List $23.00

Written by Sir Henry Rider Haggard - Audio book performed by Shelly Frazier - Unabridged Fiction - 1 MP3 COMPACT DISC - 10 hours, 6 minutes

Publisher, Tantor Media (December 2001)

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Allan Quatermain, hero of King Solomon's mines, tells a moving tale of his first wife, the Dutch born Marie Marais, and the adventures that were linked to her beautiful, tragic history. This moving story depicts the tumultuous political era of the 1830's involving the trek-Boers, French colonists and the Zulu tribe in the Cape colony of South Africa. Hate and suspicion run high between the home government and the Dutch subjects. Allan accompanies the ill-fated Pieter Retief and the Boer Commision on an embassy to the Zulu despot, Dingaan. Villains attempt to kill Allan and rob him of his wife. The unfortunate mission ends in a blood-curdling massacre. Written at a time when slavery was widespread, Marie portrays characters and views reflective of its era. This is the first book in the Zulu trilogy (Marie, Child of Storm, and Finished).

About the Author: Sir Henry Rider Haggard was a prolific English writer whose works are full of action in colorful locations where his protagonists find exotic, hidden societies, and encounter numerous dangers and characters with strange powers. His best-known work is the romantic adventure tale, , which was inspired by Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island. Haggard wrote over 40 books, many of which have been made into films, including the historical novel, Cleopatra. His works also influenced Edgar Rice Burrough's Tarzan and Mars series. Haggard was born in Norfolk, England in 1856. He was the eighth son of a country squire and an amateur writer. Although his father considered him the family dunce, he was educated in private schools. In 1875, after he failed entry into the army, Haggard served as a secretary to the governor of the Natal colony. He later joined the staff of the special commissioner and became Master and Registrar of the High Court in Transvaal. Like his friend Rudyard Kipling, Haggard was sympathetic to the British colonial policy but also saw the dangers of European intrusion. While in Africa, Haggard had an affair with an African woman and became fascinated with the Zulu culture. This inspired many novels, including the trilogy Marie, Child of STorm and Finished. Haggard returned to England, married a Norfolk heiress and moved to his ostrich farm in Transvaal. However, when Transvaal was ceded to the Dutch they were forced back to England. Haggard studied law and was admitted to the bar but he hardly practiced law. Instead he devoted himself to writing. Between 1912 and 1917 he traveled extensively as a member of the Dominions Royal Commission. Haggard was an expert on agricultural and social conditions in England and on colonial migration. In 1912 he was knighted for his government services and was later appointed Knight Commander of the British Empire. Haggard died in London, on May 14, 1925.