Tale of Three Lions

Henry Rider Haggard, who lived from 1856 to 1925, was an English novelist whose African adventures made him one of the most widely read authors of the late Victorian age. His hero Allan Quatermain, an elderly hunter and trader, first appeared in King Solomon’s Mines in 1885 and returned in a series of later novels and stories, among them Allan Quatermain. Haggard drew on years spent in southern Africa as a young colonial official.

The Tale of Three Lions is a short piece in that tradition. Its three chapters are titled for the interest on ten shillings, what was found in the pool, and the avenging of Jim-Jim, and they give a clear idea of the mixture of anecdote, humour and danger that Haggard prized. Quatermain tells his story in a plain, unhurried voice, as if over a camp fire.

Haggard’s African tales have long been admired for their pace and criticised for the colonial outlook they carry. Listeners today may find both in this short story, and may also notice how fully the narrator’s voice shapes what we are told. Reading it alongside the longer novels shows how the character could work equally well at small scale.

The recording lasts a little over an hour and is read by one LibriVox volunteer. Because it is so brief, it can be heard in a single sitting, and the three chapters follow one another without padding. It makes a good first taste of Haggard, a quick way to revisit Quatermain, or a short companion to the longer adventures, and it is worth hearing for the storytelling alone.