The Beasts of Tarzan

Written by Edgar Rice Burroughs

Narrated by David Sharp

This is the third story in the TARZAN adventure series. This venture into the wild kingdom thrusts Jane into the thickest of demoniacal plots as Tarzan’s nemesis, the dark and swarthy Rokoff and his rat-like lieutenant capture her with the intention of wreaking vengeance on Tarzan. But Tarzan assembles an awesome rescue squad; Mugambi, a giant native from the jungle who becomes the devoted follower and protector of Tarzan; Sheeta, a sleek and powerful black panther longing to apply fang and claw to those who would harm Jane; and the entire tribe of Akut, of the great apes, enraged and eager.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Books in Motion
• Release date: Jun 15, 2011
• ISBN: 9781605489575

Edgar Rice Burroughs

Edgar Rice Burroughs (1875-1950) had various jobs before getting his first fiction published at the age of 37. He established himself with wildly imaginative, swashbuckling romances about Tarzan of the Apes, John Carter of Mars and other heroes, all at large in exotic environments of perpetual adventure. Tarzan was particularly successful, appearing in silent film as early as 1918 and making the author famous. Burroughs wrote science fiction, westerns and historical adventure, all charged with his propulsive prose and often startling inventiveness. Although he claimed he sought only to provide entertainment, his work has been credited as inspirational by many authors and scientists.

Reviews for The Beasts of Tarzan

[dbsovereign · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A self-made noble beast, Tarzan's plight is every man's. Burroughs created a living myth and one that hints at how we might all be better off swinging from those vines.

[scott_hercher · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A surprisingly entertaining book -- far different from my preconceptions of what to expect. It makes me want to read the next book in the series.

[pmcnamee67 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Very strong first half - like a Jack London survival tale, but the second act gives way to social farce & plodding romance with a very rushed, sloppy ending.

[wisewoman_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Tarzan of the Apes, first published in serial form in 1912, brought its author instant fame. Edgar Rice Burroughs went on to write twenty-four sequels featuring the adventures of his iconic Ape-Man, and today the character is part of our cultural background as the subject of many adaptations in film and comic strips. Interestingly, the famous line "I Tarzan. You Jane" doesn't even appear in the book. And yet it's become one of the most recognizable features of the character. The plot is well known; after his parents die in the jungle of Africa, young Tarzan is raised by a clan of apes, far from the rest of humanity. Though he eventually realizes he is not an ape, Tarzan lives by the jungle code and slowly vanquishes all the dangers of the jungle through his superior human reasoning and intelligence. When a treasure-hunting expedition lands on his secluded shore, Tarzan is drawn to the people of his own race, especially the young woman Jane Porter. But how can a king of the apes ever hope to win the love of a cultured English girl?I admit, I was very drawn into the story and I can see why it has been perennially popular. Burroughs' attempts to make animal life realistic yet intelligible to his readers are generally successful, and we want to see how Tarzan will meet the challenges of his life. At the same time, we are intensely interested in how Tarzan will cope with other humans. A couple criticisms, though: Burroughs is extremely ethnocentric, constantly pointing out Tarzan's mental, moral, intellectual, and physical superiority derived from his having descended from a line of English nobility. The natives don't fare well in this tale, as one might expect given that Burroughs writes from an evolutionary perspective. It's a product of its time, sure, but racism is still wrong. I was able to enjoy the story despite these elements, but they certainly caused me to roll my eyes more than once. I was also disappointed with the story itself. Everything was going well until Tarzan comes to Europe, learns polished manners, comes into money, etc. (all of which is very artificially constructed). Jane Porter's threatened marriage with the moneylender Robert Canler seems tacked on, and it's a little too convenient that she would be caught in a forest fire from which only Tarzan the Muscular can save her. And then her decision at the end! And Tarzan's pathetic acquiescence to it! I shut the book and felt profoundly cheated, even while trying to understand why Burroughs would do this. And yet at the same time I wanted to find the next sequel, Return of Tarzan, and find out what happens next. No wonder Burroughs was able to sell twenty-four more of Tarzan's adventures. There really is something addicting about this character. I enjoyed this story—it certainly kept me reading at a fast pace—and if I ever see any of Burroughs' Tarzan sequels, you can be sure I'll snap them up. But I'm not sure I'll ever revisit this book. It has a great character and initial setting that are sadly compromised by later plot contortions and Tarzan's annoyingly, unnecessarily "heroic" choice at the end.Edit: Never mind. I just read the plot summary of Return of Tarzan on Wikipedia and I think I have had enough of his pulp fiction adventures to last a lifetime. Oy vey.

[kassilem · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This was certainly not what I was expecting. I guess I didn't know what to expect but I had this weird idea that any book written before the 1990s would be very detail oriented. Silly me. This book is not detail oriented. It is very fast paced. I listened to it on audio book and I found that I had to make sure I wasn't disturbed at all because if I missed one sentence it could be the sentence that made a difference, that transitioned from one exciting scene to the next. It is also not very long: 3 hours on audio. At first I was worried that I wouldn't like the story because there didn't seem to be enough detail, enough meat on the bone, but it soon became clear that there just wasn't much time spent on Tarzan growing up. This could be because the book was written in the early 1990s and there wasn't much known about how Gorillas lived, but that is only my guess. I would have loved a more detailed account of this story but it has it's own simple charm. Now I want to go watch the Disney movie; and read the next book in this adventure series. There were a few parts that made me scoff a little, like Tarzan teaching himself to read with no prior knowledge of symbols or how letters connect to make words. That was very imaginative. And there were plenty of stereotypes to be found. But the book was written in 1912, so I can give it some leeway. Overall, I'm glad I read this book.

[joe73-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Following Clayton as he grows up in the wild is a treat. You cannot go wrong with Burroughs, His characters are awesome.

[jasonpettus · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

(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 so-called "classic" books, then write essays on whether or not they still deserve the labelBook #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 the 20th Century), Tarzan of the Apes is the story of one John Clayton, Viscount of Greystoke, actually born in the jungle on the western coast of Africa after his parents were marooned there by a mutinous ship crew, while they were passengers and bystanders on a long sea voyage. Ah, but it turns out that his parents both die while he's still a newborn, prompting a hasty "adoption" by a local ape named Kala and a childhood raised not as a human, but rather as the palest, weakest, least hairy ape of the entire region. The first half of this book, then, is an examination of tribal life itself, as "Tarzan" (his ape name) navigates the tricky politics and graphic violence of the animal society he finds himself in, even while slowly coming to realize during his puberty just how different he actually is. (See, he ends up stumbling across his parents' old jungle homestead while a teen, a surprisingly domestic setup because of the mutineers letting the Claytons unload all their worldly possessions before being abandoned; and thus does Tarzan end up just naturally learning how to read and write on his own, how to use a weapon and more, eventually using these things to bloodily conquer all his foes and become the famed "King of the Apes" we know today.)The plot's pace picks up again in the second half, though, after yet another wreck by a ship full of lily-white Europeans; and who should this party include but none other than the evil William Clayton, Tarzan's cousin, who's been using the usurped Greystoke fortune to bully into marriage our adventurous heroine Jane Porter, a Victorian with a wild streak who ends up enjoying their impromptu African adventure much more than the nerdy French scientists also along for the ride. Needless to say, Tarzan ends up saving their lives numerous times; has a chick-lit-esque wordless romantic night of vine-swinging with the clearly "Jungle Fever" infected Jane; and of course somehow manages to be the catalyst behind not only William's fall from grace but a surprise financial windfall for the Porter family, thus erasing the debt that was forcing Jane into a marriage of convenience with William to begin with. And thus does our "origin tale" end in the rural farmlands of Wisconsin (the rural farmlands of Wisconsin?), with the baddies punished and the goodies rewarded and with a now-civilized Tarzan ready for the two dozen official sequels that would soon follow.The argument for it being a classic:Even this book's fans admit that it's not the quality of the prose itself that makes this a classic, but rather its place in artistic history; for as most people know by now, Tarzan turned out to be an insanely loved character by the public at large, prompting one of the first-ever "character franchises" in the history of the entertainment industry. (In fact, Burroughs himself started one of the first artist-owned production companies in history as well, the still-existing "Edgar Rice Burroughs Inc.," which has overseen each and every one of the thousands of Tarzan books, movies, TV episodes, comics and more that has ever been made.) And besides, its fans say, even the writing itself isn't as bad as some make it out to be; sure, some of the later sequels get awfully cheesy and formulaic, but this first novel is surprisingly sophisticated for its time, deliberately avoiding many of the lazy racial stereotypes that defined this age and even offering up a refreshingly independent female lead too. Add up all of these things, its fans argue, along with the fantastic snapshot of its times that it provides (a look at an overextended British Empire first seriously questioning the ethics of colonization), and you have yourself a book that still easily deserves to be revisited by a whole new generation of readers.The argument against:Oh, and did I mention the CRAPPY, CRAPPY WRITING on display in Tarzan? Because that's certainly the first thing this book's critics will bring up, many of whom openly laugh at the entire concept of this being considered a "literary classic." That's like giving a Best Picture Oscar to a Will Smith movie, they argue, merely for it being the biggest moneymaker that year; just because Tarzan himself has become entwined into our entire popular culture, they say, doesn't make any of the actual projects better in quality than they were when they first came out, i.e. not very good at all. In fact, it could be argued that today's title perfectly illustrates the challenges inherent in defining what exactly the word "classic" even means, the issue that inspired this "CCLaP 100" essay series to begin with; that although this title is certainly historically important, it might be better at this point to actually study the "Tarzan Phenomenon" and its impact on culture than to read the literal books themselves. It's something that can be said these days of more and more popular old genre novels from the Victorian and Edwardian ages, and Tarzan they'd say is no exception.My verdict:So first, let's quickly admit that this book's critics are right about its quality, and that Burroughs' own attitude about his ouevre while alive profoundly supports this: turns out that the Chicago-born author never cared much about being a "good" writer at all, and only stumbled into the profession in the first place after a failed career in the US Cavalry (weak heart) and a decade of demeaning odd jobs in the Manifest-Destiny-era western territories. It was while mired in such circumstances that he was first introduced through a friend to the adventure serials of the pulp industry, at which point the non-writing Burroughs famously declared that if this was the kind of crap that sold pulps, he could do such stuff in his sleep and never have to be a day-laborer again; and that's exactly what he did, forging a 75-book "literary career" that for him was much more about simply paying the bills than about any artistic considerations. So is its overwhelming commercial success enough, then, to declare the book a "classic?" Certainly, for example, it almost single-handedly set the tone for the way Hollywood still works even to this day, not just from a "franchise-building" aspect but even in the way this genre-actioner's plotline is set up: there is the main "A" story of the title (Tarzan's struggles both in the wild and among "civilized society"); then a "B" romantic story featuring two good-looking airheads (in this case, Jane and the suave French sailor Paul D'Arnot -- note that the infamous "Me Tarzan, you Jane" love affair isn't explored in the original books until much later in the series); and then a humorous "C" story featuring a pair of bumbling nerds, existing for almost no other reason than to provide comic relief. This has been the basic framework of nearly every Hollywood action movie since, so much so that most of us take these tropes for granted by now; and we have the original Tarzan to thank for this, because of it just happening to be a runaway bestseller at the same exact moment in history that the nascent Hollywood was first starting to write the formulas and rules of its industry, the story conventions that thousands of lazy hacks have leaned on ever since.So what I'm arguing today, then (and it's rare that I argue this, so enjoy it), is that maybe this is enough to label Tarzan of the Apes a classic, and to encourage people to keep reading it to this day; not for the quality of the writing itself, but rather the overwhelmingly important role it played in the history of both the film industry and popular culture in general. The "summer blockbuster" wouldn't be nearly the thing it currently is if not for Tarzan; and given how important in our modern times the summer blockbuster is to the overall history of the American arts, this alone I feel makes the original slim novel still worth reading. And besides, what its fans say about the book's quality is true too, that ultimately it's not much worse than most of the other serialized genre-actioners that were churned out at the end of the Victorian Era (yes, Jules Verne, I'm looking at you), and in some ways is actually much better than typical; just to cite one excellent example, as mentioned Burroughs goes out of his way to avoid metaphorical comparisons between black people and the ape society on display here (a major point of many of the other eugenics-obsessed genre-actioners of the period), instead deliberately showing through the characters' actions that the shipwrecked white people and local black villagers possess exactly the same amount of intelligence, in both cases way above what even the smartest ape is capable of.Certainly no one is going to mistake this book for the Early Modernist masterpieces that were coming out at the same time; but maybe a book doesn't always have to be such a thing to be considered a classic, or to argue that people should still continue to read it to this day. Maybe sometimes it's simple competence combined with extraordinary historical significance that justifies such a label; like I said, it's not an argument I make often, but in the case of Tarzan of the Apes is one where I will. Although caution is advised, it's ultimately a title I recommend everyone checking out.Is it a classic? Yes

[sly_wit · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I bought this awhile back with the intention of listening to it for my Classic Boys Adventures book salon. It is narrated by B.J. Harrison who puts out the fabulous The Classic Tales podcast. I continue to be amazed at the lengthy set ups that are in these classic adventure stories and find myself wondering if kids today have the patience for them. Anyway, this wasn't quite what I expected, more of a Treasure Island shipwreck tale than Tarzan living in jungle, but enjoyable once you get over the extremely imperialist viewpoint. My only real complaint was that the ending felt rushed and left the reader completely hanging!

[tjsjohanna_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The best part of the Tarzan books is Tarzan. Who wouldn't love a man who could do anything? He's like a super hero. Disappointingly, Tarzan doesn't get the girl in this first novel. But I have hopes for the next!

[kale.dyer · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A very enjoyable adventure story though the colonial and class attitudes overwhelm the story at times.

[fallsgalloway · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

"Tarzan of the Apes" is a classic adventure novel written by Edgar Rice Burroughs and first published in 1914. The book introduces readers to one of the most iconic literary characters of all time: Tarzan. It tells the thrilling story of a young English nobleman, John Clayton, who is orphaned and left to fend for himself in the dense jungles of Africa.As Tarzan grows up in the wild, he is raised by a tribe of great apes, learning their ways and developing exceptional strength, agility, and survival skills. The narrative follows Tarzan's journey of self-discovery as he navigates the dangers of the jungle, encounters various animal species, and grapples with his own identity as a human living among animals.The book explores Tarzan's interactions with other characters, including the love interest Jane Porter, as well as villains such as the ruthless hunter Clayton. It weaves together themes of adventure, romance, and the clash between civilization and the primal instincts of the jungle.Burroughs' vivid descriptions transport readers to the untamed landscapes of Africa, immersing them in the sights, sounds, and dangers of the jungle. The author's dynamic storytelling and fast-paced action sequences keep readers engaged as they follow Tarzan's daring exploits and his quest for his true place in the world."Tarzan of the Apes" is not only a thrilling adventure tale but also a reflection on the nature of humanity, the allure of the wild, and the complexities of identity and belonging. It has captivated readers for over a century, spawning numerous adaptations in various forms of media and establishing Tarzan as a beloved and enduring literary figure.The novel's enduring popularity lies in its timeless themes, captivating storytelling, and the enduring appeal of a hero who possesses both the strength and nobility of a nobleman and the primal instincts and survival skills of the jungle. "Tarzan of the Apes" remains a classic work of adventure literature that continues to enthrall readers of all ages.

[admiralfinnegan · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

If you can get past the racism (and there's a lot, though I guess it could be worse?) then this is a pretty fun and exciting adventure novel. Tarzan is a badass and I found the ending to be surprisingly sad.

[kslade-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I read the first seven or so of this series back when I was starting Jr. High. I loved the adventure stories and especially his Golden Lion. I was always upset with the movies because Tarzan was not as cool as in the novels (he spoke French first before English !). I did not like the parts that mentioned evolution, because of my religious viewpoint, however. Also, he was very bloodthirsty with the other African tribes, but not with his own Waziri. I remember reading these in the summer sunshine behind our shed in Kaysville. Those were the days!

[jazz1987-395186 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Very good novel by Edgar Rice Burroughs and I was happy that it was nothing like any of the movies I saw. It made me wonder, however, why movies, like the animated one Disney did, made Jane Porter a Englishwoman when she is clearly from Baltimore, MD? I was surprised to see a little bit of racism in the novel but I was reminded it was written by a white man in 1914. However, it was a good American classic and makes you question weather or not if humans are mentally different from any other animal.

[savageknight_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

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 “it’s about time

Merged review:

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

[curious_squid · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I enjoyed this book a lot more than I thought I would. Really fun read.

[mainrun · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I enjoyed reading this early 1900's book. As expected, some of the material was not politically correct. The writer is skilled as it was not laugh at loud, even though a lot of it was ridiculous / absurd. The only complaint I had was with Jane Potter's father, Archimedes. His dialog and moments I think were supposed to be funny, but failed.1/13/2018; 3,526 members; 3.76 average rating

[bridgey_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Tarzan of the Apes - Edgar Rice Burrows ****I always knew Tarzan was based on a book, but I didn’t realize just how many were written, I always assumed it was just a one off publication and the films sort of took over. There were 24 original novels which spawned numerous other books after the death of the author.I think nearly everyone knows the story of the boy who is raised by jungle apes following the death of his family, how he rises to become their leader, falls in love with Jane and returns to civilization. But I wonder how many people have actually read the source material? Firstly I think most people may be shocked at the level of violence in the books, things aren’t all nice and the fight scenes are fairly graphic, especially when you consider this was written in 1912. Burroughs certainly wasn’t afraid to hold back and you really get a sense of adventure that can be missing from other books of this type. Of course, with the book being this old you have to view it from the times in which it was written and the outdated view of the world may cause an amount of offense in these times of often misplaced political correctness. If you are able to overlook these themes, swallow the numerous coincidences and unbelievable parts (in particular Tarzan teaching himself to write….) and what you will be left with is a book that is very readable and contains enough content to make probably 3 or 4 full length films. Expect everything that makes a jungle adventure special and different: wild animals, rough terrain, cannibals and desolation. It is easy to see how Tarzan captured the imagination of the times and has remained an iconic figure ever since and is still in print over a century later.I really did enjoy reading the book, but not enough that I think I will actively seek out the next in the series. If it falls into my lap then I may well have a look, but that’s about it. Well worth a read, just to see when the Legend of Greystoke originated.

[philsyphe · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

While I’m willing to suspend belief and read about Tarzan being brought up by apes, fitting into their culture, etc., I can’t suspend belief regarding his ability to teach himself to read English, or to learn to speak it – and French – in record-breaking time. Other aspects like this spoil what could’ve been a gripping adventure novel. It does have some engaging moments, notably Tarzan’s time spent with the apes, but it goes downhill once he grows ‘civilised’.This is one of several ‘classics’ that I’ve read after watching countless film and TV adaptations, thus beforehand I expected something wonderful, only to be disappointed.In short, it’s not a bad read, but the unbelievability brings it down.

[mirrani_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Why did it take me so long to pick up this classic? This is your typical little adventure from a time when adventure series were very popular. Nothing complicated here, just good fun in the classic way. People who have seen various movie versions might be disappointed in the book because it won't be what they expect, but movies never follow a book exactly and I think most of us are aware of that by now. I have to say in most cases I enjoyed this book much better than the theatrical equivalents.

[jhemlock-1711 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Following Clayton as he grows up in the wild is a treat. You cannot go wrong with Burroughs, His characters are awesome.

[jothebookgirl · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

John Clayton, Lord Greystoke, boards a ship for British West Africa with Alice, his bride. During their travels, the crew mutinies, but a kind sailor makes sure that the Englishman and his wife will not be killed, instead he abandons them in a wilderness harbor with all of their luggage and a few supplies. The site has a river mouth for water, and John and Alice gather and hunt to live after their supplies run out. Although not a tradesman, John builds and furnishes a log cabin with a clever door latch for protection against wild beasts. Their son is born there. A year later, Alice dies, and Clayton is killed by an ape, Kerchak.

Among the attacking apes is Kala, a female whose own baby has died. Finding the now-orphaned, hairless white baby, she takes it up as her own. After ten years, the puny and slow Tarzan—“white ape” in their tongue—begins to mature in both body and brain. Although he knows nothing of his connection with the cabin, he is fascinated by it. He discovers how to open the cabin latch,where he finds many books, including a brightly illustrated alphabet book. The “bugs” on the pages fascinate him, and in time he teaches himself to read them. I marveled at how the author described the wayTarzan taught himself to read. He also finds a sharp hunting knife and, when a huge gorilla attacks him, he accidentally discovers the knife’s usefulness. With it, he gains status as the tribe’s greatest hunter and fighter.
Later, a tribe of black Africans settles in the area, and Kala is killed by one of the tribe's hunters. Avenging himself on the killer, Tarzan begins an antagonistic relationship with the tribe, raiding its village for weapons and playing cruel pranks on them. They, in turn, regard him as an evil spirit.
Later, a new party of white travelers become marooned on the coast, including Jane Porter, the first white woman Tarzan has ever seen. Tarzan's cousin, Tarzan spies on the newcomers, aids them, and saves Jane from the dangers of the jungle. Eventually Tarzan learns how to behave among white men, as well as serving as his guide to the nearest colonial outposts. In the end, Tarzan travels to Jane's native Baltimore, Maryland only to find that she is now in the woods of Wisconsin. Tarzan finally meets Jane in Wisconsin where they renew their acquaintance and he learns the bitter news that she has become engaged to William Clayton. Meanwhile, clues from his parents' cabin have enabled D'Arnot to prove Tarzan's true identity. Instead of claiming his inheritance, Tarzan chooses rather to conceal and renounce his heritage for the sake of Jane's happiness.

[nx74defiant · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Was surprised how little I remembered this bookI agree with Gore Vidal in the introduction Burroughs writes great action.

[lydia1879 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

So I read this book, knowing it was a classic, but expecting that I'd like it and wouldn't absolutely love it, but I got really absorbed into the story.

It's a classic adventure story -- and the pace never really slowed down once it picked up. Of course, you should know that Edgar Rice Burroughs is racist to his core, and the 'African savages' presented in this novel are cringe-worthy and the way he writes them makes my skin crawl. Skip them, if you like, as I did, because they add very little most of the time.

I'm sick of people saying 'he was a man of his time' as if to excuse it? He was a man of his time, yes, and a racist one. (His writing of women is also problematic but I will get into that some other time - I will have to read another of his books and pick out examples because they can be quite subtle and subversive.)

One thing I will say is that Edgar Rice Burroughs had never actually been to Africa and imagined it very differently to how it truly was, and so you can rest-assured that the Africa he speaks of is one that does not exist.

... all of that aside, though. This was a really exciting story! It moved well, it read well, I remember quite a few of the lines, and I read it quite easily. The language was easy enough to follow, but it's not a children's story (unlike the Disney film).

I adored this story, but I'll have to give it three stars.

[brakketh-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A very enjoyable adventure story though the colonial and class attitudes overwhelm the story at times.

[ecataldi-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A surprisingly quick read! I found myself enjoying it more than I thought I would, and I feel that this would have been even more sensationally astounding at the beginning of the twentieth century. Tarzan is born on the coast of Africa to two loving English parents who have been dropped off ship by a mutinous crew. His parents die during his infancy and he is raised by Kala, a loving ape who just lost her own child. He is reared in ape fashion and lives as they do become "king of the jungle," when he stumbles upon his parents cabin he begins to teach himself to write in English from the books they left behind. When a ship arrives with a beautiful young girl he is enamoured and tries to woo her with actions and words since he cannot speak. Compelling, and exciting, this adventure story has something for everyone, even though the ending is a little lacking (this is the first in the series).

[threadnsong · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Well, it's Tarzan. He is of a noble family and therefore superior. I did not realize that lions lived in the jungle forests but perhaps they did in 1912. And while I realize it's a product of the age in which it's written, I could not stomach all of the references to blacks as being less intelligent and capable as the white explorers and treasure hunters.Still, it's a classic novel, the idea of a white man growing up in the jungles of Africa and raised by the great apes still strikes a chord among some young boys and even grown men, and this book remains at the forefront of imagination.The narrator, Shelly Frasier, does a very poor job in her reading. I have never heard an audiobook narrator who pops her p's" and "b's" (Professor Porter is a jarring name to hear, for example). While her overall reading voice is even and well-done, and her American accent is polished, the reading quality leaves something to be desired.

[bodagirl · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This was surprisingly entertaining, despite the less than politically correct portions. I might even read the next in the series because the cliff hanger was too good. Also, as a Disney-raised child, the difference between the current pop culture image of Tarzan and the original text shouldn't have been surprising, but I wasn't quite prepared for how Disney-ified our perception truly is.BookRiot Read Harder Challenge | Task 18: Read a book that was adapted into a movie, then watch the movie. Debate which is better. (Basically I wanted an excuse to see Alexander Skarsgård as Tarzan).

[sweetzombieducky · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Really enjoyed this. Full of action and romance. Particularly enjoyable was Tarzan's childhood.

[scribblingsprite · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Most people hate cliffhangers. I absolutely love them. I love the anticipation(and even slight frustration) they can make you feel.

But that was a devious, DEVIOUS ending. I guess I'm off to download book two...

Full review to come.