A stirring story of adventure in the Eastern seas, where a lad shares the perils of his father, the captain of the merchant ship The Petrel. After touching at Singapore, they are becalmed off one of the tropic isles, where the ship is attacked and, after a desperate fight, set on fire by Malay pirates. They escape in a boat and drift ashore upon a beautiful volcanic island, where, after sundry adventures, they come upon the half-burned remains of the ship, out of whose timbers they construct a small vessel, but when on the point of sailing are discovered by the Malays. They are in great peril, when a volcanic eruption, while increasing their danger, relieves them of their enemies, and they finally escape and reach a civilized port.
"Jules Verne himself never constructed a more marvellous tale. It contains the strongly marked features that are always conspicuous in Mr. Fenn's stories—a racy humour, the manly vigour of his sentiment, and wholesome moral lessons. For anything to match his realistic touch we must go to Daniel Defoe."—Christian Leader.
YUSSUF THE GUIDE:
Being the Strange Story of the Travels in Asia Minor of Burne the Lawyer, Preston the Professor, and Lawrence the Sick. By G. Manville Fenn. With 8 full-page Illustrations by John Schönberg. Crown 8vo, cloth elegant, $1·50.
Deals with the stirring incidents in the career of Lawrence Grange, a lad who has been almost given over by the doctors, but who rapidly recovers health and strength in a journey through Asia Minor with his guardians "The Professor" and "The Lawyer." Yussuf is their guide; and in their journeyings through the wild mountain region in search of the ancient cities of the Greeks and Romans they penetrate where law is disregarded, and finally fall into the hands of brigands. Their adventures in this rarely-traversed romantic region are many, and culminate in the travellers being snowed up for the winter in the mountains, from which they escape while their captors are waiting for the ransom that does not come.
"This story is told with such real freshness and vigour that the reader feels he is actually one of the party, sharing in the fun and facing the dangers with them."—Pall Mall Gazette.
"Takes its readers into scenes that will have great novelty and attraction for them, and the experiences with the brigands will be especially delightful to the boyish imagination."—Scotsman.