Hi, I was wondering if you have a list of Henty and Ballantyne's books in the order they wrote them. I think it would be interesting to read them in the order that they wrote them! I would love to see how their writing developed as they wrote. We don't have all of the Ballantyne's, but I have read over forty Henty's in just under a year and LOVE them! I love historical fiction and write it too (seriously)! Thanks, Caitria

Dear Caitria, That is great that you have read forty of Henty's books! Yes, it is a lot more fun to read books in the order that they were written because then you can see how an author's view of the world grows and/or changes over time. To view a complete list of Ballantyne's and Henty's books, in order of the years they were written, you can click on the above links. - AGB, Joshua Titus

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I thought it fitting to remind the young gentlemen and ladies reading this blog that one hundred and six years ago today G.A. Henty died. I thought that rather than writing up a post today I would just post Mr. Henty's obituary from 1902.

The Late G.A. Henty.

Special Cable to The New York Times.

LONDON, Nov. 22.-The death of G. A. Henty, the author, will be regretted by boys and girls throughout the British Empire.

Mr. Henty, of whom I can speak as a personal friend, was a splendid type of the bluff, burly Englishmen, full of the milk of human kindness, brave, and the cause of bravery in others. His death occurred at a moment when his works were on the eve of giving new pleasure to thousands of young people. A Christmas without Mr. Henty's installment of books for boys and girls- for girls read their brothers' books, especially when written by Henty- would hardly seem like Christmas. He was spared to see this years contribution safely launched.

Mr. Henty's body was accompanied to its last resting place to-day by the universal regrets of those to whom he was a very real hero.

Published: November 23, 1902. To see a scan of the original document click here

G.A. Henty was:
Born December 8, 1832
Died November 16, 1902 (aged 69)

To read more about G.A. Henty check out the three articles listed below.

G.A. Henty
A Few Thoughts on G.A. Henty
Ballantyne and Henty: The Gentlemen Adventurers of the World of Boys' Literature

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True it is that God hath commanded kings to be obeyed, but like true it is, that in things which they commit against His glory or when cruelly without cause they rage against their brethren, the members of Christ's body, He hath commanded no obedience. Rather, He hath approved, yea, and greatly rewarded such as have opposed themselves to their ungodly commandments and blind rage. --John Knox

Law is inseparable from sovereignty; every word from a sovereign power is a binding word. Logically, there can only be one sovereign, and He is the Lord God of Scripture. ...To deny His laws in favor of another set of laws is to deny His doctrine in favor of a rival system. It is also a denial of His sovereignty in favor of another. --R.J. Rushdoony, Sovereignty

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Joshua Horn, who won second place in the 2008 Ballantyne Essay contest, had a very interesting insight that he found in one of Henty's books about writing interesting, but instructive, stories.

Here is a quote that I found from the Preface of "The Young Buglers" by G. A. Henty.

"To my Young Readers, I remember that, as a boy, I regarded any attempt to mix instruction with amusement as being as objectionable a practice as the administration of powder in jam; but I think that this feeling arose from the fact that in those days books contained a very small share of amusement and a very large share of instruction. I have endeavored to avoid this, and I hope that the accounts of battles and sieges, illustrated as they are by maps, will be found as interesting as the lighter parts of the story." -G.A. Henty

I think that this is very true. It makes history books a lot more interesting to have a fictional character who has exciting adventures in it.

Joshua also had a follow-up question.

I also have a question. I know that Henty normally placed his characters in different wars in history while Ballantyne put his characters in interesting geographical places. But Ballantyne also wrote some historical novels, such as Hunted and Harried. Did he write a lot of those? - Joshua Horn

Thank you, Joshua, for your comment and question. Ballantyne did write a number of "historical novels." Not nearly as many as Henty, but he did write a number. Here are six of the most well known "historical fiction" books by Ballantyne.

• Ungava : A Tale of Esquimaux Land

• The Norseman in the West, or America Before Columbus

• The Pioneers: A Tale of the Western Wilderness

• In the Track of the Troops: A Tale of Modern War

• The Lonely Island, or The Refuge of the Mutineers

• Hunted and Harried : A Tale of the Scottish Covenanters

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For this week's winner I picked the below email.

Hello, I am fifteen, and I've been reading Henty books to my brothers over breakfast for years now, with some other historical fiction thrown in there too (No Ballantyne yet, though). Now the boys are now getting a little bit restless with the similarities of the main characters in the books. We almost always know exactly what the character is going to be like. (Don't get me wrong; I LOVE Henty! And I am by no means complaining about this.) I was wondering, first of all, what are some differences between Henty and Ballantyne, and secondly, how do Ballantyne's books differ from each other in terms of characters and plot? God bless, Hannah

Dear Hannah, I completely understand what you mean about Henty. The boys of England so loved Henty's books that it didn't matter to them if the book followed a rather commonly used story line and character formula. Honestly, you can't really blame Henty for this problem; he wrote 120 books. I understand how anyone would start repeating himself writing that many! (Comment: This was a problem that many 19th century authors suffered from.)

As for your question about Ballantyne: The core difference between Henty and Ballantyne is that Henty wrote about historical events and time periods, and Ballantyne wrote about unique geographical locations, 19th century businesses, and "modern" innovations. Ballantyne wrote about enough different subjects that, for the most part, he didn't re-use his old plot lines. Alba Gu Bra, Joshua Titus

Note: Hannah will be getting a copy of Post Haste for her question.

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Well, I thought I would put up some recent comments and questions that I have received over the last couple of weeks. These are some of my favorites, and I hope to put up more soon.

What advice would you give to a young man desiring to read quality literature such as that by Ballantyne and Henty, but struggles with the complex language and vocabulary?

To answer in short, it is my personal opinion that if a person can read the Bible, they can read R.M. Ballantyne and G.A. Henty. In fact, after a few books, most people become very comfortable with the literary style and vocabulary of both authors. At first, it may be a bit of a stretching experience, but this is a wonderful way to build your vocabulary. I recommend having a dictionary nearby to look up words with which you are unfamiliar. Alba Gu Bra, Joshua Titus

Do you have the complete set of the Ballantyne books? Is it possible that there are other books written about other travels and adventures? What a clever way to tell about history through adventure and discovery. I must get a book and begin my adventure! Talley ho! J.

Dear J, Well, it depends on what your definition of "complete set" is. R.M. Ballantyne wrote about ninety books. No, I do not have all of them. But I am in the process of trying to collect them all. So far I have not succeeded.

You are right. Adventure novels are a great way to get people interested in both history and geography. Thank you for your question. Alba Gu Bra, Joshua

Hello my name is Florence and I was wondering if you knew of an R. M. Ballantyne autobiography. My Dad wanted it for Christmas but I can't find any on the internet. Best Wishes, Florence

Dear Florence, Yes, I do know of one biography of R.M. Ballantyne. It is by Eric Quayle who wrote the biography Ballantyne the Brave (1967). It is fairly good except for one or two things where I would disagree with his analysis. It is the only biography as far as I know about Ballantyne, and it is pretty good. (You can get it from Amazon.com). At some point, I would like to do an in-depth study of Mr. Quayle's book on Ballantyne. I hope this information is helpful. Alba Gu Bra, Joshua Titus

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What happens when boys play with cannons:

Preparing for Battle!

The Sudden Death strikes terror into the heart of the bravest toy soldiers!

To see an ENN on how to make your cannon shoot thunder go here.

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The Charge of the Light Brigade took place during the Battle of Balaclava on October 25, 1854, one hundred and fifty four years ago today, during the Crimean War. The charge itself was led by Lord Cardigan.

Most people remember the battle best by the famous poem below. Alfred Lord Tennyson's poem would change the memory of the charge from a disastrous last blow to a symbol of courage during warfare that would inspire many boys who would go on to give their lives during the First World War.

G.A. Henty first volunteered for the British Army in 1854 at the beginning of the Crimean War. He was assigned to the Hospital Commissariat. The Commissariat helped to supply food for the staff and patients of the Army. In 1855 he was sent to Crimea. While in Crimea, he learned just how horrible war really was. I have always wondered what Henty's thoughts were about that final "Charge of the Light Brigade."

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Half a league, half a league,
Half a league onward,
All in the valley of Death
Rode the six hundred.
"Forward, the Light Brigade!
"Charge for the guns!" he said:
Into the valley of Death
Rode the six hundred.

"Forward, the Light Brigade!"
Was there a man dismay'd?
Not tho' the soldier knew
Someone had blunder'd:
Their's not to make reply,
Their's not to reason why,
Their's but to do and die:
Into the valley of Death
Rode the six hundred.

Cannon to right of them,
Cannon to left of them,
Cannon in front of them
Volley'd and thunder'd;
Storm'd at with shot and shell,
Boldly they rode and well,
Into the jaws of Death,
Into the mouth of Hell
Rode the six hundred.

Flash'd all their sabres bare,
Flash'd as they turn'd in air,
Sabring the gunners there,
Charging an army, while
All the world wonder'd:
Plunged in the battery-smoke
Right thro' the line they broke;
Cossack and Russian
Reel'd from the sabre stroke
Shatter'd and sunder'd.
Then they rode back, but not
Not the six hundred.

Cannon to right of them,
Cannon to left of them,
Cannon behind them
Volley'd and thunder'd;
Storm'd at with shot and shell
, While horse and hero fell,
They that had fought so well
Came thro' the jaws of Death
Back from the mouth of Hell,
All that was left of them,
Left of six hundred.

When can their glory fade?
O the wild charge they made!
All the world wondered.
Honor the charge they made,
Honor the Light Brigade,
Noble six hundred.

By Alfred Tennyson,

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Even though I am a girl, I LOVE the Coral Island, and the Gorilla Hunters. I have read both books over and over again. My mom loves his [Ballantyne's] books, too. She's hunted continually for great books for boys to read, and with Ballantyne, she says she hit the jackpot. Thankfully, she lets me read them, too! - Jayne P.

Thats great Jayne! Its always great to hear from people who enjoy Ballantyne. - Joshua

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