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A review by ellisknox
The Marsh Arabs by Wilfred Thesiger
4.0
Thesiger was one of that odd breed of Englishmen, from Sir Richard Burton to T.E. Lawrence to ... well, to this fellow ... who would take it into their heads to go out into a primitive culture and just live there. Thesiger had previously lived for five years among the Berbers; in this book he relates his long visits to the marshlands of the lower Tigris-Euphrates valley in Iraq.
The writing is workmanlike, not at all poetic. He recounts incidents without a blink and only cursory personal reactions. The book is almost like a documentary camera taking us into the lives of these people (now largely vanished). The details, though, are fascinating and the ninety or so photos (all B&W) are nearly as interesting as the book itself.
I'm very glad I've read this. If you have an interest in the daily life and customs of people very different from yourself, I recommend this book.
The writing is workmanlike, not at all poetic. He recounts incidents without a blink and only cursory personal reactions. The book is almost like a documentary camera taking us into the lives of these people (now largely vanished). The details, though, are fascinating and the ninety or so photos (all B&W) are nearly as interesting as the book itself.
I'm very glad I've read this. If you have an interest in the daily life and customs of people very different from yourself, I recommend this book.