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Tarzan #2
The Return of Tarzan
Tarzan hides his inheritance as an English lord, because he believes his cousin William Cecil Clayton would make a better lord and husband for his beloved Jane. He is distracted by a married Russian countess, whose criminal brother Nicholas Rokoff is a real villain for the series. Tarzan is set up for attack by a dozen Paris muggers.
Tarzan fondly recalls his foster ape mother to D'Arnot:
"To you my friend, she would have appeared a hideous and ugly creature, but to me she was beautiful -- so gloriously does love transfigure its object."
Tarzan fondly recalls his foster ape mother to D'Arnot:
"To you my friend, she would have appeared a hideous and ugly creature, but to me she was beautiful -- so gloriously does love transfigure its object."
244 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1913
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3,205 people want to read
About the author
Edgar Rice Burroughs
2,398books2,680followersEdgar Rice Burroughs was an American author, best known for his creation of the jungle hero Tarzan and the heroic John Carter, although he produced works in many genres.
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October 27, 2022
The more one knows of one's religion the less one believes
The Return of Tarzan ~~ Edgar Rice Burroughs
Having thoroughly enjoyed Edgar Rice Burroughs� Tarzan of the Apes, I immediately dove into the second book of the series, The Return of Tarzan. This was another quick read, and it too was a fun, old school pulp adventure.
The Return of Tarzan picks up where Tarzan of the Apes left off; as the adventure begins, we find Tarzan returning to Paris and planning his next expedition.
As I was reading The Return of Tarzan, several things occurred to me: Burroughs cannot write dialog, he uses far too many coincidences to move the plot forward &, most importantly, Burroughs writes action scenes far better than most writers.
The Return of Tarzan is a fun book. The action sequences are magnificent and exciting; yes, the story borders on the ridiculousness ~~ there are a lot of Tarzan just happened to scenes. But, Burroughs is creative enough to embrace this device, and guides the reader with an expert hand throughout. Sometimes one just needs a simple story, and suspended belief to go on a big adventure .
Best of all, we are introduced to the lost city of Opar, an outpost of Atlantis that was forgotten after the sinking of the fabled continent. It’s there that we meet the La, high priestess of Opar, who at first is going to sacrifice Tarzan to the Sun God, but eventually wants him for more carnal activities.
Will Tarzan pick this beautiful but deadly woman over his true love, Jane, or will he go back to living with the Great Apes? Will the villain finally get his just desserts? Does Tarzan finally reclaim the title of Lord Greystoke? All this and more is answered in a book so packed with action it’s hard to believe it’s just over two hundred pages. The Return of Tarzan is the book that clearly set the tone for the rest of the series, and a very good tone it is.
I'm excited to continue these adventures with Tarzan and cannot wait to return to Opar. My final thoughts on The Return of Tarzan are it is an engaging, old fashioned adventure which mixes the jungle action of Tarzan of the Apes with a few new twists. Yes, it is cliched in places, but in the end, is a very exciting read.
The Return of Tarzan ~~ Edgar Rice Burroughs
Having thoroughly enjoyed Edgar Rice Burroughs� Tarzan of the Apes, I immediately dove into the second book of the series, The Return of Tarzan. This was another quick read, and it too was a fun, old school pulp adventure.
The Return of Tarzan picks up where Tarzan of the Apes left off; as the adventure begins, we find Tarzan returning to Paris and planning his next expedition.
As I was reading The Return of Tarzan, several things occurred to me: Burroughs cannot write dialog, he uses far too many coincidences to move the plot forward &, most importantly, Burroughs writes action scenes far better than most writers.
The Return of Tarzan is a fun book. The action sequences are magnificent and exciting; yes, the story borders on the ridiculousness ~~ there are a lot of Tarzan just happened to scenes. But, Burroughs is creative enough to embrace this device, and guides the reader with an expert hand throughout. Sometimes one just needs a simple story, and suspended belief to go on a big adventure .
Best of all, we are introduced to the lost city of Opar, an outpost of Atlantis that was forgotten after the sinking of the fabled continent. It’s there that we meet the La, high priestess of Opar, who at first is going to sacrifice Tarzan to the Sun God, but eventually wants him for more carnal activities.
Will Tarzan pick this beautiful but deadly woman over his true love, Jane, or will he go back to living with the Great Apes? Will the villain finally get his just desserts? Does Tarzan finally reclaim the title of Lord Greystoke? All this and more is answered in a book so packed with action it’s hard to believe it’s just over two hundred pages. The Return of Tarzan is the book that clearly set the tone for the rest of the series, and a very good tone it is.
I'm excited to continue these adventures with Tarzan and cannot wait to return to Opar. My final thoughts on The Return of Tarzan are it is an engaging, old fashioned adventure which mixes the jungle action of Tarzan of the Apes with a few new twists. Yes, it is cliched in places, but in the end, is a very exciting read.
June 4, 2024
"Raised as I have been, I see no worth in man or beast that is not theirs by virtue of their own mental or physical prowess."
The book #2 of Tarzan series is felt more like the missing part of the first book rather than a new journey. Don't get me wrong, because first one was amazing and one will not feel it to be incomplete. But after reading the second, it'll bring you more closure in certain areas.
Loved this one just as the first book.
"Brutes are more chivalrous than man-they do not stop to cowardly intrigue."
The book #2 of Tarzan series is felt more like the missing part of the first book rather than a new journey. Don't get me wrong, because first one was amazing and one will not feel it to be incomplete. But after reading the second, it'll bring you more closure in certain areas.
Loved this one just as the first book.
"Brutes are more chivalrous than man-they do not stop to cowardly intrigue."
May 15, 2024
At the end of Edgar Rice Burroughs’s “Tarzan of the Apes�, Tarzan (a.k.a. Lord Greystoke) arrived in America to see the woman he loves, Jane Porter, engaged to marry another, a man who claimed a title that Tarzan, by all rights, should have claimed. Dejected, Tarzan returns to Paris, melancholy but with the knowledge that what he was doing was the decent thing to do.
“The Return of Tarzan�, Burroughs’s sequel (the first of 23) to his immensely popular novel that introduced the world to one of the most famous fictional characters ever, continues the story of Lord Greystoke, as he travels by boat across the Atlantic and manages to gain the wrath of Nicholas Rokoff, a Russian ne’er-do-well and rapscallion who quickly becomes Tarzan’s archenemy.
Tarzan, in his attempts to do the right thing, ends up being hunted by the police, falsely accused of adultery, and forced into a duel with a man who believes that Tarzan is making love to his wife.
In this sequel, Tarzan also: becomes a spy for the French Intelligence, travels to Algeria, saves the daughter of a sheikh, is thrown overboard in the middle of the ocean by evil henchman, swims to shore only to find that he has arrived at his birthplace, befriends an African tribe known as the Waziri and later becomes their chief, discovers a lost civilization deep in the jungle that may be an ancient pocket of survivors from the lost continent of Atlantis, is reunited with Jane, saves Jane from priests from the lost city of Opar bent on sacrificing her to their gods, and gets married.
All of this, and more, amazingly takes place within the novel’s sparse 273 pages. Talk about action-packed.
Therein lies the appeal of Burroughs’s novel: whatever the man lacked in writing talent, he more than made up for in the sheer joy of story-telling ability. The man could spin a yarn.
It’s clear to me why Tarzan had such a huge popularity and has had a readership for over a century. These are fun, exciting, romantic action-adventure stories written solely to entertain, and that’s precisely what they do.
“The Return of Tarzan�, Burroughs’s sequel (the first of 23) to his immensely popular novel that introduced the world to one of the most famous fictional characters ever, continues the story of Lord Greystoke, as he travels by boat across the Atlantic and manages to gain the wrath of Nicholas Rokoff, a Russian ne’er-do-well and rapscallion who quickly becomes Tarzan’s archenemy.
Tarzan, in his attempts to do the right thing, ends up being hunted by the police, falsely accused of adultery, and forced into a duel with a man who believes that Tarzan is making love to his wife.
In this sequel, Tarzan also: becomes a spy for the French Intelligence, travels to Algeria, saves the daughter of a sheikh, is thrown overboard in the middle of the ocean by evil henchman, swims to shore only to find that he has arrived at his birthplace, befriends an African tribe known as the Waziri and later becomes their chief, discovers a lost civilization deep in the jungle that may be an ancient pocket of survivors from the lost continent of Atlantis, is reunited with Jane, saves Jane from priests from the lost city of Opar bent on sacrificing her to their gods, and gets married.
All of this, and more, amazingly takes place within the novel’s sparse 273 pages. Talk about action-packed.
Therein lies the appeal of Burroughs’s novel: whatever the man lacked in writing talent, he more than made up for in the sheer joy of story-telling ability. The man could spin a yarn.
It’s clear to me why Tarzan had such a huge popularity and has had a readership for over a century. These are fun, exciting, romantic action-adventure stories written solely to entertain, and that’s precisely what they do.
April 18, 2024
I have always loved The Return of Tarzan almost as much as I love Tarzan of the Apes. Although the first novel of every series is usually the best, the second novel of this series has always been my favorite because the love story is resolved in this book. For that reason, and for all the others involving plot and story beats, these two books have always felt like two parts of the same narrative.
The Return of Tarzan is Book 2 of the Tarzan series written by Edgar Rice Burroughs or ERB as how fans call him. I love these books in case you didn't get that from my topic sentence. Here, Tarzan is returning to Europe after an emotional upheaval the likes he has never felt before, when he involves himself in the affairs of a newlywed couple that are marked by Russian opportunists. When he impedes their schemes, he becomes a target as well.
From France, to Algeria, then to Cape Town, and the Hidden City of Opar, Tarzan finds many opportunities to make new friends (Olga and Raoul de Coude, Hazel Strong, a youth named Abdul, Ouled-Nail, Sheik Kadour ben Saden, and the Priestess La), and make a positive impact in their lives.
The narrative is filled with action set pieces in exotic locales, harrowing rescues, hidden treasure, a lost civilization, new languages for Tarzan to learn, and the agony of romance. This book practically engages and includes many subgenres, but it primarily moves like a rapid-paced adventure novel written by a literary artisan that understands how to capture a reader's attention and never let you go. So, yeah, I think it's close to perfect.
The Return of Tarzan is Book 2 of the Tarzan series written by Edgar Rice Burroughs or ERB as how fans call him. I love these books in case you didn't get that from my topic sentence. Here, Tarzan is returning to Europe after an emotional upheaval the likes he has never felt before, when he involves himself in the affairs of a newlywed couple that are marked by Russian opportunists. When he impedes their schemes, he becomes a target as well.
From France, to Algeria, then to Cape Town, and the Hidden City of Opar, Tarzan finds many opportunities to make new friends (Olga and Raoul de Coude, Hazel Strong, a youth named Abdul, Ouled-Nail, Sheik Kadour ben Saden, and the Priestess La), and make a positive impact in their lives.
The narrative is filled with action set pieces in exotic locales, harrowing rescues, hidden treasure, a lost civilization, new languages for Tarzan to learn, and the agony of romance. This book practically engages and includes many subgenres, but it primarily moves like a rapid-paced adventure novel written by a literary artisan that understands how to capture a reader's attention and never let you go. So, yeah, I think it's close to perfect.
July 24, 2018
EXTRA! EXTRA!
{Paris; France}
TARZAN OF THE APES RESCUES YOUNG AND PRETTY RUSSIAN COUNTESS FROM SOCIAL EMBARRASSMENT
Busts heads of malicious scoundrels in the process
{Sidibel-Abbes; Algeria}
APE-MAN RESCUES YOUNG AND PRETTY OULED-NAIL DANCER FROM SLAVERY
Busts heads of malicious scoundrels in the process
{Sahara desert; North Africa}
JUNGLE LORD GOT RESCUED FROM EXECUTION BY YOUNG AND PRETTY OULED-NAIL DANCER
Kills malicious lions in the process
{Jungle; West Africa}
KING OF THE JUNGLE RESCUES BLACK WARRIOR FROM LION ATTACK
Befriends savage tribe; kills malicious Arabs in the process
{Opar; Jungleland}
WHITE CHIEF GOT RESCUED FROM SACRIFICE BY YOUNG AND PRETTY HIGH PRIESTESS
Flees from mystical city on food; no casualties [Ed. Really? Check!]
{Opar/Jungle}
ENGLISH LORD RESCUES YOUNG AND PRETTY AMERICAN FROM MORTAL DANGER
All’s well that ends well
Don’t trust everything you read in the papers! Better check it out for yourself. Once you turn a blind eye on its shortcomings this story becomes some gripping adventure. For me anyway; I’m hooked!
This work is licensed under a .
{Paris; France}
TARZAN OF THE APES RESCUES YOUNG AND PRETTY RUSSIAN COUNTESS FROM SOCIAL EMBARRASSMENT
Busts heads of malicious scoundrels in the process
{Sidibel-Abbes; Algeria}
APE-MAN RESCUES YOUNG AND PRETTY OULED-NAIL DANCER FROM SLAVERY
Busts heads of malicious scoundrels in the process
{Sahara desert; North Africa}
JUNGLE LORD GOT RESCUED FROM EXECUTION BY YOUNG AND PRETTY OULED-NAIL DANCER
Kills malicious lions in the process
{Jungle; West Africa}
KING OF THE JUNGLE RESCUES BLACK WARRIOR FROM LION ATTACK
Befriends savage tribe; kills malicious Arabs in the process
{Opar; Jungleland}
WHITE CHIEF GOT RESCUED FROM SACRIFICE BY YOUNG AND PRETTY HIGH PRIESTESS
Flees from mystical city on food; no casualties [Ed. Really? Check!]
{Opar/Jungle}
ENGLISH LORD RESCUES YOUNG AND PRETTY AMERICAN FROM MORTAL DANGER
All’s well that ends well
Don’t trust everything you read in the papers! Better check it out for yourself. Once you turn a blind eye on its shortcomings this story becomes some gripping adventure. For me anyway; I’m hooked!
This work is licensed under a .
July 19, 2014
As I read this book over the last few weeks, I remembered and recognized more and more parts of it --finally, including the ending-- and realized that I'd read it before as a kid. (Evidently, I did so after reading part of it at a friend's house; but had forgotten the title of what I'd read there, and so came to think that episode involved a different book.) The re-reading, after a lapse of nearly 50 years, was fresh and enjoyable once again; in fact, it made me recall how much I enjoyed the original Tarzan book! I'd given that one just three stars when I reviewed it here, judging it on the basis of literary criteria like accuracy of the background, etc.; but this reading persuaded me to rate both works just on the basis of how much I enjoyed them, and so to allow the extra star.
Readers of the first Tarzan novel probably almost unanimously feel that, despite the nobility of Tarzan's choice at the end, it concludes in a very unsatisfactory way. They'll be delighted to know that this sequel affords Tarzan and Jane another chance. :-) It picks up soon after those events, commences on an ocean liner, moves to Paris and then French-ruled North Africa, and only later returns to sub-Saharan Africa. Along the way, it offers a duel, a shipwreck, attempted murders, espionage, suicide, lion attacks, a lost race, and fabulous ancient treasure, with jeopardies, rescues and escapes galore. (And, of course, romance; not just one, but four --well, actually five-- attractive ladies are among the characters.) The positive and negative characteristics of Burroughs' style are fully in evidence here --though he was apparently more familiar with his French and North African setting than his tropical African one; the former natural and cultural landscapes come across much more realistically than the latter. (His picture of the remnants of lost Atlantean civilization in Opar, on the other hand, is wildly implausible; the extreme sexual dimorphism, with the females beautiful and the males ugly and ape-like, produces the kind of reader reactions to the two groups that he wanted, but is genetically impossible, and the idea that humans could mate with apes comes straight out of the quack Darwinism of his day.) Burrough's plotting would sometimes subject the long arm of coincidence to, at the very least, a dislocated wrist; but given the fascination of his story-telling (and cliff-hanger transitions from one character/characters to another) it's a forgivable flaw. :-) African blacks in 1913 were far more advanced than the Waziri as he portrays them, but his depiction of blacks is more positive than that of some of the writers who were his contemporaries, such as Thomas Dixon (though the contrast he attempts to draw between the Waziri and the coastal blacks exhibits racial stereotyping and profiling). And here as in the first book, Tarzan is confronted with serious moral temptations and choices, and he learns and grows in that area. All in all, a great read for adventure fans!
Readers of the first Tarzan novel probably almost unanimously feel that, despite the nobility of Tarzan's choice at the end, it concludes in a very unsatisfactory way. They'll be delighted to know that this sequel affords Tarzan and Jane another chance. :-) It picks up soon after those events, commences on an ocean liner, moves to Paris and then French-ruled North Africa, and only later returns to sub-Saharan Africa. Along the way, it offers a duel, a shipwreck, attempted murders, espionage, suicide, lion attacks, a lost race, and fabulous ancient treasure, with jeopardies, rescues and escapes galore. (And, of course, romance; not just one, but four --well, actually five-- attractive ladies are among the characters.) The positive and negative characteristics of Burroughs' style are fully in evidence here --though he was apparently more familiar with his French and North African setting than his tropical African one; the former natural and cultural landscapes come across much more realistically than the latter. (His picture of the remnants of lost Atlantean civilization in Opar, on the other hand, is wildly implausible; the extreme sexual dimorphism, with the females beautiful and the males ugly and ape-like, produces the kind of reader reactions to the two groups that he wanted, but is genetically impossible, and the idea that humans could mate with apes comes straight out of the quack Darwinism of his day.) Burrough's plotting would sometimes subject the long arm of coincidence to, at the very least, a dislocated wrist; but given the fascination of his story-telling (and cliff-hanger transitions from one character/characters to another) it's a forgivable flaw. :-) African blacks in 1913 were far more advanced than the Waziri as he portrays them, but his depiction of blacks is more positive than that of some of the writers who were his contemporaries, such as Thomas Dixon (though the contrast he attempts to draw between the Waziri and the coastal blacks exhibits racial stereotyping and profiling). And here as in the first book, Tarzan is confronted with serious moral temptations and choices, and he learns and grows in that area. All in all, a great read for adventure fans!
February 14, 2012
Read the first one, then stop.
June 5, 2023
Essentially, this is the second half of Tarzan's origin story. At the end of , after rescuing Jane Porter from a forest fire in backwoods Wisconsin, Tarzan had concealed his identity as John Clayton, the true Lord Greystoke, so as not to interfere with Jane's professed intention to marry his cousin William Cecil Clayton, who had inherited the title after Tarzan's father disappeared with no known heir. (Burroughs does love to throw these kinds of stumbling blocks into the way.)
At the beginning of Return of Tarzan, Monsieur Jean Tarzan has gone to Paris with his friend Paul d'Arnot and is spending his time smoking cigarettes, drinking absinth and barely avoiding giving in to Throbbing Biological Urges with a Russian countess (she's married, after all, so it just Would Not Do even if her husband wasn't basically a decent sort). There are also the Russians Rokoff (the countess' dastard of a brother) and Paulvitch, who will serve as the main villains of the piece, initially in Paris and then later in Africa, to which Tarzan will inevitably return.
This time Tarzan initially finds himself in Algeria before returning to the more familiar equatorial jungle climes around his parents' cabin (where, also inevitably, everybody else will find themselves, because if you're going to be marooned, shipwrecked or mutinied on the west coast of Africa, you will 100% guaranteed find yourself within a few miles of the cove where Lord & Lady Greystoke were marooned at the beginning of the first book).
And (spoilers for a 107 year old book about one of the most famous characters in all of fiction) by the end of things Tarzan and Jane will have finally been married, the villains will have met their deserved fates (or slunk off to villain again in a future installment), any persons acting as romantic obstacles between hero and heroine will have placed their affections elsewhere or conveniently snuffed it, and most of the pieces of the Tarzan story will have been set in place for the veritable plethora of sequels to come -- the Waziri (the "good" natives who of course adopt Tarzan as their chief), the lost city of Opar (first of the many, many lost civilizations littering Tarzan's Africa) with its leftover Atlantean riches and its beautiful, scheming priestess La, and of course the ultimate power couple, Tarzan and Jane themselves.
(And yes, as in the first book and, for that matter, all subsequent books, any resemblance between continents depicted in this book and any actual continents is entirely coincidental; and there are some startlingly ugly bits of description of the "bad" natives and, well, if that's enough to put you off of the book and the series, I understand completely.)
At the beginning of Return of Tarzan, Monsieur Jean Tarzan has gone to Paris with his friend Paul d'Arnot and is spending his time smoking cigarettes, drinking absinth and barely avoiding giving in to Throbbing Biological Urges with a Russian countess (she's married, after all, so it just Would Not Do even if her husband wasn't basically a decent sort). There are also the Russians Rokoff (the countess' dastard of a brother) and Paulvitch, who will serve as the main villains of the piece, initially in Paris and then later in Africa, to which Tarzan will inevitably return.
This time Tarzan initially finds himself in Algeria before returning to the more familiar equatorial jungle climes around his parents' cabin (where, also inevitably, everybody else will find themselves, because if you're going to be marooned, shipwrecked or mutinied on the west coast of Africa, you will 100% guaranteed find yourself within a few miles of the cove where Lord & Lady Greystoke were marooned at the beginning of the first book).
And (spoilers for a 107 year old book about one of the most famous characters in all of fiction) by the end of things Tarzan and Jane will have finally been married, the villains will have met their deserved fates (or slunk off to villain again in a future installment), any persons acting as romantic obstacles between hero and heroine will have placed their affections elsewhere or conveniently snuffed it, and most of the pieces of the Tarzan story will have been set in place for the veritable plethora of sequels to come -- the Waziri (the "good" natives who of course adopt Tarzan as their chief), the lost city of Opar (first of the many, many lost civilizations littering Tarzan's Africa) with its leftover Atlantean riches and its beautiful, scheming priestess La, and of course the ultimate power couple, Tarzan and Jane themselves.
(And yes, as in the first book and, for that matter, all subsequent books, any resemblance between continents depicted in this book and any actual continents is entirely coincidental; and there are some startlingly ugly bits of description of the "bad" natives and, well, if that's enough to put you off of the book and the series, I understand completely.)
October 23, 2014
I'm pretty sure I gave 5 stars, so I have to give this one the same. It's really one, 2 part book. It is better in one way, much of Burroughs earlier seeming racism is gone. Otherwise, it is just a continuation of the basis for a story we've all come to know so well. It relies heavily on coincidence, monumentally stupid bravery & sheer magic, but it's a heck of a lot of fun.
March 22, 2019
The completion of the tale begun in Tarzan of the Apes. New characters are introduced. Tarzan finds a lost city, Opar, which may have been built by people from Atlantis before it sank. Pulp adventure at its best.
May 30, 2017
Tarzan, grieving his beloved Jane who will soon marry another, sets off to visit France. Where of course he causes problems with Russian blackmailers, becomes a spy for the French government, and ends up back in Africa. There's lots of fighting, lots of yelling, lost cities are rediscovered, gold is found, lions are killed with Tarzan's bare hands!
It's pretty much exactly what you would expect. Although I was shocked by the cannibalism. Like, white Europeans deciding to eat each other. That was interesting.
It's pretty much exactly what you would expect. Although I was shocked by the cannibalism. Like, white Europeans deciding to eat each other. That was interesting.
April 26, 2023
What I have written for my review of Tarzan of the Apes pretty much stands for Book 2 as well.
An escapist, superhero pulp fiction, very entertaining and chokeful of the false glories of colonialism and yet it does not shy away from the ugly side either and reads like it was the author's anticipatory answer to "I am a Celebrity ... Get me out of Here!" with showing the very meagre survivor skills of very unfit people and how getting thrown into the wild tests those to the utmost.
Tarzan had even more saving to do than in Book 1 and as for the plot, there is an awful lot of coincidental meeting of people in the jungle and on the seashore of Congo, whether they were originally in the Sahara desert or Cape Town. It read like the huge continent of Africa was no more than a small village.
An escapist, superhero pulp fiction, very entertaining and chokeful of the false glories of colonialism and yet it does not shy away from the ugly side either and reads like it was the author's anticipatory answer to "I am a Celebrity ... Get me out of Here!" with showing the very meagre survivor skills of very unfit people and how getting thrown into the wild tests those to the utmost.
Tarzan had even more saving to do than in Book 1 and as for the plot, there is an awful lot of coincidental meeting of people in the jungle and on the seashore of Congo, whether they were originally in the Sahara desert or Cape Town. It read like the huge continent of Africa was no more than a small village.
February 20, 2011
About 25 years ago, I decided to revisit the real turning point in my life as a reader, the point at which I became a voracious reader. I decided to re-read the Tarzan books I'd devoured as a teenager, to see if they still held up. I re-read the first book, Tarzan of the Apes, about an orphaned boy who grew up among the great apes, and was delighted to see that whatever maturity I had gained hadn't cost me the joy I'd experienced in that first book of the long series. For some reason, though, I didn't get around to the next book until now.
The Return of Tarzan was actually the first Tarzan book I ever read. It was a bit mystifying at the time, because it's a sequel that picks up where the first book ended, which means that it starts out in Paris where Tarzan goes by the name of Jean C. Tarzan and sips absinthe and wears white tie and is involved in intrigue with a Russian countess. Not exactly what I was expecting for my first experience with the Lord of the Jungle. (The book doesn't even get to the jungle until more than half way through.) As a result, this was always my least favorite Tarzan book as a kid, though it still compelled me to give probably the most breathless and persuasive book report ever heard at Thomas J. Rusk Junior High School.
Burrough's Tarzan books are just plain wonderful adventures. I don't read stuff like that much anymore, but re-reading The Return of Tarzan makes me realize that I still hunger for it a little. The books are dated, but only (primarily) in the style of language and in a paternalistic racial viewpoint. Burroughs makes far too much use of coincidence (in the first two books, no fewer than four shipwrecks strand passengers on one five-mile stretch of African coast, and the passengers of all the wrecks are intricately connected with one another). But nevertheless, what Burroughs captures is the absolute essence of adventure viewed through a near-Victorian worldview. I don't recommend starting the Tarzan novels with The Return of Tarzan, as I did, but it's hard for me to imagine a boy of 13 not still being caught by the magic of these tales. And I don't think it will be 25 years before I revisit the next in the series.
The Return of Tarzan was actually the first Tarzan book I ever read. It was a bit mystifying at the time, because it's a sequel that picks up where the first book ended, which means that it starts out in Paris where Tarzan goes by the name of Jean C. Tarzan and sips absinthe and wears white tie and is involved in intrigue with a Russian countess. Not exactly what I was expecting for my first experience with the Lord of the Jungle. (The book doesn't even get to the jungle until more than half way through.) As a result, this was always my least favorite Tarzan book as a kid, though it still compelled me to give probably the most breathless and persuasive book report ever heard at Thomas J. Rusk Junior High School.
Burrough's Tarzan books are just plain wonderful adventures. I don't read stuff like that much anymore, but re-reading The Return of Tarzan makes me realize that I still hunger for it a little. The books are dated, but only (primarily) in the style of language and in a paternalistic racial viewpoint. Burroughs makes far too much use of coincidence (in the first two books, no fewer than four shipwrecks strand passengers on one five-mile stretch of African coast, and the passengers of all the wrecks are intricately connected with one another). But nevertheless, what Burroughs captures is the absolute essence of adventure viewed through a near-Victorian worldview. I don't recommend starting the Tarzan novels with The Return of Tarzan, as I did, but it's hard for me to imagine a boy of 13 not still being caught by the magic of these tales. And I don't think it will be 25 years before I revisit the next in the series.
April 11, 2019
3.5 stars.
This is a very uneven book. The first half is just ok, and deals with Tarzan travelling around the world and getting into various scraps and scrapes.
The second half, on the other hand, is really great. Tarzan returns to the jungle and has to deal with a lost city, an ancient civilization of beast-men, and murderous pagan rituals. The two halves are only connected by the fact that they include the same mustache-twirling villain that keeps showing up and screwing around with Tarzan.
In other words, the book goes from standard pulp adventure to fantastical Robert E. Howard fever dream. It really felt like either Burroughs didn't know what to do with this story, or it wasn't long enough and so he had to add some filler to meet his word count.
Still, there is a lot of fun here, especially once Burroughs gets locked in on a plot.
This is a very uneven book. The first half is just ok, and deals with Tarzan travelling around the world and getting into various scraps and scrapes.
The second half, on the other hand, is really great. Tarzan returns to the jungle and has to deal with a lost city, an ancient civilization of beast-men, and murderous pagan rituals. The two halves are only connected by the fact that they include the same mustache-twirling villain that keeps showing up and screwing around with Tarzan.
In other words, the book goes from standard pulp adventure to fantastical Robert E. Howard fever dream. It really felt like either Burroughs didn't know what to do with this story, or it wasn't long enough and so he had to add some filler to meet his word count.
Still, there is a lot of fun here, especially once Burroughs gets locked in on a plot.
December 30, 2016
Sequels always get compared to the first in the series for evident reasons. This is a case where the second book has almost nothing in common with the first so the issue is more that the genre seems to have switched and it feels less like a sequel and more like a separate story with the same character (kind of? I wanted more ape-man Tarzan than civilized hero Tarzan).
The first half reads like a Russian spy novel, with none of the apes and lions and African Jungle. That is my warning to anyone like me who went in expecting savagery and tree-swinging from the beginning. You will probably be disappointed. After I began to get bored of this genre-flip, it reverted back to something similar to the first novel.
I can't say this was anywhere near as enjoyable as the first book, but it wasn't awful if treated as a separate book altogether? I don't know, I'm a little bit confused about what I just went through to be honest. I may or may not continue the series.
The first half reads like a Russian spy novel, with none of the apes and lions and African Jungle. That is my warning to anyone like me who went in expecting savagery and tree-swinging from the beginning. You will probably be disappointed. After I began to get bored of this genre-flip, it reverted back to something similar to the first novel.
I can't say this was anywhere near as enjoyable as the first book, but it wasn't awful if treated as a separate book altogether? I don't know, I'm a little bit confused about what I just went through to be honest. I may or may not continue the series.
July 19, 2019
Another readable adventure story which my two boys enjoyed, this one is a direct sequel to the first book (Tarzan of the Apes). The book has many flaws, but there is enough action, intrigue, shipwrecks, savages, and romance to keep the story moving along. Recommended.
September 20, 2012
Perhaps the most well-known fictional creation of the 20th century, Tarzan celebrates his official centennial in October 2012. First appearing in the pulp publication "All-Story Magazine" as a complete novel in October 1912, "Tarzan of the Apes" proved so popular that its creator, Edgar Rice Burroughs, wasted little time in coming up with a sequel...the first of an eventual two dozen! That sequel, perhaps inevitably titled "The Return of Tarzan," was first seen in the pages of the short-lived pulp "New Story Magazine" (cover price: 15 cents); unlike its predecessor, it was published serially, in the June-December 1913 issues, and first saw book form in 1915. This is a tremendous continuation of the initial, now-classic story, and does what all good sequels SHOULD do: expand on what we already know while deepening characterizations...and leaving us wanting still more!
The book is a direct continuation of the earlier novel, at the end of which Tarzan was seen nobly renouncing his aristocratic title so that his lady love, Jane Porter, could comfortably marry his cousin, William Cecil Clayton. Picking up scant weeks later, the sequel finds a despondent Tarzan mulling over his lot while on a steamer to Paris, where he resides with his good friend Paul D'Arnot. He becomes involved with the affairs of a troubled couple, the Count and Countess De Coude, while on ship and after returning to Paris; it seems that the Countess' brother, the cravenly Russian agent Nikolas Rokoff, will do virtually anything to blackmail the couple into giving him some top-secret government papers. After these episodes (and the book certainly must be deemed "episodic"), Tarzan becomes a secret agent for the French government (!), has some remarkable adventures in the desert of Algeria (again coming up against Rokoff), is thrown off a mid-ocean steamer by Rokoff and his henchman, Alexis Paulvitch, and fetches up in his native Africa. Once on his home turf, Tarzan's veneer of civilization is quickly sloughed off, as he rises to the kingship of a native tribe, the Waziri, leads them in battle against a band of ivory hunters, and discovers the Haggardian lost kingdom of Opar, along with its treasure horde of gold. As you can tell, the novel is just crammed with incident and adventure; Burroughs throws quite a bit into this one to guarantee the reader a rousing good time. And I have not even mentioned the trials that poor Jane and her party go through after a terrible shipwreck and marooning. Readers won't be bored, that's for certain!
While no one would ever call Burroughs an elegant writer, he sure was a compelling one, and "The Return of Tarzan" really is quite impossible to put down. With two story lines alternating for our attention, and its chapters arranged cliffhanger fashion, the book is compulsively readable. It also goes far in deflating the charges of racism that have been leveled against Burroughs in the first book; here, the Waziri are portrayed in a very winning light, and Tarzan often ponders how much more decent they are than some "civilized" folks whom he has encountered (still, the book's Manyuema cannibals are naturally shown in anything BUT a decent light!). The novel features some lovely romantic interludes that should have the lady readers sighing, while of course dishing out enough gun battles, fights with wild animals, cloak and dagger antics, and lost-world elements to keep the most jaded action fan happy. And although Burroughs had never visited Africa--and thus could not impart the "Dark Continent" authenticity that H. Rider Haggard engendered so easily in his own books--his research goes far here in filling in the blanks; for example, who has ever heard of alfa (esparto) grass before, ropes of which are used to bind Tarzan in the Algerian desert? Put simply, the book is a gas, from start to finish.
Still, it is a far from perfect affair, and Burroughs must be held accountable for several goofs that a careful reading will spotlight. Egregiously, he mentions that Tarzan's ape mother, Kala, had been killed by a spear that "found [her] vitals." In the initial novel, however, it is clearly stated that Kulonga's spear merely "grazed her side"; rather, it was a poisoned arrow that did her in. The author tells us that Bou Saada, Algeria, is south of Sidi-bel-Abbes, whereas a quick look at a map will reveal that it is east. And he tells us that Tarzan's vessel was sailing "east" from Algeria to get to the Strait of Gibraltar, whereas that should of course be west. Perhaps worse than these oversights, which should actually have been caught by Burroughs' editor, is the overdependence on coincidence with which the author advances his plot. By coincidence, Tarzan's first assignment in Africa involves his enemy, Rokoff; by coincidence, the sheik who befriends Tarzan is the father of the dancing girl who later rescues him; by coincidence, Tarzan meets Jane's best friend, Hazel Strong, on a steamer at sea; by coincidence, the marooned Tarzan washes up on the African shore right at the cabin where he was born (!); by coincidence, Hazel bumps into Jane in Cape Town; and by two more coincidences, the lifeboats of the aforementioned shipwreck also fetch up on the African shore within five miles of Tarzan's cabin. Small world, and all that! The first Tarzan novel was also dependent on coincidence, but not nearly as absurdly so as its sequel. But you know what? The story is so entertaining, so much fun, and told with such dash and vigor, that none of these things seems to matter. While one part of the reader's mind is saying "Oh, come on!" the other part is making those pages flip, anxious to see what comes next. To demonstrate this point, I find that, despite having dozens of other books clamoring for my attention right now, I yet HAVE to read the second Tarzan sequel, "The Beasts of Tarzan," next. Flaws and all, even after 100 years, these books CAN prove highly addictive....
The book is a direct continuation of the earlier novel, at the end of which Tarzan was seen nobly renouncing his aristocratic title so that his lady love, Jane Porter, could comfortably marry his cousin, William Cecil Clayton. Picking up scant weeks later, the sequel finds a despondent Tarzan mulling over his lot while on a steamer to Paris, where he resides with his good friend Paul D'Arnot. He becomes involved with the affairs of a troubled couple, the Count and Countess De Coude, while on ship and after returning to Paris; it seems that the Countess' brother, the cravenly Russian agent Nikolas Rokoff, will do virtually anything to blackmail the couple into giving him some top-secret government papers. After these episodes (and the book certainly must be deemed "episodic"), Tarzan becomes a secret agent for the French government (!), has some remarkable adventures in the desert of Algeria (again coming up against Rokoff), is thrown off a mid-ocean steamer by Rokoff and his henchman, Alexis Paulvitch, and fetches up in his native Africa. Once on his home turf, Tarzan's veneer of civilization is quickly sloughed off, as he rises to the kingship of a native tribe, the Waziri, leads them in battle against a band of ivory hunters, and discovers the Haggardian lost kingdom of Opar, along with its treasure horde of gold. As you can tell, the novel is just crammed with incident and adventure; Burroughs throws quite a bit into this one to guarantee the reader a rousing good time. And I have not even mentioned the trials that poor Jane and her party go through after a terrible shipwreck and marooning. Readers won't be bored, that's for certain!
While no one would ever call Burroughs an elegant writer, he sure was a compelling one, and "The Return of Tarzan" really is quite impossible to put down. With two story lines alternating for our attention, and its chapters arranged cliffhanger fashion, the book is compulsively readable. It also goes far in deflating the charges of racism that have been leveled against Burroughs in the first book; here, the Waziri are portrayed in a very winning light, and Tarzan often ponders how much more decent they are than some "civilized" folks whom he has encountered (still, the book's Manyuema cannibals are naturally shown in anything BUT a decent light!). The novel features some lovely romantic interludes that should have the lady readers sighing, while of course dishing out enough gun battles, fights with wild animals, cloak and dagger antics, and lost-world elements to keep the most jaded action fan happy. And although Burroughs had never visited Africa--and thus could not impart the "Dark Continent" authenticity that H. Rider Haggard engendered so easily in his own books--his research goes far here in filling in the blanks; for example, who has ever heard of alfa (esparto) grass before, ropes of which are used to bind Tarzan in the Algerian desert? Put simply, the book is a gas, from start to finish.
Still, it is a far from perfect affair, and Burroughs must be held accountable for several goofs that a careful reading will spotlight. Egregiously, he mentions that Tarzan's ape mother, Kala, had been killed by a spear that "found [her] vitals." In the initial novel, however, it is clearly stated that Kulonga's spear merely "grazed her side"; rather, it was a poisoned arrow that did her in. The author tells us that Bou Saada, Algeria, is south of Sidi-bel-Abbes, whereas a quick look at a map will reveal that it is east. And he tells us that Tarzan's vessel was sailing "east" from Algeria to get to the Strait of Gibraltar, whereas that should of course be west. Perhaps worse than these oversights, which should actually have been caught by Burroughs' editor, is the overdependence on coincidence with which the author advances his plot. By coincidence, Tarzan's first assignment in Africa involves his enemy, Rokoff; by coincidence, the sheik who befriends Tarzan is the father of the dancing girl who later rescues him; by coincidence, Tarzan meets Jane's best friend, Hazel Strong, on a steamer at sea; by coincidence, the marooned Tarzan washes up on the African shore right at the cabin where he was born (!); by coincidence, Hazel bumps into Jane in Cape Town; and by two more coincidences, the lifeboats of the aforementioned shipwreck also fetch up on the African shore within five miles of Tarzan's cabin. Small world, and all that! The first Tarzan novel was also dependent on coincidence, but not nearly as absurdly so as its sequel. But you know what? The story is so entertaining, so much fun, and told with such dash and vigor, that none of these things seems to matter. While one part of the reader's mind is saying "Oh, come on!" the other part is making those pages flip, anxious to see what comes next. To demonstrate this point, I find that, despite having dozens of other books clamoring for my attention right now, I yet HAVE to read the second Tarzan sequel, "The Beasts of Tarzan," next. Flaws and all, even after 100 years, these books CAN prove highly addictive....
July 1, 2008
Tarzan smokes cigarettes, drinks absinthe and says, �Mon Dieu!� That’s in between beatin� the bad guys and dazzlin� the ladies.
I found the second volume of the Tarzan series to be just as good as the first, just as exciting, interesting and action packed. Those who know me might say, “Yeah, Justin, but that’s because you’re a little kid and you like this sort of thing.� Not so, folks. Well, I do like this sort of thing and I don’t often win awards for stoic maturity but Burroughs is no slouch and he is not kidding around. And, finally, a resolution to the tragic love story of Tarzan and Jane.
It’s interesting, from a sort of socio-historical point of view, to note what social attitudes were prevalent in 1913 when The Return Of Tarzan was published based on the book itself. The attitude towards blacks is not especially flattering, though Burroughs does recognize nobility in some of the “savages� of his stories. There’s an awful lot of damsel in distress style sexism, y’know, women succumbing to their “natural� instinct to be protected by their man. You get the sense Burroughs bought into this one pretty deep. On the other hand, you get the sense that Burroughs was something of an environmentalist. And his ideas about nobility, chivalry and honor are quite pure and have inspired generations.
I suppose the other criticism is that, sometimes, things are a little too neat and easy in terms of the plot. However, Burroughs suffers less from this than many of his pulp writing peers.
Regardless, these books are fun to read and I’m getting a kick out of them. Now if I could just find a used copy of The Beasts Of Tarzan.
I found the second volume of the Tarzan series to be just as good as the first, just as exciting, interesting and action packed. Those who know me might say, “Yeah, Justin, but that’s because you’re a little kid and you like this sort of thing.� Not so, folks. Well, I do like this sort of thing and I don’t often win awards for stoic maturity but Burroughs is no slouch and he is not kidding around. And, finally, a resolution to the tragic love story of Tarzan and Jane.
It’s interesting, from a sort of socio-historical point of view, to note what social attitudes were prevalent in 1913 when The Return Of Tarzan was published based on the book itself. The attitude towards blacks is not especially flattering, though Burroughs does recognize nobility in some of the “savages� of his stories. There’s an awful lot of damsel in distress style sexism, y’know, women succumbing to their “natural� instinct to be protected by their man. You get the sense Burroughs bought into this one pretty deep. On the other hand, you get the sense that Burroughs was something of an environmentalist. And his ideas about nobility, chivalry and honor are quite pure and have inspired generations.
I suppose the other criticism is that, sometimes, things are a little too neat and easy in terms of the plot. However, Burroughs suffers less from this than many of his pulp writing peers.
Regardless, these books are fun to read and I’m getting a kick out of them. Now if I could just find a used copy of The Beasts Of Tarzan.
January 9, 2012
Tarzan is simply a white SuperCaptainCoolMan. That's all there is to it. With sinewy arms of steel forged in the leafy shadows of the darkest jungles--you get the picture. The silliest theme in the book is Tarzan's de-evolution from a gentleman in Paris to the ape-man rampaging through the jungle with his primate brethren. The not-so-subtle social Darwinism featured in all the Tarzan books is annoying if you can't get past the stupid ideas of previous generations--maybe in 75 years people will be put off by the murky postmodernism of the early 21st century. Burroughs was still way ahead of his time in his ability to create a predictable comic book hero about whom he could churn out multiple titles. Of course, that whole genre depends heavily on remarkable coincidences. I'm still bewildered about how most of the characters in this book end up at Tarzan's boyhood cabin on the west coast of Africa at some point or another when I can't even find the closest Target without a GPS. I'm still giving the improbable plot four stars because it's fun to read, with shipwrecks, political scandals, militant pygmies covered in bling, diabolical villains, and gentle ladies throughout (although Tarzan only wants to be "bully chums" with the non-European females he meets, even if he does call Arabs "white men"). Despite his embarrassing habit of being randomly heroic, I think Tarzan would be a good friend to play video games with--not any complex board games though, he's not evolved enough for that.
March 6, 2021
Tarzan, becomes super rich, how he does it, its so round about and filled with adventure, battles, & stealthy acts, so much action jammed into so little space just picks up straight from the first book. He's in the USA, decides he needs to marry Jane..hah..German gut laugh.. he's travelling on a ship, meets a count who is thankful as he prevents a crime against him, but Tarzan creates an enemy a Russian professional criminal Rokoff who wants revenge regardless of the cost. He befriends the count but has to duel the count as Tarzan is accused of making advances with the countess. The count gives Tarzan a job helping Arab trade relations and ends up making a staunch new Arab ally and has another run in with Rokoff, afterwards he leaves for South Africa by ship but gets thrown overboard by Rokoff.. funny enough he's back in the jungle he grew up with his ape family. He now befriends a leader of a tribe who he helps fight ivory raiders and on, and on it goes, escape captured escape captured battle, battle another battle well eventually he gets the treasure and all ends well Tarzan ends up back in England with piles of money and kissy kissy with Jane ...yay... Edgar is the master of adventure stories. P.S Rokoff is still seeking revenge against Tarzan. Has blatant sexcism and racism, all part of "the story" like water of a ducks back.
October 27, 2015
So good. I really don't like Rokoff. And then Clayton. ;'( But Tarzan and Jane. :D <3
March 7, 2012
My daughter is being encouraged by her teacher to get a little variety in her reading, and maybe I'm trying for the same in going back to books that captivated me when I was about her age. Well, no, not exactly. The real reason is that I've been feeling the pressures of life more keenly than usual and wanted an escape.
I read all the Tarzan books so many times way back in my youth that I still remember them fairly well. Remembered liking this one in particular, perhaps because it moves our hero through the widest range of settings (from a transAtlantic ocean liner at the beginning, to Parisian society, to life as a member of an African tribe, with stops along the way for a pistol duel, imprisonment in an Arab's tent, and the threat of being sacrificed by primitive sun-worshippers). Through it all, his steps are dogged by an utterly slimy Russian spy who never tires of trying to end Tarzan's days. Again and again, having thwarted the villain's plots, Tarzan resists the entirely rational urge to break his neck.
In most of his books, Burroughs has at least something to say about the romantic concept of the noble savage. This one makes his point explicitly, as the civilized men Tarzan meets are either soulless monsters or useless weaklings, whereas thanks to an upbringing away from decadent modern society he both instinctively knows the right thing to do and also does it. Failing to kill the spy might be a noble choice, but it isn't a wise one (at least, not for the character; for the narrative, it ensures the bad guy will continue providing more opportunities for Tarzan to do what he does best). Aside from that, there aren't too many shades of gray here. At any rate, the bon sauvage slant works for getting Tarzan back home to the jungle, where he needs to be for all the sequels that will follow.
Hard to say how many stars this should have. Of course, as a kid, I would have given it five. It's not great literature. On the other hand, without first thoroughly enjoying books like this, I might never have found my way to literature. And here I am choosing to pick it up again even today. So let's go with four.
I read all the Tarzan books so many times way back in my youth that I still remember them fairly well. Remembered liking this one in particular, perhaps because it moves our hero through the widest range of settings (from a transAtlantic ocean liner at the beginning, to Parisian society, to life as a member of an African tribe, with stops along the way for a pistol duel, imprisonment in an Arab's tent, and the threat of being sacrificed by primitive sun-worshippers). Through it all, his steps are dogged by an utterly slimy Russian spy who never tires of trying to end Tarzan's days. Again and again, having thwarted the villain's plots, Tarzan resists the entirely rational urge to break his neck.
In most of his books, Burroughs has at least something to say about the romantic concept of the noble savage. This one makes his point explicitly, as the civilized men Tarzan meets are either soulless monsters or useless weaklings, whereas thanks to an upbringing away from decadent modern society he both instinctively knows the right thing to do and also does it. Failing to kill the spy might be a noble choice, but it isn't a wise one (at least, not for the character; for the narrative, it ensures the bad guy will continue providing more opportunities for Tarzan to do what he does best). Aside from that, there aren't too many shades of gray here. At any rate, the bon sauvage slant works for getting Tarzan back home to the jungle, where he needs to be for all the sequels that will follow.
Hard to say how many stars this should have. Of course, as a kid, I would have given it five. It's not great literature. On the other hand, without first thoroughly enjoying books like this, I might never have found my way to literature. And here I am choosing to pick it up again even today. So let's go with four.
December 20, 2019
"Tarzan of the Apes"left Tarzans' story a bit on a cliffhanger, where Jane Porter had promised her hand to Clayton Greystoke who was currently the heir to the Greystoke fortune. Tarzan walked away without claiming his love and fortune. So we meet up with Tarzan on a boat headed for Europe on his way back to the African jungle. When we meet him again he is being very much appreciated by a young Russian comtessa whose marriage and reputation is in danger from two Russian hoodlums who find themselves confronted by the giant from the jungle whose strength is underestimated severely in their plans.
Tarzan's stay in the civilized world is a world away from the Weismuller movies were most action took place in the Jungle. here he has his adventures in Paris and then in the Africa of Arabian people were he saves a daughter of a tribal leader before continuing his travels and secret mission of catching a spy in the act and confronting once more his enemy Rokoff who will plague him in this book.
Tarzan gets thrown overboard and ends up in his beloved Africa, becomes the tribal chief of the Waziri, travels to Opar to be nearly sacrificed, in the meanwhile Jane Porter has not yet married Lord Greystoke and travels Africa where she becomes shipwrecked on the African coast with Clayton, Lord Greystoke and a certain Rokoff. Tarzan again lives with his family of Apes and once again Jane Porter gets kidnapped by the folks from Opar.
While the book is one novel too much happens to make a coherent review unless giving away the whole book. Anyway at the end Tarzan is Lord Greystoke and married with his great love. And the noble Savage from Africa has been force of good all the time. He does represent the good in mankind.
A very decent and easy to read novel which I am sure was well received in its time and even these days can easily be read bij children.
Tarzan's stay in the civilized world is a world away from the Weismuller movies were most action took place in the Jungle. here he has his adventures in Paris and then in the Africa of Arabian people were he saves a daughter of a tribal leader before continuing his travels and secret mission of catching a spy in the act and confronting once more his enemy Rokoff who will plague him in this book.
Tarzan gets thrown overboard and ends up in his beloved Africa, becomes the tribal chief of the Waziri, travels to Opar to be nearly sacrificed, in the meanwhile Jane Porter has not yet married Lord Greystoke and travels Africa where she becomes shipwrecked on the African coast with Clayton, Lord Greystoke and a certain Rokoff. Tarzan again lives with his family of Apes and once again Jane Porter gets kidnapped by the folks from Opar.
While the book is one novel too much happens to make a coherent review unless giving away the whole book. Anyway at the end Tarzan is Lord Greystoke and married with his great love. And the noble Savage from Africa has been force of good all the time. He does represent the good in mankind.
A very decent and easy to read novel which I am sure was well received in its time and even these days can easily be read bij children.
October 9, 2016
After renouncing his claim to the love of Jane Porter at the end of the previous novel, Tarzan has an eventful career as a French secret agent among the Arabs, the chief of an African tribe, and the captive of sun-worshipping subhumans, all culminating in a suspenseful reunion with his true love.
All of the pros and cons that can be cited for any Edgar Rice Burroughs story can be cited for this one as well. There is a continual and often ridiculous reliance on coincidence to move the action forward, but it's just so much damn fun to read that I don’t much care about that. If you don’t appreciate the kind of old-timey Saturday serial thrills that a good Burroughs book delivers, there is not much reason to read this.
All of the pros and cons that can be cited for any Edgar Rice Burroughs story can be cited for this one as well. There is a continual and often ridiculous reliance on coincidence to move the action forward, but it's just so much damn fun to read that I don’t much care about that. If you don’t appreciate the kind of old-timey Saturday serial thrills that a good Burroughs book delivers, there is not much reason to read this.
November 12, 2024
El gran mono blanco regresa a Paris abatido por la pérdida de su amada. El caballero que es por herencia logra imponerse en él por un tiempo, aprende de la civilización y se asquea de sus vicios. Casi sin quererlo y un poco por la inocencia que aún posee ante la modernidad, cae fácilmente en aventuras insospechadas, sobre todo cuando corre al auxilio de una dama, aunque también por ello se gane tanto enemigos como amigos. Los unos porque son objeto de su furia y su fuerza castigadora, los otros, porque logran ver al hombre amable y de excelentes sentimientos.
A pesar de ello, el destino le lleva a las costas de su África natal, donde decide volver a ser el hombre salvaje de su infancia y olvidarse de todo. Pero eso ya no es posible, si bien se adapta con facilidad, su liderazgo es innato y consigue que le nombren rey de dos tribus por sus servicios salvadores, también la ambición del hombre blanco ya ha calado en él, y logra hacerse con grandes tesoros solo por el placer de tenerlos. Más adelante, contra toda posibilidad se reencuentra con su amada y es ahí donde se definirá su futuro, ¿seguirá como el hombre mono y salvaje, o asumirá su título como Lord Greystoke?
Esta segunda parte me ha gustado incluso más que la primera, nos muestra esa doble vida en la que se desenvuelve el joven Tarzán y muestra su personalidad y su poder. No sé si seguiré con el resto de la serie (son 23 en total), pero al menos, me siento muy complacida con haber leído lo básico de este clásico. Quisiera explorar un poco más sobre las demás temáticas de aventura de este gran autor.
A pesar de ello, el destino le lleva a las costas de su África natal, donde decide volver a ser el hombre salvaje de su infancia y olvidarse de todo. Pero eso ya no es posible, si bien se adapta con facilidad, su liderazgo es innato y consigue que le nombren rey de dos tribus por sus servicios salvadores, también la ambición del hombre blanco ya ha calado en él, y logra hacerse con grandes tesoros solo por el placer de tenerlos. Más adelante, contra toda posibilidad se reencuentra con su amada y es ahí donde se definirá su futuro, ¿seguirá como el hombre mono y salvaje, o asumirá su título como Lord Greystoke?
Esta segunda parte me ha gustado incluso más que la primera, nos muestra esa doble vida en la que se desenvuelve el joven Tarzán y muestra su personalidad y su poder. No sé si seguiré con el resto de la serie (son 23 en total), pero al menos, me siento muy complacida con haber leído lo básico de este clásico. Quisiera explorar un poco más sobre las demás temáticas de aventura de este gran autor.
May 30, 2021
The Return of Tarzan was published over a hundred years ago, and I am happy to report that as a novel of pure adventure it still holds up today. I especially enjoyed reading about Tarzan's time in Paris-certainly not the milieu one pictures him in. Yes there are some notes that Edgar Rice Burroughs strikes that are painful to the modern ear. Tarzan is a child of his time folks, and I think each individual reader is going to have to decide how they approach this series. I believe I enjoyed this book in the way Burroughs intended.
December 23, 2020
That's not the whole story of course but it's an impressive part of it. Tarz renounces his family name, fortune and the woman he loves, giving it all to his cousin. Hurting from the ordeal, he heads off to Paris to forget about Jane. Wow, the Ape man in the City of Lights! So he spends time in Paris, almost has an affair with a Russian noblewoman, whups on her brother(an evil Russian spy), hangs out in art galleries and operas and eventually joins the French Secret Service out of boredom.
All this is just the set-up for the rest of the novel. The book does seem to end too quickly but I think that has more to do with the serial/pulp nature of the story's publication deadline than any fault of the author. Tarzan and The Return of... are an entertaining 0ne-Two punch. Anyone who reads #1 should finish the experience by reading #2. I wish someone would make a film of this book, it's more interesting than the first one.
All this is just the set-up for the rest of the novel. The book does seem to end too quickly but I think that has more to do with the serial/pulp nature of the story's publication deadline than any fault of the author. Tarzan and The Return of... are an entertaining 0ne-Two punch. Anyone who reads #1 should finish the experience by reading #2. I wish someone would make a film of this book, it's more interesting than the first one.
April 30, 2009
I LOVED "Tarzan of the Apes" but I was afraid "The Return" wouldn't thrill me as much. But I think I actually liked it more than the original. I would never recommend reading this first and skipping "Apes," but if you read the first, certainly read the second. I love Tarzan as a part of society. He's awesome and sexy and almost a hybrid of Holmes and...Tarzan (from "Apes") It's arguable, I know. But the whole time I was just sitting there thinking, "Tarzan needs to be a detective."
I know it's my overactive child-like imagination that makes me obsessive about these books, but even if you don't feel like a kid, you should read them.
This might not be my most eloquent review, but I stand by what I said. ;)
I know it's my overactive child-like imagination that makes me obsessive about these books, but even if you don't feel like a kid, you should read them.
This might not be my most eloquent review, but I stand by what I said. ;)
June 20, 2022
4 stars English comic book
September 14, 2020
endete damit, dass Tarzan großmütig auf den Titel des Lord Greystoke und die Hand von Jane Porter verzichtet. Die Leser des Pulp=Magazins THE ALL-STORY waren von der Story begeistert, aber nicht von ihrem Ausgang. Metcalf, Herausgeber des Magazins, drängte auf eine Fortsetzung, und so schrieb Burroughs THE RETURN OF TARZAN.
Es wäre leicht, die zahlreichen Schwächen von THE RETURN aneinander zu reihen und das Buch zu verreißen. Ein Zufall jagt den anderen und diverse Schiffbrüche und Seenotfälle führen dazu, dass sich das gesamte Romanpersonal genau in der kleinen afrikanischen Bucht wiederfindet, in der schon Tarzans Eltern strandeten. Und natürlich nutzt ERB das Potenzial des Plots voll aus, wenn er reißerisch beschreibt, wie es auf einem der Rettungsboote zum Glück nur fast zum Kannibalismus kommt.
Doch zuvor verfolgen wir Tarzans Wege quer durch Europa und Algerien, wo er es immer wieder mit dem Erzbösewicht Rokoff zu tun bekommt, der "zufällig" überall seine Wege kreuzt.
Auch eine schöne Russin spielt eine Rolle und eine verführerische Araberin; schließlich die ikonische Hohepriesterin La in der sagenhaften Stadt Opar, die Tarzan nicht das letzte Mal betreten wird. Doch keine dieser Schönheiten steht schließlich dem so lang ersehnten Happy End im Wege, der Vermählung von Tarzan und Jane im Schatten der legendären Hütte, in der Tarzans Eltern nach ihrem Schiffbruch lebten.
Eine Vielzahl einzelner Abenteuer hat ERB hier miteinander Verbunden durch Zufall und Personal, und das ist sicherlich die Schwäche des Romans.
Liest man andererseits die Verbesserungsvorschläge von Metcalf, dann kann man nur froh sein, dass ERB sich nicht daran gehalten hat, denn allen Schwächen zum Trotz ist THE RETURN ein unterhaltsamer Abenteuerroman, der mit Sensationen nicht geizt und dem Leser genau das gibt, wonach es ihm verlangt: Wilde Abenteuer, Heldenmut und eine romantische Liebesgeschichte.
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