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4.05 AVERAGE
4.05 AVERAGE
adventurous
slow-paced
adventurous
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
SO GOOD. An amazing woman, especially for her time. Reminiscent of Out of Africa, but (dare I say) Markham has more moments of surprising beauty.
just could not finish this book. hated the language used to describe african people (even though it was very in line with the times of the writing), just could not read this anymore. beryl sounds like an interesting woman though!
The writing is sublime.
As this is a memoir rather than an autobiography, things are left out (like: how did a very young Beryl end up in British East Africa with her father while her mother and older brother remained in England? And what of the rest of her life between her departure from Kenya and her record flight across the Atlantic?) I feel compelled to read Lovell's biography of Beryl Markham in the near future and will probably also read Markham's other publication, The Splendid Outcast.
It was a little strange to read this book after reading Isak Dinesen's Out of Africa and Judith Thurman's biography of Dinesen. There is a partly overlapping cast of characters and set of events. I was a bit uncomfortable that a good chunk of West with the Night features Dinesen's by-then-ex-husband Bror Blixen quite prominently (and described quite flatteringly) whereas he barely makes an appearance in Dinesen's work. I surmise that Markham was probably romantically involved with Blixen at some point.
I believe there are other memoirs and works of fiction based on this time, place, and group of people. It feels strange that this particular corner of history should have come to be so frequently documented... but when I think about it, I realize that British East Africa was colonized by many wealthy, educated Europeans having the adventure of their lives. Of course they'd have written about it... and the world of publishing was quite different at the times of these memoirs' publications than it is now.
As this is a memoir rather than an autobiography, things are left out (like: how did a very young Beryl end up in British East Africa with her father while her mother and older brother remained in England? And what of the rest of her life between her departure from Kenya and her record flight across the Atlantic?) I feel compelled to read Lovell's biography of Beryl Markham in the near future and will probably also read Markham's other publication, The Splendid Outcast.
It was a little strange to read this book after reading Isak Dinesen's Out of Africa and Judith Thurman's biography of Dinesen. There is a partly overlapping cast of characters and set of events. I was a bit uncomfortable that a good chunk of West with the Night features Dinesen's by-then-ex-husband Bror Blixen quite prominently (and described quite flatteringly) whereas he barely makes an appearance in Dinesen's work. I surmise that Markham was probably romantically involved with Blixen at some point.
I believe there are other memoirs and works of fiction based on this time, place, and group of people. It feels strange that this particular corner of history should have come to be so frequently documented... but when I think about it, I realize that British East Africa was colonized by many wealthy, educated Europeans having the adventure of their lives. Of course they'd have written about it... and the world of publishing was quite different at the times of these memoirs' publications than it is now.
adventurous
inspiring
medium-paced
I would probably have rated it higher right after I read it, but I completely blanked on what it was about at first. After a refresher, I remember the writing was very lyrical and the story was indeed very adventurous. She was quite a remarkable woman, very daring and very ahead of her time. Her story of growing up in Africa and then striving to be the best aviator in the world was beautiful and engaging. I would recommend it.
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
This book was a high school graduation gift and so was not a book I would've ever chosen for myself, but was incredibly inspiring and filled me with the desire to travel and experience the world, which is exactly what you want for a kid fresh out of high school, ready to embark on the next adventure of their life.