Action & Adventure Stories

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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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	Battle for Skandia Ranger's Apprentice #04 by John A. Flanagan Reprint from Philomel Books for 4th-8th grade in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN) $9.00 (2 in stock)
	Boy of the Pyramids A Mystery of Ancient Egypt by Ruth Fosdick Jones from The Good and the Beautiful for 3rd-8th grade in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $4.00 (2 in stock)
	Computer Nut by Betsy Cromer Byars Reprint from Puffin Books for 3rd-6th grade in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA) $2.50 (1 in stock)
	Countdown by Ben Mikaelsen from Hyperion Books for Children for 3rd-6th grade in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $3.00 (1 in stock)
	Detectives in Togas by Henry Winterfeld from Harcourt Humorous Historical Fiction for 4th-6th grade in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $3.50 (1 in stock)
	Ear, the Eye, and the Arm by Nancy Farmer from Puffin Books for 4th-6th grade in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN) $3.00 (1 in stock)
	Endymion Spring by Matthew Skelton from Delacorte Press for 4th-7th grade in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN) $5.00 (1 in stock)
	Flame Over Tara by Madeleine Polland, illustrated by Omar Davis from Sonlight Curriculum, Ltd. for 3rd-6th grade in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $8.00 (1 in stock)
	Geronimo Stilton #01 Lost Treasure of the Emerald Eye Geronimo Stilton #1 by Geronimo Stilton, Translated by Edizioni Piemme from Scholastic Inc. for 2nd-4th grade in Series Books (Location: SER-MISC) $3.50 (1 in stock)
	Girl in Blue by Ann Rinaldi from Scholastic Inc. for 4th-9th grade in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $2.50 (1 in stock)
	Girl Named Disaster by Nancy Farmer First Printing Dec.2011 from Scholastic Inc. for 4th-6th grade Newbery Honor Book in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $7.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
	Heath Cousins and the Kingsgate Bridge Heath Cousins #02 by Eileen Hobbs from Palmetto Publishing Group for 3rd-6th grade in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $6.00 (1 in stock)
	Hold Fast by Blue Balliett Reprint from Scholastic Press for 4th-6th grade in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $7.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
	Incident at Hawk's Hill by Allan W. Eckert from Little, Brown & Company Historical Fiction for 4th-8th grade 1972 Newbery Honor Book in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $8.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
	Ivan and the American Journey Ivan Series #6 by Myrna Grant from Christian Focus Publications for 3rd-6th grade in Morality Tales (Location: FIC-WH05) $3.50 (1 in stock)
	Ivan and the Moscow Circus Ivan Series #1 by Myrna Grant from Christian Focus Publications for 3rd-6th grade in Morality Tales (Location: FIC-WH05) $3.50 (2 in stock)
	Jericho's Journey by G. Clifton Wisler from Puffin Books for 4th-6th grade in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $3.50 (2 in stock)
	Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling from Grosset & Dunlap for 4th-8th grade in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN) $4.50 (1 in stock)
	Listening for Lions by Gloria Whelan from HarperCollins for 4th-6th grade in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $6.99 $3.50 (1 in stock)
	Little Pilgrim's Progress by Helen Taylor from Moody Press Allegorical and Moral Stories for 4th-6th grade in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $12.99 $8.00 (1 in stock)
	Magician's Nephew Chronicles of Narnia Book 1 by C. S. Lewis from HarperCollins for 4th-8th grade in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN) $3.50 (1 in stock)
	Moccasin Trail by Eloise Jarvis McGraw from Scholastic Inc. for 4th-8th grade in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA) $1.50 (1 in stock)
	Mostly True Adventures of Homer P. Figg by Rodman Philbrick from Scholastic Press for 3rd-6th grade 2010 Newbery Honor Book in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $8.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
	Mr. Lemoncello's Library Olympics Limoncello's Library #2 by Chris Grabenstein from Yearling for 3rd-5th grade in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN) $8.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
	My Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George from Puffin Books for 4th-8th grade in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $4.50 (1 in stock)
	Mystery of the Roman Ransom by Henry Winterfeld from Harcourt Historical Fiction for 4th-6th grade in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $9.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
	Neeluk An Eskimo Boy in the Days of the Whaling Ships by Frances Kittredge from Alaska Northwest Books for 3rd-6th grade in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $6.00 (1 in stock)
	Pirate's Son by Geraldine McCaughrean from Scholastic Inc. for 4th-7th grade in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $4.50 (1 in stock)
	Red Sand, Blue Sky by Cathy Applegate from Feminist Press for 4th-8th grade in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $8.00 (3 in stock)
	Rowan Hood Outlaw Girl of Sherwood Forest by Nancy Springer from Scholastic Inc. for 3rd-6th grade in Myths, Fairy Tales & Folklore for Children (Location: FIC-MYT) $3.00 (1 in stock)
	S.O.S by K. Norel First English from Paideia Press for 4th-6th grade in Clearance: Fiction (Location: ZCLE-FIC) $4.00 (1 in stock)
	Scout's Distant Journey Scout Series by Piet Prins from Inheritance Publications Action/Adventure for 4th-8th grade in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI) $10.95 $7.00 (1 in stock)
	Seven-Day Magic by Edward Eager from Houghton Mifflin for 3rd-6th grade in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN) $7.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
	Silver Chair Chronicles of Narnia Book 4 by C. S. Lewis from Collier Books Allegorical Fantasy for 3rd-9th grade in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN) $3.00 (1 in stock)
	Smugglers by Iain Lawrence from Yearling for 4th-6th grade in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $4.00 (1 in stock)
	Son of Liberty Young Founders: 1776 by Elizabeth Massie 1^st edition for 4th-6th grade in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $2.50 (1 in stock)
	Sugar Creek Gang #01 The Swamp Robber by Paul Hutchens from Moody Press for 4th-6th grade in Sugar Creek Gang (Location: SER-SCG) $5.99 $3.00 (1 in stock)
	Susan Creek Monroe Family Chronicles #2 by Doug Wilson from Veritas Press Nautical Fiction for 4th-6th grade in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $15.00 $8.00 (1 in stock)
	Tales of Robin Hood by Tony Allan, illustrated by Ron Tiner from Usborne for 4th-6th grade in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $6.00 (1 in stock)
	Terrible Wave by Marden Dahlstedt from Richard R. Dahlstedt the Attic in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $8.00 (5 in stock)
	Tikta'Liktak An Inuit-Eskimo Legend by James Houston from Harcourt for 3rd-6th grade in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $6.00 (3 in stock)
	Walk Across the Sea by Susan Fletcher Reprint from Atheneum for 4th-6th grade in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $3.00 (1 in stock)
	Wanderer by Sharon Creech First Scholastic Printing from Scholastic Inc. for 4th-6th grade in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $2.50 (1 in stock)
	Wanted...Mud Blossom by Betsy Byars from Dell Publishing for 4th-6th grade in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $1.50 (1 in stock)
	War Horse by Michael Morpurgo from Scholastic Press for 2nd-6th grade in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI) $7.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
	Whipping Boy by Sid Fleischman First Scholastic Printing from Scholastic Inc. for 3rd-5th grade in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $2.50 (1 in stock)

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