The Amazon – Bradt Travel Guide

Overall Impression We found this book exceptionally informative. It was actually two guides in one. The first part was a fascinating 160-page treasure trove of information about the flora, fauna, cultures and socio-political events that shaped the Amazonian world, including a number of vignettes on history, climate and current ecological challenges. Additionally, it provided us with a wealth of realistic facts on topics ranging from health issues to what to pack for a visit to the area. We found it an invaluable resource in planning our recent visit to the Western Amazon. We subsequently had daily opportunities to be glad that we had followed the authors’ sound practical advice on clothing, footwear and personal necessities selection. This enabled us to travel more comfortably, and lighter than we ever thought possible.

The second part of the book was a set of mini-guides that provided an informative overview of each of the nine countries in the Amazon basin: Venezuela (25 pages), Colombia (25 pages), Ecuador (37 pages), Peru (49 pages), Bolivia (31 pages), Brazil (61 pages), Guyana, French Guiana and Suriname (10 pages each). The chapter on Peru was the only one of immediate interest to us on this trip. It contained useful general travel information, including transportation, national wildlife preserves and lodges. There were also three short, helpful appendices at the end of the book. Appendix One (two pages) was a directory of the U.S., U.K., Canadian and Australian Embassies and Consulates in the various countries of the Amazon. Appendix Two (six pages) was a handy English/Spanish glossary of commonly used words, complete with phonetic pronunciation. Appendix Three (eight pages) offered recommendations for further readings as well as a list of websites. It was similar to the structure of the book: background and natural history-related readings and websites first, followed by general information books and sites for the various countries.

While we also perused country-specific guides for more detailed information on various points of interest along the way, we found The Amazon to be the best written, most useful and enjoyable travel book we came across on the subject. We took it along on our trip and frequently consulted its extensive Natural History chapter (61 pages) to research animals or plants that we had observed during our explorations.

Authors Roger Harris & Peter Hutchinson.

Date Of Publication 2003 (2^nd edition)

Isbn Number 1 4162 070 X

Number Of Pages 448

Price $19.95

Publisher Globe Pequot Press

Size 8.5″ x5.4″x0.9″

Weight 1 lb and 1 oz

Date Of Review September 2005

ReviewersArticle by Josette King