Red Rackham's Treasure

Seriously this is the biggest book I have even seen, read or owned! ( This review is of the very large edition)This book is unusually large, close to *Twice* the size of the original standard(large) sized editions. Beautifully bound, and very sturdy book. The pages inside are crispy matt-textured, bringing out the colors and ink drawings vividly. The print is sharp, and appears original size.(I expected it to be some what magnified, but perhaps this was the size the drawings were made originally by the artists[yes there were more than Herge..notabale among them being Edward Jacobs who did those splendid renderings of ships, planes and other realistic props] and shrunk for print in the earlier editions).The story of course is one of the best, and a favorite of many, including me. The thrilling drama, with colorful events, the long sea voyage, and eventual climax of the treasure are the hallmark of Herge, the master story teller. The reason why close to quarter billion copies of his works have been sold since first published.My personal opinion of this edition is, it is perhaps similar to several curious artifacts that appear in the adventure series itself.. like the model sailboat, Arumbaya statue, the hull of the Unicorn and so on. A great book to have, hold and feel (and perhaps take a deep breath, draw in the fresh smell and its Ok if you plant a kiss too). As far as this being a book to be read, it is surprisingly very comfortable to hold and read, in spite of the size!. The large font size is so easy on the eyes, and so are the gorgeous drawings..coming to life in life size!If you have grown on Tintin, then there is no choice but to buy this. I *had* to do it, in spite of an embargo on adding to my unmanageable collection of books. And what a jewel in the crown this is!

In "Red Rackham's Treasure", a sequel to "The Secret of the Unicorn," our intrepid boy reporter Tintin; his faithful companion Snowy; his dissolute comrade, Captain Haddock; and the identical (except in name) Thompson & Thomson twins; are joined on the voyage by Professor Cuthbert Calculus, whose preposterous inventions are eclipsed only by his ability to carry on a continuous non sequitur conversation (an excuse to drive Haddock--who has never met a bottle of rum he didn't like--to drink).Like the "Secret of the Unicorn," "Treasure" is packed with fun and adventure for readers of all ages. In fact, I think I enjoyed it even more than the first book of the pair, partly because the Thom(p)son twins, who don their sailor suits and pompon hats to 'help' Tintin, thus contribute to the general chaos, and partly because the addition of Calculus, swinging his pendulum, adds a divinely inspired element of the ridiculous to the proceedings. Perhaps because Hergé carries his running jokes and word-plays even farther, they seemed even more laugh-out-loud funny than those of the first book.Since the book was written in the 'forties, some of the jokes will be appreciated only by film historians and persons of a certain vintage, but it is nevertheless nice to see them. A couple worth mentioning are written on posters on a kiosk, one of which advertises the GREAT [in every sense of the word] Orson Welles (repeating his name three times), who stars in a film entitled "ME"; and another which advertises the Opera "Boris Gudinov" starring Rino Tossi (Italian for 'nose coughs'); these translations likely reflect the original French. And, in the event that these jokes are too esoteric for the younger generation, Captain Haddock, not looking where he's going, runs smack into the kiosk, which advises him to read the Daily Reporter for 'News which Hits you!' Part of the fun of the humour is that it can be appreciated on many levels. My only complaint is that the new editions are missing the delightful 'portrait gallery' that used to adorn the inner covers of the old paperbacks, but, I suppose that the lack is to be expected in this age of austerity.As I mentioned in my review of Unicorn, I bought these books so that my grandson could enjoy the fun of Tintin with the original drawings. Of course, I hijacked them and read them before I wrapped them up. I was happy to discover that I found them just as delightful as I did back--well,not quite--when the earth was cooling!

Hergé is always fantastic

Birthday present for my 7 year old and she loves it.

The Tintin adventure "Red Rackham's Treasure" is notable for at least two features: The satisfying conclusion to the pirate mystery "The Secret of the Unicorn"; and the introduction of Professor Cuthbert Calculus, the brillant but hilariously deaf inventor who became a recurring character in the stories.As the story opens, Tintin and Captain Haddock are about to set sail for a mysterious island, in search of a treasure left behind by Captain Haddock's illustrious ancestor Sir Francis Haddock. The treasure hunters will detour briefly to the laboratory of Professor Calculus, who wishes to sell them a clever submersible shaped like a shark. This particular adventure was first published in 1945 and kudos are due artist and story-teller Herge for his imaginative mini-submarine.The treasure hunters, under the dubious protection of the bumbling detectives Thompson and Thomson, will find and search the island and the seas around it. Obviously, Herge cannot let our heroes find the treasure too quickly, and in fact, this particular mystery will finally resolve itself back in a familiar location from an earlier story. The artwork and storyline hold up exceptionally well despite the passage of time; "Red Rackham's Treasure" is highly recommended to Tintin fans of all ages.

I remember this particular Tintin as one of my favorites when I was a child (in the original French), so I bought it for my gt-grandson 9th b'day. Gave it to him on the way to an outing and he was halfway through it by the time we got there.The Tintin books are great for any child in my view and I love the big original format. Am going to work on getting him the whole collection over the next 2-3 years. 4 stars because it's the English version but still fabulous to re=read.