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Book ReviewsDeath in the Long Grass |
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Book: Death in the Long Grass
Written by: Peter H. Capstick |
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Average Customer Rating: 5.0 / 5
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A Pinnacle of Africana Hunting Literature
Rating:
5 / 5
Of probably two centuries of classic African Hunting literature, "Death in the Long Grass" stands out as the most candid, the most credible, and the grittiest, most well-written, most fascinating and entertaining book you'll find. Hunter, Non-Hunter or anti-Hunter, you'll be rapt by "Death in the Long Grass", IF you're steady enough to read it. Capstick relates true tales of encounters between men and animals who do not share Man's high opinion of himself with wry candor and his trademark dark wit. "Long Grass" is not for people who are afraid of the dark or who think Man has Nature under control, ...or maybe it is. Capstick doesn't put you "on the scene" - he puts you "IN the scene", and "bored" is not the reaction you will have. Sci-fi can be scary because it COULD POSSIBLY happen, but Reality can often leave that in the dust simply because it HAS happened and COULD EASILY happen again.
And that is the brand of Reality Peter Capstick delivers.
I once met Capstick
Rating:
5 / 5
I would like to begin this by saying "It would have been nice to have met him in Africa" but alas it was selling real estate in Naples, Florida. Capstick stopped by to pick up a key for one of our listings. I had no idea who he was, of course, however, he was without a doubt a memorable figure. Tall, a bit gaunt, very present and powerful in who he was.About a month later I saw it advertised that he was at a book signing for his first book "Death in the Tall Grass" I did not go to the signing or for that matter never saw him again but years later I purchased this title at a used book store. It was first class reading and count me among those who could not put it down.
Great classic of adventure writing
Rating:
5 / 5
Capstick's memoirs of his adventures as a hunter are legendary and were eagerly read by millions of readers in the magazines and books where he first published his stories. In this book he recounts numerous suspenseful and harrowing tales of hunters of the 7 big game animals in Africa--lion, elephant, leopart, cape buffalo, hippo, crocodile, and rhino, as well as some minor ones, including hyenas and snakes--only as Capstick says--the hunters sometimes ended up as the hunted.
One brief note, Capstick first started out as an independent hunter, but eventually gained enough experience to lead safaris and start up his own hunting safari operation, becoming at that point a "professional white hunter," or "PWH" as it's known in the trade. However, this name refers to any non-African professional game hunter and so doesn't necessarily refer to being white. During this time, Capstick got to know many famous hunters whose exploits, in addition to his own, he recounts in this book.
There are so many stories here that I'll just limit myself to the ones about lions. One fascinating part is his tales of hunters who killed known man-eaters who had often eaten dozens or even hundreds of victims before being finally dispatched. Many of these hunters, such as J.H. Patterson, operated back in the days of the so-called belted magnums in the early part of the last century, long before modern elephant guns and hunting rifles were created.
The great man-eating lion hunter, George Rushby, starting in 1942, began hunting one such pride. In the two years of hard work it took him to track down all the lions and kill the pride, the lions added another 249 confirmed human kills to their total.
However, that total pales in comparison to the Njombe man-eaters, perhaps the most infamous pride of all, who killed 1500 natives and colonists before Rushby finally killed them all. Rushby is justly famous for his exploits and his story made for truly fascinating reading.
Capstick also recounts the adventures of Lt. Col. J.H. Patterson, another legendary figure of the early 1900s whose book is also famous. Patterson is famous as the hunter who killed the man-eaters of Tsavo who were killing the Indian coolies brought in to build the Ugandan railroad, also known as the "Lunacy Express." As Capstick, says, the lions treated the whole affair as one big, long, human buffet, killing more people than were used in the shooting of the movie, "Bhowani Junction" (although it doesn't say how many that was).
Some areas of Africa are more prone to have man-eaters than others. Another of the most dangerous areas is the Luangwa Valley of Zambia (formerly N. Rhodesia). Peter Hankin, one of the most respected white hunters in Africa, was killed there by a man-eater after a long and distinguished career.
Capstick points out that the risks of man-eaters are often downplayed by officials and by the governments for fear of scaring off tourists. One time, Capstick found that in just on six month period as a professional hunter in Zambia, he learned of six cases of man-eating in just one concession of 20 by 60 miles, but which was not publicized.
One more comment if you're going to read this book, which is that Capstick includes very accurate, detailed, and often gruesome descriptions of the eaten victims. He points out that very often lions consume the entire body, including blood-stained clothes, leather boots, and the bones. I have to admit I read those parts with a sort of queasy and morbid fascination. However, in the course of reading this book you will also learn a lot about the dangers and risks of big game hunting and how some of the best plied their trade. It was very interesting to learn about some of the skills needed and about the fatal mistakes or near fatal mistakes to avoid.
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