Lysbeth (Esprios Classics) - H. Rider Haggard

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Résumé :
Sir Henry Rider Haggard KBE (1856-1925) was a Victorian writer of adventure novels set in exotic locations. After failing his army entrance exam he was sent to a private 'crammer' in London to prepare for the entrance exam for the British Foreign Office, for which he never sat. Haggard's father sent him to Africa in an unpaid position as assistant to the secretary to Lieutenant-Governor of Natal Sir Henry Bulwer. Heavily influenced by the larger-than-life adventurers he met in Colonial Africa, the great mineral wealth discovered in Africa, and the ruins of ancient lost civilizations in Africa such as Great Zimbabwe, Haggard created his Allan Quatermain adventures. Haggard also wrote about agricultural and social issues reform, in part inspired by his experiences in Africa, but also based on what he saw in Europe....

Biographie:
Sir Henry Rider Haggard, born on June 22, 1856, in Bradenham, United Kingdom, was a prominent English writer known for his adventure fiction, particularly those set in exotic locations like Africa. His novels often blend thrilling adventures with elements of fantasy and exploration. Haggard was also active in land reform efforts across the British Empire, advocating for improvements in the lives of indigenous peoples. He married Mariana Louisa Margitson in 1880, with whom he had two daughters. Haggard's parents were William Meybohm Rider Haggard and Ella Doveton. Andrew Lang, born March 31, 1844, in Selkirk, United Kingdom, was a Scottish poet, novelist, and literary critic, best known for collecting folk and fairy tales. A scholar with a broad range of interests, Lang contributed to anthropology and was a notable figure at the University of St Andrews, where the Andrew Lang lectures were named in his honor. Lang's marriage to Leonora Blanche Alleyne in 1875 marked a personal chapter in his life. His legacy is deeply embedded in children's literature, with his fairy tale collections remaining influential. Lang passed away on July 20, 1912, in Banchory, United Kingdom....

Sommaire:
H. Rider Haggard was an English novelist, colonial administrator, agricultural reformer, and one of the central figures in the development of modern adventure fiction. He was born Henry Rider Haggard in Norfolk, England, in 1856, and spent part of his young adulthood in southern Africa, where he worked in the colonial service. That experience gave him material, settings, and political assumptions that shaped much of his fiction, especially his stories of exploration, empire, ancient kingdoms, hidden peoples, and dangerous quests.Haggard became famous with King Solomon's Mines, first published in 1885, a novel that introduced Allan Quatermain and helped establish the lost-world adventure as a powerful popular form. Its success was followed by Allan Quatermain, She, Ayesha, Nada the Lily, Montezuma's Daughter, The People of the Mist, and many other novels. His books combined fast-moving action, exotic landscapes, mysterious civilizations, supernatural suggestion, romance, and imperial-era adventure in a style that influenced later pulp fiction, lost-race stories, jungle adventure, fantasy, and cinematic adventure heroes.Allan Quatermain remains Haggard's most enduring male hero: a hunter, guide, observer, and reluctant adventurer whose toughness is often tempered by humility, fatalism, and melancholy. Haggard's work is also historically complicated. His fiction reflects the racial, imperial, and colonial attitudes of its age, yet it often shows more interest in African cultures, oral tradition, leadership, and moral courage than many adventure novels of the same period. That tension is part of why his books remain important artifacts of Victorian popular literature.Beyond fiction, Haggard wrote on agriculture, rural life, and land policy, subjects he took seriously throughout his later career. He was knighted in 1912 and died in 1925. His influence continued long after his death, especially through adventure fiction, fantasy, lost-world stories, and the broad tradition of expeditionary romance. Writers and filmmakers who built stories around ancient secrets, hidden kingdoms, perilous journeys, and larger-than-life explorers worked in territory Haggard helped define....