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A Guide to the Birds of East Africa
| Our Price |
$ 10.88
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| Retail Value |
$ 13.95 |
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| You Save |
$ 3.07 (22%) |
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| Item Number |
2402050 |
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Item Description...
Overview
Working up the nerve to invite Rose Mbikwa, the woman he has secretly loved for three years, to the Nairobi Hunt Club Ball, Mr. Malik, a reserved widower, is confronted by the return of his school nemesis, the flashy Harry Kahn, who also sets his sights on Rose, and embarks on a bird-identification competition for the prize of Rose's company at the ball. Reprint.
Publishers Description
For the past three years, Mr. Malik has been secretly in love with Rose Mbikwa, a woman who leads the weekly bird walks sponsored by the East African Ornithological Society. Just as Malik is getting up the nerve to invite Rose to the Nairobi Hunt Club Ball (the premier social occasion of the Kenyan calendar), Harry Khan, a nemesis from his school days, arrives in town. Khan has also become enraptured with Rose and announces his intent to invite her to the Ball. Rather than force Rose to choose between the two men, a clever solution is proposed. Whoever can identify the most species of birds in one week's time gets the privilege of asking Ms. Mbikwa to the ball. Drayson's charming descriptions of the Kenyan wildlife and his sharp take on the foibles and follies of the people and politics sketch a rich picture of contemporary life in Nairobi. Fans of Alexander McCall Smith will delight in this transporting and witty novel. |
Item Specifications...
Pages 202
Dimensions: Length: 0.75" Width: 5.5" Height: 8"
Weight: 0.35 lbs.
Binding Softcover
Release Date Sep 10, 2009
ISBN 0547247958
EAN 9780547247953
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Availability 8 units.
Availability accurate as of May 26, 2012 08:08.
Usually ships within one to two business days from Momence, IL.
Orders shipping to an address other than a confirmed Credit Card / Paypal Billing address may incur and additional processing delay.
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Reviews - What do our customers think?
 | Charming Jan 18, 2010 |
| This is a lovely, charming story in which nothing much happens -- certainly nothing very serious. I enjoyed reading its 200 pages and was sorry when it was over. | | |  | Imagine my surprise Oct 31, 2009 |
| The real title of this book is "A Guide to the Birds of East Africa; A Novel" I thought I was purchasing a guide book only to discover, when it arrived, that it was a novel. A fictional love story at that. While bird identification was my goal, I also enjoy reading novels. | | |  | Romancing a bird Oct 15, 2009 |
This charming story set in Nairobi, Kenya before the recent troubles is set in a world I'm afraid no longer exists. Mr. Malik, a timid subdued gentleman of Indian decent, is a member of the Asadi Club, a vestige of colonial days founded in 1903. A bet is made between gentlemen over beers at the club that whichever one counts the most birds before the Hunt Club Ball will have the honor of taking Rose Mbikwa, a widow of genteel breeding. Each bird hunting trek takes us into another aspect of life in Kenya. Day safaris to outlying regions explorations to nearby birding hotspots that include a very sorry incident for Mr. Malik in the local cemetery flesh out the story. The realities of living in a country with political upheaval, threatened wildlife and a failing infrastructure are revealed without malice. This is a fun romp written with a tongue in cheek humor. So many birds are identified, I felt I needed a real Guide to Birds of East Africa to help me keep track.
Linda Ballou-Author of Wai-nani, High Chiefess of Hawaii
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| | |  | Cloying Jun 29, 2009 |
| There is so much excellent fiction coming out of Africa, I can not understand the enthusiasm over this anemic story. The characters are all caricatures from some bygone era, sadly lacking in emotional range, insight or thought. The story reads like a dream -- not a heavenly dream, but a narcoleptic plod through scenery with nice props (the birds). In fact, even the scenery and the birds are not described with much skill. The cleverest thing about it is the title. | | | | Delightful characters May 3, 2009 |
| This charming story is reminiscent of the books of Alexander McCall Smith about Botswana, but this one is set in Kenya. No blood, no gore, no serial killers. What a pleasant change. The characters are beautifully drawn and one begins to feel real empathy with them and their situations. | | | Write your own review about A Guide to the Birds of East Africa
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