C. S. Forester – författare

Central Africa, 1914; Rose Sayer, a thirty-three year-old English woman, is left alone when her missionary brother dies. Her only route out is aboard The African Queen, a steam-powered launch captained by Cockney mechanic, Charlie Alnutt. Determined to do her bit for the war effort and to avenge her brother, Rose persuades Charlie that they should attack the German gunboat, the Königin Luise. And so begins a most unlikely alliance and love affair, as Charlie and Rose venture down the treacherous Ulanga river encountering danger and adventure at every turn.This beautiful Macmillan Collector's Library edition of The African Queen by C. S. Forester features an introduction by the award-winning author and journalist, Giles Foden.Designed to appeal to the booklover, the Macmillan Collector's Library is a series of beautiful gift editions of much loved classic titles. Macmillan Collector's Library are books to love and treasure.

A superb yet neglected novel, `The General’ is the most vivid, moving – and devastating – word-portrait of a World War One British commander ever written, here re-introduced by Max Hastings.Best known for his Hornblower novels, C.S. Forester’s 1936 masterpiece follows Herbert Curzon, who fumbled a fortuitous early step on the path to glory in the Boer War. 1914 finds him an honourable, decent, brave and wholly unimaginative colonel. Survival through the early slaughters in which so many fellow-officers perished then brings him rapid promotion. By 1916, he commands 100,000 British soldiers, whom he leads through the horrors of the Somme and Passchendaele.Wonderfully human, this is the story of a man of his time who is anything but wicked, yet presides over appalling sacrifice and tragedy. In his awkwardness and his marriage to a Duke’s unlovely, unhappy daughter, Curzon embodies Forester’s full powers as a story-teller. Rendered with exquisite compassion are Curzon’s patriotism, diligence, sense of duty and refusal to yield to difficulties. But also powerfully damned is the same spirit which caused a hundred real-life British generals to serve as high priests at the bloodiest human sacrifice in the nation’s history. A masterful and insightful study about the character of 1914-18’s military commanders, `The General’ confirms Forester’s rightful place as one of the finest novelists of his generation.

The book John Kelly reads every time he gets a promotion to remind him of ‘the perils of hubris, the pitfalls of patriotism and duty unaccompanied by critical thinking’The most vivid, moving – and devastating – word-portrait of a World War One British commander ever written, here re-introduced by Max Hastings.C.S. Forester’s 1936 masterpiece follows Lt General Herbert Curzon, who fumbled a fortuitous early step on the path to glory in the Boer War. 1914 finds him an honourable, decent, brave and wholly unimaginative colonel. Survival through the early slaughters in which so many fellow-officers perished then brings him rapid promotion. By 1916, he is a general in command of 100,000 British soldiers, whom he leads through the horrors of the Somme and Passchendaele, a position for which he is entirely unsuited and intellectually unprepared.Wonderfully human with Forester’s droll relish for human folly on full display, this is the story of a man of his time who is anything but wicked, yet presides over appalling sacrifice and tragedy. In his awkwardness and his marriage to a Duke’s unlovely, unhappy daughter, Curzon embodies Forester’s full powers as a storyteller. His half-hero is patriotic, diligent, even courageous, driven by his sense of duty and refusal to yield to difficulties. But also powerfully damned is the same spirit which caused a hundred real-life British generals to serve as high priests at the bloodiest human sacrifice in the nation’s history. A masterful and insightful study about the perils of hubris and unquestioning duty in leadership, The General is a fable for our times.

Now A Major Motion PictureA WWII naval thriller of “high and glittering excitement”(New York Times) from the author of the legendary Hornblower seriesThe mission of Commander George Krause of the United States Navy is to protect a convoy of thirty-seven merchant ships making their way across the icy North Atlantic from America to England. There, they will deliver desperately needed supplies, but only if they can make it through the wolfpack of German submarines that awaits and outnumbers them in the perilous seas. For forty eight hours, Krause will play a desperate cat and mouse game against the submarines, combating exhaustion, hunger, and thirst to protect fifty million dollars' worth of cargo and the lives of three thousand men. Originally published as The Good Shepherd and acclaimed as one of the best novels of the year upon publication in 1955, this novel is a riveting classic of WWII and naval warfare from one of the 20th century's masters of sea stories.

It is 1812, and Hornblower has been given sole responsibility for protecting the Baltic trade and stopping the spread of Napoleon's empire into Sweden and Russia. His instructions are to sacrifice every man and his ship rather than surrender. The author also wrote "The African Queen".

The seventh volume in the classic naval adventure series finds Captain Hornblower a prisoner in the French fortress of Rosas, having to surrender his ship, but only after seriously disabling three French ships. C.S.Forester also wrote "The African Queen".

The tenth novel in the Hornblower series by the author of "The African Queen".

The ninth novel in the Hornblower series by the author of "The African Queen".

The 11th and final volume in C.S.Forester's Hornblower series. Also included are two stories "Hornblower's Temptation" and "The Last Encounter" - depicting Hornblower in youth and old age respectively.

Soon to be the major motion picture Greyhound, a WWII naval thriller of "high and glittering excitement" (New York Times) from the author of the legendary Hornblower seriesThe mission of Commander George Krause of the United States Navy is to protect a convoy of thirty-seven merchant ships making their way across the icy North Atlantic from America to England. There, they will deliver desperately needed supplies, but only if they can make it through the wolfpack of German submarines that awaits and outnumbers them in the perilous seas. For forty eight hours, Krause will play a desperate cat and mouse game against the submarines, combating exhaustion, hunger, and thirst to protect fifty million dollars'' worth of cargo and the lives of three thousand men. Acclaimed as one of the best novels of the year upon publication in 1955, The Good Shepherd is a riveting classic of WWII and naval warfare from one of the 20th century''s masters of sea stories.

A classic tale of love and adventure from the author of the Captain Hornblower series. The film adaptation, which starred Katharine Hepburn and Humphrey Bogart, became one of the most popular films ever made.The African Queen is an old, dirty, ugly, unreliable steamboat - not the kind of boat anyone would take down a dangerous river through the jungles of Central Africa. But Rose Sayer and Charlie Allnut do just that. Why do they do it? The First World War has just begun, and Rose has a crazy plan. She and Charlie set off down the river and come close to death many times, but they survive all dangers - except the danger of falling in love.

A classic novel about the Peninsular War from the celebrated author of the HORNBLOWER seriesAbandoned by the retreating Spanish army during the Peninsular War, the gun is an eighteen pounder bronze cannon, thirteen feet long, weighing three tons. When a group of Spanish partisans come across it two years later they see in it a chance for victory against the French - but first they must haul it across the mountains with nothing but a handful of donkeys and half-starved oxen. On its epic journey the cannon begins to gain almost mystical significance. For, with the gun, they are no longer a band of Spanish irregulars, they are an army able to take on the cream of Napoleon's troops...