Books like The Land That Time Forgot Collection

This is the Omnibus Version of Edgar Rice Burrough's (ERB) Caspakian Novels. Included here are:The Land That Time ForgotThe People That Time ForgotOut of Time's AbyssThese are three novels of adventure told in a classic style similar to that of Jack London, Arthur Conan Doyle and H.G. Wells. This is a style of early in the last century and more like the century before it. It's a story that is narrated to us, rather than painted so that we can experience it. And it's full of adventure, love, courage, wickendess, danger, and...dinosaurs! The tale:Set in the early stages of World War One, The Great War, where German U-boats terrorize the seas our hero Bowen Tyler, who happens to be a ship-builder's son and an expert in avionics, gets his transport torpedoed out from under him while on his way to join the war effort as part of an Ambulance Corps. With him is his trusty Airdale, trained in search and rescue, Hobbs (and Hobbs is so COOL! too...but I digress...parenthetically). After plunging into the frigid North Atlantic, Bowen manages to pull himself onto a boat and in a very, reverse Titanic (the movie) moment, snatches the slight, rich and very pretty Lysse from the jaws of death. The pair is rescued by a British Flagged Ocean Going Tugboat which is then set upon by the same dastardly German Submarine. From there, we are treated to fun plot that involves espionage deciet, combat, as Tyler and the Tug's crew battle the submarine, take it over then thanks to some trickery, find themselves hopelessly lost in the southern most reaches of the globe. In a desparate attempt to find food, water and oil (for the desiels) they traverse a trick half submerged cavern and find themselves in a lost world of wonder, where the normal rules of evolution, birth, rebirth and life no longer seem to hold sway. A land where dinosaurs and other beasts roam thick jungles and native tribes of pre-historic and bronze age humans struggle to stay alive long enough to advance to the next level of human hiearchy. Treachery, danger, love it's all in the air. The Second book takes up where the first leaves off with Tom Billings, Bowen's long time friend who gets his hands on Tyler's Journal in a bottle and sets out to find him. He's just like Bowen and sets off to find his long lost buddy...yes, this is what Bromance can do to you. Along the way he meets a beautiful Native girl, a savage and a barbarian and romance ensues. Billings has to overcome his own predjudice and misguided beliefs while battling the savage tribesmen and, he's still looking for Tyler. The Third book, my favorite, features a roughneck British Seaman from Book one, who set out on an exploratory mission from the fort that Tyler and sub/tug crew built. Along the way he was set upon by winged demons...well that's what some of them thought,anyway...and even when just hoping to find some fish and chips and petrol to get the sub back to a neutral port had an adventure find him and sweep him away... again, there's love in the air. All three stories are linked by Caspak and take us on three different adventures in this marvelous, creative fantasy world dreamed up by Burroughs. In the narrative tradition that books of the era had been written in, the focus is on the three major characters, Bowen, Bradley, and Tom, with a strong supporting role for their lady loves. It could be argued that Burroughts likely took those parts of pulp fiction books that he liked and re-invented them in his own vision for this. There are parts of "The Lost World" By Doyle, similar "love stories" as found in Jack London's "Star Rover" and, even simalarities to his first Novel-series Barsoom (Mars). Yet, as told here it's all remarkably new and different. ERB likely had no intention of writing a Socially conscious tale like the Green-story in Jules Verne's 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, nor is it likely he tried to write a phlisophically conscious story like Jack London's "To Build a Fire" and "Star Rover". In fact, he probably just wrote it as he "felt it" with what he believed was a practical mind applying practical thinking to a fantastic situation (full of wonderful adventure). Yet, planned or not, within the folds is a story of hope for tolerance and a lesson that what makes us different as Human-beings is only flesh and bone, and skin, while what makes us Human's the same is far more spiritual in nature and more important. It's the story of the white man and the Native American Indian where two of his brawny new-worlders forget fall in love with Caspakian Princesses... savages. It's a story of class vs. class a barroness and a simple american cowboy (if a rich one). And through it, the fantastic river where evolution is disected before our eyes and, at the heart of it we find that all Human's are the same inside, even if we were hatched from an egg. Yet, a man who had as practical an outlook on life, who lived as a cowboy, and an Indian fighter, struggled with Eastern Schools and notions of propper behavior and a love of the outdoors likley did not think of all those things. He just day dreamed then wrote the dreams down... and what wonderfully fun dreams they were.These stories are full of adventure, and excitement, love and treachery, courage and cowardice. There is some violence but anyone age could enjoy these stories. Certainly Young Adults and old curmudeons who still have a little boy hiding somewhere in their hearts.