- Hardcover: 326 pages
- Publisher: Houghton Mifflin (T) (Aug 1983)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0395282179
- ISBN-13: 978-0395282175
- Product Dimensions: 22.9 x 16.3 x 3.8 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 832,800 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Description
Amazon.co.uk Review
Gorillas in the Mist is the story of Dian Fossey, an occupational therapist from Kentucky who, in 1963 travelled to central Africa in the quixotic hope of seeing a mountain gorilla in its natural habitat. Fossey had read everything she could about the reclusive and much-feared animal, and she returned from her trip convinced that most of the books were wrong.
During her seven-week stay in Africa, Fossey had a chance encounter with the famed primatologists Mary and Louis Leakey, who encouraged her to follow her dream of living among the mountain gorillas and learning their ways. In 1967 she did just that, setting up a camp on the slopes of the 14,000-foot Virunga Volcanoes of Rwanda and studying four gorilla families there. Although it took them some time to accept Fossey's presence among them, she was immediately impressed by their peaceful nature and by their generous, guileless behaviour--so unlike the images found in popular culture.
But, Fossey discovered, despite their peaceable way of life, the gorillas had many enemies in the form of poachers who hunted them for their hands, skins and heads--ghastly remains sold to the tourist market. Much of Fossey's thoughtful but often rightly angry memoir Gorillas in the Mist is a well-reasoned plea for the protection of the gorillas and the suppression of the poachers' black market. That argument found a wide audience when her book was published in 1983, but Fossey's work remains unfinished: she was murdered, probably by those very poachers, in 1985, and today there are fewer than 650 mountain gorillas in the wild. To read Gorillas in the Mist is a first step for anyone concerned with their preservation, and that of other wild species everywhere. --Gregory McNamee --This text refers to the Paperback edition.
Book Description
Dian Fossey¿s classic account of four gorilla families ¿ the basis for the major movie starring Sigourney Weaver
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First Sentence
I SPENT MANY YEARS longing to go to Africa, because of what that continent offered in its wilderness and great diversity of free-living animals. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
I SPENT MANY YEARS longing to go to Africa, because of what that continent offered in its wilderness and great diversity of free-living animals. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I absolutely love this book. It's a fantastic recollection of Dian Fossey's time with the mountain gorillas of Rwanda. The way she writes completely drew me in to her story and I really empathised with her feelings in times of anger, sadness, happiness and relief. The sections of colour and black and white photos add to the text and make it easier to visualise what is going on. The appendix which contains scientific information including birth rate graphs, autopsy results and parasitology sections made it all the more interesting for me, as a biomedical sciences student. I would recommend this book to any primate lover or 'wannabe' animal researcher/conservationist. Dian Fossey's story here has really inspired me to follow my dreams into wildlife conservation.
11 of 12 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
now if you know about Dian fossey or have atleast heard of the woman you will like this book, it is her life and it is told in a good way.some parts might upset you, what with the poachers and photos inside of slaughtered Mountain Gorillas,but it is the truth about what happened and what is stil happening in regions of Africa. dont get me wrong,its not all about poachers, its her life and everything in it, written in a scientific yet funny and understandable way for every kind of reader so u dont get bogged down in it all! theres even a map and gorilla family trees! some truths about gorillas which i didnt know i discovered in this book and i can tell you, they are not pretty,but none the less i cudnt help smirking over the innocent free mischeivious apes! you must read it!
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Loved this book! At first I was not sure whether to read it as it was written in the 60's so thought the info would be out of date etc but how wrong I was. Dian Fossey gave her life to the conservation of gorillas and I really related to her in this book. I think it is amazing what she did and how she managed to habituate the mountain gorillas as well as her struggle with rescued orphans. I found this book truly inspirational and anyone with an interest in apes and conservation will love this. I have since bought the National Geographic DVD that accompanies this book. This book was written by Dian Fossey 2 years before she was killed so it is a complete book and doesn't end abruptly. I enjoyed this book slightly more than 'In the Shadow of man' by Jane Goodall just because of the way it was written I just seemed to engage with Dian Fossey slightly more and I have the same views as her that all animals should be wild and free and never kept in cages. Zoos can never provide what freedom and the wild can. Highly recommended!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
A must for animal lovers everywhere
A detailed account of how Dian Fossey found herself studying mountain gorillas. A very personal odyssey of a remarkable woman who dedicated her life (quite literally) to saving... Read more
Published 1 month ago by sarah corcoran
A Must-Read book
I beg to differ with Quick Reviews comments below. To compare the book with the movie is not really comparing like with like. Read more
Published 6 months ago by Madrigal
Amazing story for nature lovers and adventurers
I read this book whilst in Uganda on my way to go see the very same gorilla families. Made the experience that bit more special to have the back story. Read more
Published 7 months ago by DeeDee
An interesting take on conservation
This was a most interesting read, somewhat fictional or perhaps I should say the author had a selective memory. Interesting photographs. Read more
Published 9 months ago by Mrs B
Informative and Interesting
I loved the film based on this book so was looking forward to reading this. It didn't disappoint, it is clear how passionate she was about the mountain gorillas and this shows... Read more
Published 10 months ago by S J Keeler
Dian Fosseys account
Dian Fosseys own events of her 13 years on the slopes of the Virunga volcanic mountain range in Africa. Read more
Published 14 months ago by W. G. Hunter-smith
Not what i thought it would be
I was looking forward to reading this having been to Rwanda to see the gorillas. I found the book a little too technical with not enough insight into the areas problems. Read more
Published 16 months ago by Quick reviews!
Gorillas in the mist
The book can speak for itself. A beautiful if sad story. We went to see the gorillas last year. Amazing creatures and the book answers so many of the questions you think of after... Read more
Published on 3 Sep 2009 by M. Goode
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