The Expedition Library
- 7 Feb 08, 03:26 PM
Posted from: Benjamin Constant
I was asked recently what I was reading in a photograph, so I thought I'd list some of my reading material for your amusement. It's a bit telling I'm afraid.
I'm going to try and get the rest of the team to do the same.
Here goes…
Some of the stuff I’ve read (that I can remember):
Papers:
Mostly I've been reading scientific papers and anthropological texts as we approach a new area, tribal group or issue. Our wonderful team of researchers have dug up texts on nearly everything (unfortunately this has been most of my reading so far and much of it I've sent back so have no longer a record of the texts, but suffice to say there's been a lot on all sorts of subjects from Coca, Oil, Achuar, Ashaninka, Inka etc).
Books:-
Soil and Soul by Alistair MacIntosh: An absolutely amazing book - I found it by chance in a bookshop, having never heard of it, but loved it as soon as I got started. It proved very thought provoking for a trip like this and I even persuaded Steve to read it (Steve and I share near opposite tastes in books - him being a novel lover and me non-fiction).
One World by Peter Singer: Thorough and interesting, though dated now - very much along the lines of my own thinking (except with much more knowledge and intellect).
Sacred Vine of Spirits - Ayahuasca edited by Ralph Metzner: Some brilliant discussions here and useful factual information to get to the heart of a difficult and controversial subject.
All We Want is To Live In Peace by Lily La Torre Lopez: A tragic account of the problems caused by the oil operations in the Peruvian Amazon written by the lawyer representing the indigenous peoples and who is taking the oil companies to court. I was lucky enough to be given the book by the author herself in a brief meeting in Lima. Full of information, mostly of terrible social and environmental damage, yet it still maintains a calm voice and offers positive options for the future rather than negative historical demands. The preliminary hearing is taking place as I write in the US and everyone is hoping that the case will be allowed to take place there rather than in Peru. Lily and her team of lawyers tell me that they feel they stand a much better chance of the result they want if it stays in America which, if true, sums the whole problem up.
The No Nonsense guide to Fair Trade by David Ransom: I love this series and this is as good as the others I've read (such as 'Globalization' and 'Indigenous Peoples').
Some other Ayahuasca books but they've gone back with Willow.
I’m sure there were many others but I had a big night last night and my brain’s not working too well.
Presently Reading:
Open Veins of Latin America by Eduardo Galeano: A gift from Willow. I was put off by the introduction as I thought it was going to be a Marxist rant, but so far it's proved to be a valuable historical document about a turbulent history of a wonderful continent. Very opinionated, but if observed objectively, a great read.
Have with me for future reading:
The Age of Consent by George Monbiot: A New World Order. Say no more. Takes no prisoners and gets you motivated. Everyone should read it. I've read it before but wanted to have another go to see if I still agreed with everything. Such a difficult subject, but to me, especially as I'm going from one problem area to the next on a daily basis during this journey, it is increasingly obvious that to make the biggest difference to all these problems one must tackle the cancer of the system as a whole first.
Die if You Must by John Hemming: I've read Hemming before (Amazon Frontier) and found it invaluable. Truly he is the greatest knowledge on all things Amazonian Indigenous Peoples. Trouble is that it would take me a year to read it. I’m kind of putting it off sadly.
Globalization and its Discontents by Joseph Stiglitz: I’ve been wanting to read this for a while. I know what it contains but just want to hear the sad truth in all it's detail as a resource for looking forward for future solutions.
This Thing of Darkness by Harry Thompson: A gift from Steve. I said I would read one of his novels if he read one of my tomes. I have to admit that I’m really looking forward to it. I love the odd novel as escapism (and believe me I need it every now and then), but novels that I like are hard to come across and I hate wasting time with crap ones, so a good recommendation is always welcome. In a nutshell, I like to be inspired and I get inspiration out of real people and real events and someone’s imagination, while a wonderful thing, doesn’t inspire me in the same way (having said all that I am an avid cinema fan).
Wizard of the Upper Amazon by F Bruce Lamb: A Willow book I stole.
Tunnel to Canto Grande by Claribel Alegria and Darwin Flakoll: Peru’s turbulent revolutionary history provides the backdrop for a daring prison break.
Trail of Feathers by Tahir Shah: An expedition tale of a weird sounding trip. Might be a little late now as I’ve left Peru and my library is ever increasing, but maybe I’ll have time later for stuff like this.
A Million Little Pieces by James Frey: Sounds like a harrowing tail of drug addiction and I wanted it to give me the end user's perspective of some of the subjects we were encountering on this trip, but the introduction put me off (he admitted to making some stuff up), so it slipped to the bottom of my reading pile.
In Trouble Again by Redmond O’Hanlon: Classic expedition farce by the sounds of it. I’ve always wanted to read his book ‘Into the Heart of Borneo’ so when my lovely friend Twiglet gave me this as a going away present for this journey I was really happy. I’ve just decided to make this book my next read.
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