Zambia Travel Guide
Zambia Travel Guide
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Further reading

Zambia Travel Guide

Further reading



APPENDIX 3

FURTHER READING

Historical


Africa: A Biography of the Continent by John Reader. 1997. Penguin Books Ltd, 27 Wrights Lane, London W8 5TZ, England. ISBN 0-241-13047-6. Over 700 pages of highly readable history, interwoven with facts and statistics, to make a remarkable overview of Africa's past. Given that Zambia's boundaries were imposed from Europe, its history must be looked at from a pan-African context to be understood. This book can show you that wider view; it is compelling and essential reading. Chapter 47 is largely devoted to the Lozi people.

A History of Zambia by Andrew Roberts. 1976. Africana Publishing Company, a division of Holmes & Meier Publishers, 30 Irving Place, New York, NY 10003. ISBN 0-8419-0291-7. A detailed and complete history of Zambia, from prehistory to 1974.

Black Heart – Gore-Browne & the Politics of Multiracial Zambia by Robert I Rotberg. 1977. University of California Press, Berkley. ISBN 0-520-03164-4

David Livingstone and the Victorian Encounter with Africa. 1996. National Portrait Gallery, London. ISBN 1-85514-185-X. Six essays on Livingstone's life, concentrating on not only what he did, but also on how he was perceived in the UK.

Lusaka and its Environs ed Geoffrey J Williams. ISBN 9982 800 01 9

Tales of Zambia by Dick Hobson. 1996. Zambia Society Trust, London. ISBN 0-952–7092–5–2. This is a lovely book, cataloguing big moments in Zambia's history, as well as some of its quirkier incidents and characters. It has sections on legends, mining, and the country's flora and fauna and is very readable. Dick Hobson's knowledge and love of Zambia shine through.

The Africa House by Christine Lamb. 1999. Viking. ISBN 0-670-87727-1. This is a fascinating book, piecing together the life and times of Sir Stewart Gore-Browne from diaries, correspondence and memories. It's a spellbinding tale, told eloquently. If this can't convey the fascination of Shiwa, and make you want to see it, then nothing can.

The Lake of the Royal Crocodiles by Eileen Bigland. Hodder and Stoughton, 1939.
Travels and Researches in Southern Africa by David Livingstone. 1857. This classic is fascinating reading, over a century after it was written.

Guidebooks


A Visitor's Guide to Nyika National Park, Malawi by Sigrid Anna Johnson. Mbabazi Book Trust, Blantyre. Length 150 pages; costs around US$4. It is available at most good bookshops in Blantyre and Lilongwe, and at the park reception at Chilinda. The book provides a detailed historical and ecological background to Nyika, 20 pages of special-interest sites and notes on recommended walks and hikes, as well as complete checklists of all mammals, birds, butterflies and orchids which are known to occur in the park. In short, an essential purchase.

Kasanka – A Visitor's Guide to Kasanka National Park by Lucy Farmer. First published July 1992 by the Kasanka Trust. A superb little 36-page guide, which includes comprehensive sections on the geography, vegetation, wildlife, birdlife, and facilities for visitors at Kasanka. Get hold of a copy if you can – try the Kasanka Trust in the UK, the Wildlife Shop in Lusaka, or the main Wasa Lodge in the park. Note that its map of the park's roads is now inaccurate.

National Monuments of Zambia by D W Phillipson, revised by N M Katanekwa. First published in Zambia by the National Heritage Conservation Commission in 1972 (4th printing 1992). Look for this small, green paperback around Lusaka, and buy it if you see one as they're quite scarce. It describes all of Zambia's national monuments, including many historical monuments, archaeological sites, and even places of great scenic beauty – with some great old black-and-white photos.

Travelogues


Pole to Pole by Michael Palin. 1999. BBC Consumer Publishing, UK. ISBN: 0563551062. This has an excellent section on Zambia, and Shiwa Ng'andu in particular is covered well.

Survivor's Song: Life and Death in an African Wilderness by Mark & Delia Owens. First published in the UK by HarperCollins in 1993. Published as The Eye of the Elephant in the USA. ISBN 0-00-638096-4. This relates the authors' struggles to protect the wildlife of North Luangwa National Park from poachers, and their efforts to develop viable alternatives to poaching for the local people. It is excellent reading, though insiders complain of sensationalism, and that it ignores valuable contributions made by others.

Kakuli: A Story about Wild Animals by Norman Carr. 1996. CBC Publishing. ISBN 0797-415785. A collection of Norman Carr's tales from his time in the Luangwa Valley. Excellent light reading whilst on safari.

General reference


An Explorer's Handbook – Travel, Survival and Bush Cookery by Christina Dodwell. 1984. Hodder and Stoughton, 47 Bedford Square, London, WC1B 3DP. ISBN 0-340-34937-9. 170+ pages of both practical and amusing anecdotes, including chapters on 'unusual eatables', 'building an open fire', and 'tested exits from tight corners'. Practical advice for both plausible and most unlikely eventualities – and it's a great read.

Zambia – Debt & Poverty by John Clark. 1989. Oxfam, 274 Banbury Road, Oxford, OX2 7DZ. This slim volume looks with clarity at Zambia's international debt, its causes and its consequences.

Zambia: Condemned to Debt May 2004, published by the World Development Movement, 25 Beehive Place, London, SW9 7QR; www.wdm.org.uk. The WDM is a charity which researches into global trade and debt trends, and campaigns for policies to reduce injustice and tackle poverty.

Wildlife and natural history reference


A Field Guide to Zambian Birds not found in Southern Africa by Dylan Aspinwall and Carl Beel. 1998. Zambian Ornithological Society. ISBN 9982-811-00-1. This excellent small guide is designed to complement a book covering Africa south of the Zambezi, like Newman's guide, by describing only the birds occurring in Zambia which aren't included in Newman's guide. It's widely available in Zambia, but difficult to find elsewhere.

African Wild Dog Survey in Zambia by Kenneth Buk of the Zoological Museum, PO Box 60086, University of Copenhagen. This piece of academic research looked at the distribution of wild dogs in Zambia in 1994, the reasons for their decline, and their possibilities for long-term survival.

A Guide to Common Wild Mammals of Zambia. 1991. Wildlife and Environmental Conservation Society of Zambia. ISBN 9982-05-000-1. A small field guide to the more common species, obtainable from the Wildlife Shop in Lusaka, or direct from the WECSZ.

A Guide to Reptiles, Amphibians & Fishes of Zambia. 1993. Wildlife Conservation Society of Zambia. ISBN 9982-05-001-X. Another good guide to the more common species, obtainable from the Wildlife Shop in Lusaka, or direct from the WECSZ.

A Guide to the Common Wild Flowers of Zambia and Neighbouring Regions. 1995. Macmillan Educational Ltd, London. ISBN 0-333-64038-1. This is a good small field guide to the more common species, obtainable from the Wildlife Shop in Lusaka, or direct from the WECSZ.

A Guide to the Wildlife of the Luangwa Valley by Norman Carr. Montford Press, Limbe, Malawi. First edition 1985, revised and reprinted '87 and '97. This small paperback (70 pages) was written by the valley's most famous guide and conservationist. It's not comprehensive, but is fascinating for the author's personal insights into the Luangwa area and its wildlife.

Common Birds of Zambia. Revised 1993. Zambian Ornithological Society. ISBN 9982-9901-0-1. A good small field guide to the more common species, obtainable from the Wildlife Shop in Lusaka, or direct from the WECSZ.

Common Trees, Shrubs and Grasses of the Luangwa Valley by P P Smith. 1995. Trendrine Press, Zennor, St Ives, Cornwall. ISBN 0-9512562-3-8. This small, practical field guide has pictures to aid identification at the back, and includes a small section on the value to wildlife of the various plants.

Minerals of Zambia by Gerald Cooray and Andrew Lane. Published by Nchanga Consolidated Copper Mines Ltd.

Newman's Birds of Southern Africa by Kenneth Newman. Southern Book Publishers, PO Box 3103, Halfway House 1685, South Africa. ISBN 1-86812-623-4. This has been re-published numerous times since its first edition in 1988 and has become the standard field guide to birds in southern Africa, south of the Kunene and Zambezi Rivers. It also covers most species found in Zambia.

Important Birding Areas in Zambia by Peter Leonard. Due to be published in late 2004, this will be the most comprehensive survey of the country's top birding areas – complete with a lot of other useful detail about Zambia's ecology, flora and fauna.

Health


Bugs, Bites & Bowels by Dr Jane Wilson-Howarth. Published in the UK by Cadogan Books Plc, London House, Parkgate Road, London SW11 4NQ. Distributed in the US by Globe Pequot Press. ISBN 0-86011-045-2. An amusing and erudite overview of the hazards of tropical travel which is small enough to take with you.

Your Child Abroad: A Travel Health Guide by Dr Jane Wilson-Howarth and Dr Matthew Ellis. Second edition 2004. Published in the UK by Bradt Travel Guides Ltd. An invaluable resource for all those travelling with children.

Websites


Website addresses seem to change frequently, especially in Zambia, but some of the more interesting include:

www.zambiatourism.com This large Zambian resource has been well put together. It includes extensive general information.

www.lowdown.co.zm An electronic version of The Lowdown, Lusaka's monthly magazine (see page 156). It's topical, informative and fun.

www.expertafrica.com Expert Africa's home page, including an on-line version of virtually all of the information in this guide, and other guides I write, such as Bradt's Namibia guide. Watch for regular updates, articles and info here.

www.times.co.zm The extensive side of the Times of Zambia. Featuring the main stories of the day, plus a searchable (but not listed) archive containing selected stories from June 2001 to the present day.

www.zamnet.zm/zamnet/post/post.html For a more independent view, look at this site from The Post newspaper. It usually takes a more objective, critical and questioning approach.

www.zambia.co.zm Bills itself as 'the national homepage of Zambia', and has some useful links.


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