Dr Tom Brown has always been fascinated by lions. When he receives a letter from his father informing him that a pair of officers of the Cape Rifles and a hunter named Hicks are planning a hunting trip to South Africa and need a final man, Tom doesn’t need any persuading to join them. Very much of its time, ‘Hunting the Lions’ by R.M. Ballantyne is nonetheless a fascinating insight into the very different attitude towards hunting at the time, and a wonderful account of the wildlife of South Africa. R.M. Ballantyne (1825-1894) was a Scottish artist and prolific author of mostly children’s fiction. Born in Edinburgh, Ballantyne was the ninth of ten children. At the age of 16 Ballantyne moved to Canada, where he worked for the Hudson’s Bay Company, travelling all over the country to trade for fur. He returned to Scotland in 1847 following the death of his father, and it was then that he began his literary career in earnest, writing over 100 children’s adventure books over the course of his life. Stories such as ‘The Coral Island’ and ‘The Young Fur Traders’ were hugely popular, and many of them drew on his own experiences of travelling throughout Canada. A stickler for detail, Ballantyne continued to travel widely to research the backgrounds and settings for his exciting stories. His tales became an inspiration for authors of the future, including ‘Treasure Island’ novelist Robert Louis Stevenson. Ballantyne spent the latter period of his life living in London and Italy for the sake of his health. He died in Rome in 1894 at the age of 68.
