Adventure · Treasure
King Solomon's Mines
Three adventurers follow an old map across desert and mountains in search of a lost brother and a legendary treasure.
Five levels, about 80 languages
- A2ElementaryShort sentences and everyday words.
- B1IntermediateYou follow clear stories about familiar things.
- B2Upper intermediateLonger sentences, richer vocabulary.
- C1AdvancedClose to the original, lightly condensed.
- C2ProficientThe complete novel.
One purchase is one book, in one language, at one level: $4.99. Another level of a book you own is $1.99. Editions nobody has asked for yet are written on request: chapter 1 in a few minutes, the rest while you read. How the levels work.
About the book
An old map and a missing brother
Allan Quatermain is an elephant hunter in southern Africa who tells this story in his own plain words. Two Englishmen, Sir Henry Curtis and Captain John Good, ask him to help find Sir Henry’s brother, who vanished while looking for the legendary mines of King Solomon. Quatermain happens to have a map, drawn three centuries earlier by a dying Portuguese traveler. With a tall, dignified stranger named Umbopa, they cross a desert, climb a mountain range and enter a hidden kingdom ruled by a cruel king. H. Rider Haggard published the novel in 1885; he is said to have written it on a bet with his brother that he could match Treasure Island.
Why it works for learners
Quatermain is a modest, practical narrator who tells you plainly what happened and how frightened he was, so the book is easy to follow at any level. The adventure moves in clear stages: preparations, the desert, the mountains, the kingdom, the mines. Each stage brings its own vocabulary: water, thirst, sun, snow, cave, army, battle, king, treasure. Captain Good, with his eyeglass and his concern for his appearance in the worst conditions, supplies a running comedy that travels well.
The novel is a product of the British Empire in the 1880s, and its attitudes show it.
Which level to start at
B1 is a good fit. The story carries itself, and Haggard’s style is more direct than that of many Victorian writers. A2 works for the adventure. At C1 and C2 you’ll hear Quatermain’s dry, old-fashioned voice in full, and the narration gives each of the travelers a voice of his own.
Read next
- Treasure Island, the book Haggard set out to rival
- The Lost World, another expedition to a hidden world
- Five Weeks in a Balloon, Verne’s crossing of Africa by air