Synopses & Reviews
Arabian Sands is Wilfred Thesiger's record of his extraordinary journey through the parched "Empty Quarter" of Arabia. Educated at Eton and Oxford, Thesiger was repulsed by the softness and rigidity of Western life"the machines, the calling cards, the meticulously aligned streets." In the spirit of T. E. Lawrence, he set out to explore the deserts of Arabia, traveling among peoples who had never seen a European and considered it their duty to kill Christian infidels. His now-classic account is invaluable to understanding the modern Middle East.
Review
"Following worthily in the tradition of Burton, Lawrence, Philby and Thomas, [
Arabian Sands] is, very likely, the book about Arabia to end all books about Arabia."
The Daily Telegraph, London
"The narrative is vividly written, with a thousand little anecdotes and touches which bring back to any who have seen these countries every scene with the colour of real life."
The Sunday Times, London
Synopsis
Fifty years ago Wilfred Thesiger journeyed among the nomadic camel-breeding peoples of Southern Arabia. He fell in love with the desert and the Bedouin. First published in 1954, this book is a vivid account of his experiences, rich in details of everyday life among the nomads and the physical environment they had inhabited for millennia.
About the Author
Jon Lee Anderson is a staff writer for
The New Yorker and the author of the national bestseller
The Fall of Baghdad. He lives in Dorset, England.
Rory Stewart is the bestselling author of The Prince of the Marshes and The Places in Between. He was awarded the Order of the British Empire for services in Iraq.