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“I adore Michael Palin.”
Anais wrote this review Saturday, October 31, 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Palin writes with his trademark pleasant style. However, it always seems to pull up short when describing locations. Left with the feeling it was a suplement to the TV series.”
Max O wrote this review Thursday, September 3, 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Now I have to rent the miniseries. I'm totally fired up about going back to the Magreb. Think I'll pass on Algeria, though...”
Tamara S wrote this review Saturday, May 2, 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Good Book. Feels at times he is rushing thru specially in the last few days of his travel along meditaranian coast. One feels he is exhausted. Nevertheless His social commetary keeps one involved in the book. I will certainly recommend this book for reading.”
vinayak10 wrote this review Tuesday, March 17, 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“I borrowed this book from Wimbledon Library in October 2007. Since then I never had time to read it, and when I moved back to Manchester, I had to return it. Last June 2008, during one of those weekly visits to the local library, I stumbled upon the same book again. This time it was discarded by the library, for the price of 10p. Many weeks after that I read book after book borrowed from the library and left the ones that I owned unread. A sure sign of a gluttonous reader. Many a times I checked out Amazon website to look at the resale value of the book, trying to keep to a personal policy of not keeping too many books with me in a small living space. It is not attractive. Many readers are selling their own for 0.01p, for nothing.
Jovenus wrote this review Wednesday, December 10, 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
So after a conscious effort to dwindle down my book borrowings, I finally picked up this book from my shelf and read. I was mesmerised. Albeit British wry sense of humour, Palin had displayed sufficient dose of humility and wit to travel like the locals and express compassions and concerns for the locals. Palin’s prose is simple, precise and beautiful. Palin and his crew travel from the quaint Englishness of Gibraltar through Morocco, Algeria, Western Sahara, Mauritania, Senegal, Mali, Niger, Libya and Tunisia. At least for the first leg of his journey (Morocco) I have seen enough myself to know that whenever he travelled to one city, he merely skimmed the surface of appreciation of the city or country. Perhaps a bit part of the narration has been televised by his 2003 BBC series.
His book stirred in me the desire to visit some of the historical sites in Mali, Libya, Tunisia. Great mosque at Djenne, Mali, Roman amphitheatre at El Jem, Tunisia; Appolonia, Libya; and the desert. Mystical, ruthless, both beautiful and deadly, the exotic mystery of Sahara desert populated by nomads, camels, displaced peoples and ex-colonials is unveiled in the book. Perhaps why recently I read so much about Africa is the fact that it is impossible to visit some of these places. Political unrest and lack of social security, travelling there would be suicidal.
Through his writings, I began to appreciate the beauty of the desert, the history of these African countries. The feeling of nothingness, heighten the senses to “somethingness” – if ever there is such a word. The sunrise, the sunset, the caravanserai, the humble abodes of Bedouins are all wonderfully portrayed in the beautiful photographs by Basil Pao.
At the end of the book, the feast was so sumptuous, the fantasy so vivid, the desert so alluring... that I decided to keep the book. If this book is worth nothing to sell it, it is worth a lot to keep it.”
“A very enjoyable read. For years I have followed Palin's various journeys documented on the BBC. After watching the Sahara series, I had to purchase the book. The reason why I really like Palin is because he is your achetypal modern English explorer. At times I have found him to be a casual observer, though he is never afraid to be hands on and his sharp sense of humor draws you in. The book details his journey in depth and the photographs are generally quite stunning. ”
Atieno wrote this review Saturday, September 6, 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Drags on a bit.”
What's the story, Morning Glory? wrote this review Sunday, August 24, 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No“See review at http://bethlikesbooks.blogspot.com/2008/05/globe-trotting-with-michael-palin.html”
bethlikesbooks wrote this review Thursday, June 26, 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Palin travels across the Sahara. I learned quite alot about different cultures in the Sahara and Maghreb.”
Peter J wrote this review Monday, June 23, 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Renee K said: Rated: 3 stars
Play Book Tag Shelf wrote this review Tuesday, October 28, 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
Great travelogue, although parts feel a bit abbreviated. A great introduction to the places / peoples of Africa, although it is limited to the places Palin visits in his trip that was documented for the BBC.”
