Stack Showcase
You might see a book in the catalogue listed as STACK. These are books which are housed behind the scenes in the Central Library - items that the Library definitely wants to keep, but for some reason (e.g. older condition, or not in as high demand) the open shelf is not the right place for them. Most can be borrowed.
Please ask at the enquiries counter on the Second Floor and staff will be happy to retrieve them.
This webpage will highlight some of these nearly forgotten treasures - note that the author's selections and recommendations of these golden oldies are entirely idiosyncratic!
(Last updated, 3 August 2009)
» Africa
A wonderful world of hidden treasures is just around the corner...
The White Nile, by Alan Moorehead.
"The story of the Nile, from the Mountains of the Moon to the Mediterranean. The tale starts with Richard Burton and John Hanning Speke setting out to find the sources of the Nile. It continues with Baker of the Nile and his wife struggling with malaria, and of the famous greeting between Stanley and Livingstone. The book examines the results of their discoveries:
the building of the Suez canal; the Khedive Ismail's appointment of Gordon as Governor-General of Sudan; and the story of the last days of Khartoum. The book concludes with Kitchener's military success at Omdurman which made Queen Victoria the ruler of the huge area from Alexandria to the highlands of Uganda and which resulted in the Nile being, for the first time, an open highway from Central Africa to the sea." (Amazon)
Kalashnikovs and zombie cucumbers : travels in Mozambique, by Nick Middleton.
"Middleton made two trips to Mozambique in 1992, one before and one after the peace accord was signed to end a savage civil war. Despite its recent history, he found a resilient country full of integrity and good nature, and saw the contradictions of the modern aid business, which is taking over the legacy of 500 years of Portuguese rule in a country which, until independence, was known only for for its prawns and prostitutes. This travel book illuminates a little-understood part of southern Africa, a country where the culture of the West meets a world of older beliefs, still full of magic and ghosts." (Amazon)
The Overloaded Ark, by Gerald Durrell.
"A book of immense charm. The author, the younger brother of the poet Lawrence Durrell, handles English prose with the same firmness and discretion that that he used to dispense towards the pangolins and lemuroids that fell to his snares and huntsmen in the Cameroons. How seldom it is that books of this kind are written by those who cam write!...a genuinely amusing writer". (Time and Tide)
The Flame Trees of Thika, By Elspeth Huxley.
"Huxley's autobiography recalls her extraordinary adventures as a child in Africa.
Her parents were early British settlers in Kenya and despite hardships the family was happy and united, and that childhood magical. The book describes an Africa which has gone forever.
This book has become a classic and was made into a memorable television series." (Library Catalogue)
The Lost World of the Kalahari, by Laurens Van der Post.
"Laurens van der Post was fascinated and appalled at the fate of this remarkable people. Ostracised by all the changing face of African cultural life they retreated deep into the Kalahari desert. His fascinating attempt to capture their way of life and the secrets of their ancient heritage provide captivating reading and a unique insight into a forgotten way of life." (Amazon)< /p>
Out of Africa, Karen Blixen.
"Karen Blixen went to Kenya in 1914 to run a coffee farm; its failure in 1931 caused her to return to Denmark where she wrote this classic account of her experiences. OUT OF AFRICA is a celebration of her life there; her friendship with the various peoples of the area and her sympathetic response to the landscape and animals are drawn with warmth and unusual clarity. Although the book is pervaded by her sense of loss, Karen Blixen looks back with an unsentimental intelligence to portray a way of life that is now gone forever. " (Amazon)
Out of Africa was made into a highly acclaimed film (winning seven Oscars), starring Meryl Streep and Robert Redford.
A World of Strangers, by Nadine Gordimer.
"Toby Hood, a young Englishman, shuns the politics and the causes his liberal parents passionately support. Living in Johannesburg as a representative of his family's publishing company, Toby moves easily, carelessly, between the complacent wealthy white suburbs and the seething, vibrantly alive black townships. His friends include a wide variety of people, from mining directors to black journalists and musicians, and Toby's colonial-style weekends are often interspersed with clandestine evenings spent in black shanty towns. Toby's friendship with Steven Sithole, a dashing, embittered young African, touches him in ways he never thought possible, and when Steven's own sense of independence from the rules of society leads to tragedy, Toby's life is changed forever. " (Amazon)
The splendid outcast : the African stories of Beryl Markham, compiled and introduced by Mary S. Lovell.
Best known as a famous aviatrix - she was the first person of either sex to fly from England to North America - Beryl Markham was an accomplished writer as well. Her account of her flying career "West with the night" is justly famous, This handsomely produced book with its introduction by her biographer, Mary Lovell, contains well-crafted stories based on her life experiences.
Travels with fortune : an African adventure, by Christina Dodwell.
This is the amazing tale of Christina Dodwell's first adventure: a three-year journey through Africa. Recounted with modesty and good humour, it is a story of great tenacity and incredible courage. Christina travelled by horse, camel, on foot, hitching lifts from time to time - even hailing passing airplanes out of the sky! The author shared meals with cannibals, was treated by witch-doctors and learned to pan gold. She and her friend journeyed almost a thousand miles down the Congo River in a dugout canoe: the first women in the world to accomplish such a hazardous journey. This is a truly extraordinary travel book. It is a brilliant account of Africa, its sights and smells, its many races, seen through the eyes of an English girl.
North Africa, by Dore Ogrizek.
This book is a 'stack gem' - a quaint and beautiful little book in 'The world in colour' series
Although written in 1955 by a team of French writers and artists familiar with the continent it contains much information which is pertinent today - sections on the spirit and history of Africa and even a little dictionary. It offers an exhaustive breakdown of Africa - every region is closely examined.. Its chief merit, however, is the profuse illustration. It contains many photographs, hand-coloured maps and diagrams, reproductions of famous works but most charmingly many large watercolours of scenes from the different towns and cities featured - almost one to a page.
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Please don't hesitate to contact the author if you wish to share your comments and views on these or any other stack book, or view previous editions. Happy delving!
