Books with author George Makepeace Towle

This edition is presented complete and unabridged, with larger text for easier reading by younger readers, and all the original illustrations and decorations.“I have attempted to transform the somewhat dry and monotonous translation of this narrative into an entertaining story, that may engage the attention and the interest of my young readers; for which it certainly presents ample opportunities. If the task is properly done, no one can fail to follow Marco Polo from his Venetian home, across the entire continent of Asia to the court of Kublai Khan, and in his various adventures and journeys while in the far-off Orient, without eager curiosity and ever-deepening interest. The central figure of the story is heroic, for Marco Polo was in all things manly, brave, persevering, intelligent, and chivalrous; and the scenes and incidents in which he was the leading actor were in the highest degree thrilling and dramatic.”-From the Preface by the Author.

In 1271, at the age of seventeen, Marco Polo, his father, and his uncle, set off from Venice for Asia.After twenty-four years, travelling over fifteen thousand miles in far and distant lands, they returned home.Marco Polo was certainly not the first European to make the journey to the Far East, indeed his father and uncle had already made the journey when he was just a young boy, and they would certainly not be the last, yet what made Marco Polo’s journey so remarkable was the fact that it was written down.Through a cruel twist of fate Polo was imprisoned by the Genoese after he had returned to Italy, but during this incarceration he retold his life of adventure to fellow inmate, Rustichello da Pisa, who recorded the story which became known across Europe as The Travels of Marco Polo.This work, which brought the enthralling world of the East to life, has fascinated readers for centuries.George Makepeace Towle’s biography of Marco Polo brings this story to readers of the twenty-first century. It is a brilliant work that uncovers what life was like for this young Italian trader as he explored the Middle East and China during a period when much of this world was under control of the Mongols.George Makepeace Towle was an American author who also worked as a lawyer and politician. He wrote a number of historical works, including a biography of Henry V and a history of France, but he was most famous for translating Around the World in Eighty Days by Jules Verne into English. His book Marco Polo: His Travels and Adventures was first published in 1880 and Towle passed away in 1893.

In 1271, at the age of seventeen, Marco Polo, his father, and his uncle, set off from Venice for Asia.After twenty-four years, travelling over fifteen thousand miles in far and distant lands, they returned home.Marco Polo was certainly not the first European to make the journey to the Far East, indeed his father and uncle had already made the journey when he was just a young boy, and they would certainly not be the last, yet what made Marco Polo’s journey so remarkable was the fact that it was written down.Through a cruel twist of fate Polo was imprisoned by the Genoese after he had returned to Italy, but during this incarceration he retold his life of adventure to fellow inmate, Rustichello da Pisa, who recorded the story which became known across Europe as The Travels of Marco Polo.This work, which brought the enthralling world of the East to life, has fascinated readers for centuries.George Makepeace Towle’s biography of Marco Polo brings this story to readers of the twenty-first century. It is a brilliant work that uncovers what life was like for this young Italian trader as he explored the Middle East and China during a period when much of this world was under control of the Mongols.George Makepeace Towle was an American author who also worked as a lawyer and politician. He wrote a number of historical works, including a biography of Henry V and a history of France, but he was most famous for translating Around the World in Eighty Days by Jules Verne into English. His book Marco Polo: His Travels and Adventures was first published in 1880 and Towle passed away in 1893.

Excerpt from Marco Polo: His Travels and AdventuresNor did his career of valor and stirring action end with his return, middle-aged and laden with riches, to his native Venice. He engaged in the bitter warfare between the two rival republics of the sea, Venice and Genoa; became a prisoner of the latter state and while in prison, dictated the wondrous narrative of his adventures which still survives, a precious legacy left by this great traveller to later generations.About the PublisherForgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.comThis book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

“Anything one man can imagine, other men can make real.”― Jules Verne, Around the World in Eighty Days.Phileas Fogg of London and his newly employed French valet Passepartout attempt to circumnavigate the world in 80 days on a £20,000 wager (roughly $3m today) set by his friends at the Reform Club. Breaking the well-established routine of his daily life, the reserved Englishman immediately sets off for Dover, accompanied by his hot-blooded manservant. Traveling by train, steamship, sailboat, sledge, and even elephant, they must overcome storms, kidnappings, natural disasters, Sioux attacks, and the dogged Inspector Fix of Scotland Yard -- who believes that Fogg has robbed the Bank of England -- to win the extraordinary wager.Around the World in Eighty Days gripped audiences on its publication and remains hugely popular, combining exploration, adventure, and a thrilling race against time.This new edition of Verne's classic from Enhanced Media includes a Jules Verne image gallery.

First published in 1873, “Around the World in Eighty Days” is a classic tale of adventure by French author Jules Verne, which tells the story of eccentric English inventor Phileas Fogg and his newly employed French valet Passepartout as they set out to circumnavigate the globe in eighty days. When Fogg gets into an argument at the Reform Club over an article in “The Daily Telegraph,” which posits that the building of a new railway section in India may now make it possible to circle the earth in eighty days, he hastily accepts a wager with his fellow club members to attempt the feat. In a mad dash he hurries off at once, with Passepartout, in a voyage around the world. Encountering many obstacles and misadventures along the way the two must make numerous accommodations when things do not go as planned. Matters are further complicated by the pursuit of a Scotland Yard detective named Fix, who mistakenly believes Fogg to be a bank robber on the run. “Around the World in Eighty Days,” is a classic work of genuine creativity and sheer delight that continues to amuse audiences until this day. This edition follows the translation of George Makepeace Towle.

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This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1892 edition. Excerpt: ... learned, were the public baths. Of these he was told there were no less than four thousand in the city, in each of which a hundred people could bathe at once; and now Marco was at no loss to account for the very neat appearance that all the natives made. Marco had the curiosity, one day soon after reaching Kinsai, to go into one of these large bathhouses. He found a wide square pool of clear, cold water in the centre, with broad flights of stone steps leading down into it; and there was a crowd of forty or fifty men, women and children, of all ages and sizes, with only a cloth band about their waists, floundering about in the water, and evidently much enjoying themselves. In the very centre of the city Marco found the royal palace, which had been occupied by the ancient kings of the country before it was conquered by Kublai Khan. It was scarcely less magnificent than Kublai's palace itself. Like the latter, it was surrounded by vast, high walls; and between these walls were orchards, lawns, parks, sparkling fountains, glossy little lakes, and artifical hillocks thickly planted with rare trees and shrubs. The great hall of the palace was decorated in gold and azure, and covered with pictures of beasts, birds, knights, beautiful women, and enchanting landscapes. Other buildings stood around the palace, and in all, Marco was told, there was ample room to seat ten thousand men at table. In the palace were no less than one thousand bed chambers. Not far from this right royal edifice was a high mound, on which was placed a large wooden table; and upon this, when there was a fire in any part of the city, a man struck heavy blows with a hammer, which resounded sharply to a considerable distance. In another part of the city was a large stone tower,...

The reader is carried back, in the present volume, to a period two centuries previous to the discovery of the route to India by Vasco da Gama, and to the conquest of Peru by Pizarro. A young Venetian of the thirteenth century, brought up amid luxury and wealth, of a bold spirit and a curious mind, went forth from his home in the beautiful Queen City of the Adriatic, and for many years lived among a far-off Asiatic people, and at a court of barbaric and yet splendid pomp.He made many far and dangerous journeyings in the wild distant lands and among the fierce tribes of Cathay, Thibet, India, and Abyssinia. His life was passed amid an almost incessant succession of exciting events, of strange adventures, and of hair-breadth escapes. He rose to high distinction and power at the Tartar court of the mighty Kublai Khan, one of the most famous conquerors and potentates who ever, in either ancient or modern times, have led legions to devastating wars, or have ruled teeming millions with despotic sway.Nor did his career of valor and stirring action end with his return, middle-aged and laden with riches, to his native Venice. He engaged in the bitter warfare between the two rival republics of the sea, Venice and Genoa; became a prisoner of the latter state: and while in prison, dictated the wondrous narrative of his adventures which still survives, a precious legacy left by this great traveller to later generations.I have attempted to transform the somewhat dry and monotonous translation of this narrative into an entertaining story, that may engage the attention and the interest of my young readers; for which it certainly presents ample opportunities. If the task is properly done, no one can fail to follow Marco Polo from his Venetian home, across the entire continent of Asia to the court of Kublai Khan, and in his various adventures and journeys while in the far-off Orient, without eager curiosity and ever-deepening interest. The central figure of the story is heroic, for Marco Polo was in all things manly, brave, persevering, intelligent, and chivalrous; and the scenes and incidents in which he was the leading actor were in the highest degree thrilling and dramatic.