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Summary: The 2 best book about african game since Man-Eaters of Tsavo
Review: This is a must read,even though you can tell it was written from a bar stool.Capstick mostly writes about what happend to other people,such as T.R and John Patterson.What he wrote about himself was made up as he went along.
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Summary: Peter Hathaway Capstick is one of my favorite authors.
Review: I have read "Death in the Long Grass" and other Peter Hathaway books. All of his books were simply a delight to read containing adventure,action,terror and insights into the behavior of wild animals and sometimes humans.
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Summary: Incredible Writing, Horrifying Stories
Review: All the adventure stories you might have read will pale after reading this. Capstick brings the reader to the height of fear and drops him into the bloody bath of animal survival. Animals using all their instincts to survive is nakedly portrayed in this book. It takes the reader into the raw, exposed nerve of living on the edge. If you like hunting, enjoy stories of man conquering the unknown, cunning opponent, you will find all that here--and more. Be prepared for pictures painted in your mind of the struggle to survive, the inescapable nature of the animal to conquer, win, defeat and finally eat his enemies--his food-- and then of man's desire to win against the harshest of circumstances. No nature documentary could ever relate, as this books does, the power, cunning and patience of the animal seeking his next meal or destroying the one who stands in his way for his way is to survive at all costs. The writing compels the reader to continue reading, carrying him higher and higher into a climax, and drops him directly into that place he most feared. Incredible writing! Be prepared to read this book from cover to cover without putting it down. And then be prepared to stay awake nights from the stories!
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Summary: Won't see these animals on The Discovery Channel!
Review: Simba isn't all cute and cuddly anymore. Capstick tells you how a lion really is. An animal that will do anything to eat. That means killing and eating somebody. He tells of the famous man-eaters in history,including the Maneaters of Tsavo. This book tells you the truth about Afircian wildlife.
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Summary: Finally, anyone can experience the "Raw and Real Africa"
Review: Captsick's love for the hunt and for the land in which it takes place is apparent in this truly great book. If you enjoy hunting wildlife of any kind, you will be on edge with every passing page. Many will never have the oppurtunity to take one of the "Big Five" game animals in Africa. Capstick knows this, but assures us that it is not because of a shortage caused by "Legal" hunting. However, Capstick's method of sharing the raw hunt with the reader, in a true sportsmans manner, emphasises the need for game management. If you love to hunt, you'll love "Death in the Longrass"
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Summary: Another Capstick Wonder
Review: Lion, elephant,leopard,cape buffalo, hippo, crocs, rhino, snakes, and others jump out of the pages of this book. Capstick tells the story of the bad things that can happen in Afica. Don't read outdoors
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Summary: Capstick plots man against beast as no one else can.
Review: This is excellent, excellent reading. Capstick systematically takes the reader through his own experiences with dangerous african game while he was a professional hunter during the 1960's and 1970's. He makes the reader feel as if they are actually right there beside him, experiencing the thrill of the hunt for themselves. This book tells the story of man against beast in a way that strikes fear into the bravest of hearts, yet does it in a manner that promotes and encourages sound ecological thinking. Death in the Long Grass is a must for any library
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Summary: I once met Capstick
Review: I would like to begin this by saying "It would have been nice to have met him in Africa" but alas it was selling real estate in Naples, Florida. Capstick stopped by to pick up a key for one of our listings. I had no idea who he was, of course, however, he was without a doubt a memorable figure. Tall, a bit gaunt, very present and powerful in who he was.About a month later I saw it advertised that he was at a book signing for his first book "Death in the Tall Grass" I did not go to the signing or for that matter never saw him again but years later I purchased this title at a used book store. It was first class reading and count me among those who could not put it down.
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Summary: Great classic of adventure writing
Review: Capstick's memoirs of his adventures as a hunter are legendary and were eagerly read by millions of readers in the magazines and books where he first published his stories. In this book he recounts numerous suspenseful and harrowing tales of hunters of the 7 big game animals in Africa--lion, elephant, leopart, cape buffalo, hippo, crocodile, and rhino, as well as some minor ones, including hyenas and snakes--only as Capstick says--the hunters sometimes ended up as the hunted.
One brief note, Capstick first started out as an independent hunter, but eventually gained enough experience to lead safaris and start up his own hunting safari operation, becoming at that point a "professional white hunter," or "PWH" as it's known in the trade. However, this name refers to any non-African professional game hunter and so doesn't necessarily refer to being white. During this time, Capstick got to know many famous hunters whose exploits, in addition to his own, he recounts in this book.
There are so many stories here that I'll just limit myself to the ones about lions. One fascinating part is his tales of hunters who killed known man-eaters who had often eaten dozens or even hundreds of victims before being finally dispatched. Many of these hunters, such as J.H. Patterson, operated back in the days of the so-called belted magnums in the early part of the last century, long before modern elephant guns and hunting rifles were created.
The great man-eating lion hunter, George Rushby, starting in 1942, began hunting one such pride. In the two years of hard work it took him to track down all the lions and kill the pride, the lions added another 249 confirmed human kills to their total.
However, that total pales in comparison to the Njombe man-eaters, perhaps the most infamous pride of all, who killed 1500 natives and colonists before Rushby finally killed them all. Rushby is justly famous for his exploits and his story made for truly fascinating reading.
Capstick also recounts the adventures of Lt. Col. J.H. Patterson, another legendary figure of the early 1900s whose book is also famous. Patterson is famous as the hunter who killed the man-eaters of Tsavo who were killing the Indian coolies brought in to build the Ugandan railroad, also known as the "Lunacy Express." As Capstick, says, the lions treated the whole affair as one big, long, human buffet, killing more people than were used in the shooting of the movie, "Bhowani Junction" (although it doesn't say how many that was).
Some areas of Africa are more prone to have man-eaters than others. Another of the most dangerous areas is the Luangwa Valley of Zambia (formerly N. Rhodesia). Peter Hankin, one of the most respected white hunters in Africa, was killed there by a man-eater after a long and distinguished career.
Capstick points out that the risks of man-eaters are often downplayed by officials and by the governments for fear of scaring off tourists. One time, Capstick found that in just on six month period as a professional hunter in Zambia, he learned of six cases of man-eating in just one concession of 20 by 60 miles, but which was not publicized.
One more comment if you're going to read this book, which is that Capstick includes very accurate, detailed, and often gruesome descriptions of the eaten victims. He points out that very often lions consume the entire body, including blood-stained clothes, leather boots, and the bones. I have to admit I read those parts with a sort of queasy and morbid fascination. However, in the course of reading this book you will also learn a lot about the dangers and risks of big game hunting and how some of the best plied their trade. It was very interesting to learn about some of the skills needed and about the fatal mistakes or near fatal mistakes to avoid.
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Summary: Capstick at his very best
Review: Read the first paragraph of this book and you will know that you are reading some of the finest and most thrilling writing on the subject of big game hunting in Africa by someone truly gifted. I must have read this book at least half a dozen times and cannot help but be affected by the masterful descriptions and story telling prowess of Peter H. Capstick. Having read all of Capstick's wonderful books, if I were to pick one as the very best, this would likely be it.
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