Customer Reviews

Sufferings in Africa: The Incredible True Story of a Shipwreck, Enslavement, and Survival on the Sahara

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Once in a while you come across a non-fiction that's so good you have to check the back cover to see if it's in the right category. I loved this compelling book, and couldn't put it down. I was introduced this book after seeing a great special on the History Channel called 'Skeletons on the Sahara.' There were two books on the subject, Captain Riley's personal account and Dean King's 'Skeletons on the Zahara' - a modern retelling of Riley's account. I couldn't decide which to purchase, so I bought and read both. Both books have considerable merit, but personally I enjoyed Riley's account more. King's is a great book, and were it the only one on the subject it would be excellent. It is particularly helpful and interesting in its descriptions of the desert way of life, the geography, some of the medical conditions and challenges the men faced, and the back-story on Riley - both before and after the events chronicled in the book. Riley's on the other hand has that first-person perspective, is passionately written in period style, and includes a great deal about Riley's personal faith in God and how Riley viewed his experiences and his ultimate redemption in those terms. This faith aspect is sorely missed in King's account. If you have the time and luxury both are worth the read, but if you have to make a choice I would go with Riley's compelling and inspiring work.

I was surprised I'd never heard of this book, supposedly one of the books Abraham Lincoln considered influential. It is the true story of an American sea captain who is shipwrecked and taken prisoner, then enslaved, by Arabs. Through his ingenious bargaining and a leap of faith, he convinces and Arab trader to trade all of his goods for the captain and some companions from his ship. He convinces the trader to take them across the Sahara, which means not only braving heat, hunger and thirst, but fighting off would be thieves as well.

The captain promises that there is a reward, that there is someone willing to pay a ransom when they get across the Sahara. The problem is, this isn't true - the Captain knows no one in the city they are headed to. The Captain and trader have made a deal that if the ransom isn't paid, the crewman will be sold as slaves and the Captain will be killed. The Captain is a linguist and learns enough Arabic to converse and to learn. He relates the tale of what happened, which is a true page turner, and the stories he hears from the Arabs. While this is an old book with a few old expressions and some racial terms no longer in use, I think it's clear that the Captain is not at heart a racist; he saw people of all colors as people. While he didn't like slavery, it was the way things were, and he accepted his fate as a slave without railing against the institution itself. Rather, he documents what happens, and makes some observations. Overall, it's a very interesting read.

This book is an engrossing read and an incredible story, and I was amazed I'd never heard of it before chancing across a documentary about it on the History channel some time ago. The middle of the book can seem a little bit dry (no pun intended...), but stick with it...the ending makes it totally worth it.

The author of the book, Captain James Riley, bravely wrote and acknowledged his role in his ship's disaster of wrecking off the North African coast back in 1815. This is an incredible tale of survival under the most brutal and pain-racking conditions one can imagine. The American brig, Commerce, hit a storm off the North African coast and was wrecked. The crew manages to reach the beach in their boats and collapse with exhaustion. However, the wreck and chance of plunder attracts an Arab nomad band to the scene. It is at this point that the captain and crew get a taste of the welcome they that will be met with from natives who are as merciless and unforgiving as the Sahara desert they live in.

Although they manage to avoid capture and probable execution on their first encounter with the Arab nomads, the second encounter finds them starved, hopeless, and without water for several days running. So, they are enslaved and stripped naked by their captors. Their skin sizzles and blisters horribly under the ferocious Saharan sun while they walk barefooted and bloody over the sharp, rocky desert floor for many days - each day weaker with the spark of life slowly ebbing from their eyes. Then their band encounters their personal savior, Abdallah, who is an Arab merchant crossing the Sahara along with his brother. He buys the captain and most of the crew at Riley's repeated emotional entreaties, planning to sell them back to the English consul, Mr. Willshire, in far away Mogadore (for a profit, of course).

Yet despite their new master and his profit motive, their continued survival is highly tentative as starvation, thirst, fatigue, continual danger of brigands, and even Abdallah's own brother conspire to steal these forsaken, hapless captives. And even though Riley must have suffered immeasurably he still managed to sear his inconceivable experiences into his memory and learned to speak some Arabic as well. Their thirst was often so remorseless that they routinely drank camel urine and subsisted on the most meager food imaginable.

This is a remarkable true story and one which vividly portrays the unspeakable sufferings by the unprepared and unwary stranded in the deserts of North Africa. Read the book, skip the visit!

After being shipwrecked, Captain Riley and his men are captured and sold into slavery. This is the inspiring story of Riley's survival and tribulations of being resold and seeking the freedom of himself and the few men he is in bondage with. This hard to find biography can be back up with a documentary called History - Special : Skeletons On The Sahara and by Dean King's Skeletons on the Zahara: A True Story of Survival. Riley must make promises that he may not be able to back-up in order to ensure his survival, knowing that he will be immediately put to death should the promises prove empty. Surviving the beats, diet of sour camel's milk, and the scorching environment, Riley tries to keep what few men he has left as a group, only to slowly see them sold/traded to others never to be seen again. It's a book that must be read to be believed. I had to special order this book but am so glad I did, it's one of my favorite non-fiction books. Why there is not a movie about this, I have no idea.

Written over 190 years ago, this fascinating journal of man's inhumanity to man is a decent read. It is too bad the author did not recount his own personal feelings as well as the description of their travails.

I could not read more than 35- 50 pages at a time, before I had to "take a break".

I found this book to be informative and educational gving a clear picture of the geographical area as well. I felt as though I was right there with Captain Riley.

I found out about Captain James Riley's story one night when I was watching the history channel. I was so moved by the documentary about Captain Riley's story that I wanted actually read it for myself. I chose this book since it is simply Captain James Riley's words of what happened. He uses extremely descriptive language in laying out the situations he and his crew experienced throughout their ordeal of being stranding and later sold into slavery in West and North Africa. He spares no detail in the account, and it is truly a blessing that he and some of his crew survived. I found myself hoping for his success as I read, even though I knew how the story would end. I found myself wondering if I would have survived such an ordeal. This was possible by simply reading Cpt. Riley's account without additional things thrown in. After reading this I gave it to my mother I was so moved. It would have been nice if there were some maps included to give the reader and idea of where exactly the events took place, but never the less an awe inspiring book.

"Sufferings in Africa" by Capt. James Riley.....what can I say, I could not put this book down. It is just as dramatic as any Hollywood movie, and then to realize that it is a TRUE story! The other point that I'd like to make about this book, is that it really puts life into perspective. The fact that this man subsisted on a pint of camel milk almost everyday, and even resorted to drinking camel urine at times, is astonishing. I just can't say enough about this book. If every young person in this country read this book, it would definitely impact their lives.

Another parallel is that it was written 190 years ago, and you can see the parallels of how despicable the Arab/Muslim life, or lifestyle was back in that day, much the same as it is in underground media, youtube, liveleak, etc., and real life.

A MUST READ, this book is GREAT!

Being an ardent reader of autobiographical accounts of travel and the tribulations encountered, I found this to be a fascinating and horrifying memoir about an infrequently described area of Africa some two centuries ago. However, at the outset, mention is made of drawings and maps - none of which are included. A shame !