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oxnard_montalvo's review
4.0
Parts of this are truly haunting; I think this is going to be a book I feel weeks after finishing it. Thubron's depiction of people is masterful, small, intimate details to create a sense of personality. Granted, I did feel I needed a dictionary handy at times, and that broke the spell of his writing somewhat. Other times, he tended to ramble, weaving in and out of deep history, leaving me behind in the present or the past. I couldn't always keep up with him. And despite the helpful maps and the beginning of each of the three sections, he likes to remain mysterious and cagey about where he is at any given time. I would have like him to be a bit more precise about his whereabouts.
This is the first of Thubron I've read; definitely compelled to look for more of his work after this one.
This is the first of Thubron I've read; definitely compelled to look for more of his work after this one.
stef369's review against another edition
5.0
In haar boek "De trein naar Tibet" verwijst schrijfster Maja Wolny naar de boeken van Colin Thubron die haar enorm inspireerden. Omdat ik op reis ben in de bergen, wilde ik graag wat avontuurlijke reisliteratuur lezen. En met dit boek was ik rijkelijk bediend! Als je de titel leest denk je misschien dat het hier om zijde gaat. Maar nee, helemaal niet, er wordt heel weinig over deze kostbare stof geschreven, wel over de route die eeuwenlang werd gebruikt door verkopers... Thubron reist begin jaren 2000 deze route achterna. Een kluwen van culturen en volkeren is het. Een complex verhaal van veroveringen, toenaderingen, wisselwerkingen. Heel mooi is dat Thubron overal waar hij komt het speciale, het unieke zoekt. Hij schuwt hiervoor geen risico's. Hij blijft steeds neutraal, geeft zelf geen meningen, maar hij laat wel de gewone man op straat zijn verhaal doen. Zijn enorm respect voor de mensen die hij ontmoet doet wonderen. Mensen openbaren zich aan hem, doen hun verhalen. Ongelofelijk dat ik vroeger nooit leerde over die rijke cultuur en geschiedenis van het Oosten: waarom leren we dat toch niet op school? Niets wist ik over Hulagu Khan of over Timoer Lenk... (en ik schaam me ervoor...). Zijn we dan als Westerse beschaving nog steeds slechts tot "Antiochië" geraakt? De reis van Thubron is buitengewoon boeiend en leerrijk...
Ik laat hem nog even zelf aan het woord op het einde van zijn relaas: "Als het hotellicht uitvalt, zoek ik mijn laatste stompjes kaars en ga bij dit gele geflakker de valse en afwezige grenzen nog eens over; In China was ik al ver in het oosten op de schim van de Oejgoerse grens gestuit, en door heel Centraal-Azië en Afghanistan - een paradijs of een hel van vermengde etnische groepen - waren nationaliteiten met elkaar verweven. In de onzekere kaarsvlam herinner ik me hoe ik een land bereikte, honderden kilometers voor de werkelijke grens, of pas lang erna. Vaak heb ik het gevoel dat de Zijderoute zelf deze vervaging en versmelting heeft veroorzaakt en achtergelaten, als de bedding van een opgedroogde rivier, en ik stel me de geesten van andere kaarten voor boven op de politieke landkaarten: kaarten van verbrokkelde rassen en identiteiten." (p. 349)
Eén voetnoot zou kunnen zijn dat de politieke situatie sindsdien wel veel veranderd is, zeker in Afghanistan en Iran. Maar daar gaat het niet om in dit boek. Thubron leert ons hoe de geschiedenis was van deze landen en volkeren en zo begrijpen we beter de mechanismen die leiden tot conflicten.
Ik laat hem nog even zelf aan het woord op het einde van zijn relaas: "Als het hotellicht uitvalt, zoek ik mijn laatste stompjes kaars en ga bij dit gele geflakker de valse en afwezige grenzen nog eens over; In China was ik al ver in het oosten op de schim van de Oejgoerse grens gestuit, en door heel Centraal-Azië en Afghanistan - een paradijs of een hel van vermengde etnische groepen - waren nationaliteiten met elkaar verweven. In de onzekere kaarsvlam herinner ik me hoe ik een land bereikte, honderden kilometers voor de werkelijke grens, of pas lang erna. Vaak heb ik het gevoel dat de Zijderoute zelf deze vervaging en versmelting heeft veroorzaakt en achtergelaten, als de bedding van een opgedroogde rivier, en ik stel me de geesten van andere kaarten voor boven op de politieke landkaarten: kaarten van verbrokkelde rassen en identiteiten." (p. 349)
Eén voetnoot zou kunnen zijn dat de politieke situatie sindsdien wel veel veranderd is, zeker in Afghanistan en Iran. Maar daar gaat het niet om in dit boek. Thubron leert ons hoe de geschiedenis was van deze landen en volkeren en zo begrijpen we beter de mechanismen die leiden tot conflicten.
tasmanian_bibliophile's review against another edition
5.0
‘Sometimes a journey arises out of hope and instinct, ..’
Colin Thubron’s journey along the Silk Road (in 2003 and 2004) originated in Xian, at the tomb of the Yellow Emperor, passed through the mountains of Central Asia, across northern Afghanistan and the plains of Iran and ended at the ancient port of Antioch. His seven thousand mile journey involved eight months of travel, with travel in northern Afghanistan broken by fighting. That section of travel was under taken a year later, in the same season.
The Silk Road was the 19th century name given by the German geographer baron von Richthofen to an extensive network of routes which converge and diverge as they cross the breadth of Asia. Travelling the route traces the past (the journeys of armies, trade, ideas, inventions and religions), and gives an eyewitness account of the present (through the lives and times of some of those who currently inhabit these regions).
Colin Thubron writes that: ‘Yet to follow the Silk Road is to follow a ghost. It flows through the heart of Asia, but it has officially vanished, leaving behind it the pattern of its restlessness: counterfeit borders, unmapped peoples. The road forks and wanders wherever you are. It is not a single way, but many: a web of choices.’
Three things in particular make this book stand out for me: the beautiful prose makes it a pleasure to read; the interactions with locals make these remote and sometimes turbulent regions come to life, and the absence of photographs means that the reader has to create his or her own images from the words. A picture may well be worth a thousand words usually, but not in this case. The maps provide outline, the words provide context and content.
‘In the dawn the land is empty.’
Following the Silk Road takes Colin Thubron (and the reader) through a China, changed markedly in the six thousand years since silk cultivation began and particularly rapidly transforming since 1949. Starting from the tomb of the Yellow Emperor, the legendary ancestor of the Chinese nation, we are reminded of the Chinese innovations that travelled westward, including silk, paper, stirrups, spinning wheels and gunpowder.
Three things, according to the 17th century English philosopher Francis Bacon, created Renaissance Europe. Those three things were printing, gunpowder and the magnetic compass. Each of these were invented in China and reached Europe along the Silk Road. But the travel was not one way: chariots, glassware, amber, chairs and Buddhism, Nestorian Christianity and Islam are some of the items and beliefs that travelled eastward.
Travel through the region of the Silk Road is a reminder that political borders can dissect tribal, ethnic, cultural, religious, and language ties and create contentious national boundaries. It’s a fascinating journey: Colin Thubron is able to use his language skills (in English, Mandarin and Russian) to communicate with many of those he meets as he travels: some old friends and some new acquaintances.
The book provides a well-presented combination of the past and the present. The land he passes through is a contrast between spectacular beauty and ravaged desolation; many of the people he meets have their own thoughts about their heritage and origins, and about the future.
‘Light dawned over another land.’
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
Colin Thubron’s journey along the Silk Road (in 2003 and 2004) originated in Xian, at the tomb of the Yellow Emperor, passed through the mountains of Central Asia, across northern Afghanistan and the plains of Iran and ended at the ancient port of Antioch. His seven thousand mile journey involved eight months of travel, with travel in northern Afghanistan broken by fighting. That section of travel was under taken a year later, in the same season.
The Silk Road was the 19th century name given by the German geographer baron von Richthofen to an extensive network of routes which converge and diverge as they cross the breadth of Asia. Travelling the route traces the past (the journeys of armies, trade, ideas, inventions and religions), and gives an eyewitness account of the present (through the lives and times of some of those who currently inhabit these regions).
Colin Thubron writes that: ‘Yet to follow the Silk Road is to follow a ghost. It flows through the heart of Asia, but it has officially vanished, leaving behind it the pattern of its restlessness: counterfeit borders, unmapped peoples. The road forks and wanders wherever you are. It is not a single way, but many: a web of choices.’
Three things in particular make this book stand out for me: the beautiful prose makes it a pleasure to read; the interactions with locals make these remote and sometimes turbulent regions come to life, and the absence of photographs means that the reader has to create his or her own images from the words. A picture may well be worth a thousand words usually, but not in this case. The maps provide outline, the words provide context and content.
‘In the dawn the land is empty.’
Following the Silk Road takes Colin Thubron (and the reader) through a China, changed markedly in the six thousand years since silk cultivation began and particularly rapidly transforming since 1949. Starting from the tomb of the Yellow Emperor, the legendary ancestor of the Chinese nation, we are reminded of the Chinese innovations that travelled westward, including silk, paper, stirrups, spinning wheels and gunpowder.
Three things, according to the 17th century English philosopher Francis Bacon, created Renaissance Europe. Those three things were printing, gunpowder and the magnetic compass. Each of these were invented in China and reached Europe along the Silk Road. But the travel was not one way: chariots, glassware, amber, chairs and Buddhism, Nestorian Christianity and Islam are some of the items and beliefs that travelled eastward.
Travel through the region of the Silk Road is a reminder that political borders can dissect tribal, ethnic, cultural, religious, and language ties and create contentious national boundaries. It’s a fascinating journey: Colin Thubron is able to use his language skills (in English, Mandarin and Russian) to communicate with many of those he meets as he travels: some old friends and some new acquaintances.
The book provides a well-presented combination of the past and the present. The land he passes through is a contrast between spectacular beauty and ravaged desolation; many of the people he meets have their own thoughts about their heritage and origins, and about the future.
‘Light dawned over another land.’
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
_head_full_of_books_'s review
adventurous
informative
medium-paced
5.0
Colin Thubron's Shadow of the Silk Road takes us on a 7,000 miles journey from Xian, China to Antioch, Turkey. The author undertook this journey over a period of 8 months travelling by bus, truck, car, donkey cart and camel.
The Silk route has always intrigued me. It is one of the most ancient trade route which not only carried goods across the continent but is also responsible for the exchange of ideas, religions and inventions. The Silk route is not one single road but a network of arteries splitting and converging across Asia. This network enriched everything it passed thru. According to Thubron, no single person travelled from China to Turkey but silk was part of ancient Mediterranean life and Greek and Roman images were found in ancient China. Such was the reach of the road.
Throughout the journey, Thubron intermingles with locals to understand their way of living, thoughts, religious and political views. He discovers the curiosity and eagerness of the young and the ruminations of the old. The antiquity of the ruins Thubron visits echoes the time gone by. There are no photographs in the book, which was shocking since its a travel book. But Thubron makes up for the lack of images with his artistic and lyrical writing that fuels your imagination. My favorite part of the book was history lessons that accompanied the places he travelled. This is a book to be savored across multiple days. There is so much information packed here. I loved Thubron's writing style so I bought his newest, Amur river: Between Russia and China.
The Silk route has always intrigued me. It is one of the most ancient trade route which not only carried goods across the continent but is also responsible for the exchange of ideas, religions and inventions. The Silk route is not one single road but a network of arteries splitting and converging across Asia. This network enriched everything it passed thru. According to Thubron, no single person travelled from China to Turkey but silk was part of ancient Mediterranean life and Greek and Roman images were found in ancient China. Such was the reach of the road.
Throughout the journey, Thubron intermingles with locals to understand their way of living, thoughts, religious and political views. He discovers the curiosity and eagerness of the young and the ruminations of the old. The antiquity of the ruins Thubron visits echoes the time gone by. There are no photographs in the book, which was shocking since its a travel book. But Thubron makes up for the lack of images with his artistic and lyrical writing that fuels your imagination. My favorite part of the book was history lessons that accompanied the places he travelled. This is a book to be savored across multiple days. There is so much information packed here. I loved Thubron's writing style so I bought his newest, Amur river: Between Russia and China.