( 6 reviews )
-
Posted: Apr 24 2008
These letters are the life and thoughts of an honest-to-God human female--a real woman, not a trumped-up tricked-out product of society. She is inspiring, honest, real, and as wild and natural as Africa itself was during her time. Every woman who has truly lived, even a little, will see herself in these pages. I reread it every few years as a pep-talk for courageous living, humility, and honesty. I will forever feel sad that she had to leave Africa.
-
Posted: Dec 30 2007
I actually had several of Isak Dinesen's works - "Out of Africa," her seven tales, and her book of letters. I hadn't seen the movie and I honestly wasn't even that interested in Africa or Danish people. But I'm fascinated by women's letters, and that is why I bought this book. I have read these letters and nothing else by her, to be quite honest, and these letters have inspired me to read more of her writings (once I stop finding other women's letters in book form to read). I share all of the other reviewers' observations and feelings toward this book, so I won't repeat them. One thing I will add is that it is truly fascinating to read passages of her letters that have to deal with hunting game ... I don't know much about Africa or its colonizations, but if I recall, the colonizing didn't start until late in the 19th century - when "game" was more than plentiful. Even with this in mind, I couldn't help but be appalled when she recited the numbers of animals that were killed simply for sport. This bias aside, these letters made it easy to see how animals became endangered and extinct. Obviously, there is more to the letters than hunting - otherwise I never would have read the entire book. Karen Blixen was obviously a very determined, passionate woman and this came through in her letters. Her voice and her descriptions of her life in Africa made these letters worth reading to someone who previously had no interest in the colonization of Africa.
-
Posted: Apr 24 2007
"... huge distant blue mountains and the vast grassy plains before them covered with zebra and gazelle, and at night I can hear lions roaring like the thunder of guns in the darkness". Passages such as this one make it worthwhile to read this book. Karen Blixen is a master at poetically describing her foreign surroundings. If you enjoy the movie and the book Out of Africa then you will enjoy reading this book. Although at times the letters are repetitious and the author tends to ramble on, it is still an interesting book as it allows the reader to look through a window into Colonial East Africa from 1914 to 1931. The reader is able to go into Karen Blixen's mind and follow her daily struggles, joys and sorrows during her long stay in Africa and through her many safaris. This book unlike Out of Africa is not written through rose colored lenses. As you read this book, you feel a much harsher Africa. Also in this book she writes about her lover Dennis Finch-Hatton and doesn't hide the fact that she's crazy about him from her family. I highly recommend this book to any fan of Karen Blixen/Isak Dinesen.
