A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush (Picador Books) [Paperback]

'The master storyteller. He transformed travel writing' Independent

'One of the most enjoyable reads of the last century' Herald Tribune

'The most successful travel writer of his generation. It's impossible to read this book without laughing aloud' Observer

'Endlessly entertaining and self-deprecating' Daily Mail

'Full of serendipity and surprise' The Economist

'A total success' New Yorker

'Notable addition to the literature of unorthodox travel … tough, extrovert, humorous and immensely literate' Times Literary Supplement

'”A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush” established him as a traveler who not only journeyed fruitfully but had the ability to bring his readers with him' William Trevor, Guardian

'I still think the last few sentences of “A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush” the funniest ending to any book I have read' Geoffrey Moorhouse, The Times

'The book that made [Newby's] reputation … typically ironic in its understatement' Observer

'Newby is easily the best of the bunch' Sunday Times

'All the lyricism, and spirit of adventure and discovery [in] Newby's work' The Times

'As good as its hype' Wanderlust

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

'Newby is easily the best of the bunch and was the subject of the first programme.' --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

'All the lyricism, and spirit of adventure and discovery [in] Newby's work...' --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

'Endlessly entertaining and self-deprecating' --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

'Picador have made again available one of the most enjoyable reads of the last century.'
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

'Meeting Badar Khan was the inspiration I needed to finally read the book... It was as good as its hype.' --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

A humorous overview of Eric Newby's travels from Mayfair to the mountains of the Hindu Kush, north-east of Kabul, offering insight into the numerous eccentric characters and adventures he met along the way, and descriptions of the spectacular wilderness of Afghanistan. Last published in 1981.

When Eric Newby, improbably earning his living in the London haute-couture trade, sent his fateful cable – CAN YOU TRAVEL NURISTAN JUNE? – it was the first step on a legendary journey from Mayfair to Afghanistan and the mountains of the Hindu Kush, north-east of Kabul. Ill-prepared and inexperienced, Newby and Carless endured a month of hardship with great good humour in one of the most beautiful wildernesses on earth. ‘The most successful travel writer of his generation. It’s impossible to read this book without laughing aloud’ Observer ‘Tough, extrovert, humorous and immensely literate’ Times Literary Supplement ‘Full of serendipity and surprise’ The Economist ‘A total success’ New Yorker --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

CAN YOU TRAVEL NURISTAN JUNE?

When Eric Newby, improbably earning his living in the London haute couture trade, sent his fateful cable it was the first step in a classic journey, from Mayfair to the wild mountains of the Hindu Kush, north-east of Kabul. As a more recent generation of travellers has discovered, Afghanistan can be an inhospitable place; as this truly diverting and wonderfully evocative book shows, it is also one of the most spectacularly beautiful wildernesses on earth.

"Eric Newby's description of their travels and travails is a total success"
NEW YORKER

"A pleasurable story of exotic and eccentric adventure"
NEW YORK TIMES

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Eric Newby was born in London in 1919. In 1938, he joined the four-masted Finnish barque Moshulu as an apprentice and sailed in the last Grain Race from Australia to Europe, by way of Cape Horn. During World War II, he served in the Black Watch and the Special Boat Section. In 1942, he was captured and remained a prisoner-of-war until 1945. He subsequently married the girl who helped him to escape, and for the next fifty years, his wife Wanda was at his side on many adventures. After the war, he worked in the fashion business and book publishing but always travelled on a grand scale, sometimes as the Travel Editor for the Observer. He was made CBE in 1994 and was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award of the British Guild of Travel Writers in 2001. Eric Newby died in 2006.

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.