Description

Just before sailing off to war in the Sudan, British guardsman Harry Feversham quits his regiment. He immediately receives four white feathers-symbols of cowardice-one each from his three best friends and his fiancée. To disprove this grave dishonor, Harry dons an Arabian disguise and leaves for the Sudan, where he anonymously comes to the aid of his three friends, saving each of their lives. Having proved his bravery, Harry returns to England, hoping to regain the love and respect of his fiancée. This suspenseful tale movingly depicts a distinctive code of honor that was deeply valued and strongly promoted by the British during the height of their imperial power.

For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

About the Author

Grant Allen was born on February 24, 1848 near Kingston, Ontario, in Canada. Though largely forgotten today, during his lifetime he was a prolific and popular writer who published widely in diverse areas, which were as various as his own intellectual pursuits that ranged from the sciences to literature. His best stories, which featured the notorious conartist and thief, Colonel Clay, first appeared in the Strand Magazine and later were collected in the book, An African Millionaire: Episodes in the Life of the Illustrious Colonel Clay (1897), commonly regarded by many critics as the first fictional work to feature a criminal protagonist.

Gary Hoppenstand is a professor of English at Michigan State University and wrote the introduction to Penguin Classics edition of An African Millionaire. He lives in East Lansing, Michigan.