Joseph Conrad - The Arrow Of Gold

I've always been interesting in reading Conrad and when I was going through my great grandfather's books I found a copy of The Arrow Of Gold and started there. I always thought that Conrad was an adventure writer and was look forward to such a novel, but so far it has been anything but. So far being about half way. I know he's in love with her, but that seems to be the only thing going on. I really like Conrad's narrative voice, but I find it quite slow going with all the dialogue and nothing else. In the spectrum of his works, how is The Arrow Of Gold regarded? Are his other books like this or are they more reflective of his adventurous reputation?

jeremy

Have to say I'm not a Conrad fan at all, jeremy, but I suspect you might prefer Heart of Darkness. It's a book I loathe with every fibre of my being, having been forced to read it at uni, but I think it fits your description of what you were hoping for pretty well.

(And I do realise your message is nearly a year old but I've only just discovered this group and it seemed a shame not to reply. Hope you're still around.)

The Arrow of Gold was unknown to me, while I have read quite a few books by Joseph Conrad. Reading this thread here last week Thursday, I noticed this book for the first time. So, when I saw it is the bookstore on Saturday, I could not resist buying it.

Unknown to me too. I will look for it.

Reading Greene's autobiographical Ways of escape, this is what Graham Greene thought about The arrow of gold:

Conrad's worst novel (p. 16-17)

Ouch, but then maybe Conrad's worst is still better than many other authors' best.

Without having read the book it is hard to say whether The Arrow of Gold was "Conrad's worst, Sassy.

In fact, The Arrow of Gold was a bestseller in the US in 1919!