Cecil Scott Forester became known to a wide audience after a series of books about Midshipman Hornblower. But his pen belongs not only to the fascinating saga about the adventures of young Horatio. Cecil Scott wrote several historical books, maritime stories and fascinating detective stories, one of which was published 44 years after the death of the writer.
Childhood
Cecil Scott Forester, the youngest of five children, was born on August 27, 1899 in the family of a British official in Cairo, George Smith and Sarah Totron. Mother with children returned to England when Cecil was two years old. Great Britain seemed cold and unfriendly to the boy.
At the age of three, he was sent to a school for young children, by this time he could read and write. He studied well, but this did not save him from the ridicule of classmates due to fragile physique. But the boy strove for knowledge, besides the sisters and brothers won scholarships, and Cecil had to do the same. He preferred reading to games. It became one of his daily habits.
Student
After graduating from Alleyn's School at Dulwich College in London, Cecil began to study medicine at Guy's Hospital. In World War I, he tried to get to the front, but did not go through a medical examination due to a heart rhythm disturbance. During the examination, he wrote articles for a hospital newspaper and found that he liked this lesson much more than medicine.
During World War II, Forester moved to the United States and worked at the British Information Department, where he wrote propaganda articles prompting the United States to join its allies.
Forester decided to devote himself to literature and in 1920 left the medical school. But not everything went smoothly in the career of a novice writer. Publishers have always rejected the first works. And Forester patiently copied them again and again, honing his writing skills.
Creation
Cecil Scott Forester did not receive major literary awards. His merit lies elsewhere: he created a character whose name went into everyday speech. How much the hero Cecil “got used” to reality can be judged by the way in 1980, President Jimmy Carter praised former Deputy Prime Minister Hubert Horatio Humphrey.
According to tradition, Carter solemnly said at the end of the speech: "This great American Hubert Horatio Hornblower." Few people heard, but the president on the same night explained that he was thinking of none other than the immortal naval hero Horatio Hornblower, created by S. S. Forester.
Hornblower Series
Over the fifty-year career of a writer, Forester has written eleven books about Hornblower. The first of these, The Midshipman Hornblower, was published in 1960. He did not conceive them as a series, but for twenty years he returned to his beloved hero. In addition to novels, there are five stories in the same cycle.
During a trip to the Bering Sea, Forester fell ill with atherosclerosis. The desire to write brought him back to life. While ill, he worked on the book Hornblower in the West Indies. Forester thought, if he dies, then at least the stories will remain. Therefore, each chapter in this volume is a complete short story. Eight years later, in 1966, the writer died. And one of his stories about Hornblower - Trafalgar Wind - remained unfinished.
List of Forester Cecil Scott books about Hornblower in the order written by the author:
- 1937 - "Everything is in Place!";
- 1937 - “The battleship”;
- 1938 - “Under the banner of victory”;
- 1945 - Commodore Hornblower;
- 1946 - “Lord Hornblower”;
- 1950 - Midshipman Hornblower;
- 1952 - “Lieutenant Hornblower”;
- 1953 - Hornblower and Atropa;
- 1958 - Admiral Hornblower in the West Indies;
- 1962 - Hornblower and the Desperate;
- 1967 - The Trafalgar Wind.
Books and adaptations
In addition to the Hornblower saga, Cecil Scott Forester wrote twenty-four novels, two collections of short stories, and ten non-fiction books. The first of these, “Installment Retribution,” came out in 1926. This detective is considered one of the best in the history of the genre. Forester achieved the success of which he dreamed.
The plays written by him were staged in the West End. After the publication of the General and the African Queen in the late 30s, he noticed Forester and Hollywood. Ten books of the author were filmed; the series about the captain Hornblower was filmed:
- Payment Deferred (1932);
- Brown on Resolution (1935);
- Eagle Squadron (1942);
- "Commandos attack at dawn" (1942);
- "Eternity and Day" (1943);
- The African Queen (1951);
- "Captain Horatio" (1951);
- The Royal Sailor (1953);
- Pride and Passion (1957);
- "To sink the Bismarck" (1960).
Disappeared manuscript
In 2011, the name of Cecil Scott Forester flashed in all the newspapers. It was reported that the lost novel “Persecuted” is being published. It was written in 1935, but the writer decided not to give the manuscript to print, as he wanted to concentrate on the Hornblower saga.
In 2003, a copy of Forester's text surfaced at an auction in London, the seller wished to remain anonymous. The author himself said that the manuscript was lost. But maybe somewhere in the pantry there is a copy. Critics noted that Forester's crime novel, taking into account all the canons of the detective genre, masterfully conveys the emotions and feelings of heroes, and the dark side of London's life.
The whole series about the adventures of the sea captain Hornblower and two detectives “Retribution by installments” and “Do not wake the beast” have been translated into Russian. Judging by the readers' reviews, the books of Cecil Scott Forester deserve attention: the author lovingly created the world surrounding his characters, prescribed details and heroes.