Nine Faces of Kenya: Portrait of a Nation
As They Saw It might have been a subtitle for these excerpts from primary sources strung together by Huxley ( The Flame Trees of Thika , 1974, o.p.; Out in the Midday Sun: My Kenya , LJ 2/1/87) to develop a well-rounded portrait of Kenya, past and present. The anthology shows the pioneers' view of their invasion not as destroying the rich culture and the delicate balance of nature which the natives (human and animal) shared but, in keeping with the times, as bringing civilization. But no moralizing here--what was done is merely reported. One cannot be too complimentary, however, toward a book as comprehensive and as delightfully informative as this one. As a substitute for those who have no access to the originals and a sound basis for those who want background, this would be a good buy for most libraries. Libraries could also supplement this with Nigel Pavitt's Kenya: The First Explorers (St. Martin's, 1989), which is more limited in scope but has colorful photos and sketches. Recommended.- Louise Leonard, Univ. of Florida Libs., GainesvilleCopyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.