6 h 38 minAudiobook7 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at costPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What if your people’s survival depends on a flame—and no one knows how to make it?
In Quest for Fire, J.-H. Rosny aîné imagines a world without writing, metal or farms. The Ulhamr carry their precious fire in cages, guarding it for warmth, safety and cooked food. When it dies, cold and darkness close around a tribe that cannot kindle another flame.
Three young men set out to find new fire. Quick, clever Naoh leads the search with steady Nam and fierce hunter Gaw. Their route crosses forests, marshes and open plains, where mammoths, cave lions and great bears roam. Other peoples hold the flame they need, but differ from the Ulhamr in appearance, habits and ways of life.
What you’ll discover
- A flame worth guarding Feel how a single loss threatens warmth, food and safety for an entire tribe.
- Three men facing danger Follow Naoh, Nam and Gaw as they carry their people’s need into the wilderness.
- A world of giants Cross an imagined prehistoric landscape where mammoths and great predators make every journey dangerous.
- Encounters with other peoples Meet human groups whose different habits make the search for fire more than a wilderness journey.
- Survival you can feel Enter a lost world through direct prose filled with movement, smell, sound and weather.
Who will love it
For readers who love survival tales, early human history and quick, physical storytelling, and anyone curious about the roots of science fiction.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A tribe loses the flame it carries
- Three young men set out to find fire
- The wilderness is full of giants and hunters
- Other peoples hold the fire the men need
- What the story says about fire and people
- A plain style that builds a lost world
Who’s who
- NaohSon of the Leopard, a young Ulhamr man, quick and clever, who leads the search for fire and wants to save his people.
- NamSon of the Poplar, a strong and steady companion who joins the quest to bring fire back to the tribe.
- GawSon of the Saiga, a fierce and powerful hunter who travels with Naoh and Nam in search of a new flame.
- FaoumA leader among the Ulhamr, an older man whose authority and experience shape how the tribe faces the loss of its fire.
Formats and delivery
- eBook
- On your phone, tablet, computer or Kindle, with the type as large as you like.
- Large-print eBook
- The same book in bigger, clearer type, from the first page.
- Audiobook
- 6 h 38 min, complete, read by Lucas Linden.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 7 minutes, to read or to hear.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
eBooks and audiobooks open right away. Download EPUB or PDF, or send the book to your Kindle. Every printed copy is made when you order it and shipped worldwide; shipping is shown at checkout.
How it works
- Start free. Nothing to pay today; the eBook of this book is yours to keep.
- Read, listen and print. 200,000+ classics as eBook, large-print eBook, audiobook and 15-minute summary, and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print, 5 accounts for the price of one.
- We remind you first. Free for 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment. Then 0,14 USD a day in your first year on the yearly plan and 0,27 USD a day after, or 0,66 USD a day on the monthly plan. Cancel online in two clicks.
Bought on its own? Every eBook, audiobook and printed book you buy without the plan carries our 30-day money-back guarantee.
25 languages, side by side
Read and hear Kampf ums Feuer in 25 languages and switch at any time. Or read two side by side, paragraph by paragraph: the way to learn a language with a book you love.
Kampf ums Feuer
by J.-H. Rosny aîné · 1911
Naoh and his companions cross a land of mammoths and lions to find the fire their tribe needs to survive.
Medium level5–10 hours to read25 languages
Excellent
- Read or listen
- 25 languages, side by side
- Print and large print at cost
- 5 accounts for the price of one
Free for 3 months · starts right away, on any device
Read free3 months free · cancel anytimeFree for 3 months, then 0,14 USD a dayCancel anytimeHow it works
In short
Quest for Fire is a short novel of prehistoric life, published in French in 1911 as La Guerre du feu. Its author, J.-H. Rosny aîné, was a Belgian-born French writer who also wrote about early humans in other books.
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A tribe loses the flame it carries
The story opens with the Ulhamr on the move, a tribe of men, women and children who live by hunting and gathering and who depend on fire for warmth, for safety and for cooked food. They do not know how to make fire. They can only keep it alive, feeding it and carrying it in cages from camp to camp. To them it is a living thing, almost a creature that must be tended.
Then the fire is lost. The tribe suffers a disaster on the road, and the flame that they have kept through so many seasons dies. Rosny does not treat this as a small misfortune. The tribe sinks into dread, because without fire the night belongs to the lions, the bears and the cold.
Free for 3 months · Cancel anytime
Free gifts
580 USD in free gifts when you start
Every book in every format and in 25 languages, 5 accounts for the price of one. Nothing to pay today.
- 200,000+ classic eBooksIn 25 languages, side by side
170 USDFREE - Every audiobookIn 25 languages, any device
120 USDFREE - 15-minute summariesRead or listen, in 25 languages
60 USDFREE - Print at cost, no markupPaperback, hardcover, large print
60 USDFREE - 5 accounts for the price of oneA shelf for everyone at home
170 USDFREE - A part in rebuilding the libraryNew languages and books for all
FREE
Questions about Kampf ums Feuer
Can I read it free?
Yes. The first key idea of the 15-minute summary is free with no sign-up. Start free and the whole book is yours for 3 months, with the eBook to keep, plus 200,000+ more classics and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print. Nothing to pay today: we email you 7 days before your first payment, and you can cancel online in two clicks.
Can I buy the printed book?
Soon. The paperback, hardcover and large print editions are being prepared. Choose Paperback or Hardcover above, leave your email, and we tell you the day you can order it, printed at cost.
How many accounts do I get?
Five, for the price of one: you and 4 more people, each with their own login, shelf and their own place in every book.
Can I cancel anytime?
Yes. Cancel online in two clicks at any time and nothing more is charged. Nothing is charged in your first 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment.
What is Quest for Fire about?
It is a prehistoric adventure about the Ulhamr tribe, who lose their fire and send three young men to find more. Their journey takes them through dangerous country filled with huge animals and other human peoples.
Who are Naoh, Nam and Gaw?
They are the three young Ulhamr men chosen to search for fire. Naoh is the main figure and the cleverest, while Nam and Gaw are strong companions who share the risks of the road.
Is Quest for Fire a true story?
No. It is a novel by J.-H. Rosny aîné, first published in French in 1911. The author imagined the lives of early humans using the knowledge of his day, so its details are invented.
The author
J.-H. Rosny aîné
1856–1940 · Belgian science fiction novelist
J.-H. Rosny aîné was the pen name of Joseph Henri Honoré Boex, a Belgian writer born in Brussels in 1856. He lived in Paris and died there in 1940. He wrote science fiction and prehistoric novels, including The Death of the Earth (1910) and Quest for Fire (1911).
More by J.-H. Rosny aîné
All 2 booksMore like this
Our mission
The library burned once. We are building it back.
Every great book, in every language and every format, for every family. Every plan helps pay for new languages, new audiobooks and books for readers who have never had them. Join the movement.
Read our story- Every language25 languages today, side by side, and more every year
- No wastePrinted on demand: no warehouses, no unsold stock, no pulped copies
- For everyonePaperback, hardcover and large print at the cost of printing
