The Path of the King, with eBook, John Buchan
The Path of the King, with eBook, John Buchan
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The Path of the King, with eBook

Author: John Buchan

Narrator: John Bolen

Unabridged: 8 hr 21 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 06/15/2009

Categories: Fiction, Classic

Includes: Bonus Material Bonus Material Included


Synopsis

The Path of the King offers a tapestry of historical episodes, from the Vikings through centuries of Norman and French, Flemish, English, Scottish, and American social, economic, and political life. Famous events such as the massacre of St. Bartholomew's Eve, the adventures of Daniel Boone, and much else provide the background for the men and women who successively have the blood of kingliness in them, however diluted. The subtly linked individual stories are used to suggest that kingliness may be dormant or fitful over several generations but will eventually reappear in someone, like Abraham Lincoln.

All the leading characters are presented as descended from a young Viking prince whose death among the Franks as a defeated Northman is implied in the first episode. That princeling's golden torque is the symbol of his royal status, but it is remodeled as a ring, ultimately resurfacing in America only to be lost by young Abe Lincoln when he uses it to catch a fish in a "crick." But its loss is of no account, for when kingliness in fact reappears in Lincoln the man, there is no need for it.

About John Buchan

John Buchan was a Scottish diplomat, barrister, journalist, historian, poet, and novelist. During his lifetime, he produced one hundred works, including nearly thirty novels and seven collections of short stories. His personal experiences greatly influenced his war-themed novels. Alfred Hitchcock, who considered Buchan one of his favorite writers, adapted Buchan's thriller The Thirty-Nine Steps and Greenmantle into screenplays.

Buchan was born in 1875 in Peebles-Shire Scotland, the eldest son of Reverend John Buchan. He studied at the University of Glasgow in Scotland and Brasenose College in Oxford, England, where he won the prestigious Stanhope Essay Prize and Newdigate Prize. He started his writing career in the late 1890s and published his first novel, Sir Quixote of the Moors, in 1895. After a sojourn in South Africa, Buchan became a dedicated supporter of Britain's Imperial Government. In 1901, he became a barrister of the Middle Temple and a private secretary to the High Commissioner for South Africa. Two years later, Buchan started to work for the publisher Thomas Nelson and Sons, where he revitalized pocket editions of great literature.

In 1907, Buchan got married, and he and his wife had three sons and one daughter. During World War I, Buchan worked as a war correspondent before joining the army. He served on the Headquarters Staff of the British Army in France as a temporary lieutenant colonel. Later, he was appointed director of information and then director of intelligence. From 1927 to 1935, Buchan was the Conservative MP for the Scottish universities. He also served as Lord High Commissioner of the Church of Scotland. In 1935, after moving to Canada, Buchan was appointed the first Baron Tweedsmuir of Elsfield and served as governor general of Canada until his death in 1940.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Steve on October 25, 2014

Well done. I'd heard of Buchan years ago (39 Steps), but never came across a copy until recently. The author, an English nobleman, wrote this in 1921. It is a series of short vignettes tracing the descendants of a Viking king down to almost modern times. Forest Gump-style, each descendant has close r......more

Goodreads review by Caleb on March 24, 2022

Just a brief note: the 3 stars reflect my personal enjoyment moreso than the objective quality, which I think deserves much better. It's masterfully done but many portions didn't click with me, though some chapters (and the Big Idea) were indeed sublime.......more

Goodreads review by Glen Allen on November 11, 2018

Rich Can be a bit verbose in parts but by in large a good book on the effect of legacy. A nice way to spend a quiet autumn s beggining......more