The French writer Henri de Monfreid (1879–1974) began his career as a diplomat at the French mission in Calcutta, then for some time he was engaged in commerce - selling leather and coffee. However, all his life he was attracted to sea adventures, and at the age of 32 he finally left public service and went to the French colony of Djibouti, where he engaged in pearl fishing. On the advice of the famous French writer Joseph Kessel, he wrote his first story, “The Secrets of the Red Sea,” about pearl divers, which was greeted with enthusiasm by readers, and the author gained fame as a “corsair writer.” The stories “The Pursuit of Kaipan” and “The Ill-Fated Cargo,” also written based on real events, tell about a hashish scam, about the pursuit of a pirate ship, about the author’s adventures in India, Ethiopia, etc. After incredible twists and turns, the valuable cargo is finally recovered delivered to destination. A masterful description of the local customs of exotic countries makes the plot even more fascinating. The books of Henri de Monfreid, the most widely read author in France today, are real adventure literature that is interesting to a wide range of readers.