When David Innes and Abner Perry set out to search for mineral deposits in Perry's newly invented Mechanical Prospectro, they never dreamed of discovering the beautiful, terrifying world of Pellucidar five hundred miles beneath their feet. Cast into a country of fierce fighting men, beautiful women, and vicious beasts, David and Abner take sharply diverging paths. David and his mate, Dian the Beautiful, set out to teach Pellucidar the ways of civilization and succeed in gathering a number of primitive kingdoms into the Empire of Pellucidar. Meanwhile, Abner turns his inventive genius to the science of aeronautics, with dire results for both David and Dian.
Edgar Rice Burroughs was born in Chicago, Illinois in 1875. After serving a short time in the 7th U.S. Cavalry, Burroughs was a shopkeeper, gold miner, cowboy, and policeman before becoming a full-time writer. His first novel, Tarzan of the Apes, was published in 1914, and along with its 22 sequels has sold over 30 million copies in 58 languages. Author of numerous other jungle and science fiction novels and novellas, including The Land That Time Forgot, Burroughs had a writing career that spanned almost 30 years, with his last novel, The Land of Terror, being published in 1941. He died in 1950 at his ranch near Tarzana, the California town named for his legendary hero.