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3.58 AVERAGE
3.58 AVERAGE
adventurous
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I was a huge ERB fan as a kid, but somehow I never read the first Tarzan book. I saw it for cheap at The Reader's Corner and snatched it up a few weeks ago. Unlike some of the authors I enjoyed as a youngster, Burroughs doesn't disappoint on a reread as an adult. He makes no claim to literary greatness; he just lays the story in front of you and says, "Here, this is a pretty exciting adventure tale. Knock yourself out." And they are fantastically exciting. My only problem with Tarzan was the casual, implicit (or explicit) racism that reared its head periodically. I'm kind of surprised you could get away with that in literature, even in 1912, and it yanks you out of the story rather jarringly to run straight into it like that. Still, the rest of it was thoroughly enjoyable, and I'll probably hunt down a few of the many sequels someday.
I finally decided to read this book and I wasn't disappointed. The beginning was a little slow to start but there was a lot of history and backstory to cover like how Jane and her father got to the jungle and how Tarzan himself got there. As the story progressed there was quite a bit of nothing happening and then periods of great action and suspense. It was a very likable read and I am sure I will read more of thwarted series now that the main characters are established.
adventurous
mysterious
Just thinking about this book makes me smile, and it amazes me how dozens of film and TV versions of this story have been adapted, and none can touch this seminal classic. Tarzan is more than an ape and more than a man, he is an idea to strive for. A philosophical entity manifested and brought to life. He understands morality and ethics without ever having been preached at about it; without ever having someone tell him what it is. He understands what it is to be a man and that is...phenomenal...astounding...pride inducing. It really makes you wonder and think of how and why we are here, and how and why we are who we are. It's so much more than the pulp novel it was peddled as way back in its day.
And Jane! oh mama. Jane is a heroine to die for--to strive for. She is welcoming and curious, she is proud and humble. She does what she wants, what she likes, but understands the value of duty to others. (And she's a blonde American! Oh Mother, may I?) Together, Tarzan and Jane tell one hell of a story that just begs to be told and retold, read and reread, year after year, decade after decade.
This book is one of my all time favorites. A perfect story. 5/5
And Jane! oh mama. Jane is a heroine to die for--to strive for. She is welcoming and curious, she is proud and humble. She does what she wants, what she likes, but understands the value of duty to others. (And she's a blonde American! Oh Mother, may I?) Together, Tarzan and Jane tell one hell of a story that just begs to be told and retold, read and reread, year after year, decade after decade.
This book is one of my all time favorites. A perfect story. 5/5
adventurous
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I read/listened this book over the Holidays while traveling. I had only ever seen the TV shows and the movies. Wow! ERB can write a fabulous tale! Wish I had read these years ago.
I read/listened this book over the Holidays while traveling. I had only ever seen the TV shows and the movies. Wow! ERB can write a fabulous tale! Wish I had read these years ago.
I read/listened this book over the Holidays while traveling. I had only ever seen the TV shows and the movies. Wow! ERB can write a fabulous tale! Wish I had read these years ago.