Author Description

Herbert Strang was the pseudonym of two English authors, George Herbert Ely (1866-1958) and Charles James L'Estrange (1867-1947). They specialized in writing adventure stories for boys. They were both staff members of Oxford University Press which published their books, giving them a patina of social status and approval for the parents of their intended audience. Round the World in Seven Days (1910) was one of their most popular books. Ely and L'Estrange have been classified as "popular writers of imperial fiction" and "successors of G. A. Henty." The pseudonym was also employed for several series of anthologies, works "edited by Herbert Strang" that included The Big Book of School Stories for Boys and The Oxford Annual for Scouts. There was even a series for girls by "Mrs. Herbert Strang." Their other works include: In Clive's Command: A Story of the Fight for India (1906), With Marlborough to Malplaquet: A Story of the Reign of Queen Anne (1908), Humphrey Bold: A Story of the Time of Benbow (1909) and Swift and Sure (1909).