Customer Reviews

Ghosts of Tsavo: Tracking the Mythic Lions of East Africa

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"Ghosts of Tsavo" is part travelogue, part natural history, part murder mystery, and part mid-life crisis for its author Philip Caputo. What it is as a whole is a fascinating, engaging look at the lions of Tsavo Park in Kenya. Caputo first became interested in these unusual lions as a result of a visit to the Field Museum in Chicago as a young boy. Therein were "Ghost" and "Darkness" two enormous males lions that terrorized constructions workers building a rail line through Tsavo. In fact terrorized may be too weak a word as they are credited with killing at least 120 people and literarily halting construction until they were eventually hunted down and killed by British Lt. Col. Patterson who was heading up the project. He recounted this effort in his famous memoir "The Man Eaters of Tsavo" and kindled a fascination with Kenya's lions that lingered with Caputo for half a century.

What sets the lions of Tsavo apart from the more familiar ones we know from nature documentaries, is that they are much bigger, and the males are either maneless of have very short manes, in either case nothing like the regal mountains of fur on their cousins from the Serengeti. In the first half of the book, Caputo explores reasons as to why this might by the case. It is possible that since Tsavo is much warmer than the Serengeti, manes are too expensive in terms of internal resources to grow. Another possibility is that the thick scrub brush and thorns of the region wear down manes before they ever become truly impressive.

However, it is a more controversial theory that makes for the most entertaining reading. Caputo encounters several scientists who argue that the lions of Tsavo are genetically distinct from the lions on the Serengeti. Moreover, they argue that the lions of Tsavo are in fact a throw back to prehistoric lions, quite literally walking fossils. The point to the lack of manes, the much larger height and girth and the fact that Tsavo lions hunt the enormous Cape Buffalo as justifications for this thesis.

Ultimately, Caputo, in three journeys to Kenya over the course of eighteen months (once as a tourist and twice with scientific expeditions) is never able to definitively state which hypothesis is correct. However, that in no way detracts from his rambling, conversational narrative. Caputo is not a scientist, and he in no way pretends to be one, although he does (and justifiably so) consider himself a well-informed observer. As such, he is not constrained by the rigors of academia, and can therefore transfer his passion for these lions and the mystery surrounding them onto the page. In fact, towards the end he grows weary of the scientific studies as they somehow detract from the powerful aura that surrounds the lions.

If you are interested in lions in general, or if the prospect of some spine-tingling tales of man-eating lions sounds appealing, "Ghost of Tsavo" is well worth reading. However, beyond the surface elements, Caputo has written a book that captures the raw spirituality of nature, and that bemoans modern man's detachment from the primitive. So it is entirely likely that even if you have no interest in lions at all, you may be drawn to Caputo's lament for something we don't even realize we have lost. Either way, "Ghost's of Tsavo" is well worth reading.

Jake Mohlman

Long fascinated with the subject of man-eating lions, Philip Caputo does not pretend to be an expert on them, the environment, or African affairs. In fact, his lack of expertise and his desire to learn give this book some of its appeal and make it totally accessible, even to the most scientifically challenged reader. Consulting experts from Chicago's Field Museum and from the University of Minnesota, before, during, and after two trips he makes to Kenya's Tsavo National Park, Caputo immerses himself in their research, familiarizing the reader, in the process, with the lions, their behavior, and their controversies.

Far more apt to attack and eat humans than are the Serengeti plains lions, the man-eaters of Tsavo are giants, much longer from nose to tail, much taller at the shoulder, and 100 - 150 pounds heavier than the plains lions, and the males are often maneless. Caputo's experts strongly disagree on whether these giant lions differ simply because they have adapted to the hotter climate of Tsavo and their need to kill Cape buffalo for food, or whether, in fact, they represent a missing link between modern lions and the maneless cave lions of the Pleistocene era, which roamed throughout the Near East and Africa.

Stories of famous man-eaters of the past hundred years, including two which killed 135 people in 1898, and one 550-pounder from 1991, add drama and excitement to the narrative. But Caputo also ranges widely into peripheral, more personal subjects--why he believes hunters are closer to nature than are photographers, why tracking a lion on foot for four days is a more divine experience than using a vehicle, evolution vs. creationism, cloning, science vs. faith, and even his nightmares. Ultimately, the book is as much about Caputo as about the lions, who remain a mystery. "The truth is," he concludes, "I don't want to learn anything more about lions, but am content...to keep some blank spots blank; after all, those are what excite the imagination." Mary Whipple

Watch for The Ghosts of Tsavo to find a well-deserved spot on the best-seller lists. Caputo blends one bit travelogue with a splash of John McPhee, frappes it with some exciting writing, then serves it over the rocks of some hard scientific facts. This is a yarn, but a great one. The prologue is, hands down, the best story of someone hunting a man eating lion I have ever read. But this is not the "Jaguars Clawed My Flesh" school of big cat writing. His is a journey of exploration of the old school, similar to an expedition in the 19th Century from the Field Museum, which inspired Caputo as a child. Scientists will be happy to see he balances all of this with reason. Romantics will be happy to see he balances science with emotion. He has a gift, too, of beginning a personal rant on a point of politics and philosphy, and then doubling back on himself and to laugh at himself. He explores myths and explodes myths. Yet there is a romantic side to him that values them and the unknown. A good read, good reporting. Buy it, if the theme appeals to you at all, or if you ever looked up, as Caputo did as a child, at the great stuffed cats in museums.

Philip Caputo's Ghosts Of Tsavo: Stalking The Mystery Lions Of East Africa blends travelogue with nature in telling of the author's journey to Kenya's Tsavo National Park on foot with his guides, then in companionship with two scientists who seek close encounters with the big cats. Are the maneless lions found in Tsavo a subspecies of African lion, and a missing link? These lions are especially fierce, and the blend of science and adventure here makes for a riveting read.

I am planning a trip to Africa, so I ordered this book and then I saw other books that had been recommended, so I found a second hand copy of "Man-Eaters Motel" by Boyles and "The Man Eaters of Tsavo" by Patterson. There is quite a difference between them, obviously. Patterson's book was great because he is the source. He is the one who killed the lions of Tsavo. Boyles' book is incredible. Not only does he tell the story of the lions better than anybody, I really loved all the rest of the information about Kenya and the railroad there. It is also really funny in places. Caputo's book is good if you are interested in more of the scientific-type information. I wish it would have been more exciting. My wife liked it because Caputo took his wife along on the trip and write about it from that perspective.

The lions of Tsavo always manage to stay just out of reach in this book. They appear on the horizon or make a short appearance nearby before disappearing in the thick underbrush. Their origins also remain elusive.

The subject of scientific dispute and made somewhat famous by the movie "The Ghost and the Darkness", the lions of this harsh region in East Africa are known for several characteristics that differentiate them from the more photogenic lions of the Serengeti Plains. They are far larger, specialize in hunting Buffalo, have no manes, and -- most chillingly -- are reputed to be man-eaters far more often than other lions.

Are the differences due to the region's harsh environment? Or are the Tsavo lions genetic throwbacks to a primitive lion that once hunted man? Or could it be that the differences between plains lions and Tsavo lions are simply imagined by hunters and other non-scientists who build myths around their quarry?

The novelist Philip Caputo discovers these interesting questions as he begins his own search for the Tsavo lions. Caputo is drawn to the beasts for reasons I never fully comprehend. In part, however, his early exposure to Colonel John Patterson's book (which inspired the movie "The Ghost and the Darkness") and seeing the stuffed lions that Patterson shot in a Chicago-area Museum seem to have touched a nerve in him. While Patterson hints at other reasons for the trip, he never explains them in a consistent and coherent manner.

Normally, this wouldn't matter, but Caputo interjects his own tale into this book far too often. Who Caputo likes and dislikes, arguments in base camp among his companions, his sickness and near-death experience, and his boredom with the slow wait for Tsavo lions to make an appearance all feature too prominently in the book. Caputo writes well enough that it never becomes intolerable, but it still is a distraction. "Where are the lions?," I kept asking myself.

They remained elusive. It's very possible I knew more (or thought I knew more) about the lions in Tsavo on page 50 of this book than I did on page 250. With the exception of a small -- but fairly conclusive -- experiment on how lions react to different mane colors of other male lions, nearly no other new information is drawn out.

But if you enjoy reading about African wildlife or one of nature's most famous keystone species, I recommend this book. The faults of the author don't distract enough from the great interest of the subject matter.

I read the book by John Patterson, who killed the original maneaters of Tsavo (Did you all see the "Ghost and the Darkness") and this book was even better. A very good read and deserves five stars.

A gripping tale of studying lions in their native habitat. However, the author got off track on at least two occasions presenting his personal philosophy on issues that had nothing to do with studying lions.

I put off reading Philip Caputo's Ghosts of Tsavo because it begins with a long recounting of Wayne Hosek's killing of the man-eating lions, Ghost and Darkness. Pushing further into the text, I found a wonderful stockpile of first class nature writing, safari lore, scientific examination of what exactly constitutes a species, and philosophizing on the dichotomy between the mysteries of nature and the science that seeks to explain them.

The book centers on the author's quest to learn whether the maneless lions of Tsavo National Park in Kenya are, in fact, a distinct species from their plains-dwelling maned cousins. Philip Caputo makes his first journey to Tsavo with an eccentric English guide and leaves convinced the maneless lions with a taste for human flesh are the direct descendents of Paleolithic cave-dwelling lions. At the Field Museum in Chicago, he digs deeper into the research of a self-taught big cat expert (formally employed as an ornithological specimen preparer). Then he returns to Africa with a scientific research team who take a narrow view of this speculative research. The varying viewpoints, coupled with the author's near-death experience and wild ramblings induced by malaria drugs, make for a compelling story and an atmospheric introduction to East Africa's charismatic cats.

Having spent 4 weeks in South Africa last summer doing research on lions myself, I was deeply interested in reading this book (as I am also a fan of Patterson's story). I expected to be blown away with stories, true or not, of man-eating lions in Africa. Instead, Caputo focused a bit too much on things not pertaining to lions, especially towards the end of the book. Don't get me wrong, man-eating info was there, but I just was not as frightened by this book as I hoped to be. It is still a good read however.