South From Barbary: Along the Slave Routes of the Libyan Sahara [Paperback]

Justin Marozzi (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 2002

Justin Marozzi and his travelling companion Ned had never travelled in the desert, nor had they ridden camels before embarking on this expedition. Encouraged by a series of idiosyncratic Touareg and Tubbu guides, they learnt the full range of desert survival skills, including how to master their five faithful camels. The caravan of two explorers, five camels with distinctive personalities and their guides undertook a gruelling journey across some of the most inhospitable territory on earth. Despite threats from Libyan officialdom and the ancient, natural hardships of the desert, Marozzi and Ned found themselves growing ever closer to the land and its people. More than a travelogue, "South from Barbary" is a fascinating history of Saharan exploration and efforts by early British explorers to suppress the African slave trade. It evokes the poetry and solitude of the desert, the companionship of man and beast, the plight of a benighted nation, and the humour and generosity of its resilient people.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“… genuine exploration, the stuff from which all good travel books should be made.” -- The Times Literary Supplement

“In many ways, this is the perfect travel book.” -- Financial Times

“Unfailingly interesting and downright refreshing: travel–writing for true adventurers as well armchair ones.” -- Kirkus Reviews

About the Author

Justin Marozzi is a contributing editor of the Spectator. He also writes for the Economist and is a regular broadcaster on BBC Radio 4 and the World Service. He read History at Cambridge and has an MA in Political Science from the University of Pennsylvania. This is his first book.

Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins UK (May 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0006531172
• ISBN-13: 978-0006531173
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #331,719 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #9 in Books > History > Africa > Libya

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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 a remarkable tale of a disappearing world, May 11, 2003

By 

m_noland "m_noland" (Washington, DC United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: South From Barbary: Along the Slave Routes of the Libyan Sahara (Paperback)

This book is an account of the author's remarkable two month-long trek, via camel, across the old slave routes of the Sahara. The problem is that the very vastness of the desert, which makes it romantic, arduous, and forbidding, also makes it difficult to translate into prose. As a result there is a certain sameness to the ramshackle procession of now dilapidated desert towns though which the Marozzi and his companion travel - the dramatic highpoints, like the hovels, are few and far between, such as when one of the camels falls into a trench and nearly dies. With little social interest material to work with, Marozzi contrasts his own experiences with the diaries and travelogues of mostly 19th century explorers and abolitionists. The result is interesting, but more understated and less obviously accessible than say the books of Redmond O'Hanlon. Nevertheless, it is quite a tale, and it is apparent that with the dying out of the camel culture embodied by one of their guides, the 76 year old Tubbu nomad, Mohammed Othman, the depiction of an experience that will soon be impossible to relive, if it is even now.

5.0 out of 5 stars Best beginning of any book..., May 13, 2008

By 

D. Yancey (Honolulu, HI United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: South from Barbary: Along the Slave Routes of the Libyan Sahara (Hardcover)

Justin Marozzi's introduction is undoubtedly the best introduction of any book I have ever read. Most introductions just give a tepid overview of the book, but Mr. Marozzi's introduction is an exciting, lucid, and extremely frank story just by itself! Very enjoyable...and refreshing!