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
115 Items found Print
Active Filters: Historical Fiction, Hardcover
Admiral Hornblower in the West Indies
Hornblower Series #11
by C. S. Forester
from Little, Brown & Company
for 9th-Adult
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$14.00 (1 in stock)
At the Point of the Bayonet
by G. A. Henty
from Robinson Curriculum
for 6th-10th grade
in G. A. Henty Books (Location: FIC-HEN)
Below the Salt
by Thomas B. Costain
from Nelson Doubleday, Inc.
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Ben-Hur
Reader's Digest World's Best Reading
by Lew Wallace
from Reader's Digest
for 9th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
Ben-Hur
by Lew Wallace
from Heritage Press
Historical Fiction for 7th-10th grade
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
Black Arrow
by Robert Louis Stevenson
from Nelson Doubleday, Inc.
for 7th-10th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Black Arrow
Scribner Illustrated Classics
by Robert Louis Stevenson, illustrated by N.C. Wyeth
from Atheneum
Historical Fiction for 7th-10th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Black Falcon
by Armstrong Sperry
from John C. Winston
for 6th-10th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$18.00 (1 in stock)
Black Rose
by Thomas B. Costain
from Doubleday & Company
for 8th-Adult
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Bronze Bow
by Elizabeth George Speare
from Houghton Mifflin
for 5th-9th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Captive
by Scott O'Dell
from HMH Books for Young Readers
for 5th-8th grade
Hans Christian Anderson Award
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$9.00 (2 in stock)
Caravan to Oregon
by Herbert E. Arntson
from Binford & Mort Publishing
for 4th-7th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Colonel Thorndyke's Secret
by G. A. Henty
from Robinson Curriculum
for 6th-10th grade
in G. A. Henty Books (Location: FIC-HEN)
Commodore Hornblower
by C. S. Forester
1st edition from Little, Brown & Company
for 9th-12th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
Condemned as a Nihilist
by G. A. Henty
from Robinson Curriculum
for 6th-10th grade
in G. A. Henty Books (Location: FIC-HEN)
Crispin: The End of Time
by Avi
from Balzer & Bray
for 5th-8th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
Curse of Carne's Hold
by G. A. Henty
from Robinson Curriculum
for 6th-10th grade
in G. A. Henty Books (Location: FIC-HEN)
Darkness and the Dawn
by Thomas B. Costain
from Doubleday & Company
for 8th-12th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
ECL: Black Arrow
by Robert Louis Stevenson, illustrated by Don Irwin
from Classic Press
Historical Fiction for 7th-10th grade
in Educator Classic Library (Location: VIN-ECL)
ECL: Virginian
Educator Classic Library #6
by Owen Wister, illustrated by Don Irwin
Complete and Unabridged Edition from Classic Press
in Educator Classic Library (Location: VIN-ECL)
$5.00 (2 in stock)
Fear in the Forest
by Cateau de Leeuw
from T. Nelson & Sons
for 4th-8th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Final Reckoning
by G. A. Henty
from Robinson Curriculum
for 6th-10th grade
in G. A. Henty Books (Location: FIC-HEN)
Frontier Wolf
by Rosemary Sutcliff
1st edition from Dutton Juvenile
for 4th-8th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
Gabriel Allen, M.P.
by G. A. Henty
from Robinson Curriculum
for 6th-10th grade
in G. A. Henty Books (Location: FIC-HEN)
George Alfred Henty
by George Manville Fenn
from Salem Ridge Press
for 6th-10th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Gift of the Golden Cup
by Isabelle Lawrence, illustrated by Charles V. John
from Bobbs-Merril Co
for 7th-9th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Heart of a Samurai
by Margi Preus
from Amulet Books
for 5th-7th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
Hidden Foe
by G. A. Henty
from Robinson Curriculum
for 6th-10th grade
in G. A. Henty Books (Location: FIC-HEN)
In the Hands of the Cave Dwellers
by G. A. Henty
from Robinson Curriculum
for 6th-10th grade
in G. A. Henty Books (Location: FIC-HEN)
In the Hands of the Malays
by G. A. Henty
from Robinson Curriculum
for 6th-10th grade
in G. A. Henty Books (Location: FIC-HEN)
In the Irish Brigade
by G. A. Henty
from Robinson Curriculum
for 6th-10th grade
in G. A. Henty Books (Location: FIC-HEN)
In Times of Peril
by G. A. Henty
from Robinson Curriculum
for 6th-10th grade
in G. A. Henty Books (Location: FIC-HEN)
Invention of Hugo Cabret
by Brian Selznick
First Edition from Scholastic Inc.
for 4th-6th grade
2008 Caldecott Medal winner
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$29.99
Jack Archer
by G. A. Henty
from Robinson Curriculum
for 6th-10th grade
in G. A. Henty Books (Location: FIC-HEN)
John Hawke's Fortune
by G. A. Henty
from Robinson Curriculum
for 6th-10th grade
in G. A. Henty Books (Location: FIC-HEN)
Kidnapped
Scribner Illustrated Classics
by Robert Louis Stevenson, illustrated by N. C. Wyeth
from Atheneum
Historical Fiction for 7th-10th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Kidnapped
by Robert Louis Stevenson, illustrated by N. C. Wyeth and Graham Oakley
from Dilithium Press, Ltd.
Historical Fiction for 7th-10th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
King's Swift Rider
by Mollie Hunter
First Edition from HarperTrophy
for 4th-7th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
Kings Mountain
by G. Clifton Wisler
1st edition from HarperCollins
for 4th-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Light in the Forest
by Conrad Richter, illustrated by Warren Chappell
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
Historical Fiction for 5th-8th grade
$15.95
Listening for Lions
by Gloria Whelan
from HarperCollins
for 4th-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$8.00 (2 in stock)
Lord Hornblower
by C. S. Forester
from Little, Brown & Company
for 8th-Adult
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Lost Colony
by Jean Bothwell, illustrated by Edward F. Cortese
from John C. Winston
for 4th-8th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Lost Heir
by G. A. Henty
from Robinson Curriculum
for 6th-10th grade
in G. A. Henty Books (Location: FIC-HEN)
Man in the Iron Mask
Signet Classics
by Alexandre Dumas
from International Collectors Library
Historical Fiction/Adventure for 10th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
Mark of the Horse Lord
by Rosemary Sutcliff, illustrated by Charles Keeping
from Oxford University
for 7th-9th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Merry Adventures of Robin Hood
Sterling Classics
by Howard Pyle, illustrated by Scott McKowen
Unabridged from Sterling Publishing Co.
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 7th-9th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
Merry Adventures of Robin Hood
Thrushwood Book
by Howard Pyle
from Grosset & Dunlap
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 7th-9th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Merry Adventures of Robin Hood
A Golden Illustrated Classic
by Howard Pyle, illustrated by Benvenuti
from Golden Press
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 7th-9th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Merry Adventures of Robin Hood
Illustrated Junior Library Series 2
by Howard Pyle, illustrated by Lawrence Beall Smith
from Grosset & Dunlap
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 5th-8th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Merry Adventures of Robin Hood
Illustrated Junior Library Series 3
by Howard Pyle, illustrated by Lawrence Beall Smith
from Grosset & Dunlap
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 5th-8th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Merry Adventures of Robin Hood
Illustrated Junior Library Series 1
by Howard Pyle, illustrated by Lawrence Beall Smith
from Grosset & Dunlap
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 5th-8th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Merry Adventures of Robin Hood
Illustrated Junior Library Series 2
by Howard Pyle, illustrated by Lawrence Beall Smith
from Grosset & Dunlap
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 5th-8th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Merry Adventures of Robin Hood
by Howard Pyle
from Barnes & Noble
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 7th-9th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Merry Adventures of Robin Hood
by Howard Pyle, illustrated by Jo Polseno
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 5th-8th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Michael Strogoff
by Jules Verne, illustrated by N.C. Wyeth
from Charles Scribner's Sons
for 7th-10th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Moccasin Trail
Puffin Newbery Library
by Eloise J. McGraw
9th impression from Coward McCann
Historical Fiction for 4th-8th grade
1953 Newbery Honor Book
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$35.00 (1 in stock)
Moneyman
by Thomas B. Costain
from Nelson Doubleday, Inc.
for 10th grade - Adult
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
My Brother Sam Is Dead
by James & Christopher Collier
from Simon and Schuster
Historical Fiction for 5th-8th grade
1975 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
Namesake
by C. Walter Hodges
from G. Bell and Sons, Ltd.
for 7th-10th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
Out with Garibaldi
by G. A. Henty
from Robinson Curriculum
for 6th-10th grade
in G. A. Henty Books (Location: FIC-HEN)
Plague Ship
by G. A. Henty
from Robinson Curriculum
for 6th-10th grade
in G. A. Henty Books (Location: FIC-HEN)
Prince and the Pauper
by Mark Twain, illustrated by William Hatherell
from World Publishing Company
for 5th-10th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Prince and the Pauper
Portland House Illustrated Classics
by Mark Twain, illustrated by Franklin Booth
from Portland House
Historical Fiction for 5th-9th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Prince and the Pauper
Children's Classics
by Mark Twain, illustrated by William Hatherell
from Dilithium Press, Ltd.
Historical Fiction for 5th-8th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Prince and the Pauper
by Mark Twain, illustrated by William Hatherell
from The Folio Society
Historical Fiction for 5th-8th grade
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
Prince and the Pauper
by Mark Twain, illustrated by Robert Lawson
from Winston Press
Historical Fiction for 5th-8th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Prisoner of the Indies
by Geoffrey Household, with map and decorations by Warren Chappell
from Little, Brown & Company
for 4th-7th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Queen's Cup
by G. A. Henty
from Robinson Curriculum
for 6th-10th grade
in G. A. Henty Books (Location: FIC-HEN)
Rabbits and Redcoats
by Robert Newton Peck
from Walker and Company
for 4th-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
Red Badge of Courage
by Stephen Crane
from Golden Press
for 6th-9th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Red Badge of Courage
Macmillan Classics
by Stephen Crane, illustrated by Herschel Levit
from Macmillan
for 7th-10th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Red Badge of Courage
by Stephen Crane
from Golden Press
for 6th-9th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
Redskin and Cowboy
by G. A. Henty
from Robinson Curriculum
Historical Fiction for 6th-10th grade
in G. A. Henty Books (Location: FIC-HEN)
$20.00
Robin Hood
by Howard Pyle
from Junior Deluxe Editions
for 5th-8th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Robin Hood
by Henry Gilbert, illustrated by Frank Godwin
from Junior Deluxe Editions
for 5th-8th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Rush Revere and the First Patriots
by Rush Limbaugh
1St Edition from Threshold Editions
for 4th-8th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Scottish Chiefs
by Jane Porter
from Charles Scribner's Sons
for 8th-10th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
Scottish Chiefs
by Jane Porter, edited by Kate Douglas Wiggin and Nora A. Smith, illustrated by N.C. Wyeth
from Charles Scribner's Sons
for 8th-10th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$20.00 (1 in stock)
Search for a Secret
by G. A. Henty
from Robinson Curriculum
for 6th-10th grade
in G. A. Henty Books (Location: FIC-HEN)
Seek the Dark Gold
Land of the Free series
by Jo Evalin Lundy, illustrated by Edward Shenton
1st edition from John C. Winston
Historical fiction for 6th-10th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Silver Sword
by Ian Serraillier, illustrated by C. Walter Hodges
from Criterion Books
for 4th-8th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$8.00 (3 in stock)
South By Java Head
by Alistair MacLean
from Doubleday & Company
for 7th-10th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Spike of Swift River
by Jack O'Brian, illustrated by Kurt Wiese
from John C. Winston
for 4th-7th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Spy Who Came in from the Sea
by Peggy Nolan
from Pineapple Press
Adventure Stories for 2nd-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$14.95
Stories of the Old Dominion
by John Esten Cooke
from American Foundation Publications
for 5th-9th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$8.00 (2 in stock)
Storyteller's Beads
by Jane Kurtz, Michael Bryant
1st edition from Gulliver Books
for 4th-8th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
Sturdy & Strong
by G. A. Henty
from Robinson Curriculum
for 6th-10th grade
in G. A. Henty Books (Location: FIC-HEN)
Sword of the Wilderness
by Elizabeth Coatsworth, illustrated by Harve Stein
from Macmillan
for 4th-7th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$6.50 (1 in stock)
Talisman
International Collector's Library
by Sir Walter Scott
from International Collectors Library
for 10th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
Three Musketeers
Everyman's Library
by Alexandre Dumas
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
for 10th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
$32.00
Three Musketeers
Rainbow Classics
by Alexandre Dumas, illustrated by C. Walter Hodges
from World Publishing Company
Historical Fiction/Adventure for 9th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
Three Musketeers
Windermere Readers #20
by Alexandre Dumas, translated by Philip Schuyler Allen
1954 Edition from Rand McNally
Historical Fiction/Adventure for 9th-Adult
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$9.00 (2 in stock)
Three Musketeers
Books of Wonder
by Alexandre Dumas (illustrated by Tom Kidd)
from HarperCollins
Historical Fiction/Adventure for 9th-12th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Three Musketeers
Reader's Digest World's Best Reading
by Alexandre Dumas, illustrated by Rowland Wheelwright
1999 Edition from Reader's Digest
for 10th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
Three Musketeers
Macmillan Classics
by Alexandre Dumas, illustrated by James Daugherty
2nd Printing, 1923 from Macmillan
for 10th-Adult
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Three Musketeers
by Alexandre Dumas, illustrated by Valenti Angelo
from Three Sirens Press
for 10th-Adult
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Three Musketeers
Windermere Series 3
by Alexandre Dumas, translated by Philip Schuyler Allen
1954 Edition from Rand McNally
Historical Fiction/Adventure for 9th-Adult
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Three Musketeers
Windermere Series 4
by Alexandre Dumas, translated by Philip Schuyler Allen
1933 printing from Rand McNally
Historical Fiction/Adventure for 9th-Adult
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Three Musketeers (abridged)
Illustrated Junior Library Series 3
by Alexandre Dumastranslated by Jacques le Clercq, illustrated by Norman Price & E. C. Van Swearingen
from Grosset & Dunlap
Historical Fiction/Adventure for 9th-12th grade
in Illustrated Junior Library (Location: VIN-IJL)
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