Westward Ho! by Charles Kingsley - 1889

London - Macmillan and Co., 1889 Book. Very Good. Hardcover. Westward Ho! and Hypatia are a pair of historical novels by Charles Kingsley, the first beinginspired in part by an Elizabethan travelogue by privateer Admiral Sir Richard Hawkins and by the Crimean War. Set initially in Bideford in North Devon during the reign of Elizabeth I, Westward Ho! follows the adventures of Amyas Leigh, an unruly child who as a young man follows Francis Drake to sea. Amyas loves local beauty Rose Salterne, as does nearly everyone else. Much of the novel involves the kidnap of Rose by a Spaniard. In Hypatia, Kingsley used as a setting fifth-century Alexandria shortly before its fall and took advantage of the occasion to give fictional expression to his belief in the providential character of history. The novel represents the clash of Christianity with Neo-Platonism as the first crisis in the history of Christianity. In it Kingsley portrays decadent Romans, effete Roman Catholics, sophisticated pagan philosophers, and vital Germanic warriors struggling for mastery as the world around them collapses. (VW)Condition: In a half-calf binding with decorative gilt detailing to the spine. Externally sound, withsome rubbing. Front joint starting but firm. Internally, firmly bound. Ink inscription to the front pastedown. Pages aregenerallybright and clean, with just some scattered spots. Overall: VERY GOOD..