Scaramouche (Common Reader Editions)(美人如玉剑如虹)

"He was born with a gift of laughter and a sense that the worldwas mad." Thanks to that famous opening sentence the swaggeringhero of Scaramouche bounds onto the book's centerstage with consid-erable panache. And for hardly a moment thereafter does/Uldr&LouisMoreau lose his charismatic cool, displaying at ahnost every turn inthe tumultuous conrse of his picaresque adventures the verve, the wit,the intellectual and physical adroitness, and the instant mastery of cir-cumstance that are his birthright. Given the time and place, it isindeed an invaluable patrimony, for though when we meet him AndreLouis is a yonng lawyer in a quiet French counuT town, France atlarge is on the brink of revolution, the nation's masses rising up against the entrenched tyrannies of the privileged. Quickly the era's whirlwind sweeps our hero away on a protean progress: transforming himself as occasion dictates, Andre-Louis becomes for example, "Onnles Omnibus," incendiarv orator of the people's cause; later, he's plain "Andre Louis," master of a fencing academy and death-dealing artist of the sword; and in between he's "Scarainouche" himself, actor with--and brilliant scenarist for--a troupe of traveling players. With-all these colorful set-pieces playing against a backdrop of high historical drama, it's no wonder so many of Rafael Sabatini's readers through the years have judged this the best of his novels.

Book Description
When a young cleric is wrongfully killed, his friend, Andre Louis, vows to avenge his death. Louis' mission takes him to the very heart of the French Revolution where he finds the only way to survive is to assume a new identity. And so is born Scaramouche - a brave and remarkable hero of the finest order and a classic and much-loved tale of the greatest swashbuckling tradition. "REVIEW: 'Mr Sabatini's novel of the French Revolution has all the colour and lively incident which we expect in his work' (Observer) "REVIEW: 'One wonders if there is another storyteller so adroit at filling his pages with intrigue and counter-intrigue, with danger threaded with romance, with a background of lavish colour, of silks and velvets, of swords and jewels' (Daily Telegraph) AUTHBIO: Italian-born Rafael Sabatini ranks among the likes of Robert Louis Stevenson and Alexander Dumas for his tales of high adventure, swashbuckling antics and valiant heroes. He is perhaps best loved for Scaramouche, Captain Blood and The Sea Hawk, all of which have been adapted into hugely-successful films.

Publisher Comments :
"He was born with a gift of laughter and a sense that the world was mad." Thanks to that famous opening sentence the swaggering hero of "Scaramouche" bounds onto the book's center-stage with considerable panache. And for hardly a moment thereafter does André-Louis Moreau lose his charismatic cool, displaying at almost every turn in the tumultuous course of his picaresque adventures the verve, the wit, the intellectual and physical adroitness, and the instant mastery of circumstance that are his birthright. Thrust by chance into the turbulent politics of the time, his successive endeavors as a lawyer, politician, actor, lover, and buffoon make for corking entertainment. With colorful set-pieces playing against a backdrop of high historical drama, "Scaramouche" is considered by many to be Sabatini's best work.

From Publishers Weekly
Delightfully courtly, flowery but not dated, Sabatini's period romances--Scaramouche unfolds over the years leading up to the French Revolution--were deservedly popular when originally published, during the 20s and 30s.

About Author
Rafael Sabatini (1875-1950), of Italian and English parentage, was a prolific and best-selling author. He wrote in English, his adopted language.

Book Dimension:
length: (cm)22.7 　　　 　　　　　 　 width:(cm)14.1

Book Ⅰ THE ROBE
Ⅰ. The Republican
Ⅱ. The Aristocrat
Ⅲ. The Eloquence of M. de Vilmorin
Ⅳ. The Heritage
Ⅵ. The Lord of Gavrillac
Ⅶ. The Windmill
Ⅷ. The Wind
Ⅸ. Omnes Omnibus
Ⅹ. The Aftermath
Book Ⅱ THE BUSKIN
Ⅰ. The Trespassers
Ⅱ. The Servoce of Thespis
Ⅲ. The Comic Muse
Ⅳ. Exit Monsieur Parvissimus
Ⅴ. Enter Scaramouche
Ⅵ. Climene
Ⅶ. The Conquest of Nantes
Ⅷ. The Dream
Ⅸ. The Awakening
Ⅺ. Contrition
Ⅻ. The Fracas at the Theatre Feydau
Book Ⅲ THE SWORD
Ⅰ. Transition
Ⅱ. Quos Deus Vult Perdere
Ⅲ. President Le Chapelier
Ⅳ. At Meudon
Ⅴ. Madame de Plougastel
Ⅵ. Politicians
Ⅶ. The Spadassinicides
Ⅷ. The Paladin of the Third
Ⅸ. Torn Pride
Ⅹ. The Returning Carriage
Ⅺ. Ⅰnferences
Ⅻ. The Overwhelming Reason
ⅩⅢ. Sanctuary
ⅩⅣ. The Barrier
ⅩⅤ. Safe-Conduct
ⅩⅥ. Sunrise