robert E. Howard.

Allan Quartermain, who leads the expedition to King Solomon's mines hidden among the mountains of Africa and finds much more than he expected, is an interesting narrator-protagonist: honest, middle-aged, experienced, physically unimposing, and none too brave. The story he tells is variously suspenseful, violent, humorous, horrifying, moving, and sublime. Its views of animals ("beasts" to be hunted for food or sport), of women (baby-bearers, damsels in distress, or witches ideally to be avoided), of indigenous people ("natives" not to be mated with or lived among permanently) are unpleasant to me today. But Quartermain also impressively (given his Victorian era) admires exceptional "natives" and recognizes them as being at least the equal of their white counterparts, pointedly refuses to use the n-word, poignantly depicts an inter-racial romance, and even expresses the destructive side of the involvement of white "civilization" with native cultures. And the story has neat themes about the dangerous pursuit of wealth, the transitory nature of life, the wonders of nature, and the mysteries of the past.

The reader, Toby Stephens, does an excellent job breathing wit and life into the characters; I particularly enjoyed his Gagaoola, the wizened, wicked, possibly immortal, stick-like crone, whose raspy high-pitched merry malevolence was appealingly creepy to hear. An entertaining listen indeed.

8 people found this helpful

Allen Quatermain=Sean Connery

I discovered this book after watching League of Extraordinary Gentlemen and learning that Sean Connery's character in the movie, Allen Quatermain, is taken from HR Haggard's books.

This story is unlikely to disappointment fans of Indiana Jones-type adventure; the plot is well-written and only occasionally requires suspension of disbelief to get through. The narration as well is very good. Overall, a remarkable novel from a different time.

5 people found this helpful

Toby Stephens is an AMAZING narrator

What did you love best about King Solomon's Mines?

This rollicking tale invented the lost world / jungle opera genre and spawned a host of imitators and hangers-on who variously copied the book’s vibe and ethos or just its specific devices (like the “white witchcraft” of the hunter’s guns or the terrifying of an ignorant native race by pretending to bring on an eclipse which luckily happened to occur just when it was needed. It’s old, colonialist, and racist (though very mildly so in comparison with most of literature of the day), but it’s a humdinger of a thrill ride. Special mention goes to the incredible narrator Toby Stephens, whose accents make it all worthwhile.

What does Toby Stephens bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

The accents! My goodness, the man's accents are AMAZING. I wish I could read books to my kids like that. His reading of Gagool actually made shivers run up and down my spine.

4 people found this helpful

Great story, great narration but barely audible

I loved the story and the narrator was really great (other than butchering the pronunciation of the afrikaans words) but I really struggled with the volume of the recording. It was way too low, it became very cumbersome to constantly have to struggle to hear the narration. Other than the volume issue I can highly recommend it

2 people found this helpful

Narrator couldn't be better

I tried to read this book about ten years ago, and I literally fell asleep every single time I grabbed the book. I could not go beyond the first eight or ten pages. However, I wanted to give it a try, because so many people had recommended it. It is a classic. In my personal case, Toby Stephens' performance made all the difference. It was like watching a movie in my head, or even better. It is an amazing performance; because of his own wonderful voice, as well as, the different accents and voices he is able to produce. I just loved the pace, rhythm, volume, and intensity of his reading. He made it an interesting and exciting story. I felt kind of sad when "The End" arrived. It is a fun adventure story, but it's old style definitely requires a good narrator.

1 person found this helpful

very well preformed classic!

without a doubt one of the best preformed audiobooks I've purchased yet. As for the story: at this point in history this story is very dated and culturally insensitive. However, like any antique, if you can appreciate it for what it is instead of degrading it for what it isnt I think you will find a very good literary example of its era.

1 person found this helpful

A Rip-Roaring Victorian Adventure!

I first learn of Allen Quartermain and his adventures in Africa via the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (the comic, not the movie). This was every bit the adventure I'd been promised!

You really get a sense of just how exciting it was back in the Victorian era with all of the lost civilizations being discovered and adventures braving the thickest of jungles. The was never a dull moment and all with something new to discover, with that posh Victorian flare I've come to adore.

Obviously, Quartermain is the quintessential Great White Hunter, so their was a bit of big game hunting along the way; thankfully it was mostly brief and did serve to flavor the story. As for the African characters, they were present surprisingly tastefully written given time when the novel was written. Quartermain even comment that some Africans are more respectable than Europeans he has known, and never once uses derogator terms to describe them. The rest of Quartermain's party were also great characters as well. And it had a happy ending and it all worked (mostly) well for everyone.

All in all one of the best Victorian novels I've read in a while. Discover this gem for yourself!

1 person found this helpful

One of the most exciting books I have come across!

The closest thing I can liken this story to is an Indiana Jones story. BUT this was written in 1885. It is not true, but it has many things in it that are based on truth from the era in which it was set (colonial Africa in the late 1800s). If you like adventure stories with characters that have character, you will like this. Some of the language is more formal than some are accustomed to. But that formal language helps to establish the integrity of the main characters.The story gets more and more exciting as it goes along. I even had a few tears over some of the final happenings. I don't want to give anything away. But this is some of the most exciting writing I have ever read! The narrator is so good, I can't believe it! He conveys personalities amazingly well. He speaks different languages (even Zulu) with ease. There are some very unusual characters in the story and his ability to express their strange natures through his voice, well, it's quite impressive. Did I like this book? I LOVED it! But, it was the narrator who made it so good! A poor narrator could've ruined an otherwise wonderful story. Toby Stephens brought it stirringly to life!

Wonderful Narrator

While I am not a fan of the story itself, the narrator gave a phenomenal performance. Without his wonderful narration, there is no way I would have finished this title.

slow burn...

took a long while to get going, but exciting when the story really got moving!