Neowolf said:
Forgive my ignorance, but who is Flashman?
EDIT - not quite fast enough! Drat!
*sob* Thank you for asking. My favorite character of my favorite series of books. He's a lying, craven, philandering blackguard who somehow manages to become one of the most notable war heroes of Victorian Britian (generally 1830's-1870's.) Over the course of ten or so books, we get to see most of the notable occurrances in British colonial history through his eyes as he flees, fornicates, and fibs his way through them.
Harry Flashman was originally a bit character in the British schoolboy required reading "Tom Brown's Schooldays" (they're equivalent of Tom Sawyer.) In the story, Flashman is a bully and a braggart who bedevils our school-age hero Tom Brown before being expelled for drunkenness. The author George McDonald Fraser asked himself, "I wonder what happened to Flashman after being kicked out of Rugby?" The Flashman series is the answer: he became a war hero.
The neat thing is that Fraser is a consummate historian, so that the Flashman "memoirs" (allegedly written by Flashman himself in his 90's) are a fantastic analysis of historical events. Flashman was the sole survivor of the British retreat from Afghanistan and of Custer's Last Stand; he participated in the Sikh Rebellion, Harper's Ferry, the '49ers trek across the US for gold in California, the Tai Ping Rebellion, the Charge of the Light Brigade, the seige of Cawnpore, and lord knows how many other battles. For instance, he fought on both sides of the US Civil War. What makes such a sleazebag such a fun narrator is that although he's a coward, no one knows this, and he has to maintain a heroic air that often gets him into horrible trouble.
The first book I read was Flashman and the Dragon. It takes place in the middle of the series, but it's an accessible start. I also recommend the Books on Tape versions (your library may have them), because the guy who reads them is fantastic.
So, I can't recommend this highly enough; Fraser is a big influence on me when I write, and the characters he creates are great fun. Now, I return you to your steampunk thread.
Here's Flashman's "Who's Who" entry:
Flashman, Harry Paget. Brigadier-general, V.C., K.C.B., K.C.I.E.; Chevalier, Legion of Honour; Order of Maria Theresa, Austria; Order of the Elephant, Denmark (temporary); U.S. Medal of honor; San Serafino Order of purity and truth, 4th Class. b May 5, 1822, s of H. Buckley Flashman, Esq., Ashby and Hon. Alicia Paget; m. Elspeth Rennie Morrison, d. of Lord Paisley; one s., one d. educ. Rugby School. 11th Hussars, 17th Lancers. Served Afghanistan, 1841-42 (medals, thanks of Parliament); chief of staff to H. M. James Brooke, Rajah of Sarawak Batang Lupar expedn, 1844; milit. advisor, H.M. Queen Ranavalona of Madagascar, 1844-5; Sutlej campaign, 1845-6 (Ferozeshah, Sobraon, envoy extraordinary to Maharani Jeendan, Court of Lahore); polit. advisor to Herr (later Chancellor Prince) Von Bismarck, Schleswig-Holstein, 1847-8; Crimea staff (Alma, Sevastopol, Balaclava), Prisoner of war, 1854; Artillery adviser to Atilik Ghazi, Syr Daria campaign, 1855; Sepoy Mutiny, 1857-8, dip, envoy to HRH the Maharani of Jhansi, trooper 3rd Native Cavalry, Meerut, subseq. att, Rowbotham's Mosstroopers, Cawnpore, (Lucknow, Gwalior, etc., V.C.); Adjutant to Captain John Brown, Harper's Ferry, 1859; China campaign 1860, polit. mission to Nanking, Taiping Rebellion, polit. and other services, Imperial Court, Pekin U.S. Army (major, Union forces, 1862; colonel (staff) Army of the Confederacy, 1863); a.d.c. to H.I.M. Maximilian, Emperor of Mexico, 1867; interpreter and observer Sioux campain, U.S. 1875-6 (Camp Robinson conference, Little Bighorn, etc.); Zulu War, 1879 (Isandhlwana, Rorke's Drift); Egypt 1882 (Kassassin, Tel-el-Kebir); personal bodyguard to H.I.M. Franz-Joseph, Emperor of Austria 1883; Sudan 1884-5 (Khartoum); Pekin Legations, 1900. Travelled extensively in military and civilian capacites among them supercargo, merchant marine (West Africa); agriculturist (Mississippi valley); wagon captain and hotelier (Santa Fe Trail); buffalo hunter and scout (Oregon Trail); courier (Underground Railroad); majordomo (India), prospector (Australia); trader and missionary (Solomen Islands, Fly River, etc.); lottery supervisor (Manila); diamond Broker and horse coper (Punjab); dep. marshall, U.S.; occasional actor and impersonator. Hon. mbr of numerous societies and clubs, including Sons of the Volsungs (Strackenz), Mimbreno Apache Copper Mines band (New Mexico), Kokand Horde (Central Asia), Kit Carson's Boys (Colorado), Brown's Lambs (Maryland), M.C.C., Whites and United Service (London, both resigned), Blackjack (Batavia). Chmn, Flashman and Bottomley, Ltd.; dir. British Opium Trading Co.; governor, Rugby School; hon. pres. Mission for Reclamation of Reduced Females. Publications: Dawns and Departures of a Soldier's Life; Twixt Cossack and Cannon; The Case Against Army Reform. Recreation: oriental studies, angling, cricket (performed first recorded "hat-trick"; Wickets of Felix, Pilch and Mynn for 14 runs; Rugby Past and Present v Kent, Lord's 1842; 5 for 12, Mynn's Casuals v All Engand XI, 1843). Add. Gandamack Lodge, Ashby, Leics.
