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She (She #1)

3.6 of 5 stars 3.60 · rating details · 3,894 ratings · 340 reviews

A runaway bestseller on its publication in 1887, H. Rider Haggard’s She is a Victorian thrill ride of a novel, featuring a lost African kingdom ruled by a mysterious, implacable queen; ferocious wildlife and yawning abysses; and an eerie love story that spans two thousand years. She has bewitched readers from Freud and Jung to C. S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien; in her Introdu...more

Paperback, 338 pages

Published January 8th 2002 by Modern Library (first published 1887)

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Oct 21, 2011 Stephen rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: easton-press, lost-my-world, 1800s, fantasy, classics, audiobook, bewitches-and-bewarlocks, classics-european

Well, shit snacks…this was a disappointing pile of shattered expectations. While journeying through the early works of speculative fiction, I’ve encountered some amazing novels...this, I'm very bitter to say, IS NOT one of them. This was my first experience with H. Rider Haggard and I think I will take some time before seeking out any of his other works.

My problem was not the not-even-thinly-veiled misogynistic attitudes, or the matter-of-fact racist and anti-semitic opinion or even the pervasi...more

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Jun 21, 2011 Shovelmonkey1 rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: anyone who likes their ladies long-winded

Recommended to Shovelmonkey1 by: 1001 books list

Shelves: 1001-books, read-in-2010

*Sigh* - that was a bit of a mission. I think I was more excited about this book before I read it! The story was good but the overly wordy verbose madness of some of the characters made my thinky thing a bit hurty. Haggard may have written it in a six week whirl wind but the dense text and convoluted poetic speeches make it feel less khamsin-like and more leaden than the worlds heaviest box of pencils.

I have to admit to skim reading some of the speeches in order to preserve my sanity (and my th...more

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Mar 12, 2013 Marvin rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, kindle

H. Rider Haggard is one of those "classic" adventure writers I missed as a child while I was devouring Verne, H. G. Wells, and Edgar R. Burroughs. Then there were the Lost Worlds tales of that guy who dabbled in fantasy-adventure when he wasn't writing about a detective-doctor duo. Now that I have read my first Haggard novel, She, I am glad I put him off for so long because he is REALLY BORING!

Tedious descriptions, stiff dialogue and simply mediocre writing is the order of the day in the land of...more

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Aug 16, 2009 Dan Porter rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: adventure, classics

This was a very tedious read. The writing was so-so, it was verbose, and the story - although somewhat unusual - was not all that interesting. Lots of descriptions of dark caves. Lots of statements that he can't describe something followed by a page and a half of its description. Inconsistent philosophizing/moralizing with no resolution. Spent the last third of the book wondering if it would ever end.

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Apr 23, 2011 rachel rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: own, sci-fi-fantasy, brit-lit, 2011

First of all: the summary of this book is inaccurate. Ayesha does not have the "violent appetite of a lamia," which, if you are me, is a disappointing mislead because I was expecting something awesome. She doesn't thirst for blood so much as kill either when her orders are disobeyed (like when the tribe of people ordered to bring our main characters to her unharmed tries to cannibalize them, which would piss anyone off I think) or when the only man she passionately loves is possessed by another...more

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Sep 04, 2011 Henry Avila rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

She who must be obeyed, sounds like a fun gal.Ayesha is a 2,000 year old woman and still looks marvelous. Who lives in the middle of Africa and rules a tribe of cannibals!When Englishmen arrive in her land, instead of being eaten, are saved by the Queen.Leo is one of the explorers. And She, believes is a reincarnated former love.
Ludwig Horace Holly ,his foster son Leo and their servant Job and an
Arab sailor guide, are a little nervous you can imagine.Unwisely coming to this dangerous continent,...more

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Dec 01, 2009 Victoria rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Haggard’s conception of an immortal female sorceress or ‘femme fetal’ is most easily discussed in terms of sexuality, which serves as an alluring, but altogether unconvincing and rather limiting premise. To understand an ambiguous text in a more in-depth manner, one must look beyond the throes of sexuality. There are numerous terms that Haggard uses to create Ayesha. The use of ‘curtain’ and ‘veil’ are familiar objects for the reader to orient themselves in the text, and the same objects in whi...more Haggard’s conception of an immortal female sorceress or ‘femme fetal’ is most easily discussed in terms of sexuality, which serves as an alluring, but altogether unconvincing and rather limiting premise. To understand an ambiguous text in a more in-depth manner, one must look beyond the throes of sexuality. There are numerous terms that Haggard uses to create Ayesha. The use of ‘curtain’ and ‘veil’ are familiar objects for the reader to orient themselves in the text, and the same objects in which Haggard deviates from convention, to communicate the supernatural presence of Ayesha.
The curtain is the penultimate climax to Ayesha’s physical presence in the novel. The narrator Holly provides the description of Ayesha “She Who Must be Obeyed”:

The curtain agitated itself a little, then suddenly between its folds there appeared a most beautiful white hand (white as snow), and with long tapering fingers, ending in the pinkest nails. The hand grasped the curtain, and drew it aside, and as it did so I heard a voice, I think the softest and yet most silvery voice I ever heard. It reminded me of the murmur of a brook (Haggard 143).

The curtain serves as an illegible boundary to the appearance of Ayesha. The interesting detail that Holly provides is that the ‘curtain agitate[s:]’ itself as if it is infused with a life of its own, and it is not Ayesha who is in control of what lies between herself and the greater world of men. When Ayesha is finally perceived by Holly to move the curtain on her own accord, the diction ‘grasped’ holds more meaning than just clutching with a hand. The word ‘grasped’ conjures its supplementary meaning “To lay hold of with the mind; to become completely cognizant of or acquainted with; to comprehend.”(OED) Ayesha is equated to her veiled surroundings, and the layers that encase her in the material world of the living, leaving one to always assume that there is more to her.
Curtains do not merely fill Ayesha’s personal environment, but they are literally entwined on her body. Holly further describes Ayesha’s appearance in her translucent robes,
“I suppose it was the way in which they were arranged, either accidentally, or more probably by design.” (Haggard 143). In this passage the narrators attention resides in deciding the determinism with which Ayesha dresses herself. He categorizes her veiled appearance from ‘accident’ to ‘design’. This denotes a duality to Ayesha’s presence. She exists as either an ‘accident’, a mystically death-defying corpse still wearing burial gauze, or a ‘design’ given supernatural powers commanding the decision to veil her beautiful presence. This symbolic logic leads to one conclusion that Ayesha exists in duality on the social hierarchy as the dead (social death) and as a godlike woman wielding power.
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Jul 09, 2007 Eric rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

What a weird book... Haggard's trip into a metaphorical vagina complete with a fem-fatale character lurking inside. That's my take on it anyway.

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May 27, 2011 Sally rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: seen-the-film, adventure, place-deepest-darkest-africa, magic, explorers, victorian, deadly-peril

I'd seen the film but that was absolutely ages ago and all I could really remember was "Helen Gahagan was hot".

I didn't expect to like the book when I first picked it up - it was only 300 pages, but the font is tiny so in reality it was a much longer book than it first appeared... it was also printed on bible paper so was again, longer than the appearance suggested!

But man, I got right into it like *that* and I'm not even sure why... there was something very engaging about the writing I guess,...more

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Jan 27, 2009 Jeff rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is more like a piece of history than anything else, but I liked it. It's silly and dated but kinda fun, and I am always really interested in seeing the evolution of popular fiction, especially fantasy/horror/sci-fi.

What made this truly excellent was the editing and commentary in this Penguin Classics edition. I am a sucker for academic treatises about 19th century imperialist fantasies.

It would be interesting to compare this book side-by-side with Heart of Darkness to consider two near-con...more

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Feb 25, 2013 Thom Swennes rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is The Mummy with a twist! This book is written in the form of a log or diary written about an exploration journey into unknown North Central Africa. As the first chapters unfold, the English arrogance that marked them during the Victorian Empire period is overflowing every page. The small expedition finds itself among unknown civilization. I can’t use the term natives as that would form a false mental image. Native would bring the dark-skinned Africans to mind and this nation consisted of...more

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Feb 23, 2013 Jefferson rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy

For its Victorian era, H. Rider Haggard's classic novel of romantic, lost world adventure She (1887) has some surprisingly open-minded views on marriage customs (morality being "a matter of latitude") and a few kinky hints of sex, including an erotic kiss and a nude woman bathing in a pillar of flame. Being a Victorian novel, it also contains a fair amount of racism, sexism, classism, and colonialism. But Haggard transcends his era. His creation of She-who-must-be-obeyed, AKA Ayesha or She, is c...more For its Victorian era, H. Rider Haggard's classic novel of romantic, lost world adventure She (1887) has some surprisingly open-minded views on marriage customs (morality being "a matter of latitude") and a few kinky hints of sex, including an erotic kiss and a nude woman bathing in a pillar of flame. Being a Victorian novel, it also contains a fair amount of racism, sexism, classism, and colonialism. But Haggard transcends his era. His creation of She-who-must-be-obeyed, AKA Ayesha or She, is complex: beautiful, powerful, irresistible, amoral, selfish, serpentine, undying, and loving, she could make the most inveterate misogynist swoon at her feet. And although Haggard's play with reincarnation is a little dodgy, his evocation of expanses of time (including what it would be like to live for thousands of years), his examination of the limits of human understanding (ever seeking and failing to remove the veil concealing the face of Truth), and his exploration of love (including parental, fraternal, and romantic in intense situations) are all compelling.

The novel begins slowly, as its "editor" (a Haggard-like writer of African adventures) recounts how he became acquainted with the simian H. Horace Holly and the Apollonian Leo Vincey so as to one day find himself in possession of a manuscript written by Holly about his and Vincey's extraordinary three-week experience with She-who-must-be-obeyed. And that manuscript itself begins with a fair amount of explanation by Holly as to how he became the guardian of the younger man.

It develops that Leo is descended from a line beginning 2,200 years ago with a Greek priest called Kallikrates, that back then Kallikrates and his Egyptian wife became lost in Africa and fell into the clutches of an undying white queen--She--ruling a savage civilization in some volcanic mountains, and that because She fell in love with Kallikrates but was spurned by him she killed him, leaving his pregnant widow alive to escape to bear their son in Greece. Ever since, each scion of the line of Vincey has been told about that murder to be encouraged to seek revenge on She.

That backstory established, the men soon find themselves in She's domain, in which she rules a race of light-skinned and Arabic-speaking cannibals who live in the extensive mausoleums honeycombed into an extinct volcano by an extinct ancient civilization, and the novel moves into higher gear. If the story is still sometimes slowed by long stretches of dialogue and monologue, it is also enlivened by passages of grandeur, beauty, horror, and suspense, as when Holly describes an ocean sunrise, a giant Ethiopian's face carved into a mountain peak, a subterranean pyramid of human skeletons, an embalmed human torch dance, a winged statue of the goddess of Truth, and an abyssal chasm with a slender spur of rock nearly reaching across it. Moreover, Haggard has Holly interpret the stunning phenomena he witnesses so as to illuminate aspects of the human condition like mortality and love. Here is an example of a sublime moment in Haggard's novel:

"It was a wonderful sight to see the full moon looking down on the ruined fane of Kôr. It was a wonderful thing to think for how many thousands of years the dead orb above and the dead city below had gazed thus upon each other, and in the utter solitude of space poured forth each to each the tale of their lost life and long-departed glory. The white light fell, and minute by minute the quiet shadows crept across the grass-grown courts like the spirits of old priests haunting the habitations of their worship—the white light fell, and the long shadows grew till the beauty and grandeur of each scene and the untamed majesty of its present Death seemed to sink into our very souls, and speak more loudly than the shouts of armies concerning the pomp and splendour that the grave had swallowed, and even memory had forgotten."

Phenomena like the savage Amahagger residing in the mausoleums of a superior but extinct ancient race and using embalmed corpses as fuel and embalming slabs as dinner tables, are darkly wonderful.

The influence of She appears in the work of later writers, like Edgar Rice Burroughs, Robert E. Howard, J. R. R. Tolkien, and even C. S. Lewis, e.g., the ageless and amoral witch-queen, the long forgotten empire and its ruins, the discovery by a white hero of a lost world or civilization, the power of love to transcend time, and the use of first person "manuscripts" and different languages to increase verisimilitude. . . She is worth reading.
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Feb 14, 2013 Russell rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is my third Haggard novel I've read, and it's a top notch, ripping yarn. Although similar to other Haggard's creations, (such as lost civilizations, strange beings with strange powers, at least one friendly native among hostile tribes, hidden untold treasures) it is an enthralling tale, layered and well seasoned with Haggard's ability to weave in different world views and philosophies into the tale. His book is engaging, without being preachy, unapologetically Imperial British, and Haggard'...more This is my third Haggard novel I've read, and it's a top notch, ripping yarn. Although similar to other Haggard's creations, (such as lost civilizations, strange beings with strange powers, at least one friendly native among hostile tribes, hidden untold treasures) it is an enthralling tale, layered and well seasoned with Haggard's ability to weave in different world views and philosophies into the tale. His book is engaging, without being preachy, unapologetically Imperial British, and Haggard's mastery of language was expressed through lyrical moments in unlooked for places. Haggard also had a keen understanding of psychology and interpersonal relations. His observations of human behavior and desires are timeless.

Take this passage, for example: "For man can be bought with woman's beauty, if it be but beautiful enough; and woman's beauty can be ever bought with gold, if only there be gold enough. So was it in my day, and so it will be to the end of time. The world is a great mart, my Holly, where all things are for sale to whom who bids the highest in the currency of our desires."

Bingo. He sprinkled such insights along the way, pitted a materialistic philosophy against one that insisted there was more than mere material, and let it all stew together. And this happened between long descriptive passages, edge-of-my-seat moments, shocking reveals, dark hints of profane power, mingled with adventure and exploration.

And every now and then he wrote some zingers, like this one: "True, in uniting himself to this dread woman, he would place his life under the influence of a mysterious creature of evil tendencies, but then that would be likely enough to happen to him in any ordinary marriage."

Bwahaha!

Haggard did a decent job discussing what is evil and what is good, especially to one like She. It's mostly rhetorical, and She had honed her solipsism to a razor's edge, but Holly and She had a grand time discussing their viewpoints.

"She-who-must-be-obeyed" influenced other writers, C.S. Lewis, Tolkien, for example. I had read that Lady Galadriel's inspiration was attributed to the dread She, but I was unable to confirm that.

Easily 4 stars. Just as good as "King Solomon's Mines", if not a bit better. Not recommend for those that see a parade of -ists from writers of that era. It's going to stick in your craw. Don't say you weren't warned.
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Jan 24, 2013 J.L. Dobias rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: book-shelf-10

She By Henry Rider Haggard.

I suppose were I a scholar of those languages the formatting might be a problem.

This is a great book and a great classic and I suppose if I understood even a shred of Egyptian, Greek or Latin then I might be just as incensed as some others about the butchery of those parts of the book.

As it is I thoroughly enjoyed the story and hope that there are not any plot points that are of great import in all that hashed up gobble-de-gook.

I read She because I had read Atlantida b...more

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Dec 11, 2012 Mel rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 19th-century-fiction, victorian, victorian-lit, pulp, occult

I’d read King Solomon’s Mines when I was 12 and first moved back to England and I didn’t like it at all. But decided I would give Haggard another go as sahra_patroness had recommended this one VERY highly and she and I have very similar taste in books so I thought I’d give it a try. It starts with a very interesting beginning; a young man is given an ancient text telling of a unique family history. The text itself is reprinted in two types of Greek and Latin and English. This was very impressive...more

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Nov 01, 2012 Smcleish rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Originally published on my blog here in March 2001.

Haggard's second most famous novel has many similarities to King Solomon's Mines; they are both about incredible secret nations hidden away from European eyes in the interior of Africa, still at the time almost completely unknown to Westerners.

The basic story is that M.L. Vincey, knowing his death to be imminent, entrusts the care of his young son Leo to his close friend Ludwig Horace Holly, along with a box to be opened on Leo's twenty fifth bi...more Originally published on my blog here in March 2001.

Haggard's second most famous novel has many similarities to King Solomon's Mines; they are both about incredible secret nations hidden away from European eyes in the interior of Africa, still at the time almost completely unknown to Westerners.

The basic story is that M.L. Vincey, knowing his death to be imminent, entrusts the care of his young son Leo to his close friend Ludwig Horace Holly, along with a box to be opened on Leo's twenty fifth birthday. This box turns out to contain a collection of documents explaining the ancient origins of the family, as refugees from the anger and jealousy of the queen of a now unknown African civilization. The young man and his guardian set out to visit this country, and there they meet this same woman, who has not aged in thousands of years. Ayesha is given the title "She Who Must Be Obeyed" by the local people, and this is shortened to "She". It is her belief that Leo Vincey is the re-incarnation of her beloved Kallicrates, the man who fled, returned to be united with her forever, and she carries out ruthless and terrible retribution on those who stand in her way.

As an adventure story, She has some unusual features which militate against its continued popularity. Like King Solomon's Mines, it has a vein of racism running through it, and it is not a well constructed narrative. It also attributes unexplained powers to Ayesha - prolonged youth, the ability to kill with her mind. In the earlier novel, the powers of the evil witch Gagool are purely the result of superstition: if she curses someone, they die because they believe it. Here, in the interest of increasing the wonder felt by the reader, no rational explanation is given; the gases from the volcanic vent where she takes Holly and Leo is not an explanation.

A more localised problem occurs early in the novel, with the account of the opening of the box. The documents within it are quoted in full, and not just in English. This is repetitive and dull, even if it adds some badly needed verisimilitude. In the sort of book the novel appears to be, an account of an exploration, it is possible that such documents would be quoted, but even then most authors would relegate most of the material to an appendix. Haggard commits the cardinal sin for an adventure story of making it dull, and this feeling spreads to the novel as a whole.(less)

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Oct 19, 2012 Brian Schwartz rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I enjoyed SHE a great deal. The writing is antiquated and old fashioned. Much like Edgar Rice Burroughs’ writing, Haggard has long pauses in the action to explain the anthropology of the foreign culture. While this can be distracting and would not be accepted by modern editors, one must remember that the readers of that day had much less exposure to foreign cultures. They had not our means of mass communications and awareness of other people. Scenes that are easy for the modern reader to envisio...more I enjoyed SHE a great deal. The writing is antiquated and old fashioned. Much like Edgar Rice Burroughs’ writing, Haggard has long pauses in the action to explain the anthropology of the foreign culture. While this can be distracting and would not be accepted by modern editors, one must remember that the readers of that day had much less exposure to foreign cultures. They had not our means of mass communications and awareness of other people. Scenes that are easy for the modern reader to envision had to be carefully explained and developed by these pioneers of genre fiction.

For its time, SHE is a well paced novel. Despite the anthropological pauses and long debates and discussions of ancient and modern theology and philosophy, the story contains plenty of action and moves quickly. Haggard is much more apt to narrate the action sequences than was Burroughs who was wont to skip over them to tell the reader the final results.

Henry Rider Haggard wrote several novels, including KING SOLOMON'S MINES and ALLAN QUARTERMAIN. However, She stands as his crowning work, having invented the “Lost World” genre of fiction that is so expansive today.

Although the setting for SHE is Africa, it was apparently inspired by the time Haggard spent in South America as a government official. Written in an age of British imperialism, Haggard’s conceit and mild contempt for other races comes through in his text.

The book is one of the best selling works of fiction of all time. Despite being more than 120 years old, it has never been out of print and has inspired at least two film interpretations and several movies based loosely upon it. Like Burroughs, Haggard first published his work as serialized stories within a magazine. She appeared in The Graphic magazine in four installments between October 1886 and January 1887.

Although H. Rider Haggard is not as well known today as Edgar Rice Burroughs, his work is as influential and in some ways superior. Burroughs enjoys a following today mostly because of the pop culture icon, Tarzan of the Apes and the movies based on his Tarzan novels. Haggard created no such popular culture icon. But that does not diminish the importance of She as an archetype for fantasy or Haggard’s place among the creators of genre fiction.(less)

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Sep 02, 2012 Stephen C. rated it 4 of 5 stars

She Who Must Be Obeyed has been berating me for years for not reading enough fiction, so I decided to read "She Who Must Be Obeyed" by H. Rider Haggard. Very interesting. There was nothing to agree with or disagree with. Fantasy! I have read other fiction books of course. "Moby Dick", for example, which is excellent, though an awful lot of it is not fiction and there was much to learn in it (even the whale's attacking the boat is based on several true stories). But Rider Haggard is completely di...more

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Jun 29, 2012 Rod rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This adventure novel is of the type ‘these papers first came into my hands’. The ‘she’ of the title – also referred to by the locals as ‘she who must be obeyed’ – is Ayesha, a woman of great antiquity reckoned by Holly, the first person narrator, to be in excess of 2000 years old. He doesn’t believe this at first, but it turns out she has bathed in the flame of life, situated in the bowels of largely dormant volcano.

The main interest of the book, leaving aside the adventures of Leo and his guard...more

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Jun 05, 2012 Chris rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is such a chore to read! The chunks that I could read in a sitting got smaller as the book progressed! The frustrating thing is that the story is brilliant, and marvellously well crafted. Using the maps and the artefacts and various translations of 'historical documents' is brilliant; it sets you up for a mystery that sill stimulate both the mind and emotions. There is a genuinely credible progression of events; at no point does one feel that haggard has short changed the reader. The conclu...more

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Feb 19, 2011 Derek Davis rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The conventions of fantasy novels from the latter part of the 19th century and up through at least the 1920s can get a little on my nerves. The book is almost always "an amazing manuscript left by X or sent to me by my friend Y which tells of the almost unbelievable..." Haggard was one of the earlier ones using this format and he does it very well (including pseudo-footnotes by both the "author" of the manuscript and its "editor" that are frequently genuinely interesting}.

"She" is "She-who-must-...more

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Jan 18, 2011 Mary Overton added it · review of another edition

This "real African adventure, of a nature so ... marvelous" begins with a misanthropic Victorian professor, his remarkably handsome & cheerful young ward, and an antique potsherd on which is written in Greek:

"'I, Amenartas, of the Royal House of the Pharaohs of Egypt, wife of Kallikrates (The Beautiful in Strength), a Priest of Isis whom the gods cherish and the demons obey, being about to die, to my little son Tisisthenes (The Mighty Avenger). I fled with thy father from Egypt in the days o...more This "real African adventure, of a nature so ... marvelous" begins with a misanthropic Victorian professor, his remarkably handsome & cheerful young ward, and an antique potsherd on which is written in Greek:

"'I, Amenartas, of the Royal House of the Pharaohs of Egypt, wife of Kallikrates (The Beautiful in Strength), a Priest of Isis whom the gods cherish and the demons obey, being about to die, to my little son Tisisthenes (The Mighty Avenger). I fled with thy father from Egypt in the days of Nectanebes, causing him through love to break the vows that he had vowed. We fled southward, across the water, and we wandered for twice twelve moons on the coast of Libya (Africa) that looks towards the rising sun, where by a river is a great rock carven like the head of an Ethiopian. Four days on the water from the mouth of a might river were we cast away, and some were drowned and some died of sickness. But us wild men took through wastes and marshes ... till we came to a hollow mountain, where a great city had been and fallen...; and they brought us to the Queen of the people ... who is a magician having knowledge of all things, and life and loveliness that does not die. And she cast eyes of love upon thy father, Kallikrates, and would have slain me, and taken him to husband, but he loved me and feared her, and would not. Then did she take us, and lead us by terrible ways, by means of dark magic, to where the great pit is ... and showed to us the rolling Pillar of Life that dies not, whereof the voice is as the voice of thunder; and she did stand in the flames, and come forth unharmed, and yet more beautiful. Then did she swear to make they father undying even as she is, if he would but slay me, and give himself to her, for me she could not slay because of the magic of my own people that I have, and that prevailed thus far against her. And he held his hand before his eyes to hide her beauty, and would not. Then in her rage did she smite him by her magic, and he died.... Now I say to thee, my son Tisisthenes, seek out the woman, and learn the secret of Life, and if thou mayest find a way slay her, because of thy father Kallikrates; and if thou dost fear or fail, this I say to all of thy seed who come after thee, till at last a brave man be found among them who shall bathe in the fire and sit in the place of the Pharaohs.'" location 412

Our heroes meet Ayesha, She-Who-Must-Be-Obeyed, and SHE explicates the war of the sexes:
"'Men are faithful for so long only as temptations pass them by. If the temptation be but strong enough, then will the man yield, for every man, like every rope, hath his breaking strain, and passion is to men what gold and power are to women - the weight upon their weakness.... For man can be bought with woman's beauty, if it be but beautiful enough; and woman's beauty can be ever bought with gold, if only there be gold enough. So was it in my day, and so it will be to the end of time. The world is a great mart, my Holly, where all things are for sale to him who bids the highest in the currency of our desires.'" location 3005(less)

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Sep 03, 2010 Ksenia rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I had originally picked this up in the bookstore a while ago, based off the cover. Penguin had a display of their “Red Classics” and this one definitely caught my eye. I think it’s quite the striking illustration of “She who must be obeyed.” I had never heard of it before, nor of the author. When you read the summary above, it sounds fascinating, right? And it was originally published in 1886. I think the last time I read a “classic” book was in college. All of my reading since then has been con...more I had originally picked this up in the bookstore a while ago, based off the cover. Penguin had a display of their “Red Classics” and this one definitely caught my eye. I think it’s quite the striking illustration of “She who must be obeyed.” I had never heard of it before, nor of the author. When you read the summary above, it sounds fascinating, right? And it was originally published in 1886. I think the last time I read a “classic” book was in college. All of my reading since then has been contemporary. I must admit, it was a bit tough to get back in that sort of reading mindset, especially since the language and sentence structure was so different. However, the book did not falter: it kept moving right along, very swiftly.

The narrator is Horace Holly, who, at the request of his dying friend, adopts young Leo Vincey and raises him as his own. And at the appointed time, they open up the mysterious casket on Leo’s 25th birthday and find all these ancient artifacts and translations that Leo’s father had been working on. As it turns out, Leo’s father was able to trace back the family tree all the way to the year 339 BC (more or less). The family tree begins with the priest, who runs away with a “Princess of Royal blood, who had fallen love with him, and was finally wrecked upon the coast of Africa[...]Here they endured great hardships, but were at entertained by the mighty Queen of a savage people, a white woman of peculiar loveliness, who [...] murdered Kallikrates. His wife, however, escaped…” Thus, it is assumed that Leo is actually a descendant of Kallikrates, whom She loved. And so, Leo, Holly, and Job (the male attendant who helped raise Leo with Holly) embark on a journey to find this place that Leo’s father described in previous letters, a land that almost sounds mythical.

When they finally do come upon this land, they are met with both kindness, curiosity, and the threat of cannibalism. There is definitely a sense of mysticism throughout. Holly is fascinated by the people who inhabit this remote part of the world for they speak a slightly different language than the Arabic that he knew, and the society appears to be matriarchal. A woman right away takes a liking to Leo and by instantly embracing him and kissing him, they are married (according to the custom), since a woman is at leisure to do so. According to their guide, “women do what they please. We worship them, and give them their way, because without them the world could not go on; they are the source of life.” Eventually, Holly comes face-to-face with She, who remains wrapped in cloth for when she disrobes, for any man instantly falls in love with her and worships her. While Leo is recovering from a fever, Holly and She engage in a few conversations about her life and philosophy and religion. She is clearly the same Queen that was spoken of earlier.

I do not want to divulge any information about what happens when Leo finally meets She, and what happens afterwards. It’s really more fun to find out yourself. I feel like anything I say about the ending or the events leading up to it would be saying too much. However, I will say that I was not disappointed. Even the conversations that Holly and She had were quite fascinating. It was rather poetic when she spoke, actually: “‘Because I wait for him I love. My life has perchance been evil, I know not–for who can say what is evil and what good?–so I fear to die even if I could die, which I cannot until mine hour comes, to go and seek him where he is; for between us there might rise a wall I could not climb, at least, I dread it. Surely easy would it be also to lose the way in seeking in those great spaces wherein the planets wander on for ever…’” This book had the adventure and mystery and definitely the substance to even make you think about some things. But again, I never felt like the pace was slow. Oh, and the reason why I had She italicized here was because it is done so in the book as well. It’s definitely one I would recommend if you’re looking for something different, and for something that is not out there today that would offer this to you.(less)

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Dec 13, 2009 kingshearte rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2009, fiction

Leo Vincey's father has left him a mysterious casket in his will, which can only be opened on his twenty-fifth birthday. When the day arrives, Leo unlocks it to discover ancient scrolls, a fragment of pottery marked with strange inscriptions - and a letter. Its contents reveal a mystery that Leo must travel all the way to Africa to solve, taking him on an adventure beyond his wildest imaginings.

Sailing across stormy seas to Zanzibar, Leo endures shipwreck, fever and cannibals attacks, before com...more Leo Vincey's father has left him a mysterious casket in his will, which can only be opened on his twenty-fifth birthday. When the day arrives, Leo unlocks it to discover ancient scrolls, a fragment of pottery marked with strange inscriptions - and a letter. Its contents reveal a mystery that Leo must travel all the way to Africa to solve, taking him on an adventure beyond his wildest imaginings.

Sailing across stormy seas to Zanzibar, Leo endures shipwreck, fever and cannibals attacks, before coming face to face with Ayesha, She-who-must-be-obeyed: the beautiful, tyrannical ruler of a lost civilization. She has been waiting hundreds of years for the true descendant of her dead lover to arrive. And arrive he does - with terrifying consequences...

I picked this up as a result of finding myself watching an utterly ridiculous movie on TV that I'd come across while channel surfing. I only caught about the last hour, but the sheer ridiculousness and bad acting of it kinda sucked me in. Later, checking it out on IMDB, I discovered that it was based on a book, and decided to read the book. So here I am.

The book is... very different from what they chose to do with the movie. I can't speak to the first half of the movie, but, aside from some key plot elements, the second half bore essentially no resemblance. I can't entirely blame the movie people for doing that, since, for such an epic sort of story, very little actually happens. Mostly there's a hell of a lot of talking. But yeah. In the movie, all kinds of stuff happens before they even encounter Ayesha, which happens in the last, like, 45 minutes of the movie. In the book, very little, aside from a rough passage and attempted cannibalization, happens before they get to Ayesha about halfway through the book. And then the endless talking starts. Oy. Aside from this notable structural difference, there are also a variety of additions and alterations, but in the end, Ayesha dies, and the adventurers go on their merry way and eventually make it back home.

The writing in this book is actually very pretty, and downright poetic at times. For example:

The moon went slowly down in chastened loveliness, she departed like some sweet bride into her chamber, and long veil-like shadows crept up the sky through which the stars peeped shyly out. Soon, however, they too began to pale before a splendour in the east, and then the quivering footsteps of the dawn came rushing across the new-born blue, and shook the planets from their places. Quieter and yet more quiet grew the sea, quiet as the soft mist that brooded upon her bosom, and covered up her troubling, as the elusive wreaths of sleep brood upon a pain-wracked mind, causing it to forget its sorrow. From the east to the west spread the angels of the Dawn, from sea to sea, from mountain top to mountain top, scattering light with both their hands. On they sped out of the darkness, perfect, glorious, like spirits of the just breaking from the tomb; on, over the quiet sea, over the low coast line, and the swamps beyond, and the mountains beyond them; over those who slept in peace, and those who woke in sorrow; over the evil and the good; over the living and dead; over the wide world and all that breathes or has breathed thereon. - p.68

That was the most striking example, I think, but there definitely were other passages with a similar feel to them. I don't normally like reading poetry, or excessive descriptions in novels, but I actually kinda dug this guy's style.

What I did not so much care for is the inherent racism of pretty much any book published in 1887. One has to take a certain amount with a grain of salt, because the unfortunate fact of the matter is that those were the prevailing attitudes of the time, but it's still, for my modern sensibilities, a little distressing to read some character's vocal distaste and distrust for the "black devils" or similar epithets. It's telling, too, the fact that although Ayesha is Arab, she's also explicitly described as a white woman. Like I said, a little distressing, but I don't really want to get into the debate right now of whether or not we should continue to consider old works of art that are blatantly offensive in their racism/sexism/whateverism, as still valuable because they're old and classic, or whether we should just let them die because the attitudes in them are so, well, offensive. In any case, I don't expect anyone to have their moral compass guided by H. Rider Haggard, so I'm not too worried.(less)

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May 01, 2013 Doug Armstrong rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I loved this book, it was such a creative and well-written adventure novel. Some might find the writing style a bit wordy and heavy, but I really enjoyed it for the vivid images it conveyed. The writing has the natural flow of a very intelligent and educated person simply trying to explain what they see in their mind in the most effective way they can, as opposed to the "I'm trying to dazzle you with strained metaphors and unnecessarily big words" style of lesser talents.

The main star of the boo...more

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Apr 19, 2012 Tom Lazenby rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

"She" is a great book--bottom line. Initially, I was going to say that I was surprised to see that this book did not get more five star ratings. But then I can understand some people's "frustration" with it. Granted, it is slow/verbose at some parts (primarily the beginning in my opinion). But we must remember that this book was published in 1887, the age of no television, radio, Internet, etc. As such, certain description that may be deemed unnecessary in today's world (though there are still s...more

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Oct 27, 2010 Spicenectar Darrenhuf rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I don't really expect you to read this book, it's very old and rare to come across. But if you do ever have the chance to read it, I suggest you take it. It's an extremely well written book. You may not think so at first glance ( seeing as there are exclamation points in the middle of sentences, and a far more appropriate use of some words than most of us are used to), but it is none the less well written. It boasts a challenging vocabulary, along with some words that I have never heard in my fi...more I don't really expect you to read this book, it's very old and rare to come across. But if you do ever have the chance to read it, I suggest you take it. It's an extremely well written book. You may not think so at first glance ( seeing as there are exclamation points in the middle of sentences, and a far more appropriate use of some words than most of us are used to), but it is none the less well written. It boasts a challenging vocabulary, along with some words that I have never heard in my fifteen years of existence. But it's not only the vocabulary that surprised me, it's the emotion the author can put behind his words, the raw depth he can give his characters. This above all else is what makes this book worthwhile. Aside from that, "She" can provoke thoughts about human nature that we feel more steadfast when unsaid, but H. Rider Haggard insists on speaking out. This, I must confess, is what I respect about this man, as an author. Lets not forget that, against all this, the book is absurd. This can distract you from the complexities of what is going on, what thoughts should come to mind. Instead you will probably think of the plot, and solely the plot, which I admit is crazy from start to end. Crazy, because of the fact that the book starts out with our narrator's best friend, Vincey, dying in his dorm room and leaving the narrator half of all his money along with his bastard son he has never actually met. Along with all of his money, Vincey leaves a metal box which ends up containing an ancient prophesy dating back over two thousand years, to show to his son on his twenty fifth birthday. Even crazier, it ends with both adopted father and son crawling out of a hell of sorts, and finding a common old friend. I've never read a book like it. On a different note, in regards to the title (as this is necessary to fulfill all parts of the rubric) "She" is probably the most fitting title for the book. This being so because the character the book revolves around, Ayesha, is referred to as "She", or "She-who-must-be-obeyed". I cannot go into much more detail, but I hope you get a chance to read it.

Here's a short passage from the book, solely to spark interest.

How could more light than there was ever come to this dreadful spot? While I was still debating in my mind, suddenly, like a great sword of flame, a beam from the setting sun pierced the Stygian gloom, and smote upon the point of rock whereon we lay, illumining Ayesha's lovely form with an unearthly splendour. I only wish that I could describe the wonderful and marvellous beauty of that sword of fire, laid across the darkness and rushing mist-wreaths of the gulf. How it got there I do not to this moment know, but I presume that there was some cleft or hole in the opposing cliff, through which it pierced when the setting orb was in a direct line therewith. All I can say is that the effect was the most wonderful I ever saw. Right through the heart of the darkness that flaming sword was stabbed, and where it lay there was the most surpassingly vivid light, so vivid that even at a distance one could see the grain of the rock, while, outside of it - yes, within a few inches of its keen edge - was naught but clustering shadows.
(less)

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Jun 09, 2013 Susan rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: adventure, classics, fantasy, novel, underground-city, travel

Actually reading the free public domain ebook :)

This part of my study of classic 19th Century adventures referencing an "underground city/civilisation." Turns out that the "cave city" is the catacombs in the sides of the volcano in which Ayesha lives. The 'rest places' are stone bench alcoves where bodies were once laid to rest & the great stone lunch table was designed for embalmers. The ancient lost people's big stone city (Kor) is actually open to the air and sun. It's inside a hidden va...more

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Jan 20, 2012 Stephen rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: adventure, science-fiction-fantasy-horror

“She” is, surprisingly, one of the best-selling books of all-time. Surprising only in that so few people nowadays have actually heard of it. Does this make Haggard the Dan Brown of his time, turning out hugely popular dross now consigned to the bargain basement of classic literature? Well, not exactly. Could it be down to its dated, imperialistic, ‘Dark Continent’ depiction of Africa? Perhaps. Personally I think it’s just that title: “She” – it’s so non-evocative and nondescript it’s no wonder n...more

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Mar 26, 2009 Alwa rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Gosh, I hope this book isn't too racist or misogynist... :(

OMG JK. I've seen this book mentioned as inspiration or background to a lot of other things I've read and enjoyed, something lurking in the history of sci-fi and adventure stories. So, here goes. Plus, if I ever want to get people to call me She-Who-Must-Be-Obeyed, I'll need to pick up some tips from Ayesha.

--------------------

Okay, so here's the thing. My problem isn't with the racism or the misogyny (or the classism, or the anti-Semit...more

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About H. Rider Haggard

Sir Henry Rider Haggard was an English writer of adventure novels set in exotic locations, predominantly Africa, and the creator of the Lost World literary genre. His stories, situated at the lighter end of the scale of Victorian literature, continue to be popular and influential. He was also involved in agricultural reform and improvement in the British Empire.

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“The moon went slowly down in loveliness; she departed into the depth of the horizon, and long veil-like shadows crept up the sky through which the stars appeared. Soon, however, they too began to pale before a splendour in the east, and the advent of the dawn declared itself in the newborn blue of heaven. Quieter and yet more quiet grew the sea, quiet as the soft mist that brooded on her bosom, and covered up her troubling, as in our tempestuous life the transitory wreaths of sleep brook upon a pain-racked soul, causing it to forget its sorrow. From the east to the west sped those angels of the Dawn, from sea to sea, from mountain-top to mountain-top, scattering light from breast and wing. On they sped out of the darkness, perfect, glorious; on, over the quiet sea, over the low coast-line, and the swamps beyond, and the mountains above them; over those who slept in peace and those who woke in sorrow; over the evil and the good; over the living and the dead; over the wide world and all that breathes or as breathed thereon.” — 19 people liked it

“Thinking can only serve to measure out the helplessness of thought.” — 10 people liked it

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