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The Thirty-Nine Steps: Popular Penguins
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The Thirty-Nine Steps: Popular Penguins
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Richard Hannay has just returned to England from South Africa and is bored with his life in London. But then a murder is committed in his flat, just days after a chance encounter with an American who had told him about an assassination plot . An obvious suspect for the police and an easy target for the killers, Hannay goes on the run...
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Description
The Thirty-Nine Steps follows the thrilling story of Richard Hannay, who finds his return to England from years in South Africa to be dreadfully monotonous. This uneventful existence in London takes a dramatic turn when a murder occurs in his flat. Just days earlier, Hannay had a chance encounter with an American who revealed an assassination plot with the potential for catastrophic international repercussions.
Now a prime suspect in a murder investigation and an obvious target for the actual culprits, Hannay flees to his native Scotland. As he navigates the treacherous terrain, he must rely on his wits, bravery, and resourcefulness to stay one step ahead of his relentless pursuers.
Book Details
INFORMATION
ISBN: 9780141194721
Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd
Format: Paperback / softback
Date Published: 28 June 2010
Country: United Kingdom
Imprint: Penguin Books Ltd
Audience: General / adult
DIMENSIONS
Spine width: 14.0mm
Width: 111.0mm
Height: 179.0mm
Weight: 98g
Pages: 148
About the Author
John Buchan was born in Perth. His father was a minister of the Free Church of Scotland; and in 1876 the family moved to Fife where in order to attend the local school the small boy had to walk six miles a day. Later they moved again to the Gorbals in Glasgow and John Buchan went to Hutchesons' Grammar School, Glasgow University (by which time he was already publishing articles in periodicals) and Brasenose College, Oxford. His years at Oxford - 'spent peacefully in an enclave like a monastery' - nevertheless opened up yet more horizons and he published five books and many articles, won several awards including the Newdigate Prize for poetry and gained a First. His career was equally diverse and successful after university and, despite ill-health and continual pain from a duodenal ulcer, he played a prominent part in public life as a barrister and Member of Parliament, in addition to being a writer, soldier and publisher. In 1907 he married Susan Grosvenor, and the marriage was supremely happy. They had one daughter and three sons. He was created Baron Tweedsmuir of Elsfield in 1935 and became the fifteenth Governor-General of Canada, a position he held until his death in 1940. 'I don't think I remember anyone,' wrote G. M. Trevelyan to his widow, 'whose death evoked a more enviable outburst of sorrow, love and admiration.' John Buchan's first success as an author came with Prester John in 1910, followed by a series of adventure thrillers, or 'shockers' as he called them, all characterized by their authentically rendered backgrounds, romantic characters, their atmosphere of expectancy and world-wide conspiracies, and the author's own enthusiasm. There are three main heroes- Richard Hannay, whose adventures are collected in The Complete Richard Hannay; Dickson McCunn, the Glaswegian provision merchant with the soul of a romantic, who features in Huntingtower, Castle Gay and The House of the Four Winds; and Sir Edward Leithen, the lawyer who tells the story of John MacNab and Sick Heart River, John Buchan's final novel. In addition, John Buchan established a reputation as an historical biographer with such works as Montrose, Oliver Cromwell and Augustus.
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