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The Sword Maker
Robert Barr was a teacher, journalist, editor and novelist, born in Glasgow, Scotland and educated in Canada. In 1876 he became a member of the staff of the Detroit Free Press, in which his contributions appeared under the signature "Luke Sharp."
In 1881 he removed to London, to establish the weekly English edition of the Free Press, and in 1892 he joined Jerome K. Jerome in founding the Idler magazine, from whose co-editorship he retired in 1895.
He was a prolific author, producing many popular novels of the day.
In 1881 he removed to London, to establish the weekly English edition of the Free Press, and in 1892 he joined Jerome K. Jerome in founding the Idler magazine, from whose co-editorship he retired in 1895.
He was a prolific author, producing many popular novels of the day.
395 pages, Hardcover
Published January 1, 1910
6 people are currently reading
32 people want to read
About the author
Robert Barr
531 books12 followersRobert Barr (September 16, 1849 – October 21, 1912) was a British-Canadian short story writer and novelist, born in Glasgow, Scotland.
Robert Barr emigrated with his parents to Upper Canada at age four and was educated in Toronto at Toronto Normal School. Barr became a teacher and eventual headmaster of the Central School of Windsor, Ontario. While he had that job he began to contribute short stories—often based on personal experiences—to the Detroit Free Press. In 1876 Barr quit his teaching position to become a staff member of that publication, in which his contributions were published with the pseudonym "Luke Sharp." This nom de plume was derived from the time he attended school in Toronto. At that time he would pass on his daily commute a shop sign marked, "Luke Sharpe, Undertaker", a combination of words Barr considered amusing in their incongruity. Barr was promoted by the Detroit Free Press, eventually becoming its news editor.
In 1881 Barr decided to "vamoose the ranch", as he stated, and relocated to London, to establish there the weekly English edition of the Detroit Free Press. In 1892 he founded the magazine The Idler, choosing Jerome K. Jerome as his collaborator (wanting, as Jerome said, "a popular name"). He retired from its co-editorship in 1895. In London of the 1890s Barr became a more prolific author—publishing a book a year—and was familiar with many of the best-selling authors of his day, including Bret Harte and Stephen Crane. Most of his literary output was of the crime genre, then quite in vogue. When Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes stories were becoming well-known Barr published in the Idler the first Holmes parody, "The Adventures of Sherlaw Kombs" (1892), a spoof that was continued a decade later in another Barr story, "The Adventure of the Second Swag" (1904). Despite the jibe at the growing Holmes phenomenon Barr and Doyle remained on very good terms. Doyle describes him in his memoirs Memories and Adventures as, "a volcanic Anglo—or rather Scot-American, with a violent manner, a wealth of strong adjectives, and one of the kindest natures underneath it all."
Robert Barr died from heart disease on October 21, 1912, at his home in Woldingham, a small village to the southeast of London.
Robert Barr emigrated with his parents to Upper Canada at age four and was educated in Toronto at Toronto Normal School. Barr became a teacher and eventual headmaster of the Central School of Windsor, Ontario. While he had that job he began to contribute short stories—often based on personal experiences—to the Detroit Free Press. In 1876 Barr quit his teaching position to become a staff member of that publication, in which his contributions were published with the pseudonym "Luke Sharp." This nom de plume was derived from the time he attended school in Toronto. At that time he would pass on his daily commute a shop sign marked, "Luke Sharpe, Undertaker", a combination of words Barr considered amusing in their incongruity. Barr was promoted by the Detroit Free Press, eventually becoming its news editor.
In 1881 Barr decided to "vamoose the ranch", as he stated, and relocated to London, to establish there the weekly English edition of the Detroit Free Press. In 1892 he founded the magazine The Idler, choosing Jerome K. Jerome as his collaborator (wanting, as Jerome said, "a popular name"). He retired from its co-editorship in 1895. In London of the 1890s Barr became a more prolific author—publishing a book a year—and was familiar with many of the best-selling authors of his day, including Bret Harte and Stephen Crane. Most of his literary output was of the crime genre, then quite in vogue. When Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes stories were becoming well-known Barr published in the Idler the first Holmes parody, "The Adventures of Sherlaw Kombs" (1892), a spoof that was continued a decade later in another Barr story, "The Adventure of the Second Swag" (1904). Despite the jibe at the growing Holmes phenomenon Barr and Doyle remained on very good terms. Doyle describes him in his memoirs Memories and Adventures as, "a volcanic Anglo—or rather Scot-American, with a violent manner, a wealth of strong adjectives, and one of the kindest natures underneath it all."
Robert Barr died from heart disease on October 21, 1912, at his home in Woldingham, a small village to the southeast of London.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
November 27, 2023
Entertaining relationship listening 🎶🔰
This is a free novella kindle e-book from Amazon by Robert Barr.
An interesting 👀 novella e-book about a sword maker in Germany. I keep trying to connect with this novella but that didn't happen.
I would recommend that you give it a try it may work for you. 2023 😀😯👒👑
This is a free novella kindle e-book from Amazon by Robert Barr.
An interesting 👀 novella e-book about a sword maker in Germany. I keep trying to connect with this novella but that didn't happen.
I would recommend that you give it a try it may work for you. 2023 😀😯👒👑
March 24, 2018
High stakes skulduggery meets youthful audacity on the medieval Rhine.
Prince Roland of Frankfort, supposedly a prisoner of the powerful Archbishops who rule the region in place of his ailing father, leads twenty members of the ironworkers' guild down the Rhine on an unlikely mission to rob the robber Barons who prey on commerce.
Countess von Sayn defies the three Archbishops by way of an uneasy alliance. One of them, the Archbishop of Cologne, is the countess's guardian, but the wily Archbishop of Mayence holds sway by virtue of his formidable diplomatic prowess.
Mayence is a superb creation, strong of will, fearless when it comes to the bluff, a Machiavellian master of realpolitik. In distinct contrast, young Roland is forthright and daring, a man of direct action, astonishingly arrogant and contemptuous for the hero of an historical romance:
'To Roland's aristocratic mind, every man who lacked noble blood in his veins stood on the same level, and it astonished him that any mere plebeian should claim precedence over another. He himself felt immeasurably superior...'
Not that Barr was too interested in the romance elements of his yarn, a good thing in my book. The strength of the story was its intrigue; the Archbishops don't trust each other, while Roland's appalling behaviour towards his plebian crew soon alienates them. Compromises accepted and refused drive the plot onwards to a suitably compromised conclusion.
A heady dose of Rhenish wine.
Prince Roland of Frankfort, supposedly a prisoner of the powerful Archbishops who rule the region in place of his ailing father, leads twenty members of the ironworkers' guild down the Rhine on an unlikely mission to rob the robber Barons who prey on commerce.
Countess von Sayn defies the three Archbishops by way of an uneasy alliance. One of them, the Archbishop of Cologne, is the countess's guardian, but the wily Archbishop of Mayence holds sway by virtue of his formidable diplomatic prowess.
Mayence is a superb creation, strong of will, fearless when it comes to the bluff, a Machiavellian master of realpolitik. In distinct contrast, young Roland is forthright and daring, a man of direct action, astonishingly arrogant and contemptuous for the hero of an historical romance:
'To Roland's aristocratic mind, every man who lacked noble blood in his veins stood on the same level, and it astonished him that any mere plebeian should claim precedence over another. He himself felt immeasurably superior...'
Not that Barr was too interested in the romance elements of his yarn, a good thing in my book. The strength of the story was its intrigue; the Archbishops don't trust each other, while Roland's appalling behaviour towards his plebian crew soon alienates them. Compromises accepted and refused drive the plot onwards to a suitably compromised conclusion.
A heady dose of Rhenish wine.
July 7, 2022
Brilliant novel, historical yet not in the least boring or cheesy, I loved Roland personality, he was full of surprises, a very interesting young man, all the characters were very human and real and the best of it all was the ending, the last chapter was breathtaking.
January 1, 2013
This book is simply an excellent adventure story.
May 7, 2009
I liked this book. If you want a good swashbuckling, daring, clever plot without any blood, read this one. It took a while to get started, like a lot of Barr's books, but once it got started, I really liked it. I don't like disagreements, so the arguments within the group of sword-makers pulled the book down in my esteem. As soon as they cooperated more together, things were fine. And nobody got killed - which in my opinion is a big plus!
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews