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A review by timburbage
Adventures of a Young Naturalist: The Zoo Quest Expeditions by David Attenborough
5.0
What a wonderful book.
This is a collection of three pieces of work, explaining the adventures of a young David Attenborough exploring Guyana, Indonesia and Paraguay in the pursuit of animals to film and return to London Zoo during the 1950s. Each sections has its own flow and purpose, and it was great not only to read about the experiences of the animals but also the experiences of the people. From entering an Amerindian Séance to travelling through bandit country looking for armadillos, Attenborough saw huge areas of hitherto unseen places and collected animals that were new to British eyes.
The main joy of this book was the many scrapes the team got into. With minimal communication technology they spent days stranded up the river, on a fishing boat where the captain didn't know how to navigate, or drugging locals so they wouldn't fire shotguns throughout the night. Attenborough is resourceful, fixing boat engines with no equipment, kind, careful not to intrude on local customs, and built relationships with everyone he dealt with through a charming sense of humour. Then towards the end of the book, he wrestles a wolf. A freaking wolf!
A great travel journal, animal journal, and a snapshot in time. Confirms David Attenborough as a guest to my imaginary celebrity dinner party.
This is a collection of three pieces of work, explaining the adventures of a young David Attenborough exploring Guyana, Indonesia and Paraguay in the pursuit of animals to film and return to London Zoo during the 1950s. Each sections has its own flow and purpose, and it was great not only to read about the experiences of the animals but also the experiences of the people. From entering an Amerindian Séance to travelling through bandit country looking for armadillos, Attenborough saw huge areas of hitherto unseen places and collected animals that were new to British eyes.
The main joy of this book was the many scrapes the team got into. With minimal communication technology they spent days stranded up the river, on a fishing boat where the captain didn't know how to navigate, or drugging locals so they wouldn't fire shotguns throughout the night. Attenborough is resourceful, fixing boat engines with no equipment, kind, careful not to intrude on local customs, and built relationships with everyone he dealt with through a charming sense of humour. Then towards the end of the book, he wrestles a wolf. A freaking wolf!
A great travel journal, animal journal, and a snapshot in time. Confirms David Attenborough as a guest to my imaginary celebrity dinner party.