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This is a first edition of With Kitchener in the Soudan written by G.A. Henty. Henty was a supremely popular author. He published over 120 novels for children. Many of those novels, like With Kitchener in the Soudan, recounted recent military conflict, and sought to instil militaristic patriotism in young (especially male) readers. Novels like Henty’s were extremely popular at the time. Sales statistics suggest they remained so several decades into the twentieth century.

Compulsory and free education was introduced from the 1870s. By the early 1900s, a steep increase in literacy meant reading became a popular leisure activity for children. It is no surprise that historians of childhood describe the period of the 1870s to the 1920s as the ‘the golden age of children’s literature’. This was also a time in which Britain was engaged in territorial conflict across the continent of Africa.

It was in this context that imperially-themed books and magazines became popular items for children to read in their leisure time. While the content and tone of some of these historical objects are problematic to modern audiences, novels like this are important to study because they enable deeper understanding of the influence of popular culture on the shaping of past historical values and attitudes. From novels such as this, children had opportunities to learn about geography, current conflicts, and recent imperial history. As historians researching these texts, we can learn about how past attitudes emerged, such as the development of the cult of the military in the lead up to the First World War, and about how perceptions of race and racial difference have changed over time.