Back to Blog ListNovember 24, 2008 | Permalink
My family and I have read a few of G.A.Henty's books together. However, I am a visual person and get more out of a book when I can read it for myself. That way I can stop and mull things over in my head. Because of this, I have been thinking about reading the Henty books on my own. Do you have any suggestions of what would be best to start out with? Which ones are some of your family favorites Blessings, Jessica
Well, it depends on whether you are looking for an exciting story, captivating history, or both. But with Henty, that isn't too hard of a mix to find.
One of my all time favorite Henty books is In Freedoms Cause. I really enjoyed it when I first read it because I had never read a captivating story that had so much history packed into it before. William Wallace has always been one of my heroes, and to read Henty give such a vivid account of his fight for freedom was inspiring. The first half of the book is about Wallace, his life and his ultimate ruin and execution. The second half is about Robert Bruce picking up the mantle of leadership and not backing down from Longshanks (King Edward.)
If you are looking for one of his more character based stories, I would recommend Out on The Pampas. This is about a family, the Hardys, who decides to go out to the South American plains and start a new life. The story is fascinating, but contains less history than some of his other books. If you want to see a couple of notes about the book, you can read an article here.
As far as family favorites, these are two of my top five. A few others would include The Cat of Bubastes, Bonny Prince Charlie, In Greek Waters, and Under Drakes Flag. Let me know what you pick!
AGB, Joshua Titus