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Tarzan of the Apes (Edgar Rice Burroughs' Tarzan #1)

by Edgar Rice Burroughs, Gore Vidal (Introduction), Michael Meyer (Afterword)

3.83 of 5 stars 3.83 · rating details · 14,830 ratings · 957 reviews

The classic tale of adventure and romance?in a vibrant new package

Paperback, 320 pages

Published August 5th 2008 by Signet Classics (first published 1912)

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Jan 24, 2009 Keely rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: novel, pulp, reviewed, adventure, american

I must say, I was expecting more from this book. It takes inspiration from a wide array of very good adventure novels, but manages to be more bigoted than the colonial literature that inspired it and less factual and forward-looking than books written thirty years before.

One of the major inspirations is H. Rider Haggard's early pulp adventure stories, including the tales of Allan Quatermain. Like Tarzan, these stories take place in the depths of colonial Africa, but the attitudes and portrayal o...more

9 likes · like · see review

Feb 12, 2009 Whitaker rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy-scifi, e-book, 2009-read

Pulp fiction at its best.

I went in with low expectations and enjoyed it more than I thought I would. It's pulp fiction, but it's good pulp: a fun romp and so very very silly. Burroughs buys into all the prejudices of his time, but it's tough to blame him for being merely mortal. Ignore it. He's no worse than JM Barrie or Kipling.

I've shelved it under Fantasy, and that's what it is. There may be no Middle Earth or magic, but a novel where a child brought up among apes learns to read without hum...more

18 likes · like · see review

Feb 13, 2009 Jason Pettus rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

(Reprinted from the Chicago Center for Literature and Photography [cclapcenter.com:]. I am the original author of this essay, as well as the owner of CCLaP; it is not being reprinted here illegally.)

The CCLaP 100: In which I read for the first time a hundred "classic" books, then write essays on whether or not they still deserve the label

Book #25: Tarzan of the Apes, by Edgar Rice Burroughs (1914)

The story in a nutshell:
Set in the last great days of the British Empire (i.e. the first decades of...more

12 likes · like · see review

Jul 26, 2012 Jonathan rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 1001-books-to-read-before-you-die, classic-literature, fantasy, popularity-contest, books-with-films

There were several elements of this book that I highly enjoyed. For one the writing was at times vibrant and rich. For another it was an entertaining adventure novel. Although I fail to see why this is on the 1001 list and Fahrenheit 451 is not. Come on list makers pick up your game.

There is little need to talk about the synopsis. Tarzan has been parodied so often and been turned into a television and movie star. The idea of the ruler of the apes has become a kind of modern legend along with sim...more
There were several elements of this book that I highly enjoyed. For one the writing was at times vibrant and rich. For another it was an entertaining adventure novel. Although I fail to see why this is on the 1001 list and Fahrenheit 451 is not. Come on list makers pick up your game.

There is little need to talk about the synopsis. Tarzan has been parodied so often and been turned into a television and movie star. The idea of the ruler of the apes has become a kind of modern legend along with similar tales like The Jungle Book and the legend of Romulus and Remus.

What I do want to pick up on are the elements of the novel that are often forgotten in the overall legend. And which on the whole take away from the story. The racist and sexist elements of the novel.

As it was pointed out to me. Tarzan is the all conquering British imperialist gentleman of the time. He claims his girl, he defeats the African 'savages' and rules the jungle by might of strength alone. While novels such as Disgrace and Heart of Darkness have been labelled as racist they appeared to be addressing how the racism of the eras they depict was unacceptable. However Tarzan of the Apes is a dated product of its times. It features highly stereotypical characters and shows a subtle support for imperialism. Which today is frowned upon as a negative aspect of our western history.

However I do not take Burroughs to task for his views. Firstly such views are mainly the product of the society he was living in. It is his society which is more at fault and rather through this novel we can see the ideas which were negative and permeated such times. And still affect us in minor degrees because every single person is to some degree a kind of racist. Or rather we all tend to isolate and separate other people into a group of the 'other.' To add to that I believe that we in society hold many views which will later be seen as immoral and vile and as such we should not judge those in the past from the moral high-ground. Until we learn from their mistakes I don't believe we are qualified to call Burroughs a racist and stereotypical 'bigot' and even when we learn I don't believe anyone is righteous enough to judge another human in such a degree. At least consciously. Secondly the reason why I don't judge the author is because he's a fine writer. Yes his work is dated and holds old fashioned ideas but he writes great action tales. And that allows me the chance to excuse his opinions as I can ignore the same in Edgar Allan Poe's writing. Now if it were bad writing perhaps I would be harsher because then this work would seem to be nothing more than an attempt to reveal British superiority but it seems more to be an action novel with such themes resulting from the social pressure behind the author.

Tarzan's adventures are worth reading I found. This was not a particularly long read but neither was it as short as say reading your average graphic novel. This was not the best classic. Neither was it the worst classic. It fell in between as a decent novel full of misinformed ideas. To end on that note for instance the author didn't even travel to Africa for research unlike Conrad. And as such he wrote about how lions were in the jungle along with wolves from a slightly mistaken viewpoint as we now know. But then again a man couldn't really grow as strong as an ape or live like Tarzan so who knows. Perhaps Tarzan lives in a completely made up world and it's really an epic fantasy (hang on, Tarzan isn't real?)(less)

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Apr 30, 2012 Tara Brown rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

An extremely racist book with a premise based on eugenics. Not how you remember the Disney version? Tarzan is all strong and intelligent and special and amazing. Why? Because he has the genetics of a well-bred, white, European, aristocrat. Oh, and the whole thing about encountering other humans for the first time? He's seen humans around before, but, you know, they were Africans; they're primitive and stupid and clearly don't count. But other white people... revelation of revelations! You're sma...more

5 likes · like · see review

Dennis Goshorn Grow up. It's a work of its time & if read as a story from that era, one can enjoy it. I imagine you have similar negatives about Huckleberry Finn...more
11 mar. 16:24

Tara Brown It's really special that it helped you learn to read. That can be reflected in your rating of the book, not mine.

I think my review made it pretty cle...more
updated 12 mar. 03:13

Jimmy There's so many issues with works of fiction that come out of the early 19th century. Your review is 100% right. I'm a fan of ERB writing style, which...more
14 mag. 08:30

May 08, 2008 Keri rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I read this book because my sister recommended it. I thought, what's the big deal? It's Tarzan. I continued to feel this way throughout the first 50 or 60 pages, but then I couldn't put it down! I loved this adventure story, especially because it's so different from all the movies that have been made from it. I also adore the author's writing style. I guess I'm just a lover of classic literature - the formal and kind of stuffy voice is highly entertaining to me. I absolutely recommend this to ev...more

8 likes · like · see review

Mar 23, 2011 Mike Aragona rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The first thing that caught my eye about this book was the gorgeous Neil Adams cover. The next was the realization that I have never actually read the book! Another

2 likes · like · see review

Oct 26, 2008 bup rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: audiobook, 2008, 1001, librivox, novel

Amid a charmingly terrible understanding of his chosen setting (example - Burroughs seems to believe that 'ape' is a species, as distinct from gorilla, chimpanzee, etc), Burroughs constructs an absurd, laughably unbelievable tale.

Then, the last two chapters blew me away. They kicked my ass and called me Nancy. I had no idea Burroughs had it in him - it was like it was ghost-written by Hemingway or something. Seriously - if you can make it through the first twenty-six, the last two make it all wo...more

6 likes · like · see review

Last Ranger Great review, had a little humor in it and you brought up some good points. I just have a few comments to make on some items. ERB knew next to nothing...more
22 dic. 05:40

bup I hope my review made clear that the factual inaccuracy was part of its charm for me. It's interesting to learn that some of the lions were tigers at...more
22 dic. 08:28

Feb 23, 2008 John Conrad rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: young and old

Recommended to John by: my big brothers

Ah, how to begin... Tarzan raised me from a little boy and helped me become a man. After the Bobsey Twins, Hardy Boys, and, yes, Nancy Drew, I admit, came Tarzan, Return of Tarzan, Beasts of Tarzan, Son of Tarzan, Tarzan and the Jewels of Opar,... yes 24 in all, and then the Mars series, and Moon, and Venus, and Pellucidar, I own over 65 Edgar Rice Burroughs books, but Tarzan was an inspriation to me, so I have to give the credit to this book, despite its flaws, for many happy hours of reading....more Ah, how to begin... Tarzan raised me from a little boy and helped me become a man. After the Bobsey Twins, Hardy Boys, and, yes, Nancy Drew, I admit, came Tarzan, Return of Tarzan, Beasts of Tarzan, Son of Tarzan, Tarzan and the Jewels of Opar,... yes 24 in all, and then the Mars series, and Moon, and Venus, and Pellucidar, I own over 65 Edgar Rice Burroughs books, but Tarzan was an inspriation to me, so I have to give the credit to this book, despite its flaws, for many happy hours of reading. Tarzan is essentially a romance novel, so be prepared for a lot of mooning in between fierce battles and heroic feats of strength and agility.

Burroughs has only a half dozen characters in his repertoire, and most of them appear in every book he writes, but you learn to like them even though their names keep changing. His hero overcomes any obstacle or adversity. He will take any risk without fear. He cannot even comprehend anything but truth, justice, and fair play. The heroine is someone out of a Bronte or Austen novel who is ultimately beautiful, constantly in need of rescue, and always puts duty ahead of herself, even if it means marrying someone she doesn't love. Burroughs villians are known mostly for craftiness, greed, and obsessive revenge. These guys never forget being thwarted, even if they started the whole thing. Don't try to read any racism into Burroughs treatment of Blacks and Africans. He was a man of a different century, and times were different. For his day he was a very liberal thinker, and I'm convinced that he never intended any offense.

I highly recommend the first four or five Tarzan books, but for heaven's sakes, quit there. Burrough's sci-fi is great for someone wants to read one of the true pioneers of the genre. It over-explains scientific detail and gets way too technical, but writers like Heinlein were heavily influenced by it. Mars was the best and Venus was okay, but the Moon series was crap.

Actually, Burroughs western novels the Bandit at Hells Bend and the Mucker were not bad either.(less)

15 likes · like · see review

Aug 27, 2007 Joanie Rich rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: ages 10 and up

I listened to an old unabridged audio cassette of this first Tarzan novel after having plunged through a later one that I discovered hiding in a 25 cent book bargin bin at a library. And what a treasure did I find! Burroughs has the amazingly uncanny ability to describe all the senses in panoramic detail. I feel like I'm there with Tarzan and his friends (and enemies) in the jungle.

You gotta keep in mind how dated this is but wow! He was such a talented writer for his time. It makes me wonder h...more

4 likes · like · see review

Dec 02, 2009 Monk rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I probably picked this up initially because I enjoyed the Ron Ely TV series on Saturday mornings as a kid. Had no idea what I was getting into.
"Tarzan" evokes many well-deserved images of cheesiness. The Burroughs series itself after the first couple of books becomes pretty bad pulp fiction, with weird tie-ins to his Center of the Earth series, Tarzan's son going through exactly the same experience as his dad, etc.
But this first book is something very different. Not just one of the best pulp fic...more

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Feb 21, 2011 David rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction, classics

Things I love:

1. Tarzan has so far put a lion and a gorilla in a full-nelson.
2. Tarzan taught himself to read. From a dictionary.
3. He dug up pirates' treasure even though he didn't see any purpose for it, just because he didn't like them.
4. Tarzan learned French in about two weeks from a wounded French soldier.

Things I don't love:

1. Tarzan grew up shaving with a knife. Even though he had never seen a human until grown, he knew it was unseemly to have hair on one's face like an ape.
2. When...more

3 likes · like · see review

Apr 21, 2009 Chris rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: i-own

I think most people have at least a vague concept of the Tarzan story and its characters. There have been many official Tarzan movies over the years and many stories and other movies that refer to or borrow from the Tarzan mythos. To a large extent, I went into this first Tarzan book (there were over 20 books written) with a pretty good feel for what to expect from the storyline. Despite that, I found some unique elements that I didn't expect.

The adventure story within the book is pretty much wh...more I think most people have at least a vague concept of the Tarzan story and its characters. There have been many official Tarzan movies over the years and many stories and other movies that refer to or borrow from the Tarzan mythos. To a large extent, I went into this first Tarzan book (there were over 20 books written) with a pretty good feel for what to expect from the storyline. Despite that, I found some unique elements that I didn't expect.

The adventure story within the book is pretty much what I had expected from the movies and TV shows I'd seen. There were a few elements where movie-makers had taken some liberties (possibly with concepts from other books and sometimes to make things more "screen worthy" - such as "me tarzan, you jane" which never happens in the book). I actually found that the adventures of the book were pretty fun to read and kept the pace of the book moving rather well.

The book dealt a lot with exploring the character of the characters and the concept of what makes a man. At some times, these sections of narrative were interesting and insightful. At other times, these segments felt poorly informed, assumptive and racist/misogynistic . Generally speaking, the negative aspects of character development distracted me from the positive workmanship to the point that I had a hard time placing any validity on any of the characters.

Scientifically speaking, Tarzan's development in the wild is completely unbelievable and his later development of "human" traits is likewise unbelievable. Setting those concepts under the "suspension of disbelief" clause used in fiction, I then got hung up on the behavior of the animals and especially of the other humans.

The Women are as helpless lumps of life with their main purpose in life being to provide something that man can provide for and save from hardship and peril. The Men are inconsistent and can either be heartless self-centered ingrates willing to hurt (or kill) anyone for their own advancement, well-intentioned heroes who are physically incompetent and unable to follow through, or complete idiots unfit to do anything productive at all. Tarzan is the only "true man" and as such he finds himself ostracized and unable to find a happy existence either in civilization or the jungle (though he definitely prefers the jungle).

Despite not being a fan of the way the characters were portrayed or the way everyone interacted with each other, I still enjoyed the story and there's a part of me that wants to read some of the other books simply for the fun, fluffy enjoyment of wild adventures. Burroughs writing style was fluid and rich and provided for a quick and enjoyable read. This is a book worth reading for the fun of it and to look at its influence on the media and culture of the 100 years since it was written.

***
3 stars (out of 5)(less)

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Nov 13, 2008 Dorothy rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: english-classics

As a teenager reading the Tarzan books back in the '60s, I wanted to be Jane and go live in the jungle with the strong, silent Tarzan. Tarzan was an adventure that took me completely out of my time and place and set my imagination free. It was a hoot!

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Feb 20, 2012 wally rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: burroughs-edgar-rice

I've read a number of stories from Burroughs...ERB, as I've seen it expressed, but I've never read this one. I like the way it begins:

I had this story from one who had no business to tell it to me, or to any other. I may credit the seductive influence of an old vintage upon the narrator for the beginning of it, and my own skeptical incredulity during the days that followed for the balance of the strange tale.

Has my attention. A tale told by another, doubt by the person hearing the tale...and so...more

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Dec 05, 2008 J Cravens rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Anyone looking for a fun, surprising read

Shelves: fiction

I've been on a quest for several years now to read old fiction books, particularly (but not exclusively) American and British novels, that have been around for so long and are so famous that no one reads them anymore, because they've been made into movies or TV mini-series (often many times over), or because they've entered into our pop culture references so frequently that people *think* they know them without having to actually read them. They don't have to be great novels -- just really, real...more

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Nov 17, 2008 Rhys rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

A fast exciting read. I didn't enjoy this novel as much as I enjoyed *At the Earth's Core* a few years ago (the only ERB book I had read until now) but *Tarzan of the Apes* still has many strengths. ERB's main quality as a writer is his momentum: he creates a real sense of urgency in the reader to keep turning the pages.

This novel is very much a hymn to the concept of the 'noble savage'. But is it also an attack on 'civilisation'? That's a more difficult issue... Tarzan is a mortal man, the son...more

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Jun 16, 2009 Werner rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Fans of adventure stories

Shelves: classics, adventure-fiction

This is the one Burroughs book virtually everyone in the world has heard of, and it embodies many of the characteristics (positive and negative) of his style. Like the (sometimes almost interchangeable) heroes of his science fiction novels, the title character here --a scion of the English aristocracy born to parents marooned in coastal Africa, orphaned as an infant and then raised by apes-- is strong, tough, and brave, instinctively honorable and moral, and exemplifies the theme of feralism or...more This is the one Burroughs book virtually everyone in the world has heard of, and it embodies many of the characteristics (positive and negative) of his style. Like the (sometimes almost interchangeable) heroes of his science fiction novels, the title character here --a scion of the English aristocracy born to parents marooned in coastal Africa, orphaned as an infant and then raised by apes-- is strong, tough, and brave, instinctively honorable and moral, and exemplifies the theme of feralism or primitivism: a representative of modern technological civilization is forced to adapt to a primitive milieu that strips away the artificial and repressive constraints of modern life, and forces him to develop all of his latent heroic qualities in order to survive.

While this novel isn't set on another planet, or in an imaginary world in the interior of the earth, it might as well be; Burroughs had a disdain for research and no first-hand knowledge of Africa, so his ultra-primitive portrayal of the Dark Continent has little basis in reality. (One of his more glaring errors was the assumption that "apes" are a separate primate species resembling gorillas; the word is actually just the general term for gorillas, chimps and orangutans.) His "apes" are anthropomorphic to a very improbable degree; and like the bulk of his work, this novel, for the most part, isn't very deep. But the worldwide popularity that led to numerous sequels and movie/TV adaptations is no anomaly. The book delivers an appealing tale of exotic adventure, effectively told; Tarzan and Jane Porter are the ultimate unlikely romantic couple whose love for each other has to transcend considerable odds, and whom readers naturally want to root for; and Tarzan's solid moral clarity is profoundly refreshing and edifying. In that respect, the ending here presents, and resolves, a moral conflict which, if it were developed more through the book, would brook comparison of this novel with stories of moral choice like James' The American and Howell's The Rise of Silas Lapham.(less)

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Jan 17, 2008 Kirt rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

So, I finished reading the original Tarzan of the Apes by Edgar Rice Burroughs. I won't even begin to talk about what a hash the movie and TV versions, especially the Disney version, made of an excellent story.

I expected not to enjoy this book very much. I never found Tarzan to be a very compelling character, in any of the incarnations I was familiar with. I expected to enjoy the Barsoom stuff much more, as the Science Fantasy trappings attracted me much more.

But I found, despite the trappings,...more

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Jul 06, 2012 Darby Karchut rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I have wanted to read the original for some years now. Enjoying it more than I thought even with Burroughs' old-fashion writing style. More violent than any of the movie versions. *he actually eats a lion???*

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Oct 22, 2007 Erika Rasmussen rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

i don't care how geeky it makes me, i LOVED this book. i only happened upon it because it was the first ebook offered on my iPhone ebook reader, but i fell in love in the first chapter. i'm only sad that "Return of Tarzan" isn't available as an iPhone ebook, so now i have to get it from the library (the old-fashioned way). the first book ends when tarzan just makes it to the US and meets up with jane, so now i have to read the 2nd to find out about his adventures in civilization. trust me, you w...more

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Feb 24, 2009 James Pyles rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

It occurred to me that I had never read any of the Burroughs Tarzan books. When I was in Junior High, I had read all of his "John Carter of Mars" series and really enjoyed them. About 10 years ago, I tried re-reading the first of that series, "A Princess of Mars" and found it to be completely juvenile. I gave up at about 20 pages in and never looked back. For some odd reason though, when I was at the library last week, I decided to give the first book in the Tarzan series a whirl.

I have to admit...more It occurred to me that I had never read any of the Burroughs Tarzan books. When I was in Junior High, I had read all of his "John Carter of Mars" series and really enjoyed them. About 10 years ago, I tried re-reading the first of that series, "A Princess of Mars" and found it to be completely juvenile. I gave up at about 20 pages in and never looked back. For some odd reason though, when I was at the library last week, I decided to give the first book in the Tarzan series a whirl.

I have to admit, I was impressed. Oh to be sure, the book shows its age and the entire premise of the book is not credible, but if you suspend disbelief and let yourself be carried away in the narrative, it's really quite a good adventure novel.

I can't say that I read it out of nostalgia, since that would have required having read the book and having loved it at some point in the past. I do however, love the history of at least certain forms of entertainment. I've been a fan of the old Tarzan movies way back when, and it was fun to see the "official" origin of the character.

The novel wasn't exactly what I expected, but it did reveal the tale of a young boy raised by apes and "assimilated" into their "culture" while still struggling with the mystery of his beginning. Despite the extreme improbability of the events depicted, Burroughs' direct writing style is sufficiently engaging to carry the reader along with the story. It's a page turner.

For me, the book ends either somewhat tragically, or at least as a cliffhanger. Tarzan doesn't achieve his final goal and the reason he walked away from the jungle and learned the ways of civilization by the end of the book. It leaves the reader wondering what's going to happen next. He's discovered his true origins and heritage, but doesn't reveal them to the people who need to understand him the most.

Of course, there are over 20 sequels to this novel, and so plenty of room to resolve any of the strings left loose by the end of this book. I actually found myself wondering what was going to happen next and I think it would be fun to find out by reading "The Return of Tarzan". (less)

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May 11, 2013 Tomas rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The classic and original Tarzan books have not aged as well as Burroughs' lesser-known series, the first Martian Chronicles; his Mars books, known as the John Carter books after their original protagonist or the Barsoom books after the native Martian name for Mars in the books.

In the Tarzan books, you will see, if you look for it, a progressive anti-racist message; common racial caricatures of the period; and some rather uncomfortable portrayals of colonialism. This is because the story is set o...more

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May 07, 2013 Amanda Allen rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: old-school-1920sish-books, pulp

So, this isn’t my first time reading Tarzan. I’ve actually read 3.5 books of the series. Did you know that it’s a series? With 24 books?! I didn’t when I read the first one. And I was PISSED at the end.

Turns out the story most of us know actually covers the first couple of books. I wasn’t aware it was a series, so when the ending was different than I expected, I was in shock. I went into a rage at work, venting to my co-worker. My rage, I think, amused him. I hope. It’s possible I creeped him ou...more So, this isn’t my first time reading Tarzan. I’ve actually read 3.5 books of the series. Did you know that it’s a series? With 24 books?! I didn’t when I read the first one. And I was PISSED at the end.

Turns out the story most of us know actually covers the first couple of books. I wasn’t aware it was a series, so when the ending was different than I expected, I was in shock. I went into a rage at work, venting to my co-worker. My rage, I think, amused him. I hope. It’s possible I creeped him out, but since we were relatively chummy coworkers for years after, I expect not. Maybe he chalked it up to eccentricities I won’t spoil it for you, but if you choose to trod the Tarzan path be prepared to read at least the first two books. From there, it branches into less well-known stories.

Tarzan, long ago, was my first pulp novel. The thing about Tarzan is…if you rate it against all books–it’s maybe 3 stars. But if you take it for what it is, a book about a man raised by apes, fully-intentional-pulp-fiction, it’s awesome and completely five stars. I mean, no one writing about a dude raised by APES is intending for you to compare him to The Great Gatsby or what not. Sometimes, I really feel that books should be rated not just by their writing but by their intent. I mean a Twilight novel shouldn’t be rated against Pride and Prejudice. But Pride and Prejudice should totally be rated against Wives and Daughters by Elizabeth Gaskell. I often change my rating of a book based off of its intent. You intend to be pulp, you do it well, you’re gonna get a better rating than a book intending to be taken seriously and only doing that moderately well.

I read Tarzan because I loved the movies. I watched them again and again as a child because they were often on Saturday afternoon TV. And though I’ve always been a book worm, I haven’t always had access to books like I do now. Rarely do I choose a movie over a book these days. But, then again, I have a stupid number of books I have yet to read. (On a side note, I bought the DVDs of the Johnny Weissmuller movies as an adult. Turns out the makers of the Tarzan movies made two versions. The one to get it through the ratings and the one with the NAKED SWIM SCENE. Yet another surprise Tarzan threw my way. I might have always blathered on about that at work. Man, I am such a freak.)

Burroughs writes a vivid picture. The story is ridiculous but so fun you can’t help but love it. Assuming, of course, that you’re a person who is interested in something like Tarzan. Clearly, if the idea of Tarzan irritates you, you won’t like it. Don’t bother with it the following picture is irritating to you:

Because that, my friends, is a scene straight out of the books.

Anyhow, since I don’t want to spoil the end for you and the story itself is well-known, I will go ahead and just say that Yes, I recommend the book if this is something that would be amusing to you. I actually restarted the series with the intent to finish it, so even though many years have passed, it’s been something I have wanted to continue. I guess that goes to show that Burroughs has some writing chops. The only reason I haven’t read it yet is because the print copies were stupidly expensive after book 4 and the ebook thing has only blossomed after my reading of the early Tarzan books. On a side note, book 4 is on the list of recommended books for boys in like Norway or what not, because it’s super fun for the 8-10 year olds or whatnot.(less)

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May 06, 2013 Mike Jensen rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Burroughs insults your intelligence in so many ways. Probably the three biggest are physiological. Tarzan smells out trails like a bloodhound. Problem is that humans have 5 million scent receptors and dogs have 100 to 300 million, depending on the breed. He simply cannot do this. Tarzan runs through the trees like a monkey, but without an opposable toe to hold on to the branches. Really, he would topple in the first few feet. He even carries the corpse of a full grown man as he races through the...more Burroughs insults your intelligence in so many ways. Probably the three biggest are physiological. Tarzan smells out trails like a bloodhound. Problem is that humans have 5 million scent receptors and dogs have 100 to 300 million, depending on the breed. He simply cannot do this. Tarzan runs through the trees like a monkey, but without an opposable toe to hold on to the branches. Really, he would topple in the first few feet. He even carries the corpse of a full grown man as he races through the trees. It is not credible that anyone would have such a combination of strength and agility. Speaking of preposterous feats of strength, he regularly carries the corpses of lions around. The average weight of lions varies by location and gender, but females are over 250 pounds and males over 350 pounds everywhere. He even carries a lion corpse through the trees. No human can do what Tarzan can do, including Tarzan.

Some of the insults are mental. Burroughs devotes ridiculous length to how Tarzan taught himself to read English fluidly from alphabetical picture books and a dictionary. It is highly unlikely that anybody could do this, but even if you think so, no one could learn more than nouns and possibly verbs this way. Adverbs, adjectives, conjunctions, syntax, really any grammar would be impossible. Yet Tarzan does it all without a teacher. Even if we accept that the apes that raised Tarzan have their own language, Burroughs is inconsistent in what that language can do. Sometimes quite intricate ideas are communicated, but when this is not needed, the language is so rudimentary that anything beyond the most basic of ideas cannot be relayed. Don’t get me started on Tarzan’s ability to learn fluent French and spoken English in a very few weeks, and outside of the company of English speakers, or how he can spell his own name when he does not know the sound values for the letters he has memorized. The book has a notorious coincidence that even most Burroughs fans acknowledge is a problem.

This book is deeply stupid. Either its fans are as stupid as the author, maybe even dumber, or they see these flaws and are so overwhelmed by the grace of Burroughs’s prose that they overlook the asinine. There ARE some nice turns of phrase in the first half of the book, and Burroughs moves the story, such as it is and it isn’t much, at a very brisk pace so it is not until deep into the book that the plot bogs down. That first half is even free from the incipient racism of which these books are accused. Then Burroughs introduces the notorious stereotype Esmeralda, think Mammy from GONE WITH THE WIND, oh, Lordy, Lordy, and there is Tarzan’s problematic distain for the natives near his home. Because there are good and bad characters of both races, some of the racist charges against this book are ill-founded, but there is enough here that the book’s racism cannot be denied, and the author’s racism becomes worse in the later books. Burroughs makes me queasy.

I loved this book when I was eight and fifteen, but could not make myself finish it when I was in my twenties. I revisited it now for the centennial of the first publication, which was in 2012, and I am glad that I read it with a more mature mind that sorted out its strengths and weaknesses. Burroughs told a stupid story pretty well. That he managed to sell it to so many people, albeit people with their brains switched off, demonstrates the power of his storytelling. Whatever verve he had as a writer departed early in his career, but he still has it here. That verve is the only reason for a three star review. Storywise, racewise, and insulting the reader’s intelligencewise, this is a one star book, at best.
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Apr 12, 2013 Elizabeth Reuter rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

To get it out there: Tarzan is almost unebelivably silly. Our hero is perfection itself, a gorgeous genius teaching himself to read, shave, and use tools as he grows up with apes in the jungle. He fights beasts with his bare hands, sets traps for cannibal tribes, and manages to discover an equally perfect woman in the very first white lady who stumbles across his path. For a good idea of how ludicrous this all is, go to youtube and look up the 2003 WB Tarzan series. It changed a few details, but...more

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Mar 28, 2013 Erskine rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I had several of the Tarzan books as a kid, and was a big fan of the series then. It had been almost thirty years, though, since I read any of them. I recently decided to check them out from the library to read with my daughter. We got the first three books in the series: Tarzan of the Apes, The Return of Tarzan, and The Beasts of Tarzan. In this review I will focus primarily on the first.

Most people are familiar with the story of Tarzan, even if they haven't read the book: He is the scion of an...more I had several of the Tarzan books as a kid, and was a big fan of the series then. It had been almost thirty years, though, since I read any of them. I recently decided to check them out from the library to read with my daughter. We got the first three books in the series: Tarzan of the Apes, The Return of Tarzan, and The Beasts of Tarzan. In this review I will focus primarily on the first.

Most people are familiar with the story of Tarzan, even if they haven't read the book: He is the scion of an aristocratic family, born to marooned parents on the West Coast of Africa. When his parents die, he is taken in by a tribe of anthropoid apes. (These creatures are not gorillas, nor chimpanzees. I'm unsure whether they were simply made up, or are evidence that Burroughs knew nothing of primates.) As a consequence of his upbringing in the wild, Tarzan develops superhuman strength and agility. He later meets and falls in love with Jane Porter, also marooned in that spot. He rescues her from danger, and she falls in love with him. I will say no more, except that those not familiar with the books may want to buy The Return of Tarzan at the same time.

Reading Tarzan again after so much time I found it less easy to suspend my disbelief regarding certain improbable events. That's an absolute requirement, though, for enjoying the books. Anyone who tries to analyze the plots, who holds the stories up to standards of internal consistency, or scientific reality, will be disappointed in them.

For example, Tarzan teaches himself to read and write in English using picture book primers. He is unable to speak the language, though, since there is no one to teach him the sounds of the letters. He speaks only the language of the anthropoid apes who raised him. That he is able to deduce that certain combinations of letters stand for the things in nearby pictures I could accept. That he is able to move from that to writing fluently and grammatically stretched my credulity to the breaking point. But when he later is able to write his ape-name, and the ape-names of other creatures that he has never seen written, I knew I had sailed into the waters of complete fantasy.

That is really where the tale belongs, which becomes more and more obvious as the series goes along and we are introduced to lost civilizations, dinosaurs, missing links, etc. It is pulp fiction, which means exciting, fantastical adventures written hurriedly and without much in the way of quality control. They are enjoyable as light reading, but shouldn't be approached as serious literature.

Burroughs certainly had something to say about mankind, but even there he is not consistent. One consistent message is that civilization softens men, but whether it also corrupts them is less clear. African natives and Europeans are alternately presented as corrupt or upright, depending on their values. He is also consistent about presenting white men as the intellectual superiors of blacks, even when they are not morally superior, a bit of racism that will (hopefully) wrankle modern readers. Tarzan of the Apes contains no black men who are not degenerate cannibals, and Tarzan takes delight in tormenting and killing them because one of their members killed his ape-mother, Kala. In later books we get to meet noble blacks who Tarzan admires, but his relationship with them is always paternalistic.

One of the things I remember from when I read the books as a kid was that if I read several of them in a row, I would become depressed. I concluded then that it was because there is so much death in the books. That may have been the reason. I recall that in later books the killing becomes much more perfunctory, whereas in the early books he does develop scruples about the cold-blooded murder of his fellow men. (In fact, there are a few times in the second and third books where I wished he would go ahead and kill the recurring villain, and put him out of my misery.) I mention this for the benefit of parents who may want to control the reading material of their children. These books have a PG-13 rating, and there may be a cumulative effect from reading several at a time.

I found that there was also a cumulative effect for adults, but slightly different. By the third book, the constant move from danger to danger, and the length of time it takes to resolve situations, had become extremely wearying. I think it should be a rule of literature that a recurring villain should never be allowed to escape from the hero more than twice.

I have given the book a rating of four, which is on the high side if it were judged on literary merit alone, but I am taking into consideration its influence on the culture and its iconic status. Those who love pulp fiction should read the four as a five. Those who prefer a bit of Jane Austen or Thomas Hardy, might want to read it as a two or three. Those who prefer only modern literature may want to skip it altogether.(less)

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Mar 06, 2013 Ursula rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 1001-books, fiction

Here's a case of a book being pretty much overwhelmed by its own success in popular culture. From Johnny Weissmuller to "Me Tarzan, you Jane" to being Disney-fied, everyone knows the story of Tarzan. Or at least, some version of it. The thing about reading the book is that you might find out the version you know didn't come from the book. I'll admit I'm not too familiar with the various adaptations of the story, but I didn't quite expect what I got.

Lord Greystoke and his young, pregnant wife are...more Here's a case of a book being pretty much overwhelmed by its own success in popular culture. From Johnny Weissmuller to "Me Tarzan, you Jane" to being Disney-fied, everyone knows the story of Tarzan. Or at least, some version of it. The thing about reading the book is that you might find out the version you know didn't come from the book. I'll admit I'm not too familiar with the various adaptations of the story, but I didn't quite expect what I got.

Lord Greystoke and his young, pregnant wife are marooned on the coast of Africa after a mutiny on board the ship on which they were traveling. They make a reasonably comfortable life for themselves on the isolated beach, just outside the beginning of a deep jungle. The baby is born, and when by the time he's just over a year old, both his parents are dead and he's been stolen by an ape who is grieving for her own lost baby. The rest of the book has to do with Tarzan's place as an outsider with the tribe of apes, and his experiences with native tribes and eventually, the first white people he sees.

Burroughs' writing is serviceable, and the plot will keep you going even in the midst of completely unbelievable coincidences and other developments - that stretch of beach is apparently the happening place for maroonings, for example, and Tarzan is a super-genius who can teach himself to read without ever having been introduced to the concept of a written language. The racism, sexism, classism and support for imperialism that reflect his time are a little hard to swallow for the modern reader. Jane, as a woman, "was created to be protected." Tarzan isn't disturbed by the natives' cannibalism until their potential victim is a white man. Tarzan instinctively reacts to Jane's courtesies in kind as "the hall-mark of his aristocratic birth, the natural outcropping of many generations of fine breeding." Jane's black servant is a malaprop-spouting, eye-rolling, fainting-at-the-drop-of-a-hat stereotype. Even with those caveats, it's worth reading just to know where the story really began.

Recommended for: fans of swashbucklers and adventure, anyone who can hear the Tarzan yell in their head (which must be everyone), people who don't mind occasionally shaking a fist at the attitudes in the book.

Quote: "Jane Porter -- her lithe, young form flattened against the trunk of a great tree, her hands tight pressed against her rising and falling bosom, and her eyes wide with mingled horror, fascination, fear and admiration -- watched the primordial ape battle with the primeval man for possession of a woman -- for her."(less)

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Feb 25, 2013 Helmut Barro rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Ich Tarzan - Du Jane

Ja, das Klischee musste sein. Wenn es auch natürlich, wie der interessierte Leser nach Lektüre dieses Buchs feststellen muss, nicht weiter entfernt von der Wahrheit sein kann - Tarzan ist natürlich kein tumber Halbaffe, sondern der Abkömmling eines englischen Lords, und trotz seines Aufwachsens unter Affen im afrikanischen Dschungel schon von Geburt her ein außergewöhnliches Wesen.

Die Geschichte kennt natürlich jeder, sie wurde in allen möglichen Formen von Kinderbearbeitunge...more

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Jan 09, 2013 Phoebes rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Come spesso (mi) succede, è strano leggere un libro di cui la trama è straconosciuta, per aver già visto innumerevoli versioni in film, cartoni, ecc. ecc. Ancor più strano poi se leggendo si scoprono parecchie differenze rispetto a com’è sempre stato rappresentato! Non eccessivamente diverso, ovviamente, la storia del personaggio è sempre quella, però sono rimasta molto stupita dallo scoprire che erano invenzioni filmesche sia Cita che la famosa frase “Io Jane tu Tarzan”! Poi, altro esempio: nel...more

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About Edgar Rice Burroughs

Edgar 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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Quotes from Tarzan of the Apes

“I do not understand exactly what you mean by fear," said Tarzan. "Like lions, fear is a different thing in different men, but to me the only pleasure in the hunt is the knowledge that the hunted thing has power to harm me as much as I have to harm him. If I went out with a couple of rifles and a gun bearer, and twenty or thirty beaters, to hunt a lion, I should not feel that the lion had much chance, and so the pleasure of the hunt would be lessened in proportion to the increased safety which I felt."

"Then I am to take it that Monsieur Tarzan would prefer to go naked into the jungle, armed only with a jackknife, to kill the king of beasts," laughed the other good naturedly, but with the merest touch of sarcasm in his tone.

"And a piece of rope," added Tarzan.” — 23 people liked it

“The time has arrived when patience becomes a crime and mayhem appears garbed in a manner of virtue” — 22 people liked it

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