The Guns of Navarone (novel)
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 One cover for The Guns of Navarone |
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| Author | Alistair MacLean |
|---|---|
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | World War II Novel |
| Publisher | Collins |
| Released | 1957 |
| Media type | Print (Hardcover & Paperback) |
| Pages | ? |
| ISBN | NA |
| Preceded by | HMS Ulysses |
| Followed by | South by Java Head |
- This article is about the novel. For the film see The Guns of Navarone (film)
The Guns of Navarone is a well-known 1957 novel about World War II by Scottish thriller writer Alistair MacLean that was made into an equally-acclaimed The Guns of Navarone film in 1961.
[edit] Plot summary
The story concerns the efforts of an Allied commando team to destroy a seemingly impregnable German fortress that threatens Allied naval ships in the Aegean Sea, and prevents over 2,000 isolated British troops from being rescued. The story is based on the real events surrounding the Battle of Leros.
The Guns of Navarone brought together elements that would characterize much of MacLean's subsequent work: tough, competent, worldly men as main characters; frequent but non-graphic violence; betrayal of the hero(es) by a trusted associate; and extensive use of the sea and other dangerous environments as settings. Its three principal characters — New Zealand mountaineer-turned-commando Keith Mallory, American demolitions expert "Dusty" Miller, and Greek resistance fighter Andrea Stavros — are among the most fully drawn in all of MacLean's work.
In 1990 the British Crime Writer's Association placed The Guns of Navarone 89th on its The Top 100 Crime Novels of All Time list (which used a liberal definition of 'crime novel').
