Safari Reading List

The world is a book and those who do not travel read only a page.

~ St Augustine 

Travel to Africa will illuminate your world. Our clients frequently return with stories about how much they learned about the wildlife they saw, the environment, and the local culture. Much of your learning will come from the local people you encounter, particularly your safari guide. But we strongly encourage you to find some time to do some arm chair traveling in advance of your departure by reading a few of our recommended books listed below.

The Old Drift

Namwali Serpell’s 2019 novel The Old Drift is the sweeping, multigenerational saga of three families whose personal histories converge over the course of more than a century on the shores of the Zambezi river, and in the eventual shadow of the Kariba Dam, from the dawn of the twentieth century to 2024.

 

The Elephant Whisperer

The Elephant Whisperer is a heartwarming, exciting, funny, and sometimes sad account of Anthony’s experiences with these huge yet sympathetic creatures. Set against the background of life on an African game reserve, with unforgettable characters and exotic wildlife, it is a delightful book that will appeal to animal lovers and adventurous souls everywhere.

We are all Birds of Uganda

Moving between two continents over a troubled century, We Are All Birds of Uganda is an immensely resonant novel that explores racial tensions, generational divides and what it means to belong.

Country of My Skull

Country of My Skull captures the complexity of the Truth Commission’s work. The narrative is often traumatic, vivid, and provocative. Krog’s powerful prose lures the reader actively and inventively through a mosaic of insights, impressions, and secret themes. This compelling tale is Antjie Krog’s profound literary account of the mending of a country that was in colossal need of change.

A Guide to the Birds of East Africa: A Novel

For the past three years, the widower Mr. Malik has been secretly in love with Rose Mbikwa, a woman who leads the weekly bird walks sponsored by the East African Ornithological Society. Reserved and honorable, Malik wouldn’t be noticed by a bystander in a Nairobi street—except perhaps to comment on his carefully sculpted combover. But beneath that unprepossessing exterior lies a warm heart and a secret passion.

The Zanzibar Chest

In his final days, Aidan Hartley’s father said to him, “We should have never come here.” Those words spoke of a colonial legacy that stretched back through four generations of one British family. From a great-great-grandfather who defended British settlements in nineteenth-century New Zealand, to his father, a colonial officer sent to Africa in the 1920s and who later returned to raise a family there—these were intrepid men who traveled to exotic lands to conquer, build, and bear witness.

House of Stone: The True Story of a Family Divided in War-Torn Zimbabwe

A powerful and insightful book that aims to tell the turbulent history of Zimbabwe through the personal stories of Nigel and Aqui. Lamb weaves the stories of their lives together, effortlessly depicting the violence and turmoil that occurred in Zimbabwe. A compelling story that empathises with the victims of an international crisis.

Born a Crime

Trevor Noah’s unlikely path from apartheid South Africa to the desk of The Daily Show began with a criminal act: his birth. Trevor was born to a white Swiss father and a black Xhosa mother at a time when such a union was punishable by five years in prison. Living proof of his parents’ indiscretion, Trevor was kept mostly indoors for the earliest years of his life, bound by the extreme and often absurd measures his mother took to hide him from a government that could, at any moment, steal him away.

Love, Africa

A seasoned war correspondent, Jeffrey Gettleman has covered every major conflict over the past twenty years, from Afghanistan to Iraq to the Congo. For the past decade, he has served as the East Africa bureau chief for the New York Times, fulfilling a teenage dream. A sensually rendered coming-of-age story in the tradition of Barbarian Days, Love, Africa is a tale of passion, violence, far-flung adventure, tortuous long-distance relationships, screwing up, forgiveness, parenthood, and happiness that explores the power of finding yourself in the most unexpected of places.

Long Walk to Freedom

Nelson Mandela was one of the great moral and political leaders of his time: an international hero whose lifelong dedication to the fight against racial oppression in South Africa won him the Nobel Peace Prize and the presidency of his country.  Long Walk to Freedom is his moving and exhilarating autobiography, destined to take its place among the finest memoirs of history’s greatest figures. Here for the first time, Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela told the extraordinary story of his life – an epic of struggle, setback, renewed hope, and ultimate triumph.

Into Africa

What really happened to Dr. David Livingstone? The New York Times bestselling coauthor of Survivor: The Ultimate Game investigates in this thrilling account. 
With the utterance of a single line–“Doctor Livingstone, I presume?”–a remote meeting in the heart of Africa was transformed into one of the most famous encounters in exploration history. But the true story behind Dr. David Livingstone and journalist Henry Morton Stanley is one that has escaped telling. Into Africa is an extraordinarily researched account of a thrilling adventure–defined by alarming foolishness, intense courage, and raw human achievement.

Cry, the Beloved Country

This deeply moving novel is a work of love, hope, courage and endurance in a time of racial injustice in South Africa. It is a beautiful tale that tells the story of two fathers and two sons, with a message so universal that it can be applied to much of life today. A must read for those with an interest in the social history of South Africa.

The Rise and Fall of Ancient Egypt

An insightful read that reveals the wonders of Ancient Egypt. This book is sure to give anyone the necessary knowledge to understand Ancient Egypt in all its complexity. Toby Wilkinson’s detailed knowledge of significant historical moments from the building of the Pyramids to Cleopatra’s fatal entanglement with Rome will make you an expert of this intriguing era in no time.

Whatever you do DON’T RUN

In this book, Peter Allison shares his experiences as a safari guide, giving a great insight into the safari experience. n Don’t Run, Whatever You Do, you’ll hear outrageous-but-true tales from the most exciting safaris. You’ll find out when an elephant is really going to charge, what different monkey calls mean and what do in a face off with lions.

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