Heart of the Hunter [Paperback]

Lauren Van Der Post (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1971

In this sequel to "The Lost World of the Kalahari", Laurens van der Post records everything he has learned of the life and the lore of Africa's first inhabitants.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

The extraordinary life of Laurens van der Post is not easily capsulized. Author of of many books, farmer, soldier, prisoner of war, political adviser to British heads of state, educator, humanitarian, philosopher, explorer, and conservationist are titles that barely indicate the depth and breadth of this rare individual. Born in 1906 in the interior of southern Africa, he lived among the people who created the first blueprint for life on earth, becoming the principal chronicler of the Stone Age Kalahari Bushmen. He was also one of C.G. Jung's closest friends for sixteen years. Van der Post dedicated his life to teaching the meaning and value of indigenous cultures in the modern world, a world he felt is in danger of losing its spiritual identity to technology, prejudice, empty values, and a lack of understanding of the interconnectedness of all life on earth. Awarded a knighthood (the C.B.E.) in 1981, Sir Laurens died after his 90th birthday, in December, 1996.

He has written the following books:
A Far Off Place
The Heart of the Hunter‎
A Story Like the Wind
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Penguin Putnam~trade; 5th THUS edition (February 1971)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0140022368
• ISBN-13: 978-0140022360
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,783,754 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Feel the passion, hear the experiences of the Bushman., February 5, 1999

By 

Frederic S. Waugh "Helping those who love tra... (Southport, CT 06890 USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Heart of the Hunter: Customs and Myths of the African Bushman (Paperback)

Sir Laurens van der Post has a gift for story telling that we should all explore. The customs and myths of the Bushmen are simple, complex, spiritual, entertaining but always there is a lesson to be learned. This book will feed your mind and you will find yourself through Laurens' craft eager for more. If you have shut down your heart and your imagination, feel the beat of this book and get your pulse back.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars The great divide, July 15, 2004

By 

P. Micocci "embevecido" (Houston, TX USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Heart of the Hunter: Customs and Myths of the African Bushman (Paperback)

I again with the earlier reviewer who pointed out the noticeable difference between the first part of this book and the latter; when Van der Post is recounting his experiences with the Bushmen (or San, if you prefer) and with various other folk who have come to inhabit the Kalahari the book is very interesting and informative. However, in the second half he feels the need to reinterpret the Bushmen's legends or myths through a Jungian perspective, a treatment I found neither compelling nor convincing. While the fragments of the Bushmen's tales are interesting and Van der Post's ruminations are occasionally thought provoking, I didn't particularly enjoy his technique of intercutting between a few sentences of the one and heavy doses of the other. I suppose that for the reader who cares to interpret everything by archetypes and quests it might prove intriguing, but I soon came to find it rather annoying and distracting.

16 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good beginning but goes no where, March 15, 2000

By 

A Customer - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Heart of the Hunter: Customs and Myths of the African Bushman (Paperback)

This is a decent book because I love anthropology, ethnobotony, and learning about the Bushman. The beginning of this book was great, the author discusses how he and his group fall upon a thirsty group of Bushman. That part is great because it describes the interactions between the author and the Bushman. One of the author's mate on the trip, Dabe, a Bushman himself, also offers amazing commentary when they run into the Bushman.

However, in the middle, who knows what is going on. And the end was so confusing, but sorta okay. Van der Post discusses Bushman creation tales which are good in themselves because most books overlook the spiritual aspect of the Bushman--but the tales need more explanation--Van der Post talks over your head and says things don't need an explanation when they really do.

I would recommend reading 'Nisa, The Life and Words of a !Kung Woman' and 'The Harmless People' which both can be purchased online here!