From Publishers Weekly
One of Britain's most esteemed men of letters, Sir Angus offers this gathering of his travel writings dating from 1957 to 1984. His rich and candid mind, and his exuberant enjoyment of places and cultures, lead him sometimes into stylistic excesses. No matterthis, his 18th book, is literate, entertaining armchair travel. The 13 essays open with Sir Angus's impressions of the Japanese as he got to know them in 1957 while visiting Tokyo with a group of international writers. Similarly upbeat is his piece on Brighton, for the British "the jolliest resort in the world"a gem of nostalgic affection. His 1961 return to South Africa, "my mother's land" (Wilson grew up there), offers sensitive speculations on apartheid's future. His pieces on the Channel Islands and his 1975 retracing of Kipling's footsteps in culturally paradoxical India give a lift to less stimulating areas where Sir Angus pens his observations on Sri Lanka, Arizona and zoos he has visited.
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
This is a wide-ranging collection of 13 travel pieces that have no common thread other than having been written by British novelist Wilson. They cover 30 years and range from miscellaneous notebook entries to finished essays. There are PEN-related visits to Japan and the Soviet Union (including a glimpse of Khrushchev), childhood reminiscences of South Africa (the birthplace of Wilson's mother), and trips to Brighton, the Channel Islands, India, Martinique, Sri Lanka, and the United States. Wilson explains his interest and pleasure in travel in the introduction, but his pieces convey little of either. The book will appeal more to Wilson specialists than to the general public. A secondary choice for most public libraries. Harold M. Otness, Southern Oregon State Coll. Lib., Ashland
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc.
