Emilio Salgari (born Verona, August 21 1862, died Torino, April 25 1911), was a writer of action adventure swashbucklers and a pioneer of science fiction in Italy. After a failed attempt to become a naval officer he turned his passion for exploration and discovery to writing. He wrote more than two hundred adventure stories and novels, setting his tales in exotic locations, with heroes from a wide variety of cultures.

While extremely popular in Italy and Spanish speaking countries (it was a sort of Italian Jules Verne, but his works were usually more about cliffhanger adventures than speculative or scientific fiction) he is not very well known in the rest of the world. Sandokan: The Tigers of Mompracem is probably the only title available in English. The deeds of the fictious Sandokan seem to be loosley based on the exploits of Libau, a Dayak chieftain resisting James Brooke from his hideout at Mount Sandok in Sarawak.

While his works enjoyed a lot of popularity both during his life and after (a few stories were turned into movies during the 70s, often starring Kabir Bedi) he was never able to obtain steady incomes from them (apparently due to unfavourable treatment from his publishers). This, along with personal tragedies in his family, forced him to take his own life.

Allegedly, his works were a childhood favorite of Che Guevara.

works

• Sandokan: The Tigers of Mompracem (ISBN 0595291333)