Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Flashy - A Role Model For The New Millenium?, 15 Mar 2003
... MacDonald Fraser's skill as a writer and a historian are under-represented. "Flash For Freedom", like all the Flashman series, is beautifully written and the way the author has mixed historical fact with fiction is truly sublime. Extensive footnotes referring to the sources of his imagination reveal that MacDonald Fraser is a thorough researcher and emphasise the huge amount of effort that must have gone in to the creating of the series.And then of course there's Flashy himself, self-confessed rake and poltroon, not to mention unashamed racist and snob. In this current age of political correctness "Flash For Freedom" is unapologetically outrageous; there is enough fuel here to fan the flames of feminist and Christian fury from now to Kingdom Come! And yet that, maybe, is MacDonald Fraser's point. Through his protaganist's skewed morality he manages to present a vision of human nature that is troubling and thought provoking. Flashman's world was very different to our own but perhaps not that different underneath it all..... This book is deeply amusing, thoroughly entertaining and a delight to read. Women may be turned off by Harry Flashman's vulgar and immoral nature, but between the enthralling historical narrative his wanton behaviour will no doubt appeal to the baser instincts of blokes everywhere!
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12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Flashy the pragmatic poltroon strikes again!, 3 May 2005
By A Customer
What can I say other than this is a fantastic read? Well I could mention that it has the notorious Harry Flashman, hero of Jallalabad, cricketer-gentleman, slaver, abolitionist, poltroon and bully up to his usual mischief. Wrongly accused of cheated, he escapes, but as usual the Fates weave a classically ripping yarn and we find our anti-hero experiencing both sides of the slavery coin. If you're fed up with the political correctness being taken to ludicrous degrees, then Flashman is the man to whom you must turn. Refreshingly Victorian I cannot bestow any higher honour on Fraser's writing than to say that of all the characters ive read in my life, he is the one of the few whom I genuinely admire.... but maybe thats a bad thing!As ive said of other Flashman books, this is top notch - you must read at least one of these books otherwise you are really missing out. Flash for Freedom is definetly a 5/5 and 10/10, it is truly memorable. If I could vote, id make the man king!
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Shiver me timbers., 13 April 2007
Fantastic! It is impossible not to give any Flashman a 5 out of 5 and this one certainly does not disappoint.
Who would have thought that a simple game of pontoon with the ladies could have led to the latest enstalment of trouble that our Anti Hero Lt Harry Flashman manages to get himself into.
Its a rollercoaster ride that takes Flashman on a slave boat owned by his father in law, firstly to the West Coast of Africa and then, not without incident across the atlantic,chased by the US Navy, to New Orleans and then on the run through the new world as our resident coward and womaniser attempts to make his way to his beloved Enland without getting intered by the authorities, shot by aggrieved husbands or forced into marriage by large breasted brothel owners. A Flashman book would not be the same without running into notable characters in history, and believe me, as normal you will not be disappointed. This is a hugely funny book, and although it has an important message regarding our history, it gives this message without taking us away from the reason we are reading this book, and this is to have fun. Believe me you will have fun.
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