A Voyager Out: The Life of Mary Kingsley
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Book Overview
Mary Kingsley began her life as a typically conventional Victorian woman. She would end up travelling to some of the most inhospitable regions of Africa and became one of the most celebrated travellers of the day. At the age of 31, she sailed on a cargo ship along the coast from Sierra Leone to Angola and then traveled inland from Guinea to Nigeria, studying African customs and beliefs. On her second journey, she ventured into remote parts of Gabon and the French Congo--the first European to do so. She encountered cannibals and crocodiles, studied the religious customs of the reclusive Fang tribe, climbed Mount Cameroon and explored the Ogowe River, trading cloth for ivory and rubber to fund her trip. She returned only once to Africa, during the Boer War, when she worked as a nurse and journalist. Tragically, she died of typhoid in 1900, only 38 years old.
Format:Paperback
Language:English
ISBN:0345348303
ISBN13:9780345348302
Release Date:August 1987
Publisher:Ballantine Books
Length:333 Pages
Weight:1.00 lbs.
Customer Reviews
2 ratings
Pursuit Of Knowledge Under Difficult Circumstances
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 18 years ago
Rudyard Kipling said of MH Kingsley, "Being human, she must have feared some things, but one never arrived at what they were." Three species of fish and several books are only part of Kingsley's singular legacy. Very interesting biography of this intrepid Victorian explorer, whose extraordinary exploits one suspects might have been aided by the blessedly poor socialization afforded her as an untrained, unschooled, half-Cockney and half-forgotten "poor little rich girl", who later escaped a confining existence. The prose is deft but echoes Kingsley a little gratingly at times, rather than quoting.
The life of a woman who should be a legend
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 27 years ago
I picked up this book at a thrift shop - my usual venue for book purchases - solely due to the title. I knew nothing of Mary Kingsley prior to reading this absorbing account of her life. Her childhood and early adult life would give no clue to the extraordinary adventures she would have in Africa, culminating in her death while serving as a nurse with the British Army in South Africa. Rudyard Kipling said of her that she was "the bravest person I know" - I hope I have the quote correct. I cannot check as I gave my copy of the book to a friend who bears a striking resemblance to Miss Kingsley.
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