3 comments about Safari: The Last Adventure.

1. This book provides the reader with virtually everything you need to know and ever wanted to know about going on safari. Everything from what one should expect from the guide and hunting concession, to what the guide and hunting concession expects from you! Lists of taxidermy prices, while it may be somewhat outdated, will give the reader an idea of what to expect. This book doesn't contain an much heart pounding excitment as Capstick's other books, but it is interesting nonetheless. Anyone going on safari or considering it will benenfit from reading this book.



2. Though a little dated, this book is an outstanding primer for your first safari to Africa. There is no better way to prepare than to read Capstick's book unless you have a friend or consultant who has "been there, done that"... This will truly enrich your first experience and prevent you from missing out on some of the richest moments of the trip.



3. I became a hunter later in life, not having a father or other family members to introduce me to the wonderful traditions of hunting. For a few years, I've had an interest in going to Africa, but didn't know what it would be like. My best friend gave me "Death in the Long Grass", also by Capstick. This classic gave me an interest in going to Africa, but also gave me trepidation, as a lot of the book deals with close calls and situations that didn't end well for the participants.
   "Safari: The Last Adventure" has fixed that problem for me. It gives (in addition to some of the stories only Capstick can tell) the nuts and bolts of going on Safari. It describes everything from how to properly take each different kind of game animal, what caliber rifle and what types of rounds to use, down to how many pair of socks you should bring. It is a bit dated (which is the only reason I didn't give it 5 stars), but is still quite useful. I'm looking forward to Africa in the summer of 2007.

2 comments about Botswana & Namibia (Multi Country Guide).

1. I always fear buying a guide book as most are out of date before they get printed. Fortunately this was released only a few months before my trip, so it was in much better shape. All the prices are out to lunch, but the listings themselves are pretty accurate. Maps are OK. Didn't check the Botswana part as I was just travelling in Namibia. Came across a few B&B's listed that don't do Breakfast... Still it was a good resource to carry along and I used Lonely Planet's online Thorn Tree for getting up to date info



2. I've used Lonely Planet guides for trips a number of times, and always found them to be the best for independent travelling. After finding out that I was going to be in Namibia for an extended period of time, I immediately bought the Lonely Planet guide to Namibia/Botswana. The book is OK - fine, but is not as extensive or accurate as Lonely Planet guides I've used before. I didn't get the sense that the authors are that familiar with Namibia, at least in comparison to the authors of other Lonely Planet books. I have since bought every other guide to Namibia that is out there, and now after being in Namibia and travelling extensively for awhile, I have to admit that the Lonely Planet is the last book I choose off the shelf when planning an excursion or just general curiosity about the country (Bradt guide is the first). I haven't been to Botswana yet, so cannot comment on how good this book is for this neighboring country. So, this guidebook is OK, but not great.

5 comments about Journey Without Maps (Penguin Classics).

1. I've read a number of Greene's novels, but this little travel book was equal to his other publications. As usual, his attention to detail, people, and culture creates wonderful images that bring us right to the Liberia of the 1930s. I shared the book with my sister who lived in Liberia for 27 yrs. and she was astonished at the accurate reporting. His prose is the best I've read for a book devoted to travel experiences.



2. Graham Greene was weary and appalled by the world atrocities of the early 20th century. He decided to go looking for life as basic and unspoiled as it was in the beginning. He chose to do so in Liberia, the African nation that had always been under black rule and not colonized or fleeced by Europe in modern times, though even it was a western construct, carved out of the continent by Americans as a homeland to repatriate freed slaves (or, as Greene says, a place to hide mulatto offspring). His trek on foot lasted the month of February 1935, and JOURNEY WITHOUT MAPS is his account of what became a transformative experience.
   
   The title is derived from the fact that there were no true maps available of Liberia at the time. He relied on a caravan of native porters and a lot of guestimations as to what direction and how far it would be from village to village. Once leaving the ragged European communities near the coast, he and his party plunged into that virgin world he sought. What he describes in exquisite detail is now familiar to us via decades of National Geographics but was then, to someone who had never left Europe at that point, a culture shock. He learned to leave behind his English insistence on time table and surprise at naked, ritually scarred bodies, the persistent sound of drums and the utter poverty of villages. He did not let go his own clothes or whiskey or discomfort over rats and insects. He is eventually waylaid by sickness, and in the healing process comes out with a new, more life affirming personal vision. Though it seems as if the details of the daily marches, the insects and discomforts are so much of the same, by the end you see the impact of the experience. He found what he went looking for and more, and he was not afraid to leave some mysteries unsolved.
   
   Greene's prose is clear as a bell and graceful. His observations of contemporary politics and missionaries, as well as the elasticity of truth in such a setting are valuable today, even seasoned with his candid biases.



3. This book provides and excellent background about traveling in the country of Liberia during the mid-19th century. A well written and interesting travelogue.



4. Graham Greene is a famous 20th C novelist ("The Orient Express") who also wrote a few travel accounts. This is his first, when he was 31 years old and left Europe for the first time in his life to experience the uncivilized "dark heart of Africa" by traveling through the back country of Liberia in 1935. It was a 4-week, 350-mile walk, mostly through an unchanging tunnel forest path, ending each day in a primitive village. He had about a dozen black porters who would carry him in a sling, although he walked much of the way.
   
   It's written with a very "old school" perspective, with one foot in the 19th (or 18th) century of romantic colonial imperialism, and one foot in the pre-war 1930s perspective of deterioration, rot and things falling apart. Heavy whiskey drinking, descriptions of the festering diseases of the natives, and plethora of bothersome insects, the run down European outposts and a motley cast of white rejects fill many descriptive pages.
   
   It reminds me a lot of Samuel Johnson's "Journals of the Western Isles" (1770s) when Johnson, who had never left England in his life, decided to go to Scotland to see what uncivilized people were like. Just as Johnson brought Boswell who would go on to write his own version of the trip, Greene brought his female cousin Barbara Greene (who remains unnamed in the book and largely unmentioned), who went on to write her own version of the trip in the 1970s called "Too Late to Turn Back", which mostly contradicts Grahams version.
   
   I can't say I totally enjoyed this book, I found Greene's attitude irritating - but therein lies its value, as a snapshot of prewar European zeitgeist. It is reminiscent of "Kabloona" (1940), another prewar travel account to an uncivilized place (Arctic Eskimos) by a young European aristocrat, who also is deeply inward looking and finds a new perspective and appreciation for the "cave man" people he meets. It's very much a transition period between prewar and post-war attitudes and the fluctuation's back and forth, the sense of things falling apart, but also new-found perspective, make it a challenging but interesting work.



5. In 1935, in the first flush of success of his first acclaimed novel, Greene took off to explore the concept of Africa, building on his notions of adventure from childhood reading. Identifying never-colonized Liberia as the most authentically uncivilized of African destinations, he set off, with his 23-year-old female cousin, a troop of native bearers and virtually no knowledge or experience of trekking. His four weeks of walking a twelve-inch path through the Liberian wilds, stopping at villages overnight, makes an interesting and engaging account, never sentimentalized, and with much thoughtful insight. He gives plentiful narrative detail, but always is overwhelmingly concerned with the psychic reverberations of Africa, and his perceptions of primitivism, in his own life and outlook. He is not unaware of the irony of his deliberate quest for un-self-consciousness flowing from external reflections on the "natural" human world. This book is an interesting counterpoint to observations of modern-day Liberia, for which progress over the ensuing seven decades remains elusive. A few more of the roads have been paved, but most of the country remains bare soil, now soaked in more blood and mayhem than the quaint natives and masked, raffia-skirted tribal "devils" of 1935 could have dreamed of.

No comments about Back from Africa.

5 comments about A Continent for the Taking: The Tragedy and Hope of Africa.

1. This masterfully written book is essentially a history of Africa from the eyes of an eyewitness to most of the major events that has shaped the country to the place that it is today.
   
   Outstanding book!



2. First and foremost, French presents an imminently readable book that's hard to put down.
   
   The book concentrates on the socio-political pressures and pitfalls experienced in Africa over the last 20 some-odd years. He concentrates on his personal experiences along The Gold Coast (specifically Liberia and Ivory Coast) as well as extensive time spent in Congo Kinshasa (Zaire).
   
   Unfortunately, French, while of African Ancestry himself, shows his hand early and often, displaying the "soft racism" of diminished expectations of African leadership and Africans themselves. French instead assigns 100% of the blame on Western (civilized) governments who either act with (real or precieved) malevolence, or do not act at all. It quickly becomes clear that there are no measures civilized nations could possibly take that would result in Mr. French's approval.
   
   All in all, the book is typical of the "blame the west and ignore the noble savage" school of thought that equally demeans both the helper and recipient while at the same time missing mountains of empirical data.
   
   However, if you're going to read just one "This is everybody's fault but the Africans" book, this should be it.
   
   For a counter-perspective, don't miss the equally great, but more informed "The Shackled Continent" by Robert Guest.



3. This book is a great counter argument to some of the recently popular literature that has been written on Africa by academics who have not spent significant time on the continent. (The End of Poverty by Jeff Sachs, The Mystery of Capital by Hernando de Soto, The White Man's Burden by William Easterly amongst other). French paints a vivid picture of what life is like in war-torn African countries. Understanding these realities is all that is needed to make Sachs' innovation/technology solution and de Soto's property rights solution irrelevant.
   
   This book was recommended to me by the director of an African NGO when I started working there, like so many others, eager to help implement the most recent round of proposed solutions for African poverty. After reading it, I understand why. It is a must read for any young (actually or at heart) idealists who want to (and think they can) change the world.



4. I'm in the middle of the book and I'm not liking it. Part of the problem is that I cannot stand the author. Something about the writing gives me the impression he has a huge ego. Apparently he's the only westerner who understands Africa's suffering. We're all too racist and far removed to see Africans as human beings. Apart from that, I don't like his portrayals of various figureheads. Is it really relevant to the story that Leopold III slept with 10 year old prostitutes? Do I care that Mobutu slept with his wife's twin sister? I understands these people are bad guys, but these asides are uncalled for.
   I was hoping to read something that wasn't so infused with the author's personal opinions. The book is interesting when he just sticks to historical facts.



5. the only reason this got 4 stars was amazons packaging. Smashed up the book pretty good.

4 comments about Peter Capstick's Africa: A Return To The Long Grass.

1. Return to the Long Grass was probably the best book I have read in years.I could not stop reading it! I could feel the hot African heat and the chilly nights.I would recommend this book to anyone who dreams of going to Africa on a safari



2. This book is the definitive Capstick work. It is absolutely wonderful, and should be required reading for those who want to go to the Dark Continent and hunt the things that Bite and Trample. Capstick's wit is sparkling, and his hunts are riveting. Papa Bear Hemingway would be proud.



3. This is the second Capstick book I have read (the first being "Death in the Long Grass"), and again I was not dissapointed. In this book he takes the role of the safari client--having retired as professional hunter--, and gives us more of an insight on what it is like to be the client on a big game hunting safari in Africa. He vividly describes the sights, sounds, smells, and the very essence of the Dark Continent.



4. Capstick is definitely my favorite african writer. I enjoyed this book although it is not one of my favorites. However, I ripped through it in several days. Capstick really knew Africa and I certainly have enjoyed reading his experiences!

5 comments about Eyes over Africa.

1. A new and refreshing perspective on a beautiful place. "Eyes Over Africa" will be a centerpiece of my photo book collection. Absolutely breathtaking. I've always been a fan of aerial photography and this book has solidified it for me.



2. A truly beautiful book that gives the reader an immediate sense of the vast and immeasurable beauty of this grand continent. There is a vunerability in his work too. One gets the sense that even though the subject is grand and impressive it is all too fragile.



3. I can only but dream of seeing as much of Africa as Michael Poliza has, but this book carries me along on his journey. The level of detail is incredible - the more I look at the images, the more I find that surprises, delights or intrigues. Many pictures are pure abstract - and then I flip to the back of the book, only to find they are acute observations on some fascinating aspect of the natural world. Sadly, this detailed record is now vital in an age when global warming is changing the face of Africa so quickly. Perhaps these images will inspire us all to make a difference.



4. Eyes over Africa (Hardcover) by Michael Poliza (Author)
   
   I saw the bigger version of this book "Eyes over Africa (Hardcover) by Michael Poliza (Author) " in a store were it was displayed and I fell in love with it .
   This piece of art is one of those rare items you do not forget after seeing it .
   The amazing and breathtaking images were imprinted in my mind , I had to buy this book!



5. This is the most amazing book. The photography is extraordinary capturing the smallest details, such as the smile on someone's face who is waving @ you. It is a must have for anyone interested in Africa & makes one want to go there.

5 comments about The Shadow of Kilimanjaro.

1. Rick Ridgeway has written a very informative and entertaining account of his 300 mile hike West to East across southern Kenya in 1997. The walk was metaphorically in THE SHADOW OF KILIMANJARO beginning on the summit of that great mountain and spanning the different ecological zones of mountain moraine, foothills, savannah, scrub, desert, and finally tropical white sand beaches of the Indian Ocean coast near Malindi. More significantly Ridgeway writes about his journey in the shadow of others who have written famously on Kenya, most significantly Hemingway, Dinesen, and Blixen. At yet another level this story is set in the shadow of Kenya's colonial history and its current struggles as a developing nation trying to make its way in the modern world.

   Ridgeway deals with all the relevant issues - ecology and the environment, conservation, domestic politics, the economy, tourism, the romantic literary images, the colonial legacy, the Mau Mau uprisings, cultural, ethnic, and social issues. And he deals with them in the way good travel writing should. Simply present the facts as you get them and let others speak their truths. No moralizing and very little contextualizing and therefore very refreshing.

   The image of Kenya that emerges is that of a real country. Not too much of the fantasy and gloss of a romantic wilderness nor the equally unreal vision of warring tribes at THE ENDS OF THE EARTH. Just reality. Strengths, weaknesses, beauty, blemishes, issues, agendas, and concerns. All the things that face a people making their way on a rapidly globalizing planet. Although Ridgeway's Kenya is a very different place than the country I knew in the 1960's when I lived there in my youth, it's still as rich and as alive as I remember it and Ridgeway has done an excellent job of bringing it home.




2. Combining moments of danger with moments of profound introspection, mountaineer/explorer Ridgeway details his journey from the top of Mount Kilimanjaro through the Tsavo game reserves to Mombasa, a month-long journey on foot, which allows him to experience man's primal relationships with the environment. Traveling with an experienced guide, two members of the Kenya Park and Wildlife Service, and two sharpshooters (in case of life-threatening danger), Ridgeway follows dry riverbeds across the savanna, seeking "tactile knowledge of Africa's wildlands and wild animals."
   
   Far more than a search for thrills, the journey offers Ridgeway an opportunity to observe breath-taking vistas and the full panoply of wildlife, from the elephant to the tiniest of birds, paying equal attention to all. Mourning the absence of once-plentiful animals from the bushlands near Kilimanjaro, and the decline of species elsewhere, Ridgeway contemplates the long-term effects of colonialism, big game hunting, poaching, traditional tribal values, climatic changes, and tourism, as well as man's seemingly innate tendency to kill certain species into extinction.
   
   Ridgeway, long a hunter himself, is an engaging author, both observant and thoughtful. A great admirer of hunter-turned-game-park-adminstrator Bill Woodley, whose two sons from the Park and Wildlife Service are on the journey, he provides a sensitive and impartial treatment of conservation issues. Extolling the work of elephant researchers Cynthia Moss and Joyce Poole, the latter of whom joins the group for part of the journey, he points out that they have acquired through study a kind of knowledge not available to hunters. Without preaching, he conveys "the big picture," making a compelling case for the fact that to preserve Africa's large mammals one must "fight fiercely not only to preserve, but even to expand, their wild habitat." Mary Whipple



3. I was so disappointed by this book I could not get through more than a couple of chapters. The author may know about mountaineering, but he seems to know very little about Kenya. Moreover, I found the writing to be ethnocentric and quite boring.



4. Author Ridgeway writes a well-paced narrative that smoothly ties together his personal adventure in eastern Africa with the area's history and culture, particularly in terms of its ecology, with focus on elephants as the defining megafauna of the area.
   
   Ridgeway provokes thought on the future of Africa's large animals, the past fate of those large mammals that have already disappeared, and how we humans tie into all of this. His primary sources are the people who have shaped and continue to shape Kenya's game and wildlife policies; these sources give his writing the distinct tinge of veracity.
   
   Recommended for any interested in travel, African history, or ecology.



5. Let me first of all say that Rick Ridgeway is one of my favorite adventure writers. This book is focused on the area around Kilimanjaro and the current state of the conservation movement. Rick does a wonderful job of describing the area as he makes his way on foot from Kilimanjaro to the East coast of Africa.
   
   One of my favorite aspects of this book is that Rick includes all the books he has used in his research to gain a better understanding of the history of East Africa.
   
   If you love a well written adventure, with enough meat to make you want to dig deeper in understanding Africa - this is your book.

2 comments about The Gambia & Senegal (Country Guide).

1. In many cases, the coverage offered by Lonely Planet guidebooks may be hampered by the magnitude of the region they try and cover. This is why for example, in "Lonely Planet West Africa" (a bulky book which also covers Senegal and the Gambia), coverage of each single country is brief and not always perfect, and the reader is often lost among facts and information she or he does not need. Instead, in this much smaller and far more condensed guidebook, the author and editors have managed to put as much information and data as possible into it, about Senegal and the tiny Gambia. Coverage of both countries is excellent, providing up-to-date, accurate information and sensible advice, on anything from places to stay and eat, things to do and see, things to buy, and basically anything the traveller may wish to know. The coverage on culture, society, arts, music, and other information, is also excellent and wide, written in great prose and style. This is probably one of the best Lonely Planet guidebooks I have come across, and I would strongly recommend it to anyone travelling to those two countries. It will be an extremely useful tool, and will also provide great reading about the places being visited.



2. I had to do a project on Senegal. And this book helped me a lot, even though I'd like most of the information to be on Senegal instead of Gambia. The book will really help you if you are a traveller going to one of the countries. The part about pickpockets was very interesting as it tells me about the best way to be robbed in Senegal. Overall, this book covers everything, from local slangs to foods eaten. It deserves a four star!

2 comments about Insight City Guide Cape Town.

1. I got this guide as a gift. My friends have the Lonely Planet one and I have seen other brands for Cape Town. The Insight guide is 10 million times better than most of the competition. More detailed and useful photographs, all in color, at least one on each page. Short text but crammed with information for those who would rather spend time on adventures than reading a guide book. It was very entertaining to read as well. If you're going to Cape Town, get this book and you will know what I mean. Their warning about Long Street is hilarious. Their description of the people who hang out at the Clifton Beaches is unbelievable coming from a guide book. There are little interesting stories/facts throughout the book such as the one about the first female doctor to perform a C-section. She was pretending to be a man in order to be a doctor and the truth was only discovered when she died. Again, this book is such a great deal for the price and beats almost all other guidebooks out there at under $10.



2. I ordered 3 different books for my trip to Cape Town and this was by far the best, and the one I constantly came back to.