Other editions of book Arabian Sands

"Following worthily in the tradition of Burton, Lawrence, Philby and Thomas, [Arabian Sands] is, very likely, the book about Arabia to end all books about Arabia." —The Daily Telegraph Arabian Sands is Wilfred Thesiger's record of his extraordinary journey through the parched "Empty Quarter" of Arabia. Educated at Eton and Oxford, Thesiger was repulsed by the softness and rigidity of Western life—"the machines, the calling cards, the meticulously aligned streets." In the spirit of T. E. Lawrence, he set out to explore the deserts of Arabia, traveling among peoples who had never seen a European and considered it their duty to kill Christian infidels. His now-classic account is invaluable to understanding the modern Middle East.

Arabian Sands is Wilfred Thesiger's stunning account of five years spent crossing the Arabian Peninsula by foot and on camels, with nomadic Bedouin tribesmen as guides. Travelling between 1945 and 1950, the British explorer treks through Yemen, the Empty Quarter, Oman, and parts of the then Trucial States, crossing and re-crossing around 250,000 miles of this most inhospitable terrain. He was the first European ever to set eyes on the dunes and wadis of these deserts. Faced with constant challenges and trials beneath the punishing sun, his journey is also spiritual and enriching, as it requires the utmost courage, patience, generosity, and humor. In clear and evocative prose, Thesiger documents a journey of unimaginable hardship and startling beauty, as well as a time, place, and people on the cusp of change.

Wilfred Thesiger was born in Addis Ababa in 1910 and educated at Eton and Oxford. Though British, he was repulsed by the softness and rigidity of Western life, "the machines, the calling cards, the meticulously aligned streets, etc." In the spirit of T.E. Lawrence, Thesiger spent five years exploring and wandering the deserts of Arabia. With vivid descriptions and colorful anecdotes he narrates his stories, including two crossings of the Empty Quarter, among peoples who had never seen a European and considered it their duty to kill Christian infidels.

Arabian Sands is Wilfred Thesigers stunning account of five years spent crossing the Arabian Peninsula by foot and on camels, with nomadic Bedouin tribesmen as guides. Traveling between 1945 and 1950, the British explorer treks through Yemen, The Empty Quarter, Oman and parts of the then Trucial States, crossing and re-crossing around 250,000 miles of this most inhospitable terrain. He was the first European ever to set eyes on the dunes and wadis of these deserts. Faced with constant challenges and trials beneath the punishing sun, his journey is also spiritual and enriching, as it requires the utmost courage, patience, generosity and humor. In clear and evocative prose, Thesiger documents a journey of unimaginable hardship and startling beauty, as well as a time, place and people on the cusp of change.

Arabian Sands has never been out of print since it was first published, to great critical acclaim, in 1959. This new edition contains all the original photographs. With this book Wilfred Thesiger took his place among the few great Arabian travellers - not only as an explorer but as a writer. Doughty, Lawrence, Bertram Thomas and St John Philby preceded him but, as St John Philby himself said, 'The crowning touches have been placed on this exploratory activity in Arabia by Wilfred Thesiger, who is probably the greatest of all the explorers...' Arabian Sands covers the five years ending in 1950 which, with the exception of brief interruptions only, Thesiger spent in and around the Empty Quarter, the half million square miles of one of the cruellest deserts of the world. Before him, no other traveller, European or Arab - apart from the Bedu who live there - had twice dared to cross those empty wastes. Travelling without European companions and living as an Arab, Thesiger's experience and