News
Dirty-looking Stones from Sierra Leone
Inconceivable though it might once have seemed, the fated timelines of West Africa’s historic freed-slave state and that of an otherwise inconsequential and stroppy fashionista have collided at the Hague’s Special Court for Sierra Leone. Since news of former Liberian president Charles Taylor’s alleged gift of blood diamonds emerged, Naomi Campbell’s recollection of events following a dinner with Nelson Mandella has er… evolved. Earlier in the year La Campbell was resolute, responding to an ABC reporter saying that she had ‘never received a diamond’, before walking out of the interview as the camera, still-rolling, hit the deck. However, subpoenaed to strut her stuff as an unwilling witness, and apparently at great ‘inconvenience’, the former Streatham girl arrived at the Hague by armoured van – whose protection this served was unclear. When questioned the model recalled a nocturnal visit by two men who knocked on her hotel room door and handed over a pouch containing ‘dirty-looking stones’, ‘as a gift’, without further explanation. If indeed these grubby pebbles prove to have been from Mr Taylor his denial that he has never owned, sold or traded in blood diamonds will be seriously undermined.
It’s now ten years since British military forces arrived in Sierra Leone. and almost nine years since the fighting stopped. The Freetown Special Courts have finished their task and shut up shop, only Charles Taylor awaits judgement in the Hague. Tangible improvements in infrastructure are assisting the tentative re-birth of the country’s tourism industry and the rebuiding of a shattered economy. Bradt’s Sierra Leone (2009) is the best and only dedicated guide to a safe, welcoming and hopeful West African state. More…
New Titles
Northern Lights by Polly Evans
No, not those you can see in the distance as you join the M1 at Elephant and Castle, rather a what, where and how to guide on the aurora borealis, a phenomenon that recently served to weaken Joanna Lumley’s knees almost as much as the Gurkas. As a result of remarkable foresight by Bradt’s editorial planning department, publication is timed to coincide with the most intense period of solar activity for 400 years – auroral displays rivalling the hyperspace sequence in 2001 A Space Odyssey are predicted by some… In true pioneering Bradt style Polly Evans’s handy new booklet will be the first dedicated Northern Lights guide for European leisure travellers. As well as the basics, chapters cover specialist tour operators, auroral forecasts, photographic techniques, neck exercises, and what to wear in order to avoid freezing your ‘nads off. More…
Kenya Highlights by Philip Briggs
Described by BBC conservationist Mark Carwardine as, ‘Everything you need to know for the safari of a lifetime in one handy, authoritative guide… – Bradt at its best.’ Philip Briggs’ new Kenya Highlights has already done enough to justify its presence in Bradt staff standard issue luggage, alongside spare underpant, sock, and what Australian’s refer to as ‘budgie smugglers’. Illustrated in full colour, Philip’s unapologetically personal pick features the country’s southern national parks, making the most of a Nairobi stopover, and discovering little-known sights along Kenya’s Indian Ocean coast. Elsewhere the guide details planning a safari holiday, sections on wildlife, history and people, together with suggested lodge and camp accommodation chosen in conjunction with leading specialist tour operators. For most travellers a safari requires a longer commitment in terms of time and money than an average foreign break. Kenya Highlights aims to ensure this investment is not misplaced and that a safari provides all those anticipated returns and more. More…
Taiwan by Steven Crook
When Chang Kai-shek’s nationalist forces retreated to the island of Formosa he took with him China’s legitimate government, acknowledged as such by the UN until 1971. What many Chinese thought of the victorious Communist forces under Mao Zedong is perhaps apparent in that the Republic of China AKA Taiwan, has become one of the most crowded islands on Earth. However, these days it’s still possible to escape the crush of the cities and the aggressive posturing of an anti-democratic mainland. Despite Taipei’s intensely glowing neon, Taiwan itself holds true to many ancient rituals, some of which have not survived years of repression and brutal social engineering on the mainland. Whilst not ignoring these echoes of the past, for most travellers Taiwan remains a new destination and one that is hardly mainstream. Appropriately, author Steven Crook has written a guide for individuals, those wanting more than the National Palace Museum, the beaches of Kending and the trails of Alishan. As well as business destinations, chapters describe hiking and biking amongst Taiwan’s world class mountains, where to see endemic birds and butterflies or encounter elusive Formosan black bear. Whether you plan to sleep on the floor of a hidden temple or tucked up in a 5-star hotel’s sumptuous super king size, Bradt’s new Taiwan will point the way if not hold your hand. More…
100 Bizarre Animals by Mike Unwin
Yes, I know we’ve mentioned this title before, but Mike’s colourfully illustrated compendium of strange creatures is yet to hit the shelves so a little more build up is not without precedent. Ever wondered what a blobfish looks like? The answer, on page 33, may appear disturbingly familiar. A mata mata, page 54, is something else altogether although it’s impossible not to anthropomorphise this turtle’s smile into an expression of self-satisfied ghoulishness. Finally, if you thought hammerhead sharks were evidence enough that even the divine creator superbeing once dallied with recreational drugs, the hammerhead bat on page 97 seals it. 100 Bizarre Animals is a fascinating collection of nature’s oddments, the mis-shapes, creatures more eBay than M&S, the only omission… and it’s way too late now… is man. More…
New Editions
Oman Edition 2 by Diana Darke
Oman has had its fair share of historic excitement and in his early career British explorer Ranulph Fiennes served there as a mercenary supporting the Sultan against a Communist-inspired insurgency by the PFLO (People’s Front for the Liberation of Oman, if you will – very Life of Brian-ish.) However, today, occupying an unsettled neighbourhood characterised by hotbeds, strongholds and failed or failing states, Oman stands out as an oasis of tranquillity. Bradt author and Arabist Diana Darke describes the country’s landscape of mountains, ravines, cliffs, canyons, desert and coastline in a comprehensively revised second edition of Oman. Darke’s prose covers archaeology, natural history and diving as well as combining the heady spices and perfumes of the souk with more disagreeable fragrances emanating from camel races. Skies scintillate with stars at Bedouin desert camps whilst listings of familiar comforts – restaurants, bars and hotels – are all thoroughly updated. More…
Azores Edition 4 by David Sayers
Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz attract the attentions of lethal missile-firing drone aircraft to their secret off-grid beach in the Azores, or should that be ‘Ayyyzores’, in a sequence from Knight & Day. The new $107 million Hollywood action flick promises to see Cruise outed from the closet of Scientology career death and back on the rails of reason with a return to top billing… time will tell. As remote islands go, the Azores are remarkably easy to reach with direct flights from London and Manchester, making restorative short breaks of a week or less a realistic proposition. A rugged volcanic landscape and dazzling blue coastline characterises the archipelago, moored loosely about a third of the way across the Atlantic 1,500km from the shores of Portugal and marking Europe’s westernmost extent. Fully updated for a fourth time, Bradt’s best-selling Azores provides unparalleled features on culture, history, and festivals as well as detailing the islands’ best walks, where to eat and sleep and how to get around. Illustrated by colour photographs and delicate line drawings from Czech artist Hedvika Fraser, this new edition of Azores is a call to action for all those considering a visit – do it now before Uncle Sam discovers you can’t drive there from LA. More…
No, not the lights that illuminate the distant horizon as you join the M1 at Elephant and Castle… The ‘northern lights’ is an atmospheric phenomenon that for generations has earned nocturnal northern-sky watchers a crick in the neck and frost-bitten toes. Most recently, it caused an enraptured Joanna Lumley to collapse in the snow.
