The author starred The Thirty-Nine Steps main character in other four books as a significant character and in two others as a supporting character. The book was adapted into 1935 British thriller film featuring Madeleine Carroll and Robert Donat and was directed by Alfred Hitchcock. His famous work of fiction was The Thirty- Nine Steps. Later Buchan served as the 15th Governor General of Canada. Douglas.Īfter graduating from Hutcheson’s Grammar School, Buchan won a scholarship to the University of Glasgow where he majored in Classics, wrote poetry and also became a published author. Buchan’s childhood which he shared with his sister Anna was documented in Anna’s memoir, Unforgettable, Unforgotten written under the pen name O. The name of the lead character in many of Buchan’s novels- Sir Edward Leithen- is from Leithen Water, River Tweed tributary. There Buchan developed the love of walking and also for scenery of flora and fauna which mostly featured in his books. He spent his childhood in Kirkcaldy, Fife and spent most of his holidays with maternal grandparents in the Scottish Borders. Born in Perth, Scotland Buchan was the first born child of John Buchan and Helen Buchan. John Buchan (1875-1940) was a Scottish author of mystery and thrillers, biographies & memoirs and literature and fiction books. The Last Secrets - The Final Mysteries of Exploration Some Eighteenth Century Byways, And Other Essaysįrancis and Riversdale Grenfell, a Memoir

Author of the 39 steps