Jim is young, ambitious, and idealistic, keen to make his name in the world. But fate has other plans. Jim has been made First Mate aboard the Patna, but when the ship starts to flood in the middle of the voyage, Jim joins the captain and crew in abandoning the her and her passengers to their fates. The ship survives, but Jim is stripped of his rank for dereliction of duty and realizes how far short he has fallen of his dreams of becoming a leader and a hero.

The narrative, voiced by sea captain Charles Marlow (also the narrator of Conrad's Heart of Darkness), follows Jim as he tries to redeem himself. As he travels ever farther eastward, Jim ends up on a remote Indonesian island where his name and reputation mean nothing. Finally it seems that he can start afresh, and after defeating a local bandit, he wins the admiration of the local people (and a beautiful girl) and becomes their leader: "Lord Jim." However, his past is always there . . .

Partly based on true events, this is a compelling and vivid story, and Conrad's telling of it asks us to judge for ourselves what we think of Jim. This beautifully produced classic edition also includes a reading guide and a map of the route taken by Jim as he flees the sinking ship and ends up on the other side of the world.