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Books & Authors

Adventure Fiction

Though summer is about to end, that doesn't mean your adventures should.  Check out the following books so you can explore the seas with a 450-pound Bengal tiger, visit a legendary lost city, go down the Mississippi River and more.

 The Fellowship of the Ring: Being the First Part of the Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien

The dark, fearsome Ringwraiths are searching for a Hobbit.  Frodo Baggins knows that they are seeking him and the Ring he bears--the Ring of Power that will enable evil Sauron to destroy all that is good in Middle-earth.  Now it is up to Frodo and his faithful servant, Sam, with a small band of companions, to carry the Ring to the one place it can be destroyed: Mount Doom, in the very center of Sauron's realm.

 Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton

An astonishing technique for recovering and cloning dinosaurs DNA has been discovered.  Now humankind's most thrilling fantasies have come true.  Creatures extinct for eons roam Jurassic Park with their awesome presence and profound mystery, and all the world can visit them--for a price.  Until something goes wrong...

 The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain

Presents the adventures of a boy and a runaway slave as they travel down the Mississippi River on a raft.  Universally acclaimed as one of the greatest creations of American fiction, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is one of those few books that are read over and over again, with ever increasing enjoyment.

 Life of Pi by Yann Martel

The son of a zookeeper, Pi Patel has an encyclopedic knowledge of animal behavior and a fervent love of stories.  When Pi is sixteen, his family emigrates from India to North America aboard a Japanese cargo ship, along with their zoo animals bound for new homes.  The ship sinks.  Pi finds himself alone in a lifeboat, his only companions a hyena, an orangutan, a wounded zebra and Richard Parker, a 450-pound Bengal tiger. 

 She: a History of Adventure by H. Rider Haggard

First published in 1886-97, H. Rider Haggard's imperial romance follows its English heroes from the quiet rooms of Cambridge to the uncharted interior of Africa in search of a legendary lost city with an ageless white queen.  The two men find their way to the ancient city of Kor, where the beautiful and mysterious Ayesha, "she-who-must-be-obeyed," rules.  Despite her cruelty, both men become fascinated by Ayesha, who leads them on a harrowing journey to bathe in the underground "River of Life."  A thrilling "history of adventure," "She" also reveals the complexity of Victorian attitudes towards race, gender, exploration and empire. 

 Inca Gold by Clive Cussler

An action-filled chase through the Amazon jungle for 16th Century Spanish treasure.  Joining in the pursuit are Dirk Pitt, the hero, his congresswoman girlfriend, the FBI, the Customs Service, archaeologists, a tribe of local Indians, smugglers and various thieves.  There's plenty of treasure for everyone, the gold requiring 200 men just to lift it.

 Dune by Frank Herbert

Here is the novel that will be forever considered a triumph of the imagination.  Set on the desert planet Arrakis, Dune is the story of the boy Paul Atreides, who would become the mysterious man know as Muad'Dib.  He would avenge the traitorous plot against his noble family--and would bring to fruition humankind's most ancient and unattainable dream.  A stunning blend of adventure and mysticism, environmentalism and politics, "Dune" won the first Nebula Award, shared the Hugo Award and formed the basis of what is undoubtedly the grandest epic in science fiction.

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