Action & Adventure Stories

If pirates, jousting and horseback chases no longer appeal to you, you're too old or too boring. Adventure stories fell out of vogue among 20th century literary types who thought serious fiction had to be boring and depressing, but to those born with fire in their bones, adventure stories are deeply serious.

Not serious like existentialism or keeping a stiff upper lip, but serious like Robin Hood—devoted to protecting the downtrodden, committed to Maid Marian, sworn to fight injustice as long as a soul is in his body, always laughing and ready for a fight or a feast.

G. K. Chesterton wrote adventure stories because they best expressed the eternal joy that supported his generous frame. For those raised on Modern Adventure Stories, joy may seem an inappropriate word for an increasingly dark genre, but the fault lies with those who think adventures are forays into evil rather than romps with Gilbert Keith.

There's nothing evil about a good adventure. There may be bad guys (there ought to be), but if the Good Guy does his job there'll be more of his exploits to talk about than theirs. Because, should he be doing his job, the Hero will be sword-fighting, being clever, wooing, chasing and laughing to the detriment of his enemies on every page.

Average people don't have the adventures Heroes in Books have—they have the adventures of Modern Men in Books. But the way through the prosaic troubles of life isn't to immerse yourself in them, it's to let the Good Guys show The Way Out of Problems, and do your best to imitate them when you meet the less dramatic, but no less real, dangers of everyday existence.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he's a husband and father who loves church, good food, and weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur. Read more of his reviews here.
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Action & Adventure Stories
53 Items found Print
Active Filters: Library Binding
Adventures of Robin Hood
Everyman's Library Children's Classics
by Roger Green, illustrated by Walter Crane
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 5th-9th grade
$20.00
Adventures of Robin Hood
by E. Charles Vivian, illustrated by Jules Gotlieb
from Airmont Publishing Company, Inc.
for 4th-8th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Blue Lights
by R. M. Ballantyne
from Vision Forum
Action/Adventure for 5th-9th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Bobbsey Twins #70
Bobbsey Twins #70
by Laura Lee Hope
from Grosset & Dunlap
for 1st-4th grade
in Bobbsey Twins (Location: VIN-SER)
Caddie Woodlawn
by Carol Ryrie Brink, illustrated by Kate Seredy
1st edition, from Macmillan
Realistic Family Fiction for 3rd-7th grade
1936 Newbery Medal winner
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Cannibal Islands
by R. M. Ballantyne
from Vision Forum
in R. M. Ballantyne Books (Location: FIC-HIF)
Captain Bayley's Heir
by G. A. Henty
from Preston Speed
Historical Fiction for 6th-10th grade
in G. A. Henty Books (Location: FIC-HEN)
Captain Bayley's Heir
by G. A. Henty
from Robinson Curriculum
Historical Fiction for 6th-10th grade
in G. A. Henty Books (Location: FIC-HEN)
Chokra and Tags
by John Michael
from Macmillan
for 6th-9th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Chronicles of Narnia - Deluxe Hardcover Boxed Set
by C. S. Lewis
from HarperCollins
Allegorical Fantasy for 3rd-9th grade
in Boxed Sets & Literature Packages (Location: FIC-BOX)
$139.63
Coral Island
by R. M. Ballantyne
from Vision Forum
Action/Adventure for 5th-9th grade
in R. M. Ballantyne Books (Location: FIC-HIF)
Cornet of Horse
by G. A. Henty
from Preston Speed
Historical Fiction for 6th-10th grade
in G. A. Henty Books (Location: FIC-HEN)
Cornet of Horse
by G. A. Henty
from Robinson Curriculum
Historical Fiction for 6th-10th grade
in G. A. Henty Books (Location: FIC-HEN)
Danny Dunn and the Heat Ray
by Jay Williams & Raymond Abrashkin, Illustrated by Owen Kampen
from McGraw-Hill
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Danny Dunn and the Homework Machine
by Jay Williams & Raymond Abrashkin, Illustrated by Ezra Jack Keats
from McGraw-Hill
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$12.00 (2 in stock)
Danny Dunn and the Universal Glue
by Jay Williams & Raymond Abrashkin, Illustrated by Paul Sagsoorian
from McGraw-Hill
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$15.00 (1 in stock)
Danny Dunn on a Desert Island
by Jay Williams & Raymond Abrashkin, Illustrated by Ezra Jack Keats
1971 printing from McGraw-Hill
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$25.00 (1 in stock)
Deep Down
by R. M. Ballantyne
from Vision Forum
Action/Adventure for 5th-9th grade
in R. M. Ballantyne Books (Location: FIC-HIF)
Dog Crusoe
by R. M. Ballantyne
from Vision Forum
in R. M. Ballantyne Books (Location: FIC-HIF)
Fighting the Flames
by R. M. Ballantyne
from Vision Forum
in R. M. Ballantyne Books (Location: FIC-HIF)
Gascoyne, The Sandal-Wood Trader
by R. M. Ballantyne
from Vision Forum
in R. M. Ballantyne Books (Location: FIC-HIF)
Giant of the North
by R. M. Ballantyne
from Vision Forum
Action/Adventure for 5th-9th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Gorilla Hunters
by R. M. Ballantyne
from Vision Forum
Action/Adventure for 5th-9th grade
in R. M. Ballantyne Books (Location: FIC-HIF)
Great Deeds of Superheroes
by Maurice Saxby, Robert Ingpen
from Peter Bedrick Books
for 4th-9th grade
Hans Brinker
by Mary Mapes Dodge, illustrated by Fritz Kredel
from Grosset & Dunlap
for 4th-9th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Hans Brinker
Windermere Readers #7
by Mary Mapes Dodge, illustrated by Milo Winter
1954 Edition, 2nd printing from Rand McNally
for 4th-9th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Hans Brinker
Windermere Series 4
by Mary Mapes Dodge, illustrated by Milo Winter
1954 Edition, 2nd printing from Rand McNally
for 4th-9th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Hunted and Harried
by R. M. Ballantyne
from Vision Forum
Action/Adventure for 5th-9th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Island Queen
by R. M. Ballantyne
from Vision Forum
in R. M. Ballantyne Books (Location: FIC-HIF)
Kidnapped
Everyman's Library Children's Classics
by Robert Louis Stevenson
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
Action/Adventure for 4th-8th grade
King Arthur and His Knights of the Round Table
Everyman's Library Children's Classics
by Roger Green
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 7th-10th grade
$22.00
Landslide!
by Veronique Day; illustrated by Margot Tomes, translated by Margaret Morgan
from Hale-Cadmus
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Lonely Island
by R. M. Ballantyne
from Vision Forum
in R. M. Ballantyne Books (Location: FIC-HIF)
Martin Rattler
by R. M. Ballantyne
from Vision Forum
Action/Adventure for 5th-9th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Mystery House
by Polly Hobson, illustrated by Judith Ann Lawrence
from Hale-Cadmus
for 4th-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Norsemen in the West
by R. M. Ballantyne
from Vision Forum
in R. M. Ballantyne Books (Location: FIC-HIF)
Peter Pan
Everyman's Library Children's Classics
by J. M. Barrie, illustrated by F. D. Bedford
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
Fantasy for 4th-8th grade
$15.95
Pioneers, The
by R. M. Ballantyne
from Vision Forum
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Pirate City
by R. M. Ballantyne
from Vision Forum
Action/Adventure for 5th-9th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Post Haste
by R. M. Ballantyne
from Vision Forum
in R. M. Ballantyne Books (Location: FIC-HIF)
Red Rooney
by R. M. Ballantyne
from Vision Forum
Action/Adventure for 5th-9th grade
in R. M. Ballantyne Books (Location: FIC-HIF)
Rescue Dog of the High Pass
by Jim Kjelgaard; illustrated by Edward Shenton
from E.M. Hale and Company
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Robinson Crusoe (abridged)
Everyman's Library Children's Classics
by Daniel Defoe
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
Historical Fiction for 6th-12th grade
$16.95 $10.00 (1 in stock)
Stories for Fun and Adventure
by Phyllis Fenner and Mary McCrea (selected and introduced by)
from Hale-Cadmus
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Anthology Collections (Location: VIN-ANTH)
Swiss Family Robinson
Windermere Readers #9
by Johann Wyss, frontispiece by Milo Winter
1954 Edition from Rand McNally
for 5th-9th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$10.00 (2 in stock)
Swiss Family Robinson
Windermere Series 1
by Johann Wyss, translated by W.H.G. Kingston, and illustrated by T.H. Robinson, Milo Winter, and Louis Rhead
from Rand McNally
for 5th-9th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Swiss Family Robinson
Windermere Series 2
by Johann Wyss, translated by W.H.G. Kingston, and illustrated by T.H. Robinson, Milo Winter, and Louis Rhead
1921 Printing from Rand McNally
for 5th-9th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Swiss Family Robinson
Windermere Series 3
by Johann Wyss, translated by W.H.G. Kingston, and illustrated by T.H. Robinson, Milo Winter, and Louis Rhead
from Rand McNally
for 5th-9th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Swiss Family Robinson
Windermere Series 4
by Johann Wyss, translated by W.H.G. Kingston, and illustrated by T.H. Robinson, Milo Winter, and Louis Rhead
from Rand McNally
for 5th-9th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Treasure Island
Everyman's Library Children's Classics
by Robert Louis Stevenson, illustrated by Mervyn Peake
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
for 5th-9th grade
$17.95
Trumpeter of Krakow
by Eric Kelly, illustrated by Angela Pruszynska
1965 Printing from Macmillan
for 6th-9th grade
1929 Newbery Medal winner
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Ungava
by R. M. Ballantyne
from Vision Forum
in R. M. Ballantyne Books (Location: FIC-HIF)
Young Fur Traders
by R. M. Ballantyne
from Vision Forum
Action/Adventure for 5th-9th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)