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The Tree Where Man Was Born (Classic, Nature, Penguin) By Peter Matthiessen ( Penguin (Non-Classics) )
Release Date: 1995-04-01
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Product Description
In this classic volume, Matthiessen exquisitely combines both nature and travel writing to bring East Africa to vivid life. He skillfully portrays the daily lives of herdsmen and hunter-gatherers; the drama of the predator kills; the hundreds of exotic animals; the breathtaking landscapes; and the area's turbulent natural, political, and social histories.
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 Be Patient ( tjd836 )
Peter Mathieson's The Snow Leopard struck a chord with me. He skillfully wove his personal trials and tribulations into the fabric of an adventure story, looking for an endangered cat in remote parts of Nepal, and his study of Buddhism. The Tree Where Man Was Born falls far short of the standards he created. We learn lots about the anthropology, history, and natural environment of East Africa but little or nothing about the author. The book starts slowly and the reader waits in vain for a story. Once you realize its a travelogue, its pretty good with lots of interesting tidbits about critters and folks in this region of the world. It is by no means a nature classic as billed.
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 Transcendent Prose
This is one my very favorite of Matthiessen's impressive canon, ranking easily with Far Tortuga and The Snow Leopard. Indeed, I think some of the passages in The Tree Where Man Was Born might surpass the stunning Himalaya descriptions in the latter book. Matthiessen's eye for landscapes is unparalleled, and his lyric evocations of beast and horizon have an otherworldly quality. A prime example, and one to look out for, is his account of finding rhinoceros tracks on the high volcanic slopes of Mt. Lengai. Another highlight are his crystalline observations of ecological moments during a vigil atop an East African kopje.
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Good combination of natural atmosphere and history ( fmorrier )
I wasn't certain what to expect when I got this book. I was a bit concerned that since it was written about experiences in the 1960's that it would feel a bit dated. Although the 1960's view of the future of East Africa's peoples and wildlife is not entirely accurate, I am finding the book to be an excellent way to prepare for a trip to Tanzania--for someone wanting a combination of background on the peoples, landscape and wildlife. Matthiessen's usual subdued, to me, dry style seems leavened a bit by his awe. And the account of the elephant researcher who's 'close encounter' approach puts Matthiessen off his feed, was really enjoyable to me--a departure from his usual, very dry approach. I recommend this one to anyone interested in the peoples and wildlife of Eastern Africa.
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A loving and detailed account of a difficult journey
Is there anyplace wild enough to lift the weight that Occidental culture has placed on our shoulders? Africa, where the first man walked erect, may be the last place where man can feel awed enough by Nature to try and remember that he, also, is just another among the millions of other species that populate the planet. Paul Bowles, Bruce Chatwin, Doris Lessing, Isaak Dinesen and Peter Mattieshen found that answer, and shared the experience. In Mattieshen's poetic account, the tragic and fabulous beauty of a continent that has been devastated by greed and war is revealed, as the impossibility of traveling Africa and not falling in love with it and being changed by it forever.
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