Story summary
Samenvatting van De favoriet van de Mahdi
- 8 min. leestijd
- 10 parts
- Binnenkort te beluisteren
A dancer's eyes tear apart a lieutenant's engagement, and the Mahdi's desert war swallows them both.
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De favoriet van de Mahdi in het kort
Samenvatting: 8 min leestijd
- Leestijd
- Ongeveer 8 h6 h 20 min fast, 9 h 30 min slow
- Lengte
- 114.400 woorden
- Bibliotheekniveau
- Gemiddeld longer sentences, everyday words
- Voor het eerst verschenen
- 1887by Emilio Salgari
Reading time at 238 words a minute (fast 300, slow 200). Hoelang het duurt om de klassiekers te lezen · Bijgewerkt
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De favoriet van de Mahdi in short
The Mahdi's Favorite tells of one jealous triangle that grows into a chain of chases across the Sudan. An officer falls for a dancer on the eve of his marriage, and his rival, his abandoned fiancée and his loyal slave hunt one another by river, forest and desert. Around them the Mahdi's revolt swallows an entire army.
What De favoriet van de Mahdi is about
What would you risk for a single look? On an evening in September 1883, in a village on the White Nile, an Egyptian officer watches a dancer perform the bee dance and feels his engagement start to slip away. Before the night is over, a lion, a rival and a ride across the plain push him toward a choice he cannot undo.
The Mahdi's Favorite is an adventure novel by Emilio Salgari, the Italian writer who died in 1911. He sets it in the Sudan during the revolt of the Mahdi against Egyptian rule. Real events run alongside an invented tangle of love, jealousy and revenge. You get duels, river chases and lions on the plain.
Voor wie is het?. Readers who love fast adventure, fierce rivalries and romance set against real history will feel at home here. Deserts, rivers and sword fights await you.
The story in 10 parts
Key idea 1 · free to read
A dancer unsettles a promised marriage
The story opens on September 4, 1883, in Machmudiech, a village on the White Nile. Abd-el-Kerim, a tall and proud Egyptian officer, crosses the river looking for Notis, a Greek lieutenant. Notis is the brother of Elenka, and Abd-el-Kerim has promised to marry her. The two meet in a coffeehouse and talk of the war.
Then a young almea named Fathma walks in, and the three officers spring up in admiration. She performs the bee dance, and her great dark eyes keep turning toward Abd-el-Kerim. He stares as if turned to stone, then later clenches his hands against the angareb. When she holds out her hands, he gives her a handful of piastres.
Notis notices every glance. Abd-el-Kerim swears he has never seen the dancer before, then says they must go, as if he could not bear to stay. A vow made over two years of patient courtship can crack in one evening.
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A lion, a ride and a growing secret
Night has fallen when the two officers climb onto their racing camels and ride west toward the camp at Hossanieh.
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Two rivals, a serenade and a duel
At the camp, Notis cannot sleep.
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A dead man returns and a bandit sets a trap
Notis is not dead.
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Elenka arrives and takes her revenge
Elenka is the most fiery woman in Upper Egypt.
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A slave escapes and a rescuer finds her
Abd-el-Kerim lies in the cellar, half mad with fear for Fathma.
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Omar fights for a mistress on the river
Part Two begins in October 1883 as a large boat called a darnas sails down the White Nile.
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Rebels, a wounded sheikh and a plain of lions
After the battle, the darnas passes an island where rebels gather on the banks.
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Hicks Pasha's army marches into disaster
O'Donovan is based on a real Irish journalist.
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What drives the story and how it is told
At its core, the novel is about obsession.
Read all 10 key ideas now
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Characters, plot and themes
Main characters
- Abd-el-Kerim An Egyptian lieutenant engaged to Elenka who falls for Fathma and wants to keep her safe and win her as his wife.
- Fathma A proud almea and former favorite of the Mahdi who loves Abd-el-Kerim and wants to find him again at any cost.
- Notis A Greek lieutenant and Elenka's brother who burns with jealousy and hunger for revenge and wants Fathma for himself.
- Elenka Notis's fiery sister, once engaged to Abd-el-Kerim, who is ready to destroy her rival to win him back.
- Omar Abd-el-Kerim's loyal slave, brave and quick-witted, who deserts the army to find and protect Fathma.
- Mohammed Ahmed The Mahdi, a rebel prophet who leads two hundred thousand warriors and cannot forget the woman who left him.
- Abu-el-Nemr A rebel sheikh and lieutenant of the Mahdi whom Fathma heals and who then becomes her protector.
- O'Donovan An Irish newspaper reporter with Hicks Pasha's army who helps Fathma search for Abd-el-Kerim.
How it ends (spoiler)
Notis dies at last, shot by Omar beside Lake Tscherkela after he is dragged there in pursuit of Fathma. Elenka has died before him. Abd-el-Kerim is cured of his sickness and is reunited with Fathma, who is freed because Ahmed forgives her. The sheikh Abu-el-Nemr, who loves her in secret, is left broken and aged. In a final scene two months later he walks with the Mahdi as a rider approaches.
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Vragen over De favoriet van de Mahdi
What is The Mahdi's Favorite about?
It follows an Egyptian officer, Abd-el-Kerim, who breaks his engagement for a dancer named Fathma during the Sudan revolt of 1883. His rivals chase them across rivers and deserts while the Mahdi's rebels destroy an army.
Who is the Mahdi in the book?
He is Mohammed Ahmed, a religious leader who declared himself the Mahdi and led the rebellion against Egyptian rule in the Sudan. The novel shows him as a real historical figure and as a man who still loves Fathma.
Is The Mahdi's Favorite based on a true story?
The characters of the love story are invented, but the setting is real. The revolt of the Mahdi, the march of General Hicks and the battle of Kasghill in 1883 are history, which Salgari wrote about soon afterward.
Who is Fathma in the novel?
Fathma is a brave and beautiful almea, a trained dancer and singer, who once belonged to the Mahdi's household. She loves Abd-el-Kerim, fires a rifle better than most soldiers, and draws the hatred of Elenka and the love of Notis.
Is The Mahdi's Favorite easy to read?
It is a fast adventure told in short scenes and plain language. Chapters end on a shot, a whistle or a cry, and the characters are easy to tell apart, so the plot moves along with energy.
Verwijs naar deze uitgave
Salgari, Emilio. The Mahdi's Favorite. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-mahdis-favorite.
Salgari, E. (2026). The Mahdi's favorite. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-mahdis-favorite (Original work published 1887)
Salgari, Emilio. The Mahdi's Favorite. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-mahdis-favorite.
@book{salgari2026mahdis,
author = {Salgari, Emilio},
title = {The Mahdi's Favorite},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-mahdis-favorite},
note = {First published 1887}
}
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