Walking the Jungle: An Adventurer's Guide to the Amazon [Paperback]

John Coningham (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 16, 2003

By turns and anecdotal and practical, this book tells the tales of the jungle and most of its dark secrets. Armchair travelers and true Indiana Joneses will benefit equally from Coningham's unique expertise on life in one of the most dangerous natural habitats on earth.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This information-packed guidebook isn't for armchair travelers: although Coningham includes brief anecdotes of things he's seen and done in the jungle, this is more reference volume than page-turning travelogue. The author offers readers firsthand, practical knowledge of how to prepare for a trip to the Amazon and what to look for and do once they're there; as someone who's been living, teaching, exploring and guiding in the region for decades, Coningham knows his material. The book's organization can be odd in places: an entire section on bird species (including all their Latin names) comes just a few pages in, while key data on dangerous species and necessary gear are found in the book's midsection. Readers should probably consult the table of contents to locate whatever facts they need-from how to prevent disease to what food and drink to pack-and then add the book to their pack, since Coningham's extremely detailed advice (such as a step-by-step description of how to remove Dermatobia hominis from beneath the skin) would be tough to commit to memory.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

John Coningham is a Brazilian novelist and teacher whose resume includes stints as an Army officer, cattle rancher, hunting guide, and construction boss. He lives in Campinas, Brazil.

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Burford Books (June 16, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1580801080
• ISBN-13: 978-1580801089
• Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #833,229 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Based upon the hard earned wisdom of personal experience, December 13, 2003

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Walking the Jungle: An Adventurer's Guide to the Amazon (Paperback)

Walking The Jungle: An Adventurer's Guide To The Amazon by Brazilian novelist, teacher, and travel expert John Coningham is a practical, safety-conscious, and absolute "must-read" packed from cover to cover with vital information for anyone vacationing, visiting, or exploring the Amazon River country. Walking The Jungle: An Adventurer's Guide To The Amazon covers all of the necessary precautions to prevent and cope with a vast array of diseases, snakebite, food-borne illnesses, dangerous wildlife, and other indigenous hazards of the Amazon. A superb 250-page resource based upon the hard earned wisdom of personal experience, Walking The Jungle is an essential accompaniment for anyone planning on experiencing what the Amazon river has to offer the adventurous traveler!

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Culture/ Environment Shock Amazon, December 20, 2003

By 

Janet L. Leonard "boomer_reader" (Half Moon Bay, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Walking the Jungle: An Adventurer's Guide to the Amazon (Paperback)

A wonderful guide full of practical hints for travel in the Amazon, the Pantanal and the Neotropics in general. John Coningham is an experienced guide, wonderful naturalist, ex-soldier, firearms expert, horseman, boatman, etc., etc. and this book is the next best thing to going to the Pantanal and talking to him, While he has a wonderful knowledge of the flora and fauna of Brazil, this book is neither your typical natural history guide nor armchair adventure tale. Instead it tells you all of the things that you wished you knew before you
left and will answer many questions that you have upon return. It is really designed to accompany someone on a trip into the less-travelled areas of Brazil but will be fascinating to anyone interested in travel, the wilderness or natural history.
Highly recommended.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Advice from a Seasoned Adventurer, November 4, 2009

By 

Thomas Clark "The JungleMaster" (Bellingham WA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Walking the Jungle: An Adventurer's Guide to the Amazon (Paperback)

I have read through Johns book several times now. I've been to the Amazon 15 times now and each time I learn a new lesson the hard way. I think this book will save me much future grief. His practical experience and explanations of preparing for a trek through the jungle gave me lots of great tips on maintaining comfort and safety. I have enough experience in the Amazon to know what he writes here is solid advice, yet my experience in no way can compete with the authors. He was even nice enough to respond to an E-mail that I sent thanking him for his book. Great Guy! Read it even if you never plan on trekking trough the Amazon, its fascinating.......