Endangered Liaisons [Hardcover]

Don Shay (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 15, 2008

Twenty years ago, Don Shay embarked on a once-in-a-lifetime travel experience that would prove to be anything but. Armed with two new cameras and a carry-on packed with film, he set forth on a photographic safari to Africa.

Captivated by the wild animals and wild places he found there, Shay returned again and again to the continent, delving deeper and deeper into its wilderness regions and game reserves as he sought out close encounters with some of the planet's most charismatic and highly endangered creatures. Through the years, Shay has spent more than nine months on safari, embracing the splendor and drama of Africa from open land vehicles, light aircraft, watercraft, hot-air balloons and on foot.

In this vibrant memoir of a twenty-year love affair, Shay evokes the safari experience with clarity, insight and humor. Accompany him as he traces the route of the Great Migration through the Serengeti ecosystem of Tanzania. Share the suspense as a lioness stalks prey in the Masai Mara of Kenya, and the horror as a cheetah hunt goes terribly awry in the Savuti region of Botswana. Climb the Virunga volcanoes of Rwanda for a poignant encounter with mountain gorillas. Join a pack of African wild dogs as they hunt and raise pups in the Okavango Delta of Botswana. And feel the rush of cruising down the Chobe River on a quest for elephants.

With this compilation of words and photographs, Don Shay has produced a vivid and compelling book that will resonate with anyone who has been on safari, anyone who is considering such an adventure, or anyone content to remain at home and enjoy the wonders of Africa from afar.

Awards & Recognition

Endangered Liaisons placed first in both Travel and Africa categories of the 2008 Reader Views Literary Awards, and was named winner of that competition's Karen Villanueva Award for Best Global Book of the Year. It was also an award-winning finalist in the Travel: Essay and Photography: Nature categories of USA Book News' National Best Book 2008 Awards, was chosen as a finalist in the Photography category of ForeWord Magazine's 2008 Book of the Year Awards, and was a finalist in the 2009 Eric Hoffer Awards for Independent Books.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Don Shay is the founder and publisher of Cinefex. He has written extensively on motion picture production and visual effects for that publication and others. His book on the making of Jurassic Park, co-authored with Jody Duncan, topped The New York Times best-seller list for several weeks.

Shay and his wife, Estelle, have traveled throughout Africa, visiting dozens of game parks and reserves in a host of countries ranging from Kenya and Rwanda to Botswana and Namibia. They are longtime members of the African Wildlife Foundation, to which they are donating a portion of the proceeds from this book.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Alarus Press; First edition (September 15, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0615213456
• ISBN-13: 978-0615213453
• Product Dimensions: 11.3 x 9.7 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,849,578 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An intimate experience with a hidden world, October 3, 2008

By 

Rtrout "Troutco" (Riverside, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Endangered Liaisons (Hardcover)

This beautiful volume immediately attracted me with its vivid and beautifully reproduced photos, but it's the author's intimate recollections of his many visits to Africa that lingered when I turned the final page. With language as lush as the landscapes he describes yet as down-to-earth as the species he painstakingly profiles, Shay increasingly articulates his lifelong love affair with a place so removed from our day-to-day lives.

This is a rare coffee table book that provides a vicarious experience for someone who has never been on safari or visited Africa. The photos are by turns striking, immediate, humorous, and startling. The text is both informative and personal, and reveals the character of someone with a deep passion and sense of wonder.

I imagine the book would also deeply stir anyone who has had the fortune to see these sights and been lucky enough to visit this land that Shay so lovingly describes.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Exquisite Africa...., September 14, 2008

By 

M. Raats (Australia) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Endangered Liaisons (Hardcover)

For people who love Africa and her wildlife, Endangered Liaisons is in my opinion a 'must have'. Written and compiled by Don Shay, this sumptuous book is a treat that will sit comfortably on any coffee table - be it in Cape Town, Cairo, Zürich or New York.

While there are many examples of this genre in circulation today, this publication is unique because not only is each page bursting with the most perfectly composed photographic experiences, but Don Shay also shares with the reader his experiences, his thoughts and what he has learned sometimes, in the most disarmingly honest way.

Zambia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Namibia, Tanzania, Rwanda.... the list goes on and it includes more places visited than almost any other African I know. Not only do we have up intimate experiences of Lion, Elephant and Leopard, but we readers also indulge in other equally exotic cocktails like, Hamerkop, Lilac-breasted Roller and Gorilla.

This is not a work of fake tanned chests, khaki shirts and David Livingstone style bravado. As native of Africa myself I was thrilled to see that Don Shay has taken the trouble to learn and absorb Africa and to experience her unbeatable panoramas and her hot blooded pulse. But more importantly, I believe that he has bestowed on Africa dignity - sadly, something so often missing even in Africa itself these days.

Exquisite.....

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Your coffee table with thank you, November 2, 2008

By 

Peter G. Allison (Botswana) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Endangered Liaisons (Hardcover)

There are many books about Africa that you can weigh your coffee table down with. Many have exquisite photographs of a particular region but their text is as lumpy as old porridge. Dedication to one region may also make them a little monotonous.

Endangered Liaisons is different. Don Shay is unfairly blessed with great talent in both photography and writing, and has over the years visited much of Africa. This has given him am insight into the continent that even some of its full time residents lack. As a safari guide, this is the book I would recommend people read before coming on a trip to Africa.

Peter Allison, author of Whatever You Do, Don't Run - True Tales of a Botswana Safari Guide.

Whatever You Do, Don't Run: True Tales of a Botswana Safari Guide