Conan the Barbarian: The Official Motion Picture Adaptation
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- Create Date：2023-11-27 07:22:09
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：L. Sprague de Camp
- ISBN：B0C6SR36WQ
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Summary
Two of the most famous contributors to the Conan legend present the official novel of Conan the Barbarian， the seminal fantasy film written by John Milius and Oliver Stone。 In the novel by L。 Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter， the Cimmerian youth Conan witnesses the death of his parents at the hands of Thulsa Doom， a priest of Set。 Enslaved， he is trained as a gladiator。 Gaining his freedom he allies with Subotai， a Hyrkanian archer， and a skilled swordswoman thief named Valeria。 Together they raid the Tower of the Serpent， then Conan breaks away to seek the cult of Doom--and revenge on the sorcerer who leads it。
Reviews
Hongi
，
What does the AI think about the book https://youtube。com/shorts/7U-OKyNcKQ。。。 What does the AI think about the book https://youtube。com/shorts/7U-OKyNcKQ。。。 。。。more
Luke
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I have some things to say about this that I think are important to Conan as a character and property。 This book is decades old， it was written based on the script for Conan the Barbarian the film， and as a whole I love both this book and the movie。But both the movie and the book have some issues that need to be addressed。 It's been a while， but some of these problems continue to persist in newer Conan adaptations-- except for many great comics， including the new Jim Zub Conan， which is awesome。I I have some things to say about this that I think are important to Conan as a character and property。 This book is decades old， it was written based on the script for Conan the Barbarian the film， and as a whole I love both this book and the movie。But both the movie and the book have some issues that need to be addressed。 It's been a while， but some of these problems continue to persist in newer Conan adaptations-- except for many great comics， including the new Jim Zub Conan， which is awesome。I'll get straight to my points--L Sprague De Camp and his wife wrote this story， even though it is labeled as Sprague and Lin Carter。 I was actually impressed for once reading a Sprague de Camp book。 I appreciate what he and Carter did for Conan as a property bringing it to the forefront commercially， but I have never had much of a taste for their Conan books。 This one actually caught me by surprise。 I listened via audible like with the recent Blood of the Serpent， and I probably enjoyed it a lot more than I should have due to the awesome narration。 The story is mostly identical to the movie， and that's a good thing。 The additions are welcome improvements to the overall cohesiveness of the story; where a movie might have to move faster and cut the fluff， here we get to learn more details about every event， including new scenes and dialogue we didn't get to hear in the film。 This leads to the heart of my review。 Conan。Conan himself is pretty well-done in this book。 It certainly bridges the gap between Milius/Arnold and Howard， but sort of ends up meeting somewhere in the middle。 Obviously this is not a pure Howard tale， as it uses his world， characters， lore， but changes the overall plot。 The story is not cut into different short story pieces throughout different times of Conan's life （as Howard intended！） but is one long epic story about Conan growing from boy to man， seeking vengeance from the beginning to the bittersweet end as KING。 This vengeance in particular is where my biggest problems lie。 Milius had a great appreciation for the character， but he or somewhat must have felt that Conan needed an overarching motivation to tie each story thread together。 That is what I inherently disagree with， fervently。 Conan is not perfect， he's a brute （with a genius military tactical mind）， a bastard （if he wants something， he'll draw blood to get it）， and womanizer （who still treats them with respect）， a thief （who rightfully takes from the scummiest of wealthy "civilized" folks）。 But what is it that actually drives him to do what he does and travel where he goes， in sandaled feet upon ancient sands？Many things， I would imagine！ But the important thing is nothing in particular is his sole motivator。 There's nothing wrong with him desiring vengeance every now and then， it's a powerful motivation， but doesn't define him utterly。So they get closer to the real Conan， with some great sword and sorcery adventures identical to the film。 I wish we got to see this Conan in the movie but I understand Arnold's english was not good enough at the time。 But Conan is well spoken， charismatic， calculating， cold， mirthful， melancholic， THOUGHTFUL。 This version did not come through in the film， but it comes through well in the book。But I want to see a Conan purely driven for no reason at all。 Maybe women， maybe gold， maybe adventure， but driven just for the sake of being driven is far more motivating for a young person to read about。 Conan helped me get through some hard times， and still does every day。 Thinking of a version of him who is given life by vengeance alone is a bit saddening because that isn't something that I can relate to。 When the vengeance is satisfied， what's left？I hope to read and listen to more books from Titan。 I hope they bring other pastiches to life！！！！！！！（Ps。 The iconic lines from the movie， like What is Best in Life， were absolutely ruined， unfortunately。 Aside from these little quibbles I think the book would he better than the movie if we got the book version on film。 The side characters are awesome， the villain Thulsa Doom is fantastic， the riddle of steel vs flesh argument is so awesome and relevant to the story。 I love the scary idea of a crazy cult growing and taking over the world， almost like a military invasion。）P。s。p。s The truth is by all intents and purposes this is an 8 out of 10 at least， but compared to Robert E。 Howard， the best writer on earth， whose prose could spark a flame to rival the sun， it doesn't come anywhere near it。 He wasn't perfect， but his style is impossible to imitate， but if you don't sound like him or write like him， then the larger than life characters also lose something special。 I live， I love， I slay， and am content！！！！！！！ 。。。more
Lee
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Hits the main story beats of the film while being just different enough to keep it interesting。 It was fun to imagine what from the screenplay used as the basis for this adaptation was cut from the movie due to budget and effects limitations at the time。 I would have especially loved to see （view spoiler）[the scene where Conan had to fight the dead king in the crypt before earning his sword。 （hide spoiler）] The dialog had the archaic， purple， sword and sorcery intangible quality that I love， and Hits the main story beats of the film while being just different enough to keep it interesting。 It was fun to imagine what from the screenplay used as the basis for this adaptation was cut from the movie due to budget and effects limitations at the time。 I would have especially loved to see （view spoiler）[the scene where Conan had to fight the dead king in the crypt before earning his sword。 （hide spoiler）] The dialog had the archaic， purple， sword and sorcery intangible quality that I love， and overall was a very effective pastiche of Robert E。 Howard's style。 It wasn't Dostoyevsky， but just what I needed for my present mood and nostalgia kick。 。。。more
Thomas Hobbs
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Really good adaptation I can actually see Arnold Schwarzenegger and James Earl Jones as I read this。
Sotiris Karaiskos
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The literary adaptation of the film of the same name and for this reason it is a book that has its usefulness。 As you know， there are some things that a movie can't show， unlike a book。 So in the first chapters we have a more complete picture of the process of the hero's coming of age， about the feelings and all that shaped his character。 But from a certain point on I feel that there is more of a reproduction of the events of the film than an attempt to tell a story， and that was not the best。 O The literary adaptation of the film of the same name and for this reason it is a book that has its usefulness。 As you know， there are some things that a movie can't show， unlike a book。 So in the first chapters we have a more complete picture of the process of the hero's coming of age， about the feelings and all that shaped his character。 But from a certain point on I feel that there is more of a reproduction of the events of the film than an attempt to tell a story， and that was not the best。 Of course the main quality of the book is that it complements the film in some way and as such I think it works very well。Η λογοτεχνική μεταφορά της ομώνυμης ταινίας και για αυτό είναι ένα βιβλίο που έχει τη χρησιμότητα του。 Όπως είναι γνωστό υπάρχουν κάποια πράγματα που μία ταινία δεν μπορεί να δείξει， σε αντίθεση με ένα βιβλίο。 Έτσι στα πρώτα κεφάλαια έχουμε μία πιο πλήρη εικόνα της διαδικασίας της ενηλικίωσης του ήρωα， για τα συναισθήματα και όλα αυτά που διαμόρφωσαν το χαρακτήρα του。 Από κάποιο σημείο και μετά όμως νιώθω ότι περισσότερο υπάρχει μία αναπαραγωγή των γεγονότων της ταινίας παρά μία προσπάθεια αφήγησης μιας ιστορίας， και αυτό δεν ήταν ότι καλύτερο。 Φυσικά το βασικό προσόν του βιβλίου είναι ότι συμπληρώνει με κάποιο τρόπο την ταινία και ως κάτι τέτοιο νομίζω ότι δουλεύει πάρα πολύ καλά。 。。。more
Bobby H
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 3 3/4 star。 Average quality， characters were forgettable， saving grace was the final battle。
Josh
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Full review soon。
Rudi Opperman
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I have enjoyed Conan ever since reading Conan comic books as a child。 After reading this book， I have come to the conclusion that I still enjoy books about Conan very much。 What is not to like about Conan， the character？ Uncomplicated sword and sorcery。
Ronald Wilcox
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Nice accounting of the early life of Conan。
Michael
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Just realised I hadn't shelved this movie adaptation novel。 I've probably been over-generous in giving it a three-star rating - 40 years on from having read it， it's hard to remember。 That I didn't keep it despite being a massive Conan fan when it came out probably indicates it should be a lower rating but， nostalgia。。。 Just realised I hadn't shelved this movie adaptation novel。 I've probably been over-generous in giving it a three-star rating - 40 years on from having read it， it's hard to remember。 That I didn't keep it despite being a massive Conan fan when it came out probably indicates it should be a lower rating but， nostalgia。。。 。。。more
Mikepottz
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In a time when man needed to understand steel。 Trust neither man nor woman， nor beast but you can trust a blade forged of steel。 Conan understands out of suffering is born strength， only through pain and deprivation does a human heart become strong as steel。 Conan's childhood village is attacked， spears through chests， heads chopped off flying through the air like tossed balls， hooves crushing skulls， arrow flying down plunging flesh and bone。 Conan watches his father downed by an arrow， before In a time when man needed to understand steel。 Trust neither man nor woman， nor beast but you can trust a blade forged of steel。 Conan understands out of suffering is born strength， only through pain and deprivation does a human heart become strong as steel。 Conan's childhood village is attacked， spears through chests， heads chopped off flying through the air like tossed balls， hooves crushing skulls， arrow flying down plunging flesh and bone。 Conan watches his father downed by an arrow， before dogs savaged him apart。 Conan watches as his majestic mother clenching a sword， impaling the enemy， a nine year old Conan jumping on the back of a warrior and slitting his throat。 Doom the powerful man with the jewelled helmet takes Conan's dads sword， forged， absolute beautiful marksmanship and chops off Conan's mothers head， it rolls to the feet of Conan。 Now chained with an iron collar， his body will be forged like steel as a slave。 Later he will be bought as a pit fighter and he will become proficient in all weapons。 After escaping he will survive being seduced by a witch， steal the precious gem from a bunch of serpent loving cultists freaks and set out on an adventure to rescue the King's daughter and come face to face with his parents killer and recapture the sword。 。。。more
Norbert Roman
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Cinema Conan is Conan as Leni Riefenstahl might have portrayed him， an Aryan ubermensch （Arnold Schwartenegger） flexing his indomidable muscles against the backdrop of mountain， tundra， desert， and ocean， striving against obstacles to a faux-Wagenerian soundtrack， asserting his will to power upon the lesser men of the dark and decadent south。 Conan the Barbarian a bombastic B-movie， but an entertaining one。 The subtext might be "problematic" （although I suspect ironic: at any rate， the screenpla Cinema Conan is Conan as Leni Riefenstahl might have portrayed him， an Aryan ubermensch （Arnold Schwartenegger） flexing his indomidable muscles against the backdrop of mountain， tundra， desert， and ocean， striving against obstacles to a faux-Wagenerian soundtrack， asserting his will to power upon the lesser men of the dark and decadent south。 Conan the Barbarian a bombastic B-movie， but an entertaining one。 The subtext might be "problematic" （although I suspect ironic: at any rate， the screenplay was written by Jews）， but that doesn't matter， or shouldn't--not if you're being honest。 I thought the novelization quite as good as the film。 Then again， I was 11。 What the hell did I know？ 。。。more
Craig
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This is a very good adaptation of an early version of the script of the first Conan film。 Normally one is wise to be wary of works that have been through too many hands， but this is a nice exception to the rule。 Conan， of course， was a swords & sorcery/heroic fantasy character created by Robert E。 Howard who was at his best in pulp Weird Tales magazine in the 1930's。 De Camp collected， edited， added to， and expanded Howard's originals for a series of hardbound volumes from Gnome Press in the 195 This is a very good adaptation of an early version of the script of the first Conan film。 Normally one is wise to be wary of works that have been through too many hands， but this is a nice exception to the rule。 Conan， of course， was a swords & sorcery/heroic fantasy character created by Robert E。 Howard who was at his best in pulp Weird Tales magazine in the 1930's。 De Camp collected， edited， added to， and expanded Howard's originals for a series of hardbound volumes from Gnome Press in the 1950's， and then into a wildly popular twelve-volume chronological series from Lancer Books with the help of Lin Carter （and due to some covers by Frank Frazetta） in the 1960's and -70's。 A popular comics version followed， as did more novels and stories from other authors， and then， inevitably， this film。 The screenplay was credited to John Milius and Oliver Stone， and de Camp and Carter （with uncredited but significant contributions from Catherine de Camp， L。 Sprague's wife） adapted it into this prose form。 （Another uncredited detail worth mentioning is the name of the protagonist， Thulsa Doom， was taken from Howard pastiches written by another excellent heroic fantasy author， andrew j。 offutt; he was justifiably quite proud of it。） The story is different from Howard's chronology （and from de Camp's）， but it's a good novel， just slightly different from the filmed version， but with interesting added details。 It's a worthy addition to the Conan shelf。 。。。more
Chiefdonkey Bradey
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Solace in a dark age - sword play - mighty thews - Atlantean steel ！
Leah
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Such a classic！ Looooove this book。 The movie is amazing too minus Arnold's lack of English language lol the book is actually so much better because it goes deeper into the character development。 There's some things that are different in the book than in the movie but I'm not going to name them all。 Like the way character dies might be different lol I 'm avoiding spoilers。kruuuuuuuuuuuuum！ Such a classic！ Looooove this book。 The movie is amazing too minus Arnold's lack of English language lol the book is actually so much better because it goes deeper into the character development。 There's some things that are different in the book than in the movie but I'm not going to name them all。 Like the way character dies might be different lol I 'm avoiding spoilers。kruuuuuuuuuuuuum！ 。。。more
Mariam
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lame
Malum
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I wouldn't argue with anyone who disagrees with my rating on this one。 As the novelization of one of my favorite fantasy movies， though， how can I not love it？ It also has a few different details from the movie， which was interesting to see。 I wouldn't argue with anyone who disagrees with my rating on this one。 As the novelization of one of my favorite fantasy movies， though， how can I not love it？ It also has a few different details from the movie， which was interesting to see。 。。。more
Linda
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This is an expansion and expository version of the movie。 Heavy on the testosterone but fun。
Angela Maher
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This is a reasonable read although some parts made me roll my eyes。 I mostly liked the style， but some parts became too flowery or pretentious。 Some dialogue is written in an archaic style， but other dialogue has a distinctly contemporary feel。 As for the love scenes， I think they were only included to mimic the movie; they're basic and awkward and the book would have been better without them。 This is a reasonable read although some parts made me roll my eyes。 I mostly liked the style， but some parts became too flowery or pretentious。 Some dialogue is written in an archaic style， but other dialogue has a distinctly contemporary feel。 As for the love scenes， I think they were only included to mimic the movie; they're basic and awkward and the book would have been better without them。 。。。more
Bryan Dyke
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The novelization of the first Conan film is a worthy read for sword and sorcery fans， writers L。 Sprague De Camp and Lin Carter craft a solid， albeit inferior， chronicle of the 1982 John Milius Film Conan The Barbarian， and the script by Milius and Oliver Stone， though I would say the narrative， writing， and artistic vision of the film version is more profound。I know Robert E。 Howard （the creator of Conan） fans are often divided on the 1982 film。 Most enjoy it as a worthy amalgamation of REH tal The novelization of the first Conan film is a worthy read for sword and sorcery fans， writers L。 Sprague De Camp and Lin Carter craft a solid， albeit inferior， chronicle of the 1982 John Milius Film Conan The Barbarian， and the script by Milius and Oliver Stone， though I would say the narrative， writing， and artistic vision of the film version is more profound。I know Robert E。 Howard （the creator of Conan） fans are often divided on the 1982 film。 Most enjoy it as a worthy amalgamation of REH tales/characters and for the sheer quality of the film， the score， cast， and conception。 Other’s loathe that Milius’ Conan is a dullard novice， and that the film cannibalized REH stories in lieu of presenting a more faithful page to film depiction。 I am of the former， but this book probably would leave both “camps” somewhat unhappy and not without issue。 It must also be said those same REH fans have a split opinion of the author of this novelization L。 Sprague De Camp， for reasons best left to other works。The Conan film is a minimalist romp， an epic low fantasy spaghetti western that plays down gaudy back story， high fantasy， and flowery exposition and instead chooses to present to the viewer a visual and audible work of art， a masterpiece of cinematography。 The result is higher drama， grit， and brutal action。 In turn， this provides an emphasis on some of Robert Howard’s notions of the virtue of the savage。The novelization， however， takes a different path。 We get some interesting back story here， which at times detracts or bogs down the narrative。 The film script fixes and edits down these bloated moments， but the quality of the story， and the relation to either version of the script， still shine through。Despite overall enjoyment， I had a few burning issues with the book; one， that De Camp and Carter inject this Conan with a disparate characterization than the film undertakes。 In this novelization， he is often depicted as overly moral， even conflicted at brutality， owning to a “Cimmerian Chivalry” or code of honor that is mostly absent in the film。 （and rightfully so） For instance， in this version Conan does not partake of the Black Lotus drug in the border town of Zamora， as De Camp clearly sees him as above that。 He often “high horses” his way through the story， and De Camp stops just short of making him a choir boy。 There are many moments like this; Conan is depicted as showing regret for the work of killing women in the pit， or even for bedding the woman in the novelization’s version of the “bred to the finest stock” scene。 （i。e。 pseudo-Christian morals） I don’t recall Howard ever infusing that specific level of moral compass to Conan in the original stories。 To be sure， REH’s Conan was not without a moral code or ethos of some effect， but not of the medieval ilk that we see De Camp and Carter ascribe him。 I think this detracts from some of the REH motifs of “savage versus civilization” and the conflict that he had originally intended to be an ongoing theme for the character。 This contrast is much more alive in the Milius version of the script that makes the screen。 Frankly， I found the film’s amoral novice Conan， fumbling his way in strange new worlds far more interesting。 This ill-fitting morality hurts the narrative and makes little sense within the framework of film-Conan’s upbringing/origins。There are other elaborations here I did not like; a few gaudy and bloated scenes right down to the final act， which has some heavily nuanced changes from the pseudo-western minimalism of the film’s great two-fisted finale。 While this likely is not fully the authors’ fault， there is too much exposition and explanation for my tastes。 Thankfully， for the film， the fluff was rightfully trimmed， modified， and sliced off at the neck。 More than a few iconic scenes in the film struggle here; I especially preferred the painted assassin “raid” on Thulsa Doom’s Mountain of Power in the film， the brilliant building Poledouris score， overturned pots of human menudo， the flickering lights， unspoken lines， emphasis on “showing” not “telling”。 Unfortunately， De Camp/Carter just can’t resist telling us ad nauseum， and the book often suffers。 The novelization still manages to work for some value with its quick pacing， brisk action， and pulpy roots， and as a novelty companion of the better film， but it is otherwise just another sword and sorcery pulp of the day， whereas the film is a classic， immortal work。 De Camp and Carter also add a few clunky sentences that affect some of the flow。 Their writing chops are nowhere near at the level of REH， but they are， at times， serviceable。 As it was， the prose smoothed out over time， but was not perfect。 I thought to myself， this would have been better if Karl Wagner had been the author。 In conclusion， a good book， a quick read， and recommended for Conan fans， but I was left with a somewhat sour flavor in my mouth that had tasted things best left untasted。 。。。more
Zane
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I recommend the Audiobooks for the Damned narration available on YouTube， highly entertaining。
Kevin Dumcum
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One of the rare instances where the book is worse than the movie。 I assume that the novel was based on a screenplay， because it left out some touches from the finished film， including， incredibly enough， misquoting “what is best in life。”
Jeff Mayo
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As I have already established， as a fan of the Marvel Comic series， and read many of the novels。 Now I am only a fan of the comic book series if the complete series run is for sale together。 This novel was completely different than the established character from the novels。 This is the novelization of the 1982 movie starring Arnold Schwarzenegger。 The movie was a godawful mess of poorly acted trash。 The book is just as bad because you can literally hear the Governator with every line。 Even if yo As I have already established， as a fan of the Marvel Comic series， and read many of the novels。 Now I am only a fan of the comic book series if the complete series run is for sale together。 This novel was completely different than the established character from the novels。 This is the novelization of the 1982 movie starring Arnold Schwarzenegger。 The movie was a godawful mess of poorly acted trash。 The book is just as bad because you can literally hear the Governator with every line。 Even if you were a jackass teenage boy who was a fan of the comic book I would have to advise against wasting your time on this。 。。。more
Brooklyn Palmer
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I loved this book if you are looking for a stupid fantasy， you will love this。
Don
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I got this book wanting to see how close it would be to the movie。 It wasn't close enough for me。 It is tough when you are reading and things are different。 I kept thinking， well that didn't happen that way， or they didn't say those things。 I got this book wanting to see how close it would be to the movie。 It wasn't close enough for me。 It is tough when you are reading and things are different。 I kept thinking， well that didn't happen that way， or they didn't say those things。 。。。more
Sarah Ehinger
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Much like the movie， there wasn't a whole lot driving the story forward。 It is a great hack and slash， but didn't leave me looking forward to reading more stories about Conan。 I'm hoping that， this flat read was due to this book being a novelization of the screen play and that the other stories will be more enjoyable。 Much like the movie， there wasn't a whole lot driving the story forward。 It is a great hack and slash， but didn't leave me looking forward to reading more stories about Conan。 I'm hoping that， this flat read was due to this book being a novelization of the screen play and that the other stories will be more enjoyable。 。。。more
Timothy Dymond
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‘Warlord: "What is best in life？" Conan: "To crush your enemies， to see them driven before you， and to hear the lamentations of their women。”’ This is the most famous quote from the movie， ‘Conan the Barbarian’， on which this novelisation ‘Conan the Barbarian’， is based， drawn from the famous pulp series of the 1930s ‘Conan the Barbarian’。As a result， this story has so many authors it’s hard to know who to credit。 The screenplay was written by John Milius （the film’s director） and Oliver Stone， ‘Warlord: "What is best in life？" Conan: "To crush your enemies， to see them driven before you， and to hear the lamentations of their women。”’ This is the most famous quote from the movie， ‘Conan the Barbarian’， on which this novelisation ‘Conan the Barbarian’， is based， drawn from the famous pulp series of the 1930s ‘Conan the Barbarian’。As a result， this story has so many authors it’s hard to know who to credit。 The screenplay was written by John Milius （the film’s director） and Oliver Stone， the novelisation is by L。 Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter who， while established fantasy authors in their own right， wrote pastiches of Robert E Howard’s tales of Conan the Cimmerian: ‘black-haired， sullen-eyed， sword in hand， a thief， a reaver， a slayer， with gigantic melancholies and gigantic mirth， [who] tread the jewelled thrones of the Earth under his sandalled feet。’Howard’s Conan tales are set in the mythical ‘Hyborian Age’， a period ‘between the years when the oceans drank Atlantis and the gleaming cities， and the years of the rise of the sons of Aryas， … an Age undreamed of， when shining kingdoms lay spread across the world like blue mantles beneath the stars’。Conan is a versatile hero who has had many interpreters over the years。 The 1982 screen version of Conan upon which this story is based was criticised as being far more sullen and passive， compared to the talkative and engaging Barbarian of Howard’s original stories。 Michael Moorcock in ‘Wizardry and Wild Romance’ went further and called this Conan a ‘Fascist’， and it is certainly the case that John Milius wanted Conan to be a ‘Northern European Hero’ with specific callbacks to Wagnerian and Nietzschean themes。 Milieus was a rare， outright conservative in Liberal Hollywood， who wrote ‘Dirty Harry’， and directed the Reaganite fantasy of a Soviet invasion of the US: ‘Red Dawn’。 The Conan of the film is inseparable from Arnold Schwarzenegger - for whom this was a breakthrough role in his movie career。 While the thickness of Schwarzenegger’s Austrian accent prompted him to consent to voice lessons for this film （in early screenings some critics couldn’t understand him）， it undoubtedly works in a completely fantastical setting。 Howard’s Hyborian Age contains resonances as diverse as the Roman Empire， the Russian Steppes， the Vikings， the Pirates of the Caribbean， all existing at the same time。 Conan was one of the few ‘comic based’ movies of the early 1980s to have box-office success， and certainly it is hard now to imagine ‘Conan the Barbarian’ as anyone other than Schwarzenegger holding his sword aloft。 L。Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter’s book is an able pastiche of Howard， although Moorcock has criticised their approach for being verbose and overwritten。 Originally Conan was a character for short stories， so this relatively small book is still a long tale for Conan。 The action moves at a rapid clip， and sticks close to the film while allowing some expansion of the story to give Conan bit more depth （but not too much）。 If you liked the film （I did， but many don’t） you’ll like this book。 。。。more
David Plough
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It's the novelazition of the first Conan movie。 Like the movie， it's a lot of fun。 Not the best written book I've ever read， but swords， magic and Snake people make up for a lot of issues。 It's the novelazition of the first Conan movie。 Like the movie， it's a lot of fun。 Not the best written book I've ever read， but swords， magic and Snake people make up for a lot of issues。 。。。more
Stuart Dean
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Adaptation from the movie。 A definitely noncanon retelling of Conan's upbringing， with his abduction by the followers of Set， his years growing big and strong on the Wheel of Pain， and his days as a pit fighter。 Conan goes to civilization， learns the ways of the thief， falls in love， and seeks his revenge against Thulsa Doom。 Makes for a good movie。Makes for a decent book。 De Camp does his best to reconcile the story with the rest of the Conan tales but it's not easy。 The Cimmerians in this book Adaptation from the movie。 A definitely noncanon retelling of Conan's upbringing， with his abduction by the followers of Set， his years growing big and strong on the Wheel of Pain， and his days as a pit fighter。 Conan goes to civilization， learns the ways of the thief， falls in love， and seeks his revenge against Thulsa Doom。 Makes for a good movie。Makes for a decent book。 De Camp does his best to reconcile the story with the rest of the Conan tales but it's not easy。 The Cimmerians in this book are not the Cimmerians that we are used to， being unprepared when attacked and falling fairly easily。 Instead of developing his varied skills through wide travel and many jobs， here Conan learns weapons and how to fight and nothing else。 Even with that he is bested more times in this book than in any other。 Instead of an ill-tempered and easily bored adventurer we get a sullen， vengeance driven thug。 The movie is much better than the book。 Probably the reverse would be true if they ever made a REH story into a Conan movie。 。。。more
Kirk Jones
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The book is better than I remember the movie being， though I still enjoy the movie when in the mood for it。 The reason for a better opinion of the book may be due to de Camp and Carter being associated with the Conan books for so long。 Overall， not a bad read， though it has nowhere near the power of the original Robert E。 Howard tales （even if certain scenes were taken from them。 I enjoyed it as an alternate universe Conan tale。There is an attempt to make the writing style fit with the Howard ta The book is better than I remember the movie being， though I still enjoy the movie when in the mood for it。 The reason for a better opinion of the book may be due to de Camp and Carter being associated with the Conan books for so long。 Overall， not a bad read， though it has nowhere near the power of the original Robert E。 Howard tales （even if certain scenes were taken from them。 I enjoyed it as an alternate universe Conan tale。There is an attempt to make the writing style fit with the Howard tales， something that was old hat to these two gentlemen at this point。 I won't go into the controversies surrounding de Camp and his editing of the Howard Conan tales。 All that I will say is that， taken on its own merits， this book is enjoyable and fun to read。 I particularly like the characterization of the thief Subotai。All in all， three of five。 。。。more
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conan the barbarian the official motion picture adaptation