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Outstanding:
This was such a great book that it has found itself on my re-reads for the October,the finest month. Margurite, Sir Percy, The Fishermans Rest, Dover, Calais, The Chat Gris...What a story. And That Demmed Ellusive Pimpernel. Once the book starts ,it does not stop. It rolls like a snowball. Being near the end of August now I am looking at the book on the shelf with greed. Buy it read it and savour it.
It's not bad, but Orczy is no Dumas:
It is most unfortunate that I must disagree with the vast majority of the reviewers of this book, as I had high hopes for it after hearing it compared to the work of Dumas. I was rather disappointed with The Scarlet Pimpernel, however, as I found it to be of rather mediocre quality. It was rather unpolished compared to Dumas, which is surprising considering the haste with which Dumas penned his numerous volumes. The Scarlet Pimpernel is simply not nearly as fun and exciting as either Dumas, Stevenson, Shellabarger, or Sabatini (the other swashbuckling authors). What I found most unappealing about it was Orczy's apparent underestimation of the reader. The first three quarters of the book is obviously supossed to leave the reader guessing as to the identity of the Scarlet Pimpernel, but it was rather easy to guess who it was early on in the book, and by the half-way point it was so blatantly obvious that no one could conceivably be surprised by the much-hyped discovery of the hero towards the end of the book. Add to this the over-the-top melodrama and frequently cheesy dialogue and you have the makings of an average adventure novel. Some may think that I have been harsh with this book. That may be so, but if it is it is because I am so shocked that others dare favorably compare this to the masterpieces of Dumas, or to the great Zorro writings of McCulley. Orczy is not a terrible writer, but it is rather outrageous to compare her to the great swashbuckler authors. She is almost entirely missing the raw spirit of adventure present in others, and this spirit is at the very heart of the adventures of those like Dumas. For me there was no point in this book where I was entheusiastically turning the pages, eager to find out what would happen to the main character, following with glee each turn of events. This is not at all because the main character is female. It is because the main character is not the hero, and is not even adventuresome. To be quite frank, she is rather boring until toward the very end of the book, and even then she does not endear herself to the reader in the manner of a D'Artagnan or an Edmond Dantes. There are no supporting characters worthy of comparison to Athos, Porthos, and Aramis. Even the villains are rather boring (not to mention wooden), leaving us with little to really care about in this book. I think author's intended "hook" was supossed to be the mystery about who the Scarlet Pimpernel is, but this was entirely lost by the half-way point, so I found the last half of the book rather unremarkable. The most redeeming merit of this book is not its enjoyability, but its historical significance. The dual persona of the hero was the inspiration for further variations on the theme, beginning with McCulley's Zorro in the early 20th century and subsequent rise of superheros. It is hard to imagine that such a motif is so recent, but we really do have Orczy to thank for that, and I am truly grateful, for The Mark of Zorro is one of my favorite books. Beyond that, however, my advice is to stick to Dumas, Stevenson, Shellabarger, and Sabatini. They are all far better than this. Overall grade: C+
One Of The Best Love Stories Ever Written!:
When I first began reading this book,I wasn't quite certain I was going to enjoy it, as the English prose wasn't quite my type. However, after the first few chapters, I became an ardent fan of this spellbinding novel! What an incredible love story it is...and it's not one of those books that you read once, and then put back on the shelf, never to be taken down again, either. It is one which you can read again and again, and each time you do, it is as new as when you FIRST read it. It is one of those few novels that retain innocent romantic dialog, and yet it is intriguingly poetic and beautiful beyond words. Everyone I've recommended this story to, agrees with me that it is well worth reading. The story of Percy and Marguerite, quickly becomes every girl's dream love story!
Baroness Emma Orczy:
The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Orczy This book is a delightful read. Amazing love story!
"You surprise me, citoyenne":
This is a re-read for me, and one that I have to admit doesn't hold up nearly so well as an adult. Part of this is not the fault of the book as much as it is the fault of its many imitators. The foppish irresponsible aristocrat who is actually the super-competent avenger of justice has, in the meantime, been done-- done to death-- done again-- done some more. It lacks the kick that it had when I first read it so very long ago. None of which makes it a bad book, not at all. It is still fun to read. Lots of romantic not-quite betrayal, love and derring-do. I don't think it's really a great book, that's all. Orczy is worth a read simply for the influence that her work has had on other later authors. Don't expect too much, and you should be pleasantly surprised. (Has anyone out there read any of the follow-up books to Pimpernel? Despite having loved this as a kid, I never read any of the other books with Sir Percy as the main character. Are they any good? Leave me a comment and let me know.)
| Author: | Baroness Orczy | | Binding: | Paperback | | EAN: | 9780140374544 | | ISBN: | 014037454X | | Number Of Pages: | 336 | | Publication Date: | 1997-03-01 | | Reading Level: | Ages 9-12 |
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