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"Here, from the father of spy fiction, is the grand adventure of Richard Hannay, master spy, in a single volume: The 39 Steps, Greenmantle, Mr. Standfast, and The Three Hostages. ""John Buchan is the father of the modern spy thriller,"" Robin Winks writes in his Introduction, ""This is so even though the Hannay books are not, strictly speaking, about spies at all . . . They are about lonely escape and wild journeys, about the thin veneer that stands between civilization and barbarism even in the most elegant drawing-room in London."" We know the Buchan formula well, although few may remember it was he who set the mold: take an apparently ordinary man, and let him be drawn into a mystery he only vaguely understands; give him a task to perform, and set obstacles in his path; see that he cannot turn to established authority, see that he cannot be certain who he can trust -- and then, set the clock ticking. . ."

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9780879238711

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John Buchan was a Scottish writer, politician, and diplomat. He published his first stories and poems before graduating from Oxford. His first adventure novel, Prester John, was drawn from British colonial experiences in South Africa. In 1935, the same year his classic The Thirty-Nine Steps was adapted for film by Alfred Hitchcock, Buchan was appointed Governor General of Canada. He died five years later, leaving behind over one hundred published books, including novels, poetry and short story collections, and biographies. Robin W. Winks was a distinguished professor of history, an advocate for America's national parks, and a discerning critic of mystery fiction worldwide.

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