The Oakdale Affair

Edgar Rice Burroughs

listopad 2005 · Cosimo, Inc.

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[T]he THING moved down the hallway to the closed door. The dragging chain marked each foot of its advance. If it made other sounds they were drowned by the clanking of the links over the time roughened flooring. Within the room the five were frozen into utter silence, and beyond the door an equal quiet prevailed for a long minute; then a great force made the door creak and a weird scratching sounded high up upon the old fashioned panelling. Bridge heard a smothered gasp from the boy beside him, followed instantly by a flash of flame and the crack of a small caliber automatic; The Oskaloosa Kid had fired through the door. ~~~ Edgar Rice Burroughs created one of the most iconic figures in American pop culture, Tarzan of the Apes, and it is impossible to overstate his influence on entire genres of popular literature in the decades after his enormously winning pulp novels stormed the public's imagination. The sequel to The Mucker, considered Burroughs' finest novel, The Oakdale Affair follows the continuing adventures of Mucker hero Billy Byrne's best friend, Bridge, in a tale of kidnapping, jewel thievery, and other nefarious acts in the devastated social and economic landscape of post-World War I America. Originally appearing as a serial in 1918, it did not appear first in book form until 1937. Also available from Cosimo Classics: The Mucker. American novelist EDGAR RICE BURROUGHS (1875-1950) wrote dozens of adventure, crime, and science-fiction novels that are still beloved today, including Tarzan of the Apes (1912), At the Earth's Core (1914), A Princess of Mars (1917), and Pirates of Venus (1934). He is reputed to have been reading a comic book when he died.

O autorovi

Edgar Rice Burroughs was born on September 1, 1875, in Chicago. His father, George Tyler was a distiller and a battery manufacturer. Early in life Burroughs attempted to support his family in a variety of occupations, including railroad policeman, business partner, and miner. None of these proved successful. However, Burroughs had always enjoyed reading adventure fiction and decided to try his hand at writing. His first attempt, written under the pseudonym Normal Bean, sold very quickly and Burroughs' career took off. Although critics and educators have not always been supportive of Burroughs' writing, the characters in his stories have entertained readers for many years. Tarzan was the most popular, earning Burroughs enough money to start his own publishing house and a motion picture company. Another character, John Carter, is the hero of Burroughs' Mars adventure series. The continuing popularity of these characters has led some critics to reconsider the value of Burroughs' writing and to acknowledge significant themes in his stories. Burroughs died on March 19, 1950.