Life Of My Choice Paperback – 1 Jan. 1980

This is Thesiger's best book in my opinion. In addition to his well documented exploits in Arabia, it details his life as a representative of the British government in Sudan and his boyhood in what is now Ethiopia, He gives a graphic account of his experiences with African tribes, big game hunting and camel safaris to remote places as well as his time at private school and university. Although he had a privileged upbringing he never shirks hardship, discomfort and adventure. Widely regarded as the last of the great explorers, Thesiger provides a great read for the armchair explorer and an insight into a life no longer possible in this day and age. Can't wait to read it again!

A wonderful book by an extraordinary man on a fascinating life truthfully told with old world style, values warts and all , with an absolute passion for adventure by living and exploring with indigenous peoples whose lifestyles are sadly fast disappearing with the onrush of the modern world and materialism. A wonderful and insightful book well worth reading. A treasure! There is unlikely to be another life like Thesinger's.

Not much after 1945.Off course Thesinger wrote other books on other regions he visited later.

Wilfred Thesiger grew up in Absynnia and was one of the Colonial 'sons of the Empire. His book captures the wildness of the landscape, the traditions of indigenous peoples untouched by the modern world, the lifestyle of the colonial classe's and life in the British Army in the 20th Century.A unique book.

Having seen a film about the Empty Quarter on TV recently, I heard Thesiger names in the programme. I wanted to learn more so bought this book.As it happens, the book doesn't feature the Empty Quarter at all (that's in another book), but his description of travelling in Ethiopia, Darfur etc is riveting and features a world long gone now.A very good read.

Makes wonderful reading. Maps have new actuality.

One of the best books I have ever read. Period. What a life this man had. Tell your teens and college-age children to get their arses off the XBox and read this, and when they tell you they've nothing to do, tell them to work towards having as full a life as this man.

Outstanding Biography , Beautifully and Thoroughly Produced.His Vast Knowledge and Experience Increasingly Invaluable in thisChanging , Complex and Dangerous World , often fuelled by Ignorance

Received well, thank you

Wilfred Thesiger, I'm ashamed to admit, is a new discovery to me. After reading "Arabian Sands" a few days ago, I felt I had to learn more of his life. "The Life of My Choice" has many parallels to "Seven Pillars of Wisdom" and was so captivating that I had to read it in one sitting. T.E. Lawrence noted that "self-knowledge unfitted me for leadership." Thesiger puts that same sharp sword of introspection to his life. His observations on Lieutenant Colonel Orde Wingate and his thoughts on T.E. Lawrence are among the highlights of this book, as are his thoughts on Islam and Christianity.A son of privilege, son of the Minister of the British Legation in Addis Ababa, the author fell in love with the people of the wilderness, and always found his heroes and soul mates among the harshest tribes in the most forbidding territories. He acknowledges that some of his big game hunting exploits don't go over well 50 years afterwards, but takes care to explain the realities of the situation. He obviously has a strong feeling for the underdog in any fight, not something to be taken for granted in a highly decorated battlefield veteran.Thesiger's detailed account of the League of Nations standing by and watching the Italians brazenly use mustard gas on tens of thousands of Ethiopian soldiers and civilians reminds us of our own cowardice during more recent crimes against humanity.In this age when we are in such great need of heroic figures, I have no knowledge of a single leader of Wilfred Thesiger's caliber alive among us. Then again, Thesiger insisted on not living inside his own society, not seeking to be known by anyone other than himself. No doubt he must serve as the model for more than a few yet to be discovered British and American heroes now posted in remote and dangerous places.Surely one lesson to be taken from Mr. Thesiger's life is that we should live the lives our souls demand of us, consequences be damned. Mr. Thesiger realized as a young man that his path was a lonely one.I highly recommend "Fire and the Sword in the Sudan" by Colonels Rudolph Slatin and F.R. Wingate to any reader of Wilfred Thesiger. Slatin was held prisoner for 12 years in the Sudan during the 1880s and early 1890s.

Exceptional book and author

After reading Arabian Sands and The Marsh Arabs, this is the obvious place to go.Thesiger is (or sadly was) a remarkable individual. And individual he was.His physical toughness and deeply inquiring mind took him beyond what one might call safe or, indeed, sane. Yet he would survive slender odds by his own wits and the help of others to undertake another challenge. It wasn't hubris or being the first that drove him; he was simply deeply inquisitive. And focussed.He was at the same time a sensitive and compassionate man. His own achievements take a back seat. Not a false modesty, mind you; he states what needs to be said and leaves it at that.The best measure of Thesiger is to be found not in his own account of himself, but from the regard in which he was quite evidently held by those around him. I'm not about to list examples - read the books.His books are more than accounts of peripatetic adventures. They ascribe a world view. What is that view? Well, read his books.Oh, and the writing. Read Thesiger at your peril - he casts a long shadow.

An amazing life story a totally unique man. One of my treasured books for many years