Riding In Africa [Paperback]

Ian Williams (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 27, 2005

Riding in Africa captures the escapades of more than twelve journeys to Africa. Author Ian Williams offers sage—if somewhat tongue-in-cheek—advice on how to get from one end of an African horse safari to the other without killing yourself.

Read about African flora and fauna, evolution, history, language, the eccentricities of human character, and above all, the perspectives of a scientist-adventurer who puts himself on life’s edge. Williams tells of succumbing to pneumonia in the foothills of Mount Kenya, his experiences in a small African cottage hospital and later in the Nairobi Hospital, part of which he spends in morphine-induced delirium and part in the hospital room reserved for former Kenyan strong man, Daniel arap Moi.

Williams also shares stories of adventures with horses and people while riding through the savannahs of Kenya, the mountains of Malawi, the swamps of Botswana, the deserts of Namibia, and the Lapalala Wilderness, home to the fearsome black rhino.

Riding in Africa is about middle passages: the leap from one side of fifty to the other and the fine line between life and death.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Ian Williams learned to ride horses in 1996 at the age of forty-two. Since then, he has ridden throughout southern and eastern Africa. He lives in Stonington, Connecticut, with his wife, Nancy Hutson. The author may be reached at [e-mail]

Product Details

• Paperback: 170 pages
• Publisher: iUniverse, Inc. (October 27, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0595373011
• ISBN-13: 978-0595373017
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.9 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,033,932 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Ian Williams was born in England where he met his American wife, Nancy Hutson. Ian holds a degree in Biochemistry from the University of Bristol (1972), a D. Phil. from the University of Oxford (1975) and an MFA from Bennington College (2009).

Ian left the corporate life in 2004 to become a full time writer. He has published a book "Riding in Africa," which recounts his adventures horse back riding in many parts of Africa over a twelve year period. Ian is a keen sculler, stonewall builder and writer.

Nancy and Ian have a horse farm in Ledyard, Connecticut where Ian has built two stone pyramids and a stone circle consisting of 27 stones, some weighing 40 tons.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Multiple Journeys, February 3, 2006

By 

Elizabeth A. Godomsky - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Riding In Africa (Paperback)

Riding in Africa provides the reader with multi-layered journeys. On the foremost level are the horseback riding safaris throughout Africa, during which the author entertains as he recounts the many adventures and misadventures with his "punter" companions and guides. Within these treks, Ian Williams, always the scientist, leads us along an educational trail, pausing to inform and enlighten us on the varied plants, animals, and places he encounters. Williams, moreover, reveals a more intense journey as he probes the very birth of the earth and its ultimate demise. Within this cosmic framework , the "travels" cover the beginning of human life and its development into societies on the African continent--and beyond. By doing so, the author undergoes a "rite of passage", affirming for him what constitutes the true values of life. In effectively conveying these various themes, Williams proves to be not only a scientist but also a poet. This fact is evidenced by the deft range of writing styles he utilizes to enhance the different emotions and moods throughout the book: from somber to fanciful; ironic to lyrical; didactic to delightfully amusing. Since I am as likely to saddle up a black rhino as ride a horse, all my safaris have to be taken vicariously. Thanks, then, to adventurers like Ian Williams who share their experiences.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Funny, witty, exciting for horse lovers and adventurers alike!, November 22, 2005

By 

Virginia - See all my reviews

This review is from: Riding In Africa (Paperback)

At first I thought "Oh no, not another book about Africa". But I was lured in by the fact that this was about horse riding. I was delighted I took the risk. The author is funny in a very self-deprecating way and he fills the pages with amusing annecdotes, insightful philosophical asides and above all a very poignant and complelling story. You will enjoy this book whether or not you are a rider. But if you are a horse rider then like me you will love it.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A thoroughly enjoyable read with humor and life lessons on every page!, May 7, 2006

By 

Dr. Ted T. Ashburn (Boston, MA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Riding In Africa (Paperback)

Riding in Africa is a wonderful combination of wit, high adventure, literature, history, zoology, geography, lions, camels, hyenas, black rhinos, bad holes, the personal transformation that can come from near death experiences, the importance of following your heart and oh yes, riding horses in Africa. You will do well to keep a dictionary near by as you read it as you will encounter words such as: apoplectic, haruscipation, mescaline, eisbein, and lighour just to name a few. You will also learn about THE place to eat in the Mfuwe airport, haute cuisine d'Afrique, where Flamingo's get their wonderful color, the importance of life saving drugs developed by the now often villainized pharmaceutical industry, the model/inspiration for Bram Stoker's Dracula, the relationship between the average number of individuals with whom an animal can maintain social relationships and the ratio of cortical volume to the volume of the rest of the brain and most importantly, the relationship between the social structure of primates and the size of male testicals relative to their body weight. Its prose is a delight to read and is descriptive to the point of making you really believe, right down to the dust, sweat, sore buttockses, bugs, elephant dung, tall grass that rustles, African nighttime sky and sunsets, that you are actually riding with Dr. Williams in Africa. However, all of the above and the book's first 136 pages are nothing compared to the last two pages and a half pages of the book which I found to be incredibly riveting, informative and the best of any book that I have read in sometime.

Whether you have an interest in riding, horses and Africa or not, this book is a must read for anyone who as ever pondered the meaning of life or thirsted for adventures and challenges which can allow for greater self awareness and understanding.

Happy reading and riding!

Ted T. Ashburn
Boston, MA
May, 2006