Tarzan the Invincible (1931) by Edgar Rice Burroughs stands as a politically charged installment in the iconic Tarzan series, reflecting the era’s growing anxieties about Soviet expansionism. Published by Edgar Rice Burroughs, during Burroughs’ most prolific period, this adventure thrusts the Lord of the Jungle into confrontation with a band of gold-hungry Bolsheviks led by the ruthlessly named Josef Stalin (a fictional precursor to the later infamous dictator). The novel’s plot—centering on a lost city ruled by telepathic priests—showcases Burroughs’ signature blend of pulp action and pseudo-scientific mysticism, while its anti-communist undertones would later prompt Cold War-era publishers to replace the Soviet villains with Nazis in revised editions.
The 1931 first edition is prized for its unaltered political content and J. Allen St. John’s spectacular dust jacket art. This volume holds particular significance as the last Tarzan novel Burroughs wrote before relocating to Hollywood, marking the end of his pure literary period before screenwriting influenced his prose style.
