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South Africa & Namibia

READING AND TRAVEL GUIDE

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Books for

Enrich your travels with reading! Here's a hand-picked list prepared for your journey in conjunction with the book experts at Longitude.

Essential Reading

Item EXSAF234. Buy these 5 items as a set for $100 including shipping, 15% off the retail price.
With free shipping on anything else you order.

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Insight Guide South Africa

Insight Guide South Africa

by Insight Guides

  • GUIDEBOOK
  • 2011
  • PAPER
  • 384 PAGES

South Africa is brought to life in hundreds of color photographs and vividly written essays by a team of experts. Panoramic in scope, the guide takes us from Johannesburg out into the veldt, providing genuine insight into the history, nature and modern politics of this complex land. (SAF21, $24.99)

Bradt Guide Namibia

Bradt Guide Namibia

by Chris McIntyre

  • GUIDEBOOK
  • 2011
  • PAPER
  • 544 PAGES

From the desolate Skeleton Coast to the lush Kavango and Caprivi Strip, or the picturesque capital, Windhoek, Bradt has it covered. (NMB06, $26.99)

South Africa, A Traveler's Literary Companion

South Africa, A Traveler's Literary Companion

by Isabel Balseiro | Tobias Hecht

  • ANTHOLOGY
  • 2009
  • PAPER
  • 239 PAGES

This diverse collection of short stories reveals South Africa through the eyes of its writers, including numerous renowned names such as Nadine Gordimer, J.M. Coetzee and Alan Paton. (SAF236, $14.95)

The Wildlife of Southern Africa, A Field Guide to the Animals and Plants of the Region

The Wildlife of Southern Africa, A Field Guide to the Animals and Plants of the Region

by Vincent Carruthers | Kenneth Newman

  • FIELD GUIDE
  • 2008
  • PAPER
  • 320 PAGES
  • BEST SELLER

With 1,200 color illustrations by a range of experts, this compact field guide includes all the birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, insects, fish and plants that a traveler is likely to encounter in Southern Africa. (SAF59, $29.95)

Southern Africa Regional Map

Southern Africa Regional Map

by ITMB

  • 2008
  • MAP

A double-sided map of the continent south of the Zambezi River, at a scale of 1:2,125,000, with color photographs and notes on parks and major attractions. (SAF63, $12.95)

 
Cape Town and Region Map

Cape Town and Region Map


by National Geographic

  • MAP

This double-sided map includes Cape Town, Table Mountain National Park and other reserves south to Cape of Good Hope. (SAF161, $11.95)

Cape Winelands, A Touring Guide

Cape Winelands, A Touring Guide


by Theresa Morrison | Lanz von Horsten

  • GUIDEBOOK
  • 2000
  • PAPER
  • 120 PAGES
  • HARD TO FIND ELSEWHERE

An informative, visual tour of 40 favorite wineries, all close to Cape Town. With fold-out maps, color photographs and information on restaurants, picnic spots and lodging. (SAF128, $20.00)

Culture Smart! South Africa

Culture Smart! South Africa


by David Holt-Biddle

  • GUIDEBOOK
  • 2007
  • PAPER
  • 168 PAGES

This handy guide will help you navigate local customs, etiquette and culture. (SAF169, $9.95)

Time Out Cape Town

Time Out Cape Town


by Time Out

  • GUIDEBOOK
  • 2009
  • PAPER
  • 280 PAGES

Compact, informative and lively, this outstanding guide covers where to go and what to do in Cape Town and surroundings. (SAF164, $19.95)

A History of South Africa

A History of South Africa


by Leonard Thompson

  • HISTORY
  • 2001
  • PAPER
  • 358 PAGES

A succinct history of South Africa, especially strong on early Africans and European colonization. (SAF101, $17.95)

Beyond the Miracle, Inside the New South Africa

Beyond the Miracle, Inside the New South Africa


by Allister Sparks

  • HISTORY
  • 2009
  • PAPER
  • 408 PAGES

The South African journalist (Tomorrow is Another Country), continues the tale of the transformation of South Africa and its accomplishments, failures and challenges in the decade following the collapse of Apartheid. (SAF166, $20.00)

Picturing Bushmen, The Denver African Expedition of 1925

Picturing Bushmen, The Denver African Expedition of 1925


by Robert James Gordon

  • CULTURAL PORTRAIT
  • 1997
  • PAPER
  • 325 PAGES

Serious-minded, wonderfully illustrated and informative, this book not only documents the 1925 expedition to Etosha in search of the "Bushman," it also cleverly shows the key role of the expedition in romanticizing the Heikum. (NMB05, $24.95)

The Making of Modern South Africa, Conquest, Apartheid, Democracy

The Making of Modern South Africa, Conquest, Apartheid, Democracy


by Nigel Worden

  • HISTORY
  • 2007
  • PAPER
  • 198 PAGES

This well-researched, readable primer covers South African history from colonial conquest to the end of apartheid and beyond, with an updated chapter focusing on 1994 to 2007. Worden is a history professor at the University of Cape Town. (SAF222, $36.95)

The Scramble for Africa

The Scramble for Africa


by Thomas Pakenham

  • HISTORY
  • 1992
  • PAPER
  • 738 PAGES

Absorbing and meticulously researched, this in-depth history of the Victorian land grab in Africa includes excellent portraits of the egomaniacal personalities who overran the continent. (AFR26, $23.99)

Tomorrow is Another Country, The Inside Story of South Africa's Road to Change

Tomorrow is Another Country, The Inside Story of South Africa's Road to Change


by Allister Sparks

  • HISTORY
  • 1996
  • PAPER
  • 254 PAGES

Sparks explores the extraordinary developments that led to multiracial democracy in South Africa, an essential key to understanding South Africa today, (SAF31, $25.00)

Long Walk to Freedom

Long Walk to Freedom


by Nelson Mandela

  • BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR
  • 1995
  • PAPER
  • 640 PAGES

An unpretentious tale of an extraordinary life, Mandela's autobiography is essential reading for an understanding of South Africa. His grace and his love for his country shine throughout. (SAF15, $17.99)

My Traitor's Heart

My Traitor's Heart


by Rian Malan

  • BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR
  • 2000
  • PAPER
  • 425 PAGES
  • FAVORITE

The Afrikaner and journalist recounts his return to his homeland just before the collapse of Apartheid. Malan grapples with the black and white heart of South Africa, drawing on the 300-year history of his family in Africa, legends of the Zulu nation and some brutally honest reporting. (SAF19, $15.00)

Beethoven Was One-Sixteenth Black

Beethoven Was One-Sixteenth Black


by Nadine Gordimer

  • LITERATURE
  • 2008
  • PAPER
  • 192 PAGES

The Nobel Prize winner daringly explores racial identity, sexuality and loss in this latest, marvelous collection of South African tales. (SAF221, $14.00)

Cry, The Beloved Country

Cry, The Beloved Country


by Alan Paton

  • LITERATURE
  • 2003
  • PAPER
  • 317 PAGES

The deeply moving story of Reverend Kumalo's quest for justice. First published in 1948, it is a striking, poetic tribute to the power of the individual and a trenchant indictment of Apartheid. (SAF30, $15.00)

Life & Times of Michael K

Life & Times of Michael K


by J.M. Coetzee

  • LITERATURE
  • 1995
  • PAPER
  • 184 PAGES

Coetzee sets this short, hallucinatory novel, the powerful tale of a troubled boy, in South Africa in the midst of civil war. (SAF17, $14.00)

The Conservationist

The Conservationist


by Nadine Gordimer

  • LITERATURE
  • 1983
  • PAPER
  • 272 PAGES

Gordimer's subtle Booker-prize winning novel portrays a wealthy South African industrialist who makes moves to preserve his way of life, his power, and his possessions in the face of massive injustice. (SAF218, $16.00)

Africa's Big Five

Africa's Big Five


by Gerald Hinde

  • NATURAL HISTORY
  • 2005
  • HARD COVER
  • 144 PAGES

Bestseller. Gerald Hinde teamed up with colleagues William Taylor and Richard du Toit for this portrait of the lion, elephant, leopard, rhino and buffalo, featuring hundreds of color photographs by the accomplished trio. (AFR178, $39.95)

Kingdon Pocket Guide to African Mammals

Kingdon Pocket Guide to African Mammals


by Jonathan Kingdon

  • FIELD GUIDE
  • 2004
  • PAPER
  • 272 PAGES

An artist and biologist, Kingdon provides both delightful full-color illustrations and informative text. (EAF128, $24.95)

Newman's Birds of Southern Africa

Newman's Birds of Southern Africa


by Kenneth Newman

  • FIELD GUIDE
  • 2010
  • PAPER
  • 538 PAGES

This commemorative tenth edition celebrates the contribution of the late author, Kenneth Newman, fully revised and updated by his daughter, Vanessa Newman, to reflect the latest research, taxonomy and common names. (SAF29, $26.00)

The Safari Companion

The Safari Companion


by Richard Estes

  • FIELD GUIDE
  • 1999
  • PAPER
  • 459 PAGES
  • BEST SELLER

An invaluable encyclopedic guide to Africa's mammals by a noted scientist. Written with the typical safari-goer in mind, this perennial bestseller includes black-and-white drawings, an overview of each group and in-depth information. (AFR06, $30.00)

More Recommendations

Here are some other groups of books that might be of interest

Longitude provides recommended reading for travelers in partnership with the leading tour operators and travel programs for hundreds of destinations worldwide. We've got the classic, new and hard-to-find books and maps to help you get the most out of your adventures.