John Buchan wrote The Thirty-Nine Steps while he was
seriously ill at the beginning of the First World War.
In it he introduces his most famous hero, Richard
Hannay, who, despite claiming to be an 'ordinary
fellow', is caught up in the dramatic race against a
plot to devastate the British war effort. Hannay is
hunted across the Scottish moors by police and spy-ring
alike, and must outwit his intelligent and pitiless
enemy in the corridors of Whitehall and, finally, at the
site of the mysterious thirty-nine steps. The best-known
of Buchan's thrillers, The Thirty-Nine Steps has been
continuously in print since first publication and has
been filmed three times, most notably by Alfred
Hitchcock in 1935. In this, the only critical edition,
Christopher Harvie's introduction interweaves the
writing of the tale with the equally fascinating story
of how John Buchan, publisher and lawyer, came in from
the cold and, via The Thirty-Nine Steps, ended the war
as spy-master and propaganda chief. ABOUT THE SERIES:
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