The White Nile

Book Description

Relive all the thrills and adventure of Alan Moorehead's classic bestseller The White Nile -- the daring exploration of the Nile River in the second half of the nineteenth century, which was at that time the most mysterious and impenetrable region on earth. Capturing in breathtaking prose the larger-than-life personalities of such notable figures as Stanley, Livingstone, Burton and many others, The White Nile remains a seminal work in tales of discovery and escapade, filled with incredible historical detail and compelling stories of heroism and drama.

Customer Reviews:

A Must for Understanding Exploration of Africa 1.......2007-07-23

I read the book 1983 and got a new copy for a friend which I reread. It had not lost any of Alan Moorehead's fascinating way of approaching the subject. Unfortunately the pocket edition was not illustrated! A must for everybody interested in Africa!

A Fascinating History.......2007-05-10

I read this history 35 years ago when I was in the Sudan. It was absolutely riviting. I would also recommend the "Blue Nile," by Alan Moorehead. The story of the discovery of the sources of these two mighty rivers kept me turning the pages.

For a super novel about Africa, check out "Cry Wolf," by Wilbur Smith.
Cry Wolf

Another wonderful novel is "Sands of the Karahari," by William Mulvihill. Click here: The Sands of Kalahari

Please check out my other longer reviews, as well as my one-star reviews of books written by Mormons in defense of the Book of Mormon.Joseph Smith: Rough Stone Rolling

Your comments--positive or negative--are appreciated. Thanks.

An interesting history of early exploration in Africa.......2006-12-28

As I recall, I learned effectively zero about African history in high school or college. A friend recommended this book as an interesting history of early exploration in Africa, covering roughly the period of 1850 through 1910. It begins with Burton & Speke setting off from Zanzibar to try and discover the source of part of the Nile River, known as the White Nile. That epedition and many, many others are summarized and discussed, with nice quotes from the writings of the actual explorers.

Drawings on writings and newspapers from the times, and obviously very careful research, the author relates the history of the exploration and "discovery" (by the white man) of Africa, primarily in the region of modern day Uganda and Tanzania, with a little bit of overlap into Zanzibar, Kenya, Egypt, Sudan, Rawanda and Ethiopia.

I found it to be a compelling and enjoyable read. While it would be fascinating beyond belief to read written accounts by Africans life and history in 1850 and before, the absence of a written language in many tribes means its not available. While I don't always like what early explorers had to say about the Africans they met, when they reveal their observations I can take those and reject their judgments and at least learn something more than I knew before about these countries. Moorehead does a great job of weavcing together available information to try and give a picture of what life was like then for the explorers, those reading about the expeditions back home, and the natives both being "discovered" and being hired as porters and guides on the expeditions.

The White Nile (The Worst Book Ever Written).......2006-12-24

This book is terrible. It is very boring and way too detailed. He repeats everything for 10 pages and goes on and on about the slave traders. The names that he has for the chapters don't even talk about what they say they are going to talk about. This book is terrible and I don't recommend it to any one

Did I read the same book?.......2006-10-25

I think I must have read the same book as the other reviewers. I mean it clearly included the same subject matter, shared the title and author of the book that the others enjoyed. But I found it incredibly British-centric and, worse still, quite boring. I agree with many of the statements made by the reviewer David W. Nicholas but came to a compeletely different conclusion. This book is certainly condescending and politically incorrect. If I were more interested in the history of this region and period I'd pursue other sources to see how accurate its portrayal of the native Africans and Arabs is, but I'm not. Lest we judge these cultures too harshly, we ought to take a look into what shape the last 120 odd years of "progress" have left the Suddan.

Desert War: The North African Campaign 1940-1943

Average customer rating:

Moorehead: A Forgotten Classic
A personal history of the desert war (emphasis on personal)
Absorbing
Mooreheads a great author
The War In the Desert

Desert War: The North African Campaign 1940-1943
Alan Moorehead
Manufacturer: Penguin (Non-Classics)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0140275142

Customer Reviews:

Moorehead: A Forgotten Classic.......2002-05-15

If you are interested in the War in North Africa this is the read for you. It is absorbing and well written with a flow of a correspondent who is constantly moving to different parts of the front. I love and would recommend anything by Moorehead, but this is still a special book because he lived most of it. It is not however a history of the war. There are large chunks of the war that are not written about, time frames where whole battles are not directly refered to. That is because Moorehead was not there to cover the war. That does not detract from the flavour and action of the book. Moorehead is great in, among other areas,

* his description of the British Campaign against Italy in Ethiopia
* his descrption of the early days of the war and also the Australian role in the war against Vichy France in Syria and then its role to nip a coup and Nazi support for Iraq, firmly in the bud
* his description of the ebb and flow of battle that confused both sides, but ultimately was most boldly exploited by the Germans. The swirl of dust and whole lines of transport and tanks wondering either into or out of battle can almost be tasted.
* the seldom written about race to Tunis at the end of the book, the sudden rush across Algeria and then bogged down fighting in Tunisia; tough battle that tested the Americans for the first time and one where, despite the public image, was still largely British in effort.

The book is also of note in that halfway through Moorehead leaves the front for India and covers the Scripp's mission on Indian Independence at the height of the Japanese invasion. I know of really few descriptions of the positions of all the major parties in debating future of India: Gandhi with his unrealistic notion of "sating the violence of the Japanese invader with the blood of pacifist Indians who merely submit to the bayonets;" Ali Jinnah's willingness to send millions of Muslim troops to support the British if Britain would grant defacto status of the Muslim homeland of Pakistan. Somewhere between the two was the ever boxing clever Nehru. Moorhead met all these men and interviewed them in detail.

Moorehead also relates the loss of other correspondents in the fighting. The constant weariness and grind of the campaign that had Britain in the fighting for more than 3 years is apparent and there is a heartrending description of a British Tommy experiencing too much of the constant slogging and pounding of battle and not caring, in desperation, leads a forlorn attack in what was obviously a case of suicide.

This is one of the best books on WWII and war that I have ever read... and I may have read over 1000 since my early teens.

A personal history of the desert war (emphasis on personal).......2002-03-27

Alan Moorehead was a war correspondent who covered most of the 3-year desert campaign in North Africa in World War II. Therefore, he saw the war at first hand, sometimes coming under fire himself (usually from aircraft), sometimes getting lost in the vast desert, sometimes missing key events because his reporter's intuition led him astray. Although he was not usually on the front line, he did manage to get into towns within hours of their liberation. He had interviews with the general staff of the (British and U.S.) armies and a good grasp on the overall strategic vision of the campaign, from the Allies' point of view.

The writing quality is top-notch, especially descriptions of the burnt out and fought-over towns and countryside. You get a good flavour for the conditions the troops fought in and for the bravery and resilience shown by the soldiers. There are a number of very interesting sidelights to the action, highlighting the difficulties encountered in trying to report the war.

Unfortunately, there are a number of quibbles that detract from a 5-star rating. This book is not a "definitive" history of the war - it was written too soon and from a purely Allied point of view. It is undoubtedly biased - he constantly makes excuses for the Allied generals' failings to deliver a knock-out blow to the Axis, especially blaming the long supply line from England (neglecting the fact that half of the Axis' supplies were sunk in the Mediterranean). He refuses to admit the Allied forces were consistently outgeneralled by Rommell, blaming the British training and internal organisation instead, first claiming the generals could not change it (bureaucratic inertia), then applauding Montgomery for changing it quickly. There's distracting (and long) digressions from the front, especially a trip through India and a vacation to the U.S. While the politics of Indian independence are interesting in their own right, they are complex and require an historical context so they couldn't be developed properly. Finally, there is no background material - the author assumes at least a passing knowledge of the people and politics of the day, so it might be frustrating for a beginner. The maps are generally quite good, however, so geographical mastery of the area is not necessary.

Therefore, I recommend this book as a personal snapshot of the attitudes and actions of the Allied armies in the desert campaigns of WWII. As such, it is clearly biased, but the quality of the writing and the descriptions overcomes this difficulty.

Absorbing.......2001-12-03

Moorehead's first person account of the African Desert Campaign is top-flight. He captures the moment as he experiences it. I feel I am sitting right beside him as he describes events and his reactions to them. Could this man write! I carry this book in my briefcase and whip it out whenever I have a few minutes to spare. I am always rewarded.

Mooreheads a great author.......2001-08-25

Experience the Desert War (and other related campaigns) with the immediacy and freshness of a journalist writing his dispatches from the front. No dry, revisionst tome here. This beautifully written book gives you a sense of what it was like to actually be there. A must read for anyone interested in WW-2's North Africa Campaign.

The War In the Desert.......2001-05-02

In W.W.II there were many places were battles took place. There were battles in France, POland, Russia, and Africa. This book focuses on the African part of the war. The book War In the Desert was an excellent book. It was a very in depth book on th etrials an dtribulations of the war. The pictures are very good deppicting exactly whhat went on. This book was a great help for me to understand the war in the desert better.

Average customer rating:

Fascinating History of Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia
Absorbing history
Very interesting background on 19th century Sudan and Ethiopia
Blue Nile
no title

The Blue Nile
Alan Moorehead
Manufacturer: Harper Perennial
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Ethiopia | Africa | History | Subjects | Books

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The White Nile
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ASIN: 0060956402
Release Date: 2000-10-17

Book Description

In the first half of the nineteenth century, only a small handful of Westerners had ventured into the regions watered by the Nile River on its long journey from Lake Tana in Abyssinia to the Mediterranean-lands that had been forgotten since Roman times, or had never been known at all. In The Blue Nile, Alan Moorehead continues the classic, thrilling narration of adventure he began in The White Nile, depicting this exotic place through the lives of four explorers so daring they can be considered among the world's original adventurers -- each acting and reacting in separate expeditions against a bewildering background of slavery and massacre, political upheaval and all-out war.

Customer Reviews:

Fascinating History of Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia.......2007-07-23

The first time I read the book in 1983 and as I got a copy for a friend I reread it now. As good as 24 years ago and a wonderful way of combining history and exploration for better understanding Africa's later development. A must for everybody trying to understand Africa. Unfortunately the paperback edition is not illustrated.

Absorbing history.......2007-01-21

This book deals with history and culture along the Nile from 1798 to 1868 whilst the author's other book The White Nile explores the history from 1856 to 1900. Both books are masterpiecs of history, geography and ethnography. The Blue Nile chronicles events on the Nile from Ethiopia through Sudan to the sea but also deals with European history in the way it impacted on the Nile and the areas under discussion. It is an impressive resource of the events, the personalities involved and the people groups of this vast region.

Part One: Reconnaissance, opens with a description of Lake Tana in the highlands of Ethiopia. Although the lake is considered the primary source of the Blue Nile, the Little Abbai river which flows from the Ghis Abbai swamp is the largest tributary to Lake Tana. Where it leaves the lake, the river is called the Big Abbai. The author descibed the landscape of the highlands, the Tissat Falls about 20 miles beyond the lake and the desolate Blue Nile gorge as the river winds down the highlands to Sudan. This section also investigates the exploits of explorer James Bruce in Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia. He was the first European to reach the source of the river.

Part Two: The French in Egypt, discusses the political situation in Europe in the 1790s and the background to Napoleon's invasion of Egypt. There are detailed descriptions of the preparations and the condition of Egypt at the time with discussions of Mamluke rule and the leader Murad. The French moved as far south as Aswan and completed the conquest by October 1799. Then the English destroyed their fleet and they were trapped in Egypt.

Part Three: The Turks In The Sudan, takes up the history from 1801 when the English and the Turks defeated the French and narrates the rise of Muhammad Ali, an Albanian Turk who took control of Egypt and destroyed the remnants of the Mamlukes. The life and travels of the great explorer James Lewis Burkhart are investigated here. He was a most reliable and observant traveller who wrote about all aspects of life along the river. It was in this time that the city of Khartoum was founded.

Part Four: The British In Ethiopia, chronicles the situation in Ethiopia under Emperor Theodore. He held some Europeans hostage so a British expeditionary force under Napier was sent to rescue the prisoners. The trials and tribulations of the force are discussed in great detail. The Magdala campaign eventually led to the collapse of the Ethiopian empire as it then existed and the land split into areas controlled by war-lords.

In the Epilogue, Moorehead points out that the aforementioned events finally ended the isolation of the Nile valley from Lake Tana to the sea and that these countries would never be the same again. He also provides a description of Lake Tana at the time of the book's publication. The Blue Nile contains a map and a section on Sources, arranged by chapter and with comments by the author. The book concludes with an index. It is a most illuminating and engaging work. I highly recommend The White Nile by the same author, where the narrative continues up to the year 1900.

Very interesting background on 19th century Sudan and Ethiopia.......2006-10-10

I have read a lot of history on ancient Egypt and was passingly familiar with Napoleon's conquest of Egypt, however, I had absolutely no background on other aspects of 19th century Egypt and neighboring Sudan and Ethiopia.

This book was extremely enlightening with respect to such subjects as Mamaluke rule of Egypt prior to Napoleon's arrival and the subsequent reign of Muhammad Ali. However, by far the most interesting and educational part of the book was the last half which dealt primarily with the reign of Theodore, Emperor of Ethiopia and the British invasion to secure the release of European hostages held by Theodore. Prior to reading this book, I'd never heard of Theodore nor the British invasion of Ethiopia.

Blue Nile is a companion piece to White Nile, the Blue Nile being the Nile tributary which feeds into the river at Khartoum, Sudan having flowed from its source in the Ethiopian highlands. Moorehead does a very good job in describing the various expeditions which sought the source of the Blue Nile as well as the political and social anarchy endemic to the region.

Blue Nile.......2006-03-09

The book is slanted towards the history of battles fought over lands in the region and has only glancing information on things like the arts and culture of the region. The chapters on the French invasion of Egypt does have some interesting observations on the reactions of the various groups to being invaded and occupied that are still relevant and timely.

no title.......2006-01-22

Totally fascinating book. In particular the saga of the British invasion of Ethiopia merely to rescue a few handfuls of prisoners from the clutches of Theodore, the emperor, would make a terrific movie, but perhaps just now, not too terribly PC, as Theodore does not come off in a very good light (to say the least), and of course he is black. Also charts Napoleon's invasion of Egypt. It is basically a study of the history of the Nile in the 19th century, well only until 1868, when the British left, and a brief epilogue about the Blue Nile in the 20th century until the 70s when the book was revised. The other two expeditions recounted were the one of James Bruce, the Scotsman, and Mohammed Ali's campaigns in the Sudan in the early 1820s. Suberb.

Average customer rating:

The White Nile
Alan Moorehead
Manufacturer: Harper & Brothers Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000H72A1S

Average customer rating:

You are there!
An Insight Into A Tragedy
Good book, unfortunately old
Exciting!
Revolutions Are Confusing

The Russian Revolution
Alan Moorehead
Manufacturer: Carroll & Graf Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0881843318

Book Description

WW II's abrupt end brought us many gifts, none stranger than the papers of the German State. These were captured virtually complete, and to this day give up secrets.

One that emerges from Alan Moorehead's research is the extent to which Germany was involved in the Russian Revolution. The ironic result of this clandestine maneuver was Germany's sure defeat on the Eastern front in WW II.

"It all forms a fascinating chapter in the history of our century," states The Book-of-the-Month Club, "and the man ignorant of how that chapter unrolled is minus the keys to an understanding of his own time and so in part himself--Moorehead hands us that key."

Customer Reviews:

You are there!.......2007-02-21

Most of the other posters have successfully analyzed the content of this book. But I will add my "dos centavos" here.

This is a very good history of this event. It is aimed toward the general reader and instead of being filled with footnotes, charts, and other aspects of academia, it tells human stories behind the major and minor players in these events. It reads like a novel and gives you a "you are there" feel to it.

An Insight Into A Tragedy.......2002-11-09

"The Russian Revolution" provides the reader with a close look at one of the greatest tragedies of the Twentieth Century. Author Alan Moorehead does an excellent job in telling the story of the Revolution from its Nineteenth Century antecedents through to its conclusion.

The reader becomes familiar with the world of the Czars, their insulation from the lives of their subjects and the Imperial Family's tragic journey to death at Ekaterinberg. We are taught that the Czars saw Russia as their own private business to be run for their benefit, with little or no concern for the welfare of the mass of Russian people.

Czar Nicholas II emerges as a likable, but tragically flawed figure. As much as we respect him as a good family man and wish that he could have managed a peaceful transition to democracy, we cannot escape the conclusion that he was incapable of taking the steps necessary to avoid revolution and thereby save his nation and his family. With the coming of war, Nicholas could not resist the opportunity to lead the army in battle. Ultimately, the army camp became less of an opportunity for leadership than a refuge from the turmoil in Petrograd and Tsarkoye Selo.

Lenin emerges as much more capable than Nicholas but, in a sense, equally as out of touch with the world as was his main protagonist. Although Lenin is seen in history as the leader of the Russian Revolution, the truth is that through much of his career he was a failure who drifted outside the mainstream of the revolutionary movement. During the years of exile, Lenin kept in contact with other exiled would-be revolutionaries, but had little influence on events within Russia. It was only after the initial revolution that Lenin returned to Russia with the assistance of the Germans who expected him to exert his influence to take Russia out of World War I. Lenin is seen as one who truly reaped what others sowed.

One thing which this book does so successfully is to dispel the notion that the events of the Revolution were inevitable. Some events were, actually, almost incredible. Was it inevitable that the Czarevitch Alexei would suffer from hemophilia? How incredible is it that the Czarevitch's illness would enable Rasputin, an uncouth, disgusting, lecherous "Holy Man", to gain such incredible influence over Czarina Alexandra so as to make himself the defacto ruler of Russia? What chance was it that, from among the myriad of revolutionary personalities, Lenin, the brutal late arrival, would emerge as the dictator? What were the chances that Imperial Germany would cooperate in the overthrow of the Czar who, though being the Kaiser's enemy, was also a crowned head as well as his cousin? As I read about opportunities for the German Army or Navy to launch an offensive which would take advantage of revolutionary induced disarray in the Russian forces I find myself almost cheering for the offensive which would take Russia out of the war, but would also restore the Imperial system. At times I almost I forget on which side America would enter the war.

Readers of this book have the advantage over those who lived its events in that we know what came of the Russian Revolution. What turmoil, what tragedies could have been avoided if a few of these incredible events would not have occurred? Would there have been the massive starvation in Russia in the periods between the wars? Could World War II and the twin tyrannies of Communism and Nazism have been avoided? Could Eastern Europe have been spared 40 years of slavery under Communism? We will never know but, through this book we can begin to understand why they all happened.

Good book, unfortunately old.......2001-12-30

I picked this up at an old used book store: its binding glue was giving in, its cover was in tatters, and the design was typical cheesy 1950s. This book is old.

It was commissioned by Life magazine and written in the late 1950s by Alan Moorehead, a skilled novelist/journalist who wrote a number of successful little books like this one on a variety of history-related topics. The main trigger of the book seems to be the recently discovered documents linking the Germans with funding for the Bolsheviks and other revolutionary groups in WWI. While that must have certainly be interesting at the time, its common knowledge now, so the amount of this book that is dedicated to expiating this new information may seem a little unnecessary.

Needless to say, this was written in the height of the Cold War, about the touchiest of subjects. Moorehead says in the Introduction that he has set out to write a completely objective work, and I think he was sincere. There are a few oddities: the author feels drawn to the strange and impossible task, dubiously, of being Rasputin's apologist. He clearly dislikes Lenin, admires Trotsky with a sense of regret, and has strong feelings against the Bolsheviks. However, remarkably, he has a strong respect for Russia's other Socialist parties, especially the Mensheviks, and makes clear that Leninism is a distortion of Marxism, something that most of Russia and nearly all of the Socialist parties were strongly against.

Moorehead is a gifted writer, and he brings the story alive with a novelist's talent. The book, if nothing else, is a great story, written well, and probably a decent introduction to the subject. Unfortunately, one is forced to admit that time has worn this piece out, and there are certainly better and more recent books that outdo it (at least on point of fact).

Exciting!.......2000-12-07

An intriguingly well written literary work. Moorehead takes the somewhat drab subject matter and forms it into an easy-to-read, interesting book!

Revolutions Are Confusing.......2000-06-10

Alan Moorehead's complete history of the Russian Revolution puts much in context. It is packed full of information and emotional scenes. Yet, since revolutions tend to be chaotic events by nature, it is hard to analyze them (though many have claimed to have succeeded to do so). The two decades that the book covers was an eventful one, and Moorehead goes through the phases in orderly, chronological order. Unfortunately, the cumbersome load of names of people, councils, and various crises makes the book a little hard to follow (not exactly a "Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich"). However, Moorehead discloses much information cut out of most textbooks and narratives of the Russian Revolution such as the true founder of Communism. It is a great complement to any textbook on European history, but one must not try to overload one's memory banks. Enjoy!

Average customer rating:

An incredible yet little known true story...
A Ripping Good Yarn by a Superior Writer
Amazing story, however, not very readable
An extraordinary story, splendidly told
A moving account of the doomed Burke and Wills expedition.

Cooper's Creek
Alan Moorehead
Manufacturer: Adventure Library
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 1885283237

Customer Reviews:

An incredible yet little known true story..........2002-11-30

This factual account of the first recorded south-north crossing of Australia, in Victorian times, is more amazing than any fictional adventure would dare be. A film of this book several years ago did surprising little raise awareness of the undertaking. The story recounts the key attempts and the elaborate expeditions involved. The crux of the story really revolves around a series of unfortunate & serious mishaps and incredible near misses. Tragedy was almost avoided numerous times but ultimately...well read the book; the story ultimately has a sad and a happy ending! The fact that the story is known and accurately recorded is in itself an incredible sub-plot. It is hard to believe sometimes that this is a true story -- yet this is a case of real life being more amazing than one would dare write as fiction! The story is quite detailed but hang in there, the threads all come together in an incredible finale.

A Ripping Good Yarn by a Superior Writer.......2000-05-05

When I was about 11 my uncle who had spent 40 years in the Royal Canadian Navy, handed me slender volume called Cooper's Creek. Since I had no idea where Cooper's Creek was at that age I left in on my shelf where it gathered dust for the next 25 years, and was lost in one of my many house moves.

Over the course of the years I kept coming across some of Alan Moorhead's books, on bookshelves in Canada, the UK, India, Hong Kong and Egypt and even the United States. I happened to read another book of his "Gallipoli." He is a superb writer.

Cooper's Creek is exactly the same. After reading more of Moorehead's work (including a history of the North Africa Campaign) I resolved to find this book and read it. But even in Australia it had been out of print. I found it in London, England and hand carried it to Canada. The tale of imperial adventure warmed me over a few long, cold Canadian nights.

In the 50s and 60s narrative history was at its pre-postmodern highpoint. Moorehead's narrative flows like a novel, there is plenty to get your teeth into and also interesting tidbits. Also, unlike a lot of 60s historians Moorehead is not afraid to pass judgment on anyone.

The folley and bravery of the Burke-Wills expedition is recouted for all those unfamiliar with Australian history. Attempting to map the interior of Australia was a dauting proceedure, and was the equivalent of travelling twice the distance Lewis and Clark covered overland in their American Odyssey.

Those unfamiliar with 60s narrative may find the contemporary account of the aborigines to be paternal and patronising, but that is projecting our values backward.

It is one of the greatest true tales of adventure written, and ranks alongside the Scott, Shackelton explorations in Antarctica and the first land traverse of the North American Continent by Alexander Mackenzie.

A ripping good read and well worth the effort to track it down.

Moorehead by the way was a very popular narrative historian of the 50s and 60s (a bit like a contemporary John Keegan). He was also one of the foremost war correspondents in WWII and worked for Newspapers in Australia, the UK and Canada. An autobiography of his life has just been re-published but I forget the title.

Amazing story, however, not very readable.......1999-03-02

As a patient and understanding reader, this was a good story. However, I don't feel that the book was easy to read and was slightly boring. By saying this, I'm not saying I did not enjoy learning about the expedition of brave men traversing the Australian continent. In many ways, this is a devastating story. It's sad and true. Unless you are an avid Australian history researcher, it will be very difficult to utilize any of the information from this story. Keep that in mind before attempting to purchase this book.

An extraordinary story, splendidly told.......1999-01-03

The Burke-Wills expedition, which set out from Melbourne in 1860 to explore the still-unmapped interior of Australia, ended in catastrophe. Bad luck, bad planning, and bad decisions along the way led to terrible suffering for every man on the expedition, and death for many of them. As a piece of exploration, the Burke-Wills venture was an outright fiasco. As an example of bravery and endurance under horrific conditions, it's matched only by Robert Scott's fatal 1912 attempt to reach the South Pole.

Moorehead, Australian by birth, knows both the story and the setting well, and his writing does justice to both. His descriptions of the land are rich and detailed, while his descriptions of the explorers are spare and journalistic. The combination evokes, perfectly, the sense of ragged men trudging endlessly through an alien landscape, oblivious to everything but the need to go on.

Moorehead wrote _Cooper's Creek_ in 1963, and the book shows its age in two ways. It judges Burke's dubious decisions fairly mildly, where a later historian might have been more critical. More significantly, it treats the Aborigenes with an air of condecension that carries with it the distinctive stink of racism.

These are small flaws in an otherwise superb book, however. If true stories of impossible journeys appeal to you, take the trouble to seek it out.

A moving account of the doomed Burke and Wills expedition........1998-09-28

In 1860 the Victorian Exploration Expedition, under the command of Robert O'Hara Burke, set out from Melbourne to cross Australia to the Gulf of Carpenteria and to explore the unknown centre of the continent. Burke, and his second-in-command William J. Wills, achieved their goal of crossing the continent, opening up a vast new area of Australia. But the expedition ended in disaster, with the death from starvation of both Burke and Wills at Cooper's Creek. This book tells the story of the expedition from the historical context and initial planning, to the events of the expedition itself, to the proceedings of the Royal Commission that investigated the expedition's disasterous end. A moving story well written.

Average customer rating:

War Book for A Pacifist
Heartbreaking
Another voice in the throng
A Must Read
The Classic on Gallipoli

Gallipoli (Perennial Classics)
Alan Moorehead
Manufacturer: Harper Perennial Modern Classics
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0060937084
Release Date: 2002-12-03

Book Description

When Turkey unexpectedly sided with Germany in World War I, Winston Churchill, as Sea Lord for the British, conceived a plan: smash through the Dardanelles, reopen the Straits to Russia, and immobilize the Turks.

On the night of March 18, 1915, this plan nearly succeeded -- the Turks were virtually beaten. But poor communication left the Allies in the dark, allowing the Turks to prevail and the Allies to suffer a crushing quarter-million casualties.

A vivid chronicle of adventure, suspense, agony, and heroism, Gallipoli brings fully to life the tragic waste in human life, the physical horror, and the sheer heartbreaking folly of fighting for impossible objectives with inadequate means on unknown, unmapped terrain.

Customer Reviews:

War Book for A Pacifist.......2007-07-23

My idea was to glance through the book but I ended by reading it from the first page to the last. What I appreciated very much was that it gave much background for the Allied as well as the German-Turkish political actions as well as a picture of the daily life of the soldiers at Gallipoli. Alan Moorehead's text is always enjoyable to read even in this case when it describes miserable conditions and a war where badly made plans led to fully unnecessary casulties. A very revealing book which also has a pacifistic message.

Heartbreaking.......2007-05-24

This is THE definitive work on the horror which was the Gallipoli invasion. The tragic story has been told and retold, but this book written in 1956 tells it best. During WWI Britain tried to knock Turkey out of the war and reinforce Russia by forcing the Dardenelles with battleships. The campaign was 'sold" on the basis that it would not require major ground forces. They nearly succeeded with the naval assault but lost their nerve and withdrew. They then decided to try again with Australian and Commonwealth troops in one of the largest bungled amphibious assaults in modern history. The battle degenerated into complete chaos as both sides fought to exhaustion. Months went by, there were tens of thousands of casualties and no end in sight. Again and again the British forces nearly won. And defeated themselves due to incompetent leadership. Winston Churchill, Lord Fisher, Lord Kitchener, all failed miserably in a crazy quilt of asinine decisions and wishful thinking. And the Turkish leadership wasn't any better. Finally after yet another failed landing the British abandoned the effort and withdrew, much lost and absolutely nothing gained. The author succeeds in painting the surreal landscape and bringing home the futile horror of the battlefield and the near total destruction of the mainly Australian army, totally in vain as the leaders hemmed and hawed, argued and dithered.

Anyone familiar with the term "REMF" will fully understand what went wrong. This is a vital piece of history, well worth reading, studying and remembering so we don't make the same mistakes again.

Another voice in the throng.......2007-04-11

This book has received so many glowing reviews over its 50 or so years that another one hardly seems necessary. But although I knew the book would be a good one and I thought I knew a few things about the campaign itself, I still found it eye-opening. Of course Moorehead does a masterful job of conveying the ebb and flow of the military confrontation. But he also brings out the potential strategic consequences of various outcomes without resorting to artless what-if scenarios. This is one of the few military histories I would recommend to anyone without hesitation.

A Must Read.......2003-02-13

Truly this book is a must read for all historians and histroy readers alike. The book captures a good balance between the purely military related technical details and the everyday life in trenches. It also succesfully portrays the interraction between the oposing sides that went far from merely dislike as enemies. A very good book on an immensely interesting topic. AM takes you to a tour on the battlefield and introduces you to main roleplayers. A purely non-fiction book written as if a fiction story. Very interesting indeed.

The Classic on Gallipoli.......2002-07-22

Anything Moorehead wrote was golden, but this is arguably one of his best books. This has been reissued numerous times and it remains a classic. It is particularly good in its description of of the initial naval campaign and the general strategic overview. Although Gallipoli has rightly served as the emblematic battle where it is popularly thought that ANZACS were unduly sacrificed by the British in attempts at vainglory, Moorehead would be the first to acknowledge that there is no evidence that Australians were selected for slaughter over any other troops. The British (and most World War I strategist from all nations) were equal opportunity killers. In reality there were many more British troops committed, and killed, than ANZAC troops, and French losses were also considerable. Moreover the strategic aims were laudable. They were very nearly achieved. The bungling was not in the design, but in the fact that it was allowed to continue long after the jig was up, the British contained on the Penninsula, without a faint hope of forcing the straits with naval power. Moorehead, although an Australian, never bashes the British at all in this book. His exposition of Sir Ian Hamilton is also very incisive and offers a real glimpse into the mind of this man (a commander who felt for his troops, more than most in WWI) The fact that he was sacked, never to wield command in the field, is also testament to the fact that mistakes were made. Churchill's role is less clear. His initial idea was brilliant. He also did not want to commit land troops, thinking it too costly. He believed that the Royal Navy and her allies could force the straits and be shelling Constantinople within days.... And they very nearly did it. Unfortunately as Moorehead recounts, the political pressure of losing large, expensive battleships to mines was a price the British Cabinet would not allow Churchill to indulge and the pressure for a land based campaign therefore rose. It is really a pity because Churchill wanted one more chance to force the straits from the sea. There is every indication that he would have been successful and the costly land war averted. Plus ca change for Churchill.

PS: The cover photograph in this edition actually shows Canadian troops going over the top in a latter Somme Battle. Seems they could have easily found some original British or French pictures from Gallipoli itself??! I guess cover art was more important.

Average customer rating:

A very fine memoir
A great experience.
Uncategorisable account of friendship and war

A Late Education: Episodes in a Life
Alan Moorehead
Manufacturer: Soho Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Customer Reviews:

A very fine memoir.......2002-11-23

Alan Moorehead was a war correspondent during WW2 and since authored a number of fine documentary works, including the White Nile, Gallipoli, and many more. In this book he recounts episodes from his fascinating vocation, mostly from around WW2, but the book is also a heartfelt memoir of a life long relationship with a dear friend and colleague. The stories include some excellent commentary his journalistic approach, and give a glimpse of his fantastic writing career, developing from a mildly uninspired Australian schoolboy into one of the finest documentary authors of the 20th century.

Alan Moorehead has the uncanny ability to keep the reader's eyes glued to the pages. He is enormously satisfying and enjoyable to read. He must have been a person of great compassion and intelligence, and I imagine him being moved by a unflinching desire to search for and faithfully report the truth.

A great experience........2000-08-01

To the other glowing reviews I can only add that it's worthwhile for the piece about Hemingway alone. The final chapter was emotionally wrenching and unforgettable

Uncategorisable account of friendship and war.......1999-11-10

I got into Alan Moorehead by picking up an old Penguin edition of A Late Education second-hand at South Melbourne market. Since then, I've read more, and it seems to me that Moorehead is one of the great prose stylists of the 20th Century. The Australian Moorehead was a war correspondent in Europe during the Spanish Civil War and WWII. This is an account of Moorehead's friendship with another young war correspondent, Alex Clifford, throughout the North African and Western European campaigns, and after the war, up to Clifford's untimely early death. It is a fascinating portrait of young journalists thrown into adventure and danger, and of a unique friendship that grew as a result. As such, it's a kind of mix of The English Patient and Salvador - and very well written.

Darwin and the Beagle: Charles Darwin as Naturalist on the HMS Beagle Voyage

Average customer rating:

Darwin and the Beagle: Charles Darwin as Naturalist on the HMS Beagle Voyage
Alan Moorehead
Manufacturer: Harper & Row
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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Product Description

Charles Darwin as naturalist on HMS Beagle voyage in 1831

Average customer rating:

Rum Jungle
Alan Moorehead
Manufacturer: Scribner
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: 9997547969

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