Master of Adventure: The Worlds of Edgar Rice Burroughs

Edgar Rice Burroughs was mediocre at best in all of his vocations. That is, until he professionally took up the pen and typewriter, after which he speedily became quite remarkable. Nowadays, Burroughs is mostly known for having created Tarzan of the Apes, but, omigosh, the man has accomplished so much more than that. For three decades he penned some of the greatest, most exhilarating adventures of his time. Correction: of any time. Anyone else remember John Carter of Mars, David Innes of Pellucidar, or Carson Napier of Venus? What about the fantastical continent of Caspak? If you're interested in finding out about the works of - as well as behind-the-scenes stuff about - Edgar Rice Burroughs, then look no further than Lupoff's insightful and definitive book. Back in 1965, Richard A. Lupoff, who himself would later become a sci-fi (and mystery) author, wrote EDGAR RICE BURROUGHS: MASTER OF ADVENTURE, which then became the go-to bible for things concerning Burroughs. MASTER OF ADVENTURE: THE WORLDS OF EDGAR RICE BURROUGHS is mostly the same book, only re-titled, revised a tad, and reprinted for 2005, with new forewords by fantasist Michael Moorcock and by Lupoff himself, as well as Phillip R. Burger's essay, which bridges the gap from 1965 to 2005. MASTER OF ADVENTURE is a must have, if you're a fan of E.R.B. It's a coherent, informative, and tremendously engrossing read. I thought I'd gone thru most of E.R.B.'s stories and even believed I knew quite a bit about the man, but MASTER OF ADVENTURE made me realize that mine was a thimbleful of info compared to Lupoff's double whammy of insider knowledge and meticulous research. Now I don't consider MASTER OF ADVENTURE a biography as much as a comprehensive study of Burroughs' written works (although you do learn something of the man from his works, so there's that). Reading these pages, I don't come away feeling that I know E.R.B. that much better as a person. Lupoff doesn't really drop a dime on the guy's personal life. Instead he focuses on in-depth evaluation and even-handed critique of Burroughs' stories. There are great Burroughs novels, there are decent ones, and then there are the flawed stories (not that many, thank goodness). All these - the classics and the warts - are covered to some extent. Even though clearly a great admirer of E.R.B., Lupoff's analysis is still governed by good measures of objectivity and thoughtfulness. There's no doubt Lupoff relishes delving into ERB's most famous works. There are chapters dedicated to Barsoom and its heroic Virginian, and the book's second half is reserved for his most iconic character Tarzan. Here Lupoff dispels much of the world's misconceptions circling the Jungle Lord. For instance, did you know that Tarzan is extremely intelligent and is fluent in English and French? That he's actually a British lord? That "Tarzan" in ape means "White Skin"? And that he dwells in a majestic African estate, and not in a tree house?. No worries, Lupoff goes into

A wonderful descriptive book about all of ERB's works. Strongly recommend Mr. Luppoff's book for anyone who is familiar with his works and for those who are not.

Since this book came out in 1965, Richard Lupoff has become known as one of the most important ERB scholars there are. Here, he provides good detail about the Master of Adventure's many stories and some excellent critical analysis and synopsis. Unfortunately, despite Lupoff's enthusiasm for Burroughs, the occasional error creeps in and he advocates too much for Edwin Arnold's Gullivar of Mars having inspired Barsoom. Philip Burger's essay at the end is phenomenal, and the rest of the book's production value is commendable. Recommended for anyone wanting to get a good grasp of the Master's writing.