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Summary: A vivid portrait of Africa in transition
Review: "The Zanzibar Chest" by Aidan Hartley is a beautifully written memoir of one man's Africa; from the depths of human depravity to the joy of a life lived simply and well. As the child of a British colonial officer, Hartley witnessed firsthand the remarkable changes that Africa has undergone in the latter half of the twentieth century. During his youth his ideal Africa is formed by his father's vision of the continent as a pastoral paradise, and it is through his father that his abiding love of Africa is established. However, as a reporter for Reuters, he has a front row seat to the periodic paroxysms of violence and disease that plague the continent. This dichotomy comes to manifest itself in Hartley himself, as he becomes an adrenaline junkie who, even as he craves the comfort of his native Kenya, is drawn to the brutality of Somalia and Rwanda.In addition to being autobiographical, Hartley attempts to weave in the tale of his father's long deceased best friend, Peter Davey, into his narrative. While interesting in and of itself, this diversion never succeeds in tying in to the main body of the work. Hartley struggles valiantly to draw a comparison between himself and Davey, but the links are tenuous at best. In the end, the reader is left with the indication that if Hartley had been born fifty years earlier, he would have become a man like Davey, but this is a conclusion that is hardly supported by what is revealed about both men. Nonetheless, as I alluded to above, Davey's tale is an intriguing one, and while it is oddly disconnected from the rest of the book, it is still an interesting tale. That said, where the book really shines is in Hartley's descriptions of his life as a journalist. An immensely gifted writer, Hartley succeeds in producing prose that is both descriptive and spare at the same time. Considering his subject matter that is exactly what was called for; the brutality of the Rwandan civil war in large part speaks for itself, Hartley thus generally confines himself to bearing witness. However, when he does offer a more personal view, it is always well chosen to distill an abomination into a single mental snapshot. For example, his description of finding a young boy alive in a mass grave captures the tragedy of central Africa far more effectively than a hundred pages of focused history. Perhaps most compelling, however, is when Hartley turns his considerable talents to introspection. Unlike many combat reporters, he openly admits that he is drawn to the violence. It is clear that this is because Hartley can drown his own demons in the day to day danger and tragedy of combat; it strips away humanity even as it makes relationships all the more intense. Hartley describes how friendships sealed in blood seem oddly stilted and uncomfortable when the danger is removed. Particularly interesting is Hartley's relationship with a female photographer. While there is no doubt that they share a genuine love, it is utterly ruined by their shared experiences. What is necessary under fire seems contrived and selfish in the safety of home. Finally, there is the piece that links everything together, Hartley's telling of his family history, and how they came to Africa. This remarkable tale of Britons from the colonial era offers a unique insight into the oddly disconnected lives of white Africans. No longer Europeans, but not Africans, and no loner in power, their struggle to come to grips with their place in the world parallels Hartley's struggle to reconcile the idealized Africa of his youth with the troubled continent of his present. Moreover, Africa itself is revealed by this history, as we see a continent forced into a mold determined by colonial powers, only to explode into a third, much worse, form at the end of colonial era. Nonetheless, Hartley sees hope in the warmth and beauty of the land and its people. In "The Zanzibar Chest" Hartley has produced a memoir of remarkable power. It is a work of both despair and hope, but ultimately one of catharsis, as revealed by the afterward. While sometimes lacking in focus, the book is more than redeemed by Hartley's superb prose and keen eye. It offers keen insight into an often overlooked region, and a fresh perspective on situations that are only vaguely understood in the West. More than that though, it is one man's coming of age in a place of beauty and danger; evocative and engaging, it is not to be missed. Jake Mohlman
Rating: 
Summary: Zanzibar Chest
Review: An extraordinarily powerful account a turbulent Africa in the nineties.I salute you for having lived every bit of your life in the extreme, exploring the boundaries, whatever pain or discomfort it brought. I think of my own similar time period in Africa, which has included Somalia, Sudan and Ethiopia, and though I felt I knew it, I realize from reading about your life that I never even scratched the surface - cocooned in my comfort bubble of flying and hotels.
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Summary: Say No to Travel Notes
Review: Every now and then a journalist cum author or is compelled to bind and mass-produce his or her notes into a treatise. A distinguishing element of these 'notes' is an author¡¯s ability to simply opt-out (leave the land about which is being written). Aidan cannot-Biblically speaking, he cannot change his spots, nor does he want to. The well of passion in this book stems from the author¡¯s pedigree -this drives Aidan and his attachment to Africa. This is the distinguishing character of The Zanzibar Chest. If you want travel notes, take a look at another book also written last year, Dark Star Safari (by Paul Theroux). The breadth of analysis and understanding between a traveler and a naturalized African cannot be expected to be the same. However, the westerners' window to Africa is ¡®widened¡¯ -narrowed, I would argue- by such seemingly innocuous travel notes (if these ¡®notes¡¯ are one¡¯s sole or primary source). Notice that the latter book is selling more widely. In 1968 Theroux decides to leave Africa (see his essay 'Introducing Jungle Lovers' in Sunrise with Seamonsters, 1985) shocked that a white English schoolteacher in Kampala was attacked in his car during the anti-Rhodesia riots taking place there. On that day in 1968 he wanted to speak about mob violence to his students -they couldn't see the point and wanted to get on with class-he couldn't understand it- he left (after 5 years in Africa). A cultural parallel for those more familiar with American culture: witnessed an American professor in the US stopping class to talk about injustice sometime in 1995 (compliments of LA vs. Mr. Simpson). Is "why start now, get on with class Paul" unreasonable? My point is that professor Hartley lives what he writes about -a rarity for accounts about Africa written in English- that is why The Zanzibar Chest is an uncommon account; a gem, undeniably leading to the truth (for Africa).
Rating:
Summary: Say No to Travel Notes
Review: Every now and then a journalist cum author or is compelled to bind and mass-produce his or her notes into a treatise. A distinguishing element of these 'notes' is an author¡¯s ability to simply opt-out (leave the land about which is being written). Aidan cannot-Biblically speaking, he cannot change his spots, nor does he want to. The well of passion in this book stems from the author¡¯s pedigree -this drives Aidan and his attachment to Africa. This is the distinguishing character of The Zanzibar Chest. If you want travel notes, take a look at another book also written last year, Dark Star Safari (by Paul Theroux). The breadth of analysis and understanding between a traveler and a naturalized African cannot be expected to be the same. However, the westerners' window to Africa is ¡®widened¡¯ -narrowed, I would argue- by such seemingly innocuous travel notes (if these ¡®notes¡¯ are one¡¯s sole or primary source). Notice that the latter book is selling more widely. In 1968 Theroux decides to leave Africa (see his essay 'Introducing Jungle Lovers' in Sunrise with Seamonsters, 1985) shocked that a white English schoolteacher in Kampala was attacked in his car during the anti-Rhodesia riots taking place there. On that day in 1968 he wanted to speak about mob violence to his students -they couldn't see the point and wanted to get on with class-he couldn't understand it- he left (after 5 years in Africa). A cultural parallel for those more familiar with American culture: witnessed an American professor in the US stopping class to talk about injustice sometime in 1995 (compliments of LA vs. Mr. Simpson). Is "why start now, get on with class Paul" unreasonable? My point is that professor Hartley lives what he writes about -a rarity for accounts about Africa written in English- that is why The Zanzibar Chest is an uncommon account; a gem, undeniably leading to the truth (for Africa).
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Summary: Very Special
Review: Every once in a while you read a book that you can't stop thinking about when you are finished with it. This is one of those books. I'd like thank Aidan Hartley for putting it all to paper. I have been to those places, but have never been able to explain it to family and friends. Now Mr. Hartley can do it for me. Again, thanks.
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Summary: Words can not describe...
Review: Hartley brings me to tears! This book should be required reading.
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Summary: well written, honest, engaging . . . . excellent book
Review: Hartley is a great writer with a great story to tell, the result is an excellent book. Was sad when I reached the end.
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Summary: Brilliant and unexpected
Review: Hartley manages to combine the clear-sighted, relentless gaze of the journalist who will not accept the official version of anything with the emotionally searing honesty of a talented and courageous writer. His insights into the emotional damage that correspondents in the field inflict upon themselves through repression are both moving and disturbing. The book is compassionate and humane, and this is what surprises most of all. Many journalists protect themselves from personal suffering with a mantle of cynicism and irony, and Hartley seems to refuse this with a stubbornness and integrity that is breathtaking. I am filled with admiration at his honesty and willingness to lay himself bare. In doing so he has bequeathed a gift to his readers, to those of us would never dare to tread where he has gone.
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Summary: Remarkable!!!
Review: Having just finished 'The Zanzibar Chest' I am somewhat at a loss for words. Part travel narrative, history, journalism, biography, and more. There is not a page in it that is not of interest, sometimes so riveting as to leave one speechless. Hartley has written a great book.
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Summary: The sounds, the smells and the danger - a journalist's tale
Review: I just can't resist true stories by journalists. And this book, subtitled "a story of life, love and death in foreign lands" is that kind of book. It allows me to be an armchair traveler and live vicariously without having to take any risks. And it also teaches me a lot.
The author, Aidan Hartley, is descended from a long line of British colonialists. He was born in western Africa in 1965, attended college in England, and came home to Africa as a journalist. This book is about those experiences. But, woven throughout, is the story of a friend of his father's who met a mysterious and violent death. Aidan found a diary of this man in a chest after his father's death - hence, the title of the book.
If the book was just about this quest, however, I would have been bored, because his findings all happened in the past. What intrigued me most were the author's more recent experiences, experiences which seemed to include several lifetimes of being where the action was.
A lot of things happened in Africa in the 1990s. And Aidan Hartley was there, risking his life and covering the stories for Reuters. He was there in Somalia when the Americans sent in troops. He was there during the famine in Ethiopia. He was there in Rwanda during the massacres. And he was in the Balkans during the bombing in Belgrade. The stories were fascinating. But his own reaction to them and how he lived was even more interesting.
He writes about other journalists and bonding with them over alcohol and other drugs. He writes about his romance with a photographer named Lizzie. He writes from the heart about the destruction and despair. And he writes about the stories that Reuters wouldn't print and the politics involved in his profession.
The events came alive for me - the sounds, the smells, and the danger. Through it all was the ultimate frustration of not being able to change anything. There are odd insights and unique word pictures that I'll always remember. Like that of a fellow journalist who was trying to stay in shape during the Ethiopian famine. And so he jogged every day along the same road on which the emaciated and starving people were struggling to stay alive. And then he writes about the celebrities who brought attention to the problem and the photographers that followed them around. He tells that that when Sophia Loren was there, there were such mobs of people following her around that they didn't notice that they were trampling on a small starving boy who was too weak to crawl out of the way. Rwanda was another horror, with hacked corpses everywhere. Once, they found a small boy still alive in a mass grave. They rushed him to the hospital. It was a story that made big news and it was reported that he was given intravenous fluids and recovered. But the truth was that the boy died; that story was never printed. Hartley then raises the question which he asked himself at the time, if it might not have been better to let the small boy die with his mother.
The stories are sad. And they affected him deeply. Eventually he was no longer assigned to the front lines. Most of his journalist buddies were dead, having had the bad luck to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. It was difficult for him to re-adjust to a world where horrors are not the stuff of his daily experiences. It took him a few years, but he did recover. He is now living with his wife and two young children in the Kenyan countryside. This 479 page book is his legacy.
Yes, I do recommend the book although I sure did wish the publisher had included a map of Africa. Just understand though, this is not a book to make you smile.
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