The Man-Eaters of Tsavo: And Other East African Adventures

Loved the book. Really told the tale and transported you back to Africa.

Back in high school, we watched the movie "The Ghost and the Darkness" starring Val Kilmer (great movie by the way) and I was interested in the story. Then several years after that I happened to be in the Field Museum in Chicago and saw the real lions which again peaked my interest. But that was a number of years ago. I'm not sure why I started thinking about the story again, but I did. I began looking for a book on the topic.This book is the account by the original hunter and adventurer himself. It is a direct, to the point tale. There are no story frills here and it can get dry if you are not particularly interested. I was surprised to find all of the fine photographs of the animals, people and landscapes. The author clearly was very excited about telling his tale and tried to explain everything in good detail, probably many years later leaning a lot on notes from the time, perhaps a diary.I know there are a lot of negative reviews out there about his character. I suppose it goes without saying that if you are a member of PETA, this is not a book for you. Some reviewers didn't seem to understand that while in Africa, people studied wildlife by interacting and hunting it. Patterson was a brave man, clearly interested in animals and the wilderness. However he learned about his world in a different way than say Jane Goodall. You just have to be aware that he kills many animals throughout the book, but mentions many times how he respects the creatures.To sum it up, if you are offended by hunting, DO NOT buy this book. If you enjoy true tales of heroism, engineering and life in the wilderness, I would buy this book. It was a fast read as the old font is large and the pictures are numerous. The story about the famous Tsavo lions is only about 100 pages, the rest detail his other adventures in country.

Although some of the authors minor conclusions/theories about the lions have since been disproved, he is nonetheless an authority on them by applied experience and courage, and a majority of his thoughts are correct and have withstood a century of scrutiny. Aside from Jim Corbett (of India fame) I can think of no other hunter who so relentlessly and selflessly placed himself in danger so often for the benefit of the defenseless, yet is so modest of courage, and so honest about the fear that being the hunted brings to the surface of every human. This isn't Hollyweed special effects, this is not fiction, it is very little opinion and a whole lot of facts that the PETA crowd hates. Leopards and Lions, are the two species of animals that will place man on their menu options when they are hungry and do so without excuse or hesitation. They do not have to be old or injured, as hundreds of documented occurrences have proven. They are smart and cunning and the stealthiest of hunters, who decide, wisely, that a human is a nutritional meal that is safer & easier to kill then a 2000 lb. buffalo. When you go after man-eaters, in the real world of Africa, you are really placing yourself on the menu, and gambling you have the skill to save your own life.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book that was written so long ago. It not only gives a great and readable account of events but a great 'mind read' of the mind-set of the period. Patterson would have been a fascinating person to know for sure. My interest was peaked on this subject by the movie: "The Ghost and the Darkness" which has a great deal of 'artistic license' with the true history. Patterson tells his story well and keeps the reader eager for each succeeding chapter. The battle with the 'man-eaters' is only part of the story though. This is truly a telling of an engineer who built a railroad in the most primitive of conditions and a great look at Africa and its peoples in the time period. We, in the early 21st Century, need to look back through the eyes of contemporaries of the period to have proper perspective of the events and actions of that period. Patterson has given us a great 'window through time' in his book.

The first half of the book which dealt with "The Man-Eaters" was very good. The middle was a bit drawn out but he last quarter of the story was more interesting and picked up. From a technical standpoint I felt Patterson, courageous to a fault, has no business giving anyone advise on firearms to be used in the pursuit of African game. Punching holes into lions with 12 gauge slugs and .303 rifles of the day was irresponsible.

Lovely read

This book is a fascinating real life story of a time when men were men and the world was yet to be fully explored. It is so much more than the basis of the movie "The Ghost and the Darkness". It has many interesting stories about the frontier of Africa, the creatures who live there, the rigors of surviving in their habitat, and the deadly unpredictability that reigned there.If you are sensitive to the killing of animals for sport, this may not be the book for you. However, despite the trophy hunting of some now-endangered species, Patterson went on to manage massive wildlife preserves in order to maintain the wilderness for the enjoyment and prosperity of future generations. A very interesting and informative read!

If you love stories of adventure, survival, animal attacks, etc, then you will LOVE this book. It is written very well...it reads very smoothly and holds your attention the whole time. I finished this book in about a week. This man's time in East Africa was really fascinating. I do wish I had gotten a version with the pictures...this one only has one picture on the cover and I think that is why it is so cheap.

Não curti muito. O livro tem umas 200 páginas se bem me lembro, e eu comecei a ler por conta da história dos leões. Depois de um terço do livro, leões já abatidos, ele começa a contar de outras caçadas que continuou participando durante seu tempo na Africa. Daí desinteressei e parei de ler.

Very good read thoroughly enjoyed it. Strangely enough Africa seems more dangerous these days than in the days of Patterson.

super

The story is amazing, but the physical copy is not great. Several pages fell out while reading. Also, the author directs attention to images which are not present in the book. I wonder if their is a version of the story that includes these photos that he's referring to. I highly recommend this story, and the movie associated with it, "The Ghost and the Darkness," but not this copy.

Enjoyed the vivid picture and descriptions of late 19th century Colonial life and engineering in Africa. Also the pitting of man against nature's most ruthless killing machines when threatened by two man eating lions.But the second half of this book of African tales is all about big game hunting for 'sport' and 'play' - as the author calls it. I don't get this concept (in those times or nowadays) and, despite attempts to claim natural history advancement it left me feeling sad and sorry for having bought the book.