Biggles Works It Out by W. E. Johns was first published in 1951 by Hodder and Stoughton. There have 8 editions in total in the English language. The events in the book take place in the late 1940s or early 1950s in England, France, Australia and North Africa.
From Oct 1953 to May 1954, the novel was serialized in eight parts the Australian youth magazine Silver Jacket #1-#8.[1]
Synopsis[]
A gold convoy in Australia is ambushed and half a ton of gold ingots taken. Yet the criminals seemed to have disappeared without trace. Biggles suspects that the criminal gang is using long-range aircraft and sets off to investigate. He soon discovers that he is up against his old adversary Erich von Stalhein, and a mysterious group living in a remote Sahara desert oasis known as "The White Prophets of Peace". This book is notable for the introduction of Marcel Brissac, of the Surete and Biggles' French counterpart. He would become a frequent recurring character in later books.
Plot[]
Note: The sections below contain spoilers. In particular, the plot subpage (click here) has an extended summary of the narrative in the book
Characters[]
The Special Air Police[]
- Air Commodore Raymond
- Biggles
- Algy Lacey
- Ginger Hebblethwaite
- Bertie Lissie
- Flight Sergeant Smyth
Friends and allies[]
- Gaskin
- Marcel Brissac
- Captain Joudrier
- Paul Legendre
- Georges Pinsard
- John Brand
- George Symonds
- Joe
- West
- Len Holmes
- Emile
- Charles Brissac
Others[]
Aircraft[]
- Douglas DC-3
- Vickers Wellington
- Morane
- Lockheed Constellation
- Aeronca light aircraft
- Avro Tudor
- Avro Lancaster
- Auster J1 Autocrat - J-4578 and another
- Hawker Hurricane
- de Havilland Mosquito
Ships[]
Places[]
Visited[]
- Australia
- Egypt - transit. On the way back from Asutralia, Biggles sends a message to Algy from Egypt. City unknown, possibly Cario or Alexandria.
- Nice Airport
- Hotel de Paris, Monte Carlo
- Plaine de la Crau
- Marseilles
Mentioned[]
- Gao, French Sudan
- Alexander Bay
- Bidon Cinq - brief mention. One of the places mentioned to Marcel as a place where an aircraft could be kept deep in the Algerian desert.
- Rumania - Canton says Horndorf is working for a bunch of Rumanian bullion-mongers
Research Notes[]
- Although Biggles first meets Marcel in this book, he mentions in Chapter XII that he has met Joudrier before. This happened in Biggles Air Detective in the short story The Case of the Unregistered Operator.
References to the past[]
Incongruities[]
Chronology[]
International titles[]
- French: Biggles s'en mêle (Presses de la Cité 1951) (note: Biggles Takes a Hand also has the same title in the French translation by Presses de la Cité)
- Danish: Biggles og de hvide profeter (Grafisk Forlag 1952)
- Swedish: Biggles och luftpiraterna (Wahlströms 1952)
- German (Swiss): Biggels' grosser Fang (Verlag Hallwag 1956)
- Spanish: Biggles y el caso de los aviones desaparecidos (Luis de Caralt 1958)
- Portuguese (Brazil): Biggles no deserto do Saara (Edições de Ouro 1976)
- Malay: Biggles yang merancangnya (Eastern Universities Press 1979)
- Norwegian: Biggles ordner opp (N.W. Damm & Søn 1987)
- Czech: Biggles a záhada uloupeného zlata (Riopress 1997)