Book Description
Even the most desperate poverty, the most devastating illness, the most heart-wrenching grief is not beyond God's help. His love and power have no limits-and that's a message readers from all walks of life need to hear. The modern miracles that Rolland and Heidi Baker experience every day in their work with Mozambique's throwaway children, movingly chronicled in Always Enough, will inspire anyone looking for hope in the midst of suffering. The Bakers, formerly missionaries in Indonesia and Hong Kong, share how their work for the past eight years in Mozambique, one of the poorest nations on earth, has borne spiritual fruit beyond their wildest dreams. Every day presents multiple impossible needs. But in the face of everything Satan can do, as Rolland and Heidi lay down their lives and ''minister to the one,'' there is always enough. Readers will discover that the simple practice of choosing to step out and trust God every day unleashes his provision for every need.
Customer Reviews:
This is what Jesus meant by "be like a child".......2007-09-20
I could not put this short book down & neither will you. If you've ever wondered what Jesus really meant when He spoke of becoming like a little child, then this is for you because it reveals the result of two brilliant minds literally "laying it all down" to become childlike lovers & trusters of Jesus. This is THE most inspiring book I have ever read & they are the two happiest, most fulfilled people I know. Buy it, read it, pass it along.
Absolutely Wonderful.......2007-09-01
Must read for everyone wanting to be a radical lover of Jesus.
This couple went to Mozambique in the 90's with nothing out of obedience to God. The country was wrecked by civil war which left 10s of thousands of orphaned children.
God used them as His miraculous provision. They faced extreme opposition and dire circumstances. Overcame through God's power. Experienced the supernatural outpouring of God's love and power.
5,000 churches planted, healings, people raised from the dead, people on fire for God.
The Baker's testimony will really push you deeper towards the deep love of the Father and will leave you thirsty for more of His presence.
Please read this book.
As true in life as on paper.......2007-06-17
This story is amazing. I was in Mozambique on a missions team in 2005 when we met Heidi at our hotel. She invited our group to their orphanage and had the people show us around. I will never forget my time there with the kids. Reading this brought back the memories that I have from my time there. Please read this book! It is genuine!!! The children there are amazing and reading about how God has provided added to my experience. I know we can't all travel to Africa but read this and you will have a taste of how moving it is!
Awesome!.......2007-05-13
This book is amazing and inspiring. The Bakers are prime examples of the Christian life and ministry. Stopping for the one, and living a life of laid down love.
I am so thankful I read this book.
Great product.......2007-01-20
I bought this used and it was in new shape. It was delivered fast and I was very impressed with the service.
Book Description
Expelled from Botswana for writing Cry of the Kalahari, the Owenses set off across Africa. They settled in Zambia, where they soon found their peace shattered by the gunfire of elephant poachers. This is the story of the couple's battle to save the elephants and their own lives.
Customer Reviews:
"By telling the truth...they incur a measure of personal and professional risk;.......2007-09-04
"...by not telling it, we all risk much, much more."-The Owenses
Poaching is a big problem in Africa. There are laws against it, but the villagers are very poor, the people are hungry and in many, many countries of Africa, the governments are either corrupt or are unstable. This story takes place in northeastern Zambia near Tanzania. The story begins with the Owenses returning to Botswana to continue their research into predator-prey relationships. They find some of their familiar, furry, thin friends in the desert wilderness only to almost immediately be apprehended by the authorities and get kicked out of the country because their research conflicts with the government's plans to develop cattle ranches in the Kalahari desert. They wander aimlessly through the African skies and wind up in Zambia where they soon have a new mission to stop elephant poaching which has nearly decimated the elephant population there.
I love how both Mark and Delia write. Their descriptions of Africa sometimes remind me of Isak Dinesen's Out of Africa. I've read all their books now and they really are very hard to put down. Their work in Zambia takes a toll on their health as it did in Botswana, but in slightly different ways. In the Kalahari, they were in no man's land and went for many months without seeing people. In Zambia, there are small villages nearer to them where they can restock their very meager supplies. The toll on their bodies this time around though is intense because in declaring their mission to stop poaching, they trigger a violent response from the poachers armed with their Kalashnikovs (AK-47's). Mark gets so upset when he sees animals senselessly slaughtered whether they be hundreds of thousands of wildebeest in Botswana or elephants in Zambia. There's a lot to be found in their books about animal behavior and social organization. With elephants, the females stay in their natal clans and males migrate out to mate and congregate. The poaching, however, takes a toll on their social structure since the elephants with the largest tusks are the sexually mature animals and many orphaned elephants roam the wilderness alone without a group to call their own.
The Owens' take to task educating the villagers and teaching them new industries, new methods of agriculture so that they are more subsistent. It takes a decade to finally begin to make an impact on transforming their society and removing the incentives to poach. There are several attempts on their lives, but you'll have quite the time in Mark's bush piloting, air force policing of Zambia's Luangwa National Park.
Wonders of the Wild.......2006-11-04
This book is laden with fascinating information on African Wildlife and how to survive as human and animal in harsh conditions. Excellent read.
A riveting, disturbing story of war with poachers.......2005-06-01
Wildlife researchers and conservationists Delia and Mark Owens have spent much of their lives since 1974 in the African bush, first in the Kalahari Desert from which came their best seller "Cry of the Kalahari" and then in the North Luangwa Valley in Zambia, the setting of this 1992 book.
The Owens' passion leads them to risk their lives routinely. In searching for a suitable camp in North Luangwa they set out in an ancient truck with no radio and inadequate gear. After a grueling trek that would have sent sane mortals packing for home they separate so Mark can fly his Cessna to a site that "would make Cessna's insurance company shudder" while Delia makes the two-day trip alone with the old truck and a trailer over trackless hilly, bushy, gully-filled flood-plain terrain. Tracking animals they are constantly walking smack into a startled lion or buffalo or cornered elephant.
But the real danger comes from people. "The Eye of the Elephant," while filled with wildlife anecdotes and tidbits of information about elephants and lions, is really about the poaching war the Owens conducted on behalf of the besieged North Luangwa elephants.
The poachers are villagers, many armed with AK47s, backed by the local government and assisted by the corrupt and underequipped local game guards. The Owens' weapons are education, cottage industry projects financed by the Owens Foundation for Wildlife Conservation and the Cessna.
The battle starts genially with children exclaiming over magazine pictures and their parents joining sewing circles and carpentry workshops. But it quickly escalates until Mark drives Delia from him with his obsession for highly dangerous and only modestly effective night flights, and the poachers organize an assassination squad to rid themselves of the Owens once and for all.
The book is organized in alternating first-person chapters between Delia and Mark. The tone is brutally honest, touching when one admits to mistakes which endanger the other, disturbing when their frank discussion of anti-poaching tactics veers from the politically correct. The Owens' care more for the animals and the landscape than the people. But since the people are there, their needs must be faced. Their singlemindedness will outrage some, but their strong personalities and sheer stamina will awe almost everyone.
York County Coast Star
EXCELLENT ADVENTURE!.......2004-06-26
I wish these authors would write more books about their adventures in Africa. Truly riveting page-turners!
Do not miss this wonderful book!.......2002-08-19
The Eye of the Elephant is a wonderful, adventurous journey into the heart and soul of Africa seen through Mark and Delia's eyes. From the very first page you are caught up in their heroic quests to protect the animals they are there to observe. In spite of the unbelievable odds against them, they persevered and put the safety and security of the highly endangered animals FIRST. The elephants in the Luanga Valley are very fortunate to have had Mark and Delia watch over them and be their heroes. I have loved Africa and the African elephant my entire life and I am so grateful for these two selfless, dedicated people who have become the protectors of our most precious wildlife. This is one of my most treasured African stories.
Book Description
When Mark and Delia Owens settled in a Zambian wilderness, they found the elephants and other wildlife decimated by poachers; the local villagers, who depended on the wildlife, were driven to desperate actsincluding poaching themselves. To save both people and animals, the Owenses started an innovative microlending program that lifted the villagers out of poverty and allowed the wildlife populations to recover. But the older elephants had been slaughtered for their tusks, taking with them knowledge that had been passed along to the young for generations. Left behind was social chaossingle moms, solitary orphans, rowdy gangs of young malesand a scientific mystery: how could there be so many babies and so few females old enough to be mothers? A young orphan named Gift eventually provided the clue to the remarkable scientific discovery that revealed the elephants" secret. But the poachers and ivory smugglers shifted their sights from the elephants to the Owenses, threatening their lives, raiding their camp, and finally driving them out of the country. After two decades in Africa, Mark and Delia returned to America to find social changes frighteningly similar to what they had seen among the elephants of Zambia.
Customer Reviews:
Best yet.......2007-09-09
This is the grand finale of the Africa books for the Owens'. I have read all with great appreciataion for what they have done over many years, but I felt that this book was the best of all. It is the culmination of more maturity and experience of their programs and writing. I would recommend it to anyone with any interest in conservation. It is also glimpse into the human spirit when confronted with the difficult task of orchestrating the survival of both man and animal harmoniously. These are two awesome people doing great work.
GIFT.......2007-09-04
Gift is the name of a little orphaned girl elephant that the Owenses had in their neighborhood. She wandered on her own and had to learn how to eat and fend for herself without any cues or training from sisters, aunts, grandmas or her own mother who were obviously all slaughtered for their tusks and meat. Mark continues to cherry bomb the poachers, Delia continues to measure elephants' sizes and clan size, continues counting elephants before she sleeps. So this latest book by the Owenses is a continuation of Eye of the Elephant and gives you a glimpse of the people who have made a big difference in wildlife management in Africa. They wind up getting kicked out of Zambia and are now back in the States trying to increase grizzly bear numbers! I can't wait to hear what they have to say about America's wildlife and their recommendations for their management. I learned in this book that George Adamson, the real life Game Warden of Kenya of Born Free fame was killed by poachers who were smuggling ivories into Somalia. It's been a problem for half a century and still continues today. Recently 2 rare white rhinos were brought to Zambia from South Africa and one was killed, the other shot...
secrets of the savanna.......2007-08-08
I had read the owen's two previous books and really loved them. I found this one and thought well, I already know what they did so this will just be review. Well, was I wrong. It is a great book and kept me enthralled till the end. They have such a practical approach to getting the local population involved, and they have had such sucess. Anyone would love this book. It is so possitive that it just tickles your heart, and such a love story. To think they have done all this together. Wow. I gave it a 5 and would have given it 10 if I could. jeannie Clarke
Some Books are Keepers.......2006-11-04
Life in the harshest of places....Africa in the wildest wildness. If you love animals of planet earth, this is a book to read, weep and rejoice.
Wonderful sequel .......2006-09-02
Written so that you feel you are looking over their shoulders as they see and work in Africa. A bit of mystery, a cautionary tale and an inspirational love story. The book describes the obstacles they faced and the gile, resourcefulness, courage and passion they bring to their work and lives. A worthy follow-on to Cry of the Kalahari and Eye of the Elephant.
Book Description
Hear the Afro-Latino rhythms of Maputo's streets from the back seat of a vintage habana.
Climb barefoot up the misty heights of sacred Monte Gorongosa.
Watch the spirits of the dead come to life at a masked mapiko dance.
Hum to attract a humpback whale while snorkelling in Two Mile Reef with dolphins and dugong.
One author, 2500km of coastline, 42 hilariously cramped bus rides and countless acts of kindness.
All new diving chapter - your cutting-edge guide to the best diving spots and wildlife experiences.
Customer Reviews:
Keep the Facts Dispense with the Politics.......2002-07-18
Lonely Planet books are always interesting to browse through. Most of the time they do stick to giving you the facts about a country and I do appreciate it. However, Lonely Planet's editors often like to mix their left wing politics with travel. The result are sections like "Responsible Tourism" that at best are paternalistic to the reader and at worst wrong. In this section it is suggested that the tourist seek out "locally run and owned" establishments and patronize them instead of foreign owned businesses. First of all if you can tell a foreign owned from a local owned perhaps it's because the standards are different. Secondly, why would you choose a lessor value (weighing in price and quality of the product together) when picking a hotel for instance? Where you stay is part of the experience and it may not be worth residing in some dank crummy hotel for the sake of patronizing a local business. The reason why countries like Mozambique never worked out economically in the past (and now are trying to change) is because their leaders applied the same kind of dim ignorant thinking displayed by Lonely Planet writers.
I have traveled to many People's Republics and the idea of a business supplying a valued product to a customer was often lacking. Businesses were simply suppose to provide jobs and no attention to efficiency or quality was made. This is exactly why these economies floundered in the past; they could not make things to market standards, their use of material resources and labor was so poor that they could only pay workers a pittance and could only pawn off their wares to captive populations. A successful economy has businesses that typically concentrate on providing value to the customer first - that is you the traveler. By doing so a business will insure that it employs local people and contributes to the local economy. Demanding that local enterprises match the value of foreign firms will help the country. Local entrepreneurs and workers will adopt the right business standards and work ethics to economically succeed.
Truly a vital tool for visitors to this revitalized nation !.......2000-12-30
Mozambique has only recently re-opened to tourism, after years of war and bloodshed. Fortunately the hard times are now over, and the country is once again a thriving, wonderful African nation. I loved it all - the people, the food, the music... With this Lonely Planet guide, I was really able to get the most out of my stay. It contains plenty of advice on visiting places, hotels, restaurants, etc. And also great advice on how to save money - indeed, Mozambique can be very expensive ! A country and a book I won't forget.
Book Description
Powerful, instructive, and full of humanity, this book challenges the current understanding of the war that has turned Mozambique--a naturally rich country--into the world's poorest nation. Before going to Mozambique, William Finnegan saw the war, like so many foreign observers, through a South African lens, viewing the conflict as apartheid's "forward defense." This lens was shattered by what he witnessed and what he heard from Mozambicans, especially those who had lived with the bandidos armado, the "armed bandits" otherwise known as the Renamo rebels. The shifting, wrenching, ground-level stories that people told combine to form an account of the war more local and nuanced, more complex, more African--than anything that has been politically convenient to describe.
A Complicated War combines frontline reporting, personal narrative, political analysis, and comparative scholarship to present a picture of a Mozambique harrowed by profound local conflicts--ethnic, religious, political and personal. Finnegan writes that South Africa's domination and destabilization are basic elements of Mozambique's plight, but he offers a subtle description and analysis that will allow us to see the post-apartheid region from a new, more realistic, if less comfortable, point of view.
Customer Reviews:
History is related to place.......2007-01-11
This is a great introductory book to understanding the war in Mozambique from independence until 1992. This would be the first book that I would recommend anyone wanting to know about the history behind current events not only in Mozambique, but in Southern Africa in general. Finnegan divided the war into sections based on the provinces of Mozambique, and then told the unique story relative to each region and how the war was influenced by Mozambicans and its neighbors. If anyone is interested in further reading on Mozambique and/or Southern Africa, the bibliography in the back of this book is exceptional. Most highly recommended!
Valuable and painful insights into Mozambique's past........2001-10-31
This is a lively and well written book which deals with the period of civil war in Mozambique. It was completed and published just before the conclusion of a successful peace process and so provides a particularly clear and powerful view of recent history.It is based on the author's travels within country during the war period and includes extensive interviews. The people he talked and worked with emerge as very vivid and lively characters. The support of the rebels by Rhodesia and South Africa, and the reasons for that support, are well described. A must read for anyone going to work in Mz, strongly recommended for the serious traveler as well.
Excellent Book.......2000-11-13
I bought this book before a trip to Mozambique in the summer of 2000. I found it very hard to find books about the country. I found this to be the most complete book as far as giving me a big picture of what the people had been through in recent years. The book has many anecdotes to show the typical western reader just how different life is in Mozambique. I found that the sense of poverty as well as generosity and warmth that the author communicated was verified by my own experience. It is the stories of the everyday person in the book that are so wonderful. Stories of the joy of children upon recieving a gift of a pen or the desire of young man for a pair of shoes.
The Mozambicans are amazing people. I apprciated them even more because I had read this this book. I was filled with wonder at the total complete wonderful humanity I encountered given the populations truly horrible experience of war.
Excellent Book.......2000-11-13
I bought this book before a trip to Mozambique in the summer of 2000. It was very hard to find books about the country. I ended up coming to Amazon and jsut doing a search. This was one of the books I bought sight unseen. It turned out to be the best. It was the most complete book as far as giving me a big picture of what the people had been through in recent years. The book has many anecdotes to show the typical western reader just how different life is in Mozambique. I found that the sense of poverty as well as generosity and warmth that the author communicated was verified by my own experience. It is the stories of the everyday person in the book that are so wonderful. Stories of the joy of children upon recieving a gift of a pen or the desire of young man for a pair of shoes.
The Mozambicans are amazing people. I apprciated them even more because I had read this this book. I was filled with wonder at the total complete wonderful humanity I encountered given the populations truly horrible experience of war.
A Masterpiece of Investigative Journalism.......1997-08-07
Anyone who wants to know about Mozambique's recent history must read this book--not just because it's full of names, facts and dates, but because it's a stunning work of exploration and exposure by a journalist who chose to travel through a viciously dangerous countryside to try to understand the reality of a nation devastated by fear. But more than that, this is also a superb piece of writing: engrossing from beginning to end, every page packed with vivid prose and thought-provoking discussion. I read this book in Mozambique in 1992 and it made an enormous difference
Book Description
Description: What does it take to follow your dreams? "DEAD MEN DON'T LEAVE TIPS: Adventures X Africa" by Brandon Wilson is an edge of your seat tale about a couple's seven month dream odyssey - 10,000 miles across Africa from top-to-tip. After their "ship of fools" safari turns into a nightmare, they set off across Africa alone. DEAD MEN DON'T LEAVE TIPS takes readers onto the crazed roads of African adventure and into the hearts of its people-while transforming the travelogue into a raw, penetrating, more poignant genre. From the award-winning author of YAK BUTTER BLUES: A Tibetan Trek of Faith. From flap: What does it take to follow your dream? Quite a bit, if your "dream" involves crossing Africa. That's what one couple discovers when they set off on a seven-month overland journey from Morocco to Cape Town. As dedicated independent travelers, they'd already traveled around the world. But was a trans-African odyssey too much for even them? Who do you "cadeau?" How do you create tantalizing dishes from grubs? Or avoid having a spear tossed through your camera? With trepidation, they join an English do-it-yourself overland safari. Flung into the midst of twenty-one odd companions, they're shocked to discover that many of them have never even camped before. And the "guides" know Africa as well as the dark side of the moon. After their dream turns into a nightmare, they eventually set off across Africa-alone. DEAD MEN DON'T LEAVE TIPS is a captivating tale filled with a passion for travel, spontaneity and unbridled adventure. It is often funny, sometimes anguished, yet always real. Nothing is held back or glossed-over. Wilson takes you onto the crazed roads of Africa, through the everyday ups and downs, and into the lives and hearts of its people. He shows us once again that the real joy of travel is the thrill of getting there. Reviews: "Journeys of body and soul in every sense of the word... Interlaced with this honesty and detail are Wilson's beautiful prose, obvious passion for adventure and a deep inquisitiveness about other cultures, making this book a pleasure to read. Highly recommended." ~ Midwest Book Review "A masterful crossroads of characters, exotic places, history and human drama in a rig that never stalls, and allows the devil to drive his own ill-behaved backyard..." ~ Richard Bangs, author of "Mystery of the Nile" "Entertaining and a monument to those who would take on the challenge of land travel across one of the most dangerous, unhealthy continents in the world." ~ Heartland Reviews "Honest, gritty and insightful...it makes the world's most exciting continent read just like that." ~ John Heminway, author of "No Man's Land: A Personal Journey into Africa" "I was swept away by the drama and storytelling...Wilson is never a tourist. He travels heart-first with both feet solidly on the ground and his curiosity always in high gear. He is exactly the right person to be writing travel books for the rest of us." ~ Maui Weekly "Travel writing at its most sublime, a paean to Africa in all her contradictory beauty, and a tribute to the resiliency of those who travel beyond boundaries not only in search of meaning, but also of understanding." ~ C.W. Gortner, author of The Secret Lion "One of the most engaging travel books we have read." ~ RealTravelAdventures.com "Powerful and gripping story...Fascinating, informative, humorous, poignant, surprising...a terrific read from first page to last-would make a popular addition to any personal or community library Travel section." ~ Midwest Book Review, Travel Shelf "Aficionados of travel books will delight in "Dead Men Don't Leave Tips"...a hybrid of Paul Theroux and Tom Robbins, combining the raw frankness and keen observation of Theroux with the intelligent humor & playful language of Robbins...Readers who have a penchant for traveling will happily devour this book and be sorry it ended. I was!" ~ A. Buklarewicz, Reviewer, Amazon.com
Customer Reviews:
A 10,000 Mile African Odyssey.......2007-07-03
"Wild, pristine beauty surrounded us as we drove to the base of remote Djomba to establish camp. Towering green peaks sprouted out of ripe clusters of lush vegetation. Massive pyramidal volcanoes rose of the verdant floor suggesting its prehistoric past. Churning, whitecapped rivers cascaded over mountainsides into translucent pools below, and its beauty didn't end with nature." ~ pg. 146
Brandon Wilson is an expert storyteller who masterfully weaves a story of a seven-month odyssey across Africa. His exciting writing style keeps you on the edge of your seat as you journey to the heart of Africa. The detailed descriptions bring the story alive with the sounds, scents and sights of a real-life adventure.
Brandon Wilson is an award-winning writer and photographer who has spent his life exploring the world. He is also a keen observer of human nature and deftly describes the human drama that is ever present in the stories of the overlanders and exotic locales. There are a few photographs to compliment this journey but the writing captures scenes in seconds and transports you to a different time and place.
As Brandon and his partner travel from Mororcco to Cape Town you are invited to vicariously experience every nuance and challenge experienced by independent travelers. He and his partner have a passion for adventure and are inquisitive about the local peoples and unique cultures. They maintain their sense of humor throughout and press on, undaunted towards their final goal. Some of their adventures include:
Hunting with Pygmies
Climbing Africa's Highest Mountain
Meeting Mountain Gorilla
Horseback riding in lion territory
Sitting out underneath the stars by campfires
Watching Antelope and Cape Buffalo graze
Visiting Serengeti National Park
Watching Hippos in Zaire
Experiencing village life and living with locals
Surviving Torrential Rains
Sampling local foods and finding restaurants
Swimming and rafting in African rivers
Through vibrant prose and the eye of an artist, Brandon Wilson paints his recollections with startling clarity. His writing unleashes an immense longing for the experiences he describes. There is a profound beauty of freedom in the way he travels. As they reach Gillman's Point on Mt. Kilimanjaro you can't help but cheer them on to even more exciting adventures like surviving a rafting trip down the Zambezi river.
I can also highly recommend Yak Butter Blues: A Tibetan Trek of Faith. Brandon Wilson's writing is the best travel writing I've ever read and his adventurous spirit is inspiring.
~The Rebecca Review
Great Reading.......2007-05-01
Humorous, insightful and at times moving, this book almost has a taste of the nineteenth century explorer to it as the pair strikes out on their adventure, learning as they go. For those of us that would always take the "comfort route," it's well worth reading!
A Travel Addict's Fix.......2007-01-06
Aficianados of travel books will delight in "Dead Men Don't Leave Tips".Travel is truly an art mastered by few and Brandon Wilson reveals an expertise that inspires. His rich descriptions transport the reader into the unfamiliar and his ability to delve into the cultural core of the humanity he encounters is sure to nourish the spirit.His writing style is a hybrid of Paul Theroux and Tom Robbins, combining the raw frankness and keen observation of Theroux with the intelligent humor and playful language of Robbins.
Africa offers travelers the height of potentiality and Brandon Wilson embraces opportunity with constant relish. Readers who have a penchant for traveling will happily devour this book and be sorry it ended. I was!
Images of Africa.......2006-06-17
"Dead Men Don't Leave Tips" documents a journey across Africa in a manner that lets the reader experience the trip as though they were there. It's a book that makes you realize that, indeed, such things as taking a trip across Africa are actually possible for "regular" people. We see all the problems of arranging the trip, trouble at borders, problems with roads that are not much more than mudholes. It's presented with humor. But then there are the special moments, where the hassles of the trip fade into the background, and the reader is brought face to face with the beauty of Africa. It is these special moments, where the vital beauty of Africa is brought into focus, that stand out for me.
For example, when the author visits gorillas in the mountains, he spends over 90 minutes with a gorilla family, moments that seem to pass in an instant. At one point "... the inquisitive baby climbed down again, this time headed directly toward me. Tottering back and forth, her tiny feet tramped through the tall grass. Finally, she paused just inches away. The pop-eyed, eighteen-inch high, thistle-haired imp stretched out her tiny hand toward me ... she caressed my beard then touched my lips with her slender black finger."
It's these unforgettable moments that make "Dead Men Don't Leave Tips" stand out for me. If you've ever wished you could experience modern Africa, you'll like reading this book.
Terrific Adventure Read.......2006-06-02
DEAD MEN DON'T LEAVE TIPS BY BRANDON WILSON is one of the most engaging travel books we have read. The author and his partner set out to live their dream of crossing Africa from top to tip, not as tourists but as travelers. The difference is that travelers experience the country almost as if they were natives living there, not in full service hotels and fancy restaurants. The author's adventure turned sour in many difficult ways because of the ineptness of the guides they had selected and the group with which they were placed to travel. The couple's seven month honeymoon dream odyssey - 10,000 miles across Africa from top-to-tip. After their "ship of fools" safari turns into a nightmare, they set off across Africa alone. However, being adventurers and seasoned travelers, they perservered through dust, mud, starvation, fever, sickness, being stranded in the desert, and many other situations that are horribly fascinating. We shuddered as they overcame each diffuculty. The trip took over seven months, and they came through it unbelievably in tact to tell their fascinating tales. A must read!
Book Description
The handy pocket-size guide is packed with useful information, tips and recommendations, accompanied by colour photographs, charts and maps for the first-time traveller who wants to experience the major highlights that Mozambique has to offer. This travel book surpasses other guides in that it incorporates essential information in an easy-to-carry and easy-to-read format that is attractive
and useful at the same time. It provides a visitor with an invaluable introduction to Mozambique by concisely highlighting the region’s ‘must see’ areas in a practical and user-friendly format, thus encouraging the tourist to make the most of his/her available time. All the essential information you need to get around an unfamiliar region is compacted into useful and practical ‘At-a-Glance’ sections at the end of each chapter. The fold-out map of Mozambique is ideal for tourists and visitors. In addition to the main map of Mozambique, which highlights scenic routes, it features 13 detailed area maps and 6 town plans.
Book Description
The decades-long civil war ended in 1992 in Mozambique, a southeastern African nation once ruled by the Portuguese The country now attracts foreign investment and has one of the fastest-growing economies in Africa. Culture and Customs of Mozambique is a timely overview of an important nation as it rebuilds. The thorough narrative is the most-up-date and authoritative source on Mozambique's society. Ndege covers the land and history and especially clarifies the multiethnic society, which comprises sixteen ethnic groups, most of which are of Bantu origin. Each group speaks its own language, and some clans within each group speak different dialects of the same language. He discusses the migration of these groups into Mozambique from southern Africa and their absorption of disparate and small communities, as well as their diverse cultural customs and practices. Most important, the Zambezi valley, which has for centuries been a meeting place of many different societies, is significant in understanding the nature and pattern of settlement of various ethnic communities in modern-day Mozambique. Readers will learn about the young population and the migration to cities today. The importance of the family and the changes to the family and gender roles brought on by education, urbanization, migration, and religion are discussed. Other coverage includes the role of Islam and Christianity; the importance of art; indigenous, oral, and modern literature and media; a wide range of celebrations and leisure activities; ceremonies and cuisine; unique music and dance; and more.
Customer Reviews:
A strong survey embracing everything from gender roles and world relationships to customs and cultural history........2007-03-12
Joining others in the 'Culture and Customs of Africa' series is a thorough coverage of Mozambique which will be perfect for reports at the middle to high school grade levels. Libraries will find Culture and Customs of Mozambique a popular lend reaching even into general-interest adult collections strong on African history and culture: it provides a strong survey embracing everything from gender roles and world relationships to customs and cultural history.
Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch
Book Description
It was the winter of 1902; South African park ranger Harry Wolhuter was on horseback, patrolling the area for poachers at Kruger National Park. Little did he know, he was also being stalked. Out of nowhere, two huge male lions pounced on Harry's horse, knocking the man to the ground. The horse ran off, leaving Harry to fend for himself. One of the lions lunged at him--piercing deep into his flesh and bones--and began to drag him far into the jungle to finish him off. Harry's only hope for survival was the small sheath he carried on his right hip, and he could not reach it easily. With a few quick stabs to the massive beast's chest, he waited and prayed for the best. Miraculously, after spending hours in a tree--drifting in and out of consciousness--with only his terrier standing between him and the second lion, he survived the attack and lived to tell his story.
But others have not been so lucky at Kruger National Park. Today, Mozambican refugees are being eaten alive in great numbers as they attempt to walk the Kruger, yet no one seems to know about these massacres, and nothing is being done to stop them. More lion attacks have been documented in the past year than ever before.
And so begins the investigative journey of journalist Robert Frump. In July of 2002, his plane touched down on the airfields west of Kruger, and what he discovered was beyond belief.
The Man-Eaters of Eden uncovers the simple truth, that more people are eaten by lions today, than ever before.
Customer Reviews:
A natural history of the park's two thousand lions and the plight of reguees who are their prey........2006-12-14
Mozambican refugees are being eaten alive en masse as they attempt to walk across South Africa's Kruger National Park - home to the notorious man eating lions that are a well-kept secret outside the area. Journalist Robert Frump journeyed to the region in 2002 in search of their story and found a complex social and political mileau instead of the simple tale he had anticipated. THE MAN-EATERS OF EDEN thus becomes as much a story of politics and regional issues as it is a natural history of the park's two thousand lions and the plight of reguees who are their prey.
Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch
Average.......2006-11-10
Not in the same league as Paterson's "Man Eaters of Tsavo" or Corbetts "Man Eaters of Kumaon". Needs more narration on actual Man Eating incidents in the Kruger National Park. Some of the Kruger incidents are old and I have read them in other books.
OF DEFINITE VALUE.......2006-11-04
This is an intriguing book because it's many-layered. On the one hand, it's certainly about man-eating lions. On the other, it's about waves of refugees willing to risk those lions on foot, unarmed and in the middle of the African night, to escape war and poverty. And the question of what you do, officially, in a famous wildlife preserve when your most charismatic tourist attractions are regularly killing and eating desperate political and economic refugees. Answer: You cover it up. You make sure your own tourists are safe (?) and you cover up the rest. There are no clear villains in this book- not the lions, who are just doing what lions do; not the refugees, looking for a viable life; not even the Kruger officials, who have no taste for the wholesale slaughter of animals in their charge. There is one hero, who does what he can in a refreshingly non-official, commonsensical way to help the refugees better their chances of staying alive.
I enjoyed Frump's style and narrative persona; he is no hero himself, out of his element and as scared of lions as anyone else. He's tantalized by the idea of crossing Kruger on foot and at night himself, but honestly relieved when he can find no one willing to guide him. He doesn't offer any easy answers and few judgements.
It's also humbling to realize how utterly helpless human beings still are when separated from our technology and set afoot in the dark among predators we must have known intimately for hundreds of thousands of years.
God's In Frump's Details.......2006-11-01
I found this to be a most intriguing read. At the very start of the book Frump gets your heart racing with the frightening tale of a corpse-spotting in Kruger. Even more gruesome lion-kill accounts create the intermittent suspense that boils up at just the right times throughout this book. That suspense is held together tightly with an honest and well-researched history of the state of game in African park and the plight of the African people who, victims of endless war, must unfairly confront Kruger's lions--the perfect killing machines. What's more, Frump helps the reader grapple with the natural guilt that comes from enjoying the suspense in this tragedy by tackling the sad moral quandry: lion or man. And perhaps best of all, it's a superbly crafted tale that is told in Frump's crips writing style.
Of Doubtful Value.......2006-10-06
I found this book to be a disappointment. I hunt in Africa (not South Africa) and am fortunate enough to return on return on a yearly basis. I do not consider myself an expert on Africa by any means, and indeed, I wonder if anyone can really become an expert on so vast a place as Sub-Saharan Africa, an area only slightly smaller than the 48 contiguous United States. This book has a disorganized feel as though it was rushed into print on short notice. It is hard to understand the point the author is trying to make. Africa has components that can be very dangerous at times, although no more dangerous than many other parts of the world including the US. The reality is that everyone tends to manage the dangers they are familiar with as best they can. This is no less true for Africa than for the US and the other Western nations. Many thousands die on the US highways every year, but people by the millions don't think twice about risking death by using them to get where they need to go. The same is true for Africa. If the indigenous Africans need to risk predation or similar dangers to get to where they need to go, they take the risk. Most people around the world manage risk quite well in their daily lives. A few behave recklessly, and they are the ones that tend to get into trouble. As the author finally points out at the end of the book, there are ways to cross Kruger National park without being killed by lions, but there is always a risk of death, just as there is always a risk of death in highly developed industrial societies. (Currently, the real risk of death in Africa is from AIDS.) Finally, his discussions about firearms show a real lack of knowledge. Someone knowledgeable about firearms, and organization of the written word, should have gone over this book before publication.
Books:
- Animal Eye Colors: Yellow-Eyed Stalkers, Red-Eyed Skulkers & Black-Eyed Speedsters
- Annual Review of Plant Biology, Vol. 54 with Online Access (Annual Review of Plant Biology)
- Australia's Most Dangerous: Spiders, Snakes and Marine Creatures
- Australian Kangaroos and Wallabies (Nature Kids)
- Back from the Far Field: American Nature Poetry in the Late Twentieth Century
- Biology and Social Thought: 1850-1914 : Five Lectures Delivered at the International Summer School in History of Science Uppsala, July 1990 (Berkeley Papers in History of Science)
- Blizzard of the Blue Moon (A Stepping Stone Book(TM))
- Body Size: The Structure and Function of Aquatic Ecosystems (Ecological Reviews)
- Brain Maps III: Structure of the Rat Brain
- Call of the Wild, Survival in the Sun
Books Index
Books Home
Recommended Books
- MY FATHER'S SECRET WAR: A MEMOIR
- History: Fiction or Science
- La Ley del Amor
- In the Company of Moose
- Hawaii The Big Island Revealed: The Ultimate Guidebook
- How Does Earth Work: Physical Geology and the Process of Science
- History: Fiction or Science
- Discover the South Central Adirondacks: Four-Season Adventures That Include the Siamese Ponds Wilder
- Henry VIII: The Mask of Royalty
- The subgenus Tephrocactus;: A historical survey with notes on cultivation,
General
| Evangelism
| Christianity
| Religion & Spirituality
| Subjects
| Books
Visions Beyond the Veil: Visions of Heaven, Angels, Satan, Hell and the End of the Age
When Heaven Invades Earth
Like a Mighty Wind
The Supernatural Power of a Transformed Mind: Access to a Life of Miracles
The Heavenly Man: The Remarkable True Story of Chinese Christian Brother Yun
