A Reed Shaken by the Wind: A Journey Through the Unexplored Marshlands of Iraq (Transaction Large Print Books) [Large Print] [Hardcover]

Gavin Maxwell (Author)

Product Details

• Hardcover: 283 pages
• Publisher: Isis Large Print Books (September 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1850892725
• ISBN-13: 978-1850892724
• Product Dimensions: 9.8 x 6.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #982,050 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #13 in Books > Travel > Middle East > Iraq

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Lost voices in the wilderness, June 29, 2000

By 

Ian Peters (UK) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Reed Shaken by the Wind: A Journey Through the Unexplored Marshlands of Iraq (Transaction Large Print Books) (Hardcover)

It is astounding that in such a short time the world can change so dramatically. The events in this book are a little over 40 years old yet so much has changed and so much may be lost forever. Maxwell documents the lives of these wonderful people and a land that is rapidly disappearing now. The roots of the 'otter' books are also here in the eventual arrival of Mijbil. Sadly, even the status of Mij's sub-speciation has now apparently disappeared too. Anyone with an interest in the lives of other people should have a copy of this book in their libraries.

5.0 out of 5 stars wonderful wetland encounter, April 12, 2007

By 

Robert L. France (cambridge, ma United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Reed Shaken by the Wind: A Journey Through the Unexplored Marshlands of Iraq (Transaction Large Print Books) (Hardcover)

I originally read this gem of a book by Maxwell during the 1970s (we had had to read "Ring of Bright Water" in school) and returned to it again several years ago while I was planning a conference about restoring the marshlands (and people) that had all but been competely destroyed by Saddam. Of the handful of mid-century books by British ex-pats about the marshes, I still think that Maxwell remains the best writer of the group. Much of my own prose in "Wetlands of Mass Destruction: Ancient Presage for Contemporary Ecocide in Southern Iraq" benefited from a third reread of this exploration classic.