When adventurer Bowen Tyler is taken aboard an enemy submarine, he never dreams that his voyage will end in a land where time itself is prisoner. But in the uncharted seas at the bottom of the world, Tyler and the crew of the U-33 discover the mysterious forgotten continent of Caspak, where the savage denizens of a thousand lost ages roam vast primeval jungles. Surrounded by dinosaurs and Bronze Age warriors, saber-toothed tigers and cunning beast-men, Bowen Tyler begins to unravel the incredible secret of Caspak—even as he battles to save the life of the woman he loves.
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"In Land Before Time, Burroughs concocts a fabulous microworld, located somewhere in the South Pacific, called Caspak. On this mountainous island live winged, humanlike creatures, dinosaurs, ferocious beasts of prey, Neanderthals, "wild ape-men," and monstrous reptiles; they terrorize each other, to say nothing of the mixed crew of World War I-era adventurers who inadvertently land on a Caspakian beach and fight their way across the island, dining on Plesiosaurus steaks and having a grand old time in the company of a jungle princess. The story streaks onward like a bullet toward its surprise ending, and it's pure fun all the way."
— Don (4 out of 5 stars)
“We may have liked Verne and Wells and Kipling, but we loved, we adored, we went quite mad with Mr. Burroughs.”
— Ray Bradbury“This young adult book is fun to listen to with the whole family…[Raymond Todd]…has fine timing for the drama that unrolls continually.”
— AudioFile" Very much in the same tone and subject matter as Burroughs' John Carter series, but not anywhere near as good. The world wasn't as amazing, the hero wasn't as heroic and this doesn't come anywhere near the love story between John Carter and Dejah Thoris. Still, it was fast and passable, but l'd skip it and read "A Princess of Mars" instead. "
— Sue, 1/29/2014" An adventurous read with a likeable main character, although the villains of the piece could be better explored. I'm not quite sure how well the idea of spontaneous evolution sits with me, but I'm also interested in reading more about it in the next book of the trilogy. "
— Lindsay, 1/28/2014" Started this as an audio book while traveling for work, finished on the Kindle. I enjoyed it, especially as an audio book. Great way to put in some miles. "
— Craig, 1/27/2014" A view of a novelist with an imagination worthy of the early authors of science fiction. Burroughs was a fascinating man and delved into several theories of Evolution. Ready for the second in the series. "
— Flosi, 1/25/2014" I picked up the short version of this one. It is still an adventure story worth reading again and again. I have always enjoyed ERB and always will. "
— Barbara, 1/25/2014" Enjoyable, cheezy, but rather simplistic. "
— John, 1/23/2014" Meh. After reading the lost world I can say this is just a spare time book written on the back of a cigarette packet. Good idea, couldn't be bothered to expand. "
— Jenny, 1/21/2014" At first I thought I had begun to read the wrong book as the first few chapters center around a U-boat. I was starting to think that I was in for a sea journey but then the crew arrives on the island. They encounter and survive exchanges with 'cavemen' and prehistoric creatures. Modern technology helps with this and I had to wonder if the author was making connections to 'manifest destiny'. The is also a love interest and overall a pretty cool read once put into the context of the time that it was written. "
— John, 1/16/2014" An unique adventure story from about 1918. "
— Keith, 1/11/2014" Got bored after reading the first of 3 books in this volume. The story isn't nearly involved enough for me. Very pulpy. "
— DavidO, 1/10/2014" Nice WWI era war and adventure story. "
— Greg, 1/8/2014" Nice WWI era war and adventure story. "
— Greg, 12/22/2013" This story bounced between action, weird and boring. "
— Bryan457, 12/3/2013" Listened to this on the road. It's a fun adventure story with lots of parallels to others. I'm not well versed in this type of literature so I can't say whether it ground breaking or derivative, but it's not unique now. Still: enjoyable. "
— Dianna, 11/17/2013" Really cool and totally outrageous in the plot content. Perfect SciFi. "
— Trippp, 11/5/2013" I love a good adventure and this book is full of them. I liked getting the story from three different characters and finding out what was happening in different places at the same time. "
— Kelsey, 10/21/2013" I'm not sure I know what to say after surviving reading this thing - it kept me involved but morbidly so I think. I'm not convinced I'm better for having read it. "
— Craig, 10/9/2013" A view of a novelist with an imagination worthy of the early authors of science fiction. Burroughs was a fascinating man and delved into several theories of Evolution. Ready for the second in the series. "
— Flosi, 10/3/2013" Gaaah!! This is why I read Burroughs. Cheesy, straightforward, gutsy pulp. It feels like he superglued two stories together -- the adventure with a hijacked U-Boat and an adventure in a lost world island of dinosaurs. But I don't care! I love them both! Obvious, predictable and deeply satisfying. "
— Thomas, 9/5/2013" Some of my fondest memories as a youth are those I spent reading Edgar Rice Burroughs. This was the first book of his I read. I think I went on to read his entire collection. "
— David, 8/11/2013" Enjoyable, cheezy, but rather simplistic. "
— John, 7/28/2013" A bit hokey, but he is obviously the inspiration for novels like "Jurassic Park" and such. "
— Colette, 7/17/2013" Gaaah!! This is why I read Burroughs. Cheesy, straightforward, gutsy pulp. It feels like he superglued two stories together -- the adventure with a hijacked U-Boat and an adventure in a lost world island of dinosaurs. But I don't care! I love them both! Obvious, predictable and deeply satisfying. "
— Thomas, 6/26/2013" A little too over-the-top. But like the Barsoom series, I can't come to comprehend why Ray Harryhausen missed an opportunity to make a film out of this story. "
— Marcus, 6/16/2013" I have an older edition of this but it's a great story. "
— Charles, 5/29/2013" I was intrigued by this book because I saw the movie (not the 2009 remake) as a kid. Really fun read. "
— Gus, 3/31/2013" I'm not sure I know what to say after surviving reading this thing - it kept me involved but morbidly so I think. I'm not convinced I'm better for having read it. "
— Craig, 3/30/2013" I enjoy the books of this author and this one was no exception. He makes you feel like you are there. Plenty of action to hold your interest. "
— Crystal, 3/12/2013" My only complaint is that this book is too short. "
— John, 11/12/2012" This story bounced between action, weird and boring. "
— Bryan457, 7/19/2012" It's been I long time since I last read this but I still love this style of adventure stories. Probaly not politicaly correct for some people but you have to remember that you're reading history. "
— James, 10/2/2011" Exciting jungle adventure! A thrill ride from start to finish! Lost cities! Beautiful damsels in distreass! Villans and monsters that need killing!Jurassic Park ain't got nothing on this! "
— Frank, 1/30/2011" This book was ok. It was interesting but with an evolution twist to it. "
— Amber, 6/13/2010" Not really my cup of tea. For one thing the romance was completely superficial and annoyed the heck out of me. However, I can see why Burroughs was such a popular adventure writer and why this is considered a classic. "
— Jen, 6/11/2008" Great adventure story, real imagination. "
— Mary, 11/26/2007" It's a romp, certainly, but ERB is also very much a product of his time. If you are easily offended by offhand racism this is not the book for you! "
— Jaq, 6/12/2006" Pulpy fun but with some wonderfully bizarre ideas as well. A must for fans of lost word tales. Published in 1918. "
— Dfordoom, 12/17/2005" All three books in this series are good. "
— Jim, 6/25/2005" Really cool and totally outrageous in the plot content. Perfect SciFi. "
— Trippp, 9/30/2004Edgar Rice Burroughs (1875–1950), born in Chicago, was educated at Michigan Military Academy and served briefly in the US Cavalry. He began writing while working as a pencil-sharpener salesman, publishing his first piece in 1912 to great success. He authored numerous science fiction and fantasy series but is most famous for his Tarzan books; the suburb of Los Angeles where he lived eventually became known as Tarzana.
Raymond Todd is an actor and director in the theater as well as a poet and documentary filmmaker. He plays jazz trombone for the Leatherstocking quartet, an ensemble that gets its name from one of his favorite Blackstone narrations, The Deerslayer. Todd lives in New York.