Audiobook
£0.00
with membership trial

Hardcover
£4.49

Paperback
£9.85

RRP: £10.99 Details

Save: £1.14 (10%)

FREE Returns

FREE delivery Friday, 22 March on your first order to UK or Ireland. Details

Or fastest delivery Tomorrow, 20 March. Order within 3 hrs 53 mins. Details

Select delivery location

In stock

££9.85 () Includes selected options. Includes initial monthly payment and selected options. Details

Dispatches from

Amazon

Dispatches from

Amazon

Sold by

Amazon

Sold by

Amazon

Returns

Returnable within 30 days of receipt

Returns

Returnable within 30 days of receipt

Item can be returned in its original condition for a full refund within 30 days of receipt

Read full Amazon return policy

Payment

Secure transaction

Payment

Secure transaction

We work hard to protect your security and privacy. Our payment security system encrypts your information during transmission. We don’t share your credit card details with third-party sellers, and we don’t sell your information to others. Learn more

Details

Add gift options

£2.80 delivery 22 - 25 March. Details

Select delivery location

Used: Good | Details

Sold by WeBuyGames

Follow the author

Wilfred Thesiger

Follow

Arabian Sands (Penguin Classics) Paperback – 25 Oct. 2007

by Wilfred Thesiger (Author), Rory Stewart (Introduction)

4.5 520 ratings

See all formats and editions

{"desktop_buybox_group_1":[{"displayPrice":"£9.85","priceAmount":9.85,"currencySymbol":"£","integerValue":"9","decimalSeparator":".","fractionalValue":"85","symbolPosition":"left","hasSpace":false,"showFractionalPartIfEmpty":true,"offerListingId":"q%2BiCJAcgk2LEDEydU2BumpTdAqABJ5v1OBOHGJ18sElwlQQNQTZq4rdtBGK0jCctNJYV2MTAaR0Z%2BolsPYuAG1YgGHjGDzSwXD1W81RbrhUxpu0kX4TjeL5yb%2BY0GDn%2B","locale":"en-GB","buyingOptionType":"NEW","aapiBuyingOptionIndex":0}, {"displayPrice":"£1.79","priceAmount":1.79,"currencySymbol":"£","integerValue":"1","decimalSeparator":".","fractionalValue":"79","symbolPosition":"left","hasSpace":false,"showFractionalPartIfEmpty":true,"offerListingId":"q%2BiCJAcgk2LEDEydU2BumpTdAqABJ5v1eF7OPXinY2RfLnzcW5M3%2BeOzsl87h1RIvZ56%2BOdrmJ9O7BSrbUICdcCTTGdLgSvV6%2BknM5HKp0ETCpHGOFgYmzcmc4nH3i7YkD6DluH2ttUkzhqIe3%2FMQwf3l7wvu2tLV2oGheQNXoAyHH7b3%2B4w%2BMEkzJN50xiH","locale":"en-GB","buyingOptionType":"USED","aapiBuyingOptionIndex":1}]}

Purchase options and add-ons

In the spirit of T.E. Lawrence, Wilfred Thesiger spent five years wandering the deserts of Arabia, producing Arabian Sands, 'a memorial to a vanished past, a tribute to a once magnificent people'. The Penguin Classics edition includes an introduction by Rory Stewart.

Wilfred Thesiger, repulsed by what he saw as the softness and rigidity of Western life - 'the machines, the calling cards, the meticulously aligned streets' - spent years exploring in and around the vast, waterless desert that is the 'Empty Quarter' of Arabia. Travelling amongst the Bedu people, he experienced their everyday challenges of hunger and thirst, the trials of long marches beneath the relentless sun, the bitterly cold nights and the constant danger of death if it was discovered he was a Christian 'infidel'. He was the first European to visit most of the region, and just before he left the area the process that would change it forever had begun - the discovery of oil.

This edition contains an introduction by Rory Stewart discussing the dangers of Thesiger's travels, his unconventional personality and his insights into the Bedouin way of life.

Sir Wilfred Patrick Thesiger (1910-2003) was a British travel writer born in Addis Ababa in Abyssinia (now Ethiopia). Thesiger is best known for two travel books: Arabian Sands (1959), which recounts his travels in the Empty Quarter of Arabia between 1945 and 1950 and describes the vanishing way of life of the Bedouins, and The Marsh Arabs (1964), an account of the traditional peoples who lived in the marshlands of southern Iraq.

If you enjoyed Arabian Sands, you might like T.E. Lawrence's Seven Pillars of Wisdom, also available in Penguin Modern Classics

'Thesiger is perhaps the last, and certainly one of the greatest, of the British travellers among the Arabs'
Sunday Times

'Following worthily in the tradition of Burton, Lawrence, Philby and Thomas, it is, very likely, the book about Arabia to end all books about Arabia'
Daily Telegraph

Report an issue with this product

Print length

347 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Penguin Classics
Publication date

25 Oct. 2007
Dimensions

19.56 x 13.46 x 2.29 cm
ISBN-10

0141442077
ISBN-13

978-0141442075
See all details

Frequently bought together

£9.85

In stock

Sent from and sold by Amazon.

+

£11.95

Get it as soon as Friday, Mar 22

In stock

Sent from and sold by Amazon.

+

The Places In Between: A vivid account of a death-defying walk across war-torn Afghanistan

£8.97

In stock

Sent from and sold by Amazon.

Total price:

To see our price, add these items to your basket.

Try again!

Details

Added to Basket

Choose items to buy together.

T. E. Lawrence
2,128
Paperback
23 offers from £3.72
Wilfred Thesiger
252
Paperback
31 offers from £7.92
Jan Morris
34
Paperback
23 offers from £7.99
Thesiger Wilfred
61
Paperback
10 offers from £12.03
Wilfred Thesiger
28
Paperback
22 offers from £1.20
Rory Stewart
3,132
Paperback
34 offers from £4.40

Product description

Review

"The narrative is vividly written, with a thousand little anecdotes and touches which bring back to any who have seen these countries every scene with the colour of real life." ―The Sunday Times (London)

About the Author

Sir Wilfred Patrick Thesiger (1910–2003) was a British travel writer born in Addis Ababa in Abyssinia (now Ethiopia). Thesiger is best known for two travel books: Arabian Sands (1959), which recounts his travels in the Empty Quarter of Arabia between 1945 and 1950 and describes the vanishing way of life of the Bedouins, and The Marsh Arabs (1964), an account of the traditional peoples who lived in the marshlands of southern Iraq.

Rory Stewart served briefly in the British Army and then as a diplomat in Jakarta and Montenegro. In August 2000 he resigned from the Foreign Office and began walking from Turkey towards Vietnam. His book about the walk, The Places In Between (2004), was a critically applauded account of his experiences in Afghanistan. His second book, The Prince of the Marshes: And Other Occupational Hazards of a Year in Iraq (2006), outlines his experiences as deputy governor of the Iraqi province of Maysan and Senior Advisor in the city of Nasiriyah shortly after coalition forces entered Iraq and describes his struggles to establish a functional government in these regions. Stewart has been awarded the OBE. Stewart currently lives in Kabul, Afghanistan.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Penguin Classics; Reissue edition (25 Oct. 2007)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 347 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0141442077
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0141442075
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 19.56 x 13.46 x 2.29 cm

Best Sellers Rank: 116,884 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- 116 in Magician Biographies
- 574 in Higher Education on Geography

Customer reviews:
4.5 520 ratings

About the author

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.

Wilfred Thesiger

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.

Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Discover more of the author’s books, see similar authors, read author blogs and more

Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5

520 global ratings

How customer reviews and ratings work

Sort reviews by

Top reviews from United Kingdom

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

Astbury Brigitte

Phantastic

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 4 February 2024

Verified Purchase

Absolutely brilliant

One person found this helpful

Helpful

hakuts

testimony of a bygone era, superbly described

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 27 May 2023

Verified Purchase

This book gave me a tremendous insight in Beduin life, seen with here with the eyes of Bedu themselves but well for westeners. I loved the philosophical passages (there are many), the precision of the descriptions, the insight into people's lifes and hardship.
It gives a deep understanding on the area's culture and explains (parts of) the roots of Arab history.

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

Vic Mosca

Great read

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 11 October 2023

Verified Purchase

to replace a book I'd lost

One person found this helpful

Helpful

David

A wonderful book about a time and place that can never again exist

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 25 April 2019

Verified Purchase

A superbly written work detailing Thesiger’s travels and experiences in an Arabia which was just about to be changed forever by the oil industry. Thesiger was clearly an incredible man and in this book he vividly recounts his experiences of the harsh and unforgiving conditions which made both his journeys across the Empty Quarter such an incredible feat of human endeavour. Assisted and sometimes hindered by remarkable companions, his journeys across Arabia are brought to life on every page. This truly wonderful book has amazing characters and although it is written in a matter of fact style, the authors evident love and enthusiasm for the landscapes, socio-political intricacies and, most importantly, the magnificent people he met in this amazing part of the world ensures it never becomes tedious.

One person found this helpful

Helpful

Eumenides

Book was in excellent condition. The maps and photos are unique

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 19 September 2015

Verified Purchase

Book was in excellent condition. The maps and photos are unique. I was in Saudi Arabia for 5 years and the text brought back memories of the harsh realities of desert life for the Bedouin. It is however an essay to an existence no longer lived as the advent of oil has changed the Omani people forever. It is a reminder that the Empty Quarter is still remorseless to the traveller but one of the world's great adventures. If you read only one book about the Rub al Khali this is it.

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

First time user

British spy story dressed as travel adventure

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 6 March 2024

Verified Purchase

Now that Thesiger has been exposed as an undercover agent looking for oil, the book has lost it's charm somehow.

Helpful

Senroc

The book to end all books on Arabia

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 16 December 2012

Verified Purchase

The late Wilfred Thesiger was perhaps the last of the great British explorers. He spent his entire life travelling in the most remote areas of the world. This book covers the five years he spent in Arabia including crossing the Empty Quarter twice!
He lived and travelled with the Bedu and shared their way of life and hardships. It is without doubt a book that gives a great insite into the Bedu's incredibly hard and exacting way of life and their code of honor. Those who like deserts this is the book for them.

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

Jules

A fascinating and engrossing read

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 11 May 2019

Verified Purchase

Travels from another age, but yet strangely timeless, as the author talks about his opinions, sand, politics, the people he meets and tribal behaviors in the world's most apparently inhospitable places.

He really captures the essence of life in the desert as he recounts various trips and undertakings through lands which are still relatively unknown to this day.

Absolutely fascinating and an engrossing read.

3 people found this helpful

Helpful

Top reviews from other countries

Translate all reviews to English

Dawg

incredible journey by amazingly curious man

Reviewed in the United States on 2 March 2024

Verified Purchase

Loved book. great for anyone looking to learn that anything is possible - including wandering into one of the most desolate and inhospitable places on earth.

Amazon Customer

More of a diary than a novel

Reviewed in Canada on 26 August 2020

Verified Purchase

Detailed descriptions of the Bedouin culture, but it's not a page turning novel. Definitely a great read before visiting the UAE.

Andrea

Ottimo libro

Reviewed in Italy on 9 November 2019

Verified Purchase

uno splendido libro, scritto egregiamente e in maniera forse involontariamente accattivante che non attende che di essere tradotto in Italiano.

Translate review to English

Peter Berlin

Wonderfully written book on crossing the Empty Quarter, the Arabian desert

Reviewed in Germany on 26 April 2019

Verified Purchase

First published in 1959 Wilfred Thesiger describes in this impressive book his travels across the Empty Quarter, the desert on the Arabian peninsula between 1945 and 1949. He vividly describes the lives of the Bedu people and other tribes there.

He was accepted by the Bedu because he is never judgemental but doesn’t romanticize the hardships of their lives either. In many ways the Bedu at that time lived a humble life that hadn’t changed since the beginning of their time. Change is in the air, however, with the first oil companies coming to drill for oil. With all the money pouring into this area, the traditional Bedu life style would soon be gone forever. So this book provides a window and a glimpse into a time gone forever.

When Thesiger enters Abu Dhabi in 1948 it was a desolate town of only 2000 inhabitants, today two and half million people live there in a skyline dominated by skyscrapers. Within two generations the Bedu went from stone age to modern times. Thesiger prefers the traditional Bedu life in spite of all the hardships that are part of it. There is still slavery and Thesiger can even quote the sales price of the various types and tribes. Young Arab girls fetch the highest price. So in this book the author reflects on the changes and fast development that took place after the Second World War and the gradual erosion of traditional Bedouin ways of life that had previously existed unchanged for thousands of years.

Thesiger was born into a privileged English background, his father being a diplomat, educated at Eton and Oxford. Here are some interesting quotes from the book: “In the desert I had found a freedom unattainable in civilization; a life unhampered by possessions, since everything that was not a necessity was an encumbrance.” In England he feels very much alone and an outsider, but somehow he finds the company he lacks in the travels with the Bedu. He realizes that their lives will have to change irrevocably: "The tragedy was the choice would not be theirs. Economic forces beyond their control would eventually drive them into the towns to hang about street corners as unskilled street labour.” And "I realised that the Bedu [...] were doomed. Some people maintain that they will be better off when they have exchanged the hardship and poverty of the desert for the security of a materialistic world. This I do not believe". But he can find his destiny by travelling with the Bedu. "Here in the desert I had found all that I asked for; I knew I should never find it again."

So he set out to explore the Empty Quarter of the Arabian peninsula, the largest sand desert in the world – a very hostile environment to live in and to survive. Travelling by foot and on camels with nomadic Bedouin tribes, he crossed and recrossed more than 200.000 miles of one the most inhospitable places on this planet.

His style is great to read. It is straight to the point and very clear and precise – just like the stark landscape he describes. With him, the reader experiences a world of almost unbearable hardship and startling beauty.
This is a great book that informs the reader about a culture gone forever with the oil boom. It is wonderful read and I highly recommend it.

I hope you found my review helpful.

One person found this helpful

Linda Elmslie

Romantic

Reviewed in Spain on 1 January 2019

Verified Purchase

I like that the book was written by the author when he was a bit older. He was able to retain his romantic view, but the a more wisened perspective. There were really interesting cultural tidbits.

See more reviews

Amazon Music Stream millions of songs	AbeBooks Books, art & collectables	ACX Audiobook Publishing Made Easy	Amazon Web Services Scalable Cloud Computing Services

Audible Download Audiobooks	Goodreads Book reviews & recommendations	Amazon Home Services Experienced pros Happiness Guarantee	IMDb Movies, TV & Celebrities

Kindle Direct Publishing Indie Digital & Print Publishing Made Easy	Shopbop Designer Fashion Brands	Amazon Warehouse Deep Discounts Open-Box Products	Amazon Business Service for business customers

Return this item for free

Image Unavailable

Follow the author