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, “Secrets of the Red Sea,” about pearl divers, which was enthusiastically received 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 adventures of the author in India, Ethiopia, etc. After incredible ups and downs, the valuable cargo finally , 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 now, are real adventure literature that is interesting to a wide range of readers.