Review: Surprisingly good, including an excellent Audible companion
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 03 30, 2014
King Solomon's Mines was a surprise to me -- I really enjoyed it.It helps to remember that this novel was the first of its kind; Henry Rider Haggard actually invented the “Lost World” genre.  So while King Solomon's Mines is dated in its glorification of big game hunting (eww) and general attitudes towards native cultures (although not, I would point out, towards individual natives), it’s still a rollicking good story.  What I did not expect from a novel written in 1885 was how funny it is in places.  As such, the protagonist/narrator, Alan Quartermaine, is the direct literary forebear of Indiana Jones.I also got the companion audiobook from Audible.com, and listened to most of it. It features WhisperSync, so you can listen or read, and pick up where you left off.  The narration by Simon Prebble is excellent.