Just finished reading this book. The biggest disappointment was that it ended!

Not your typical "how to" book that reads like dvd programming instructions. This is a great read and is the only animal specific hunting book I found difficult to put down.

Lots of practical information. The technical information is supported by pictures clarifying exactly what the author is talking about and more than a few hunting anecdotes, positive and negative.

I thorougly enjoyed this book despite (1) the fact that the author is a big 458 WM fan and (2) despite the author's onservations on double rifles Hey, not everyone can get everything right in an almost 500 page book

quote:

Originally posted by Jim Manion:
Just finished reading this book. The biggest disappointment was that it ended!

Not your typical "how to" book that reads like dvd programming instructions. This is a great read and is the only animal specific hunting book I found difficult to put down.

Lots of practical information. The technical information is supported by pictures clarifying exactly what the author is talking about and more than a few hunting anecdotes, positive and negative.

I thorougly enjoyed this book despite (1) the fact that the author is a big 458 WM fan and (2) despite the author's observations on double rifles : Hey, not everyone can get everything right in an almost 500 page book

Jim,

I really appreciate your comments and it pleases me immensely that the endless late nights and mind-numbing brainstorming were worthwhile in the end. Thank you.

I beg for your forgiveness for revealing the dreadful truth that the .458 Win Mag is "one of the best elephant calibres ever" (heresy!!) and double rifles are "not divine life insurance" (treason!!!).

The next print run will have tear-out pages in those chapters specially to cater for you.

Good Hunting.
Richard Harland.

Author of: The Hunting Imperative; African Epic; Ndlovu.

I'll second Jims praise for "Ndlovu".

I got my copy earlier this week and hope to find time to finish it this weekend. Great book!

(I already knew the truth about the 458 WM and Double Guns.)

Thank you Mr. Harland!

If you enjoyed Ndlovu, try the other two books. Paul Grobler, the subject of African Epic, has an incredible story. Talk about a true renaissance man, pilot, hunter, rancher, farmer, sardine pioneer, and the list goes on. And of course, Mr. Harland himself is the subject of The Hunting Imperative, and his story is not exactly chopped liver. By the way, I have an extra copy of The Hunting Imperative if someone would be interested since I had Richard sign one for me when we met in Zim.

Yes, it's very good. Yes, I've got all 3 signed by the man himself. No, you can't have them.

From the African Gazette, more high praise-

Ndlovu – The Art of Hunting the African
by

Richard Harland
Reviewed by Brooke ChilversLubin


I am always cheered to cross paths, in person or on paper, with the Rhodesian-born hunter and author Richard Harland. Soft-spoken, gentlemanly, and carrying an endlessly inquisitive mind on his gun-toting shoulders, from appearances the 160-lb Harland seems the opposite of what one would expect of a man who has hunted and killed many hundreds of elephants.

Whether hunting down a single crop-raiding pachyderm or exterminating an entire herd as part of a tsetse fly control programme, when Harland pursues a goal, like writing the ultimate book on elephant hunting, he does it with precision, gusto and style. Ndlovu, The Art of Hunting the African Elephant, with an excellent and amusing foreword by the ubiquitous Craig Boddington, was published in Zimbabwe in a convenient A5 format on solid glossy paper, which gives the book a special feeling of out-of-Africa authenticity. Weighing in at 528 pages with 280 photos – including a 50-page gallery of astounding tuskers – plus numerous diagrams, drawings, and technical tables for re-loaders and bullet penetration buffs, the five first-class appendices focusing on the technicalities of big bore cartridges alone are worth the $55 pricetag for the standard edition of the book. Ndlovu, quite simply, is a virtual bible covering every aspect of the elephant for the hunter, including field preparation of the tusks, a diagram for skinning for a full-body mount, and the targeted X spots for killing an elephant from every angle under a variety of circumstances.

In addition, Harland peppers the text with a dozen fascinating Fact Files on everything from elephant feeding habits, breeding, sub-species and anatomy, to the mystery of inter-elephant communication, the role of the temporal gland, and the mythology of tummy rumbles, elephant drunkeness and ivory graveyards; even non-hunting college kids will find them all worthwhile reading. (Pachyderm mating occurs mostly after dark, possibly because it’s the only break elephants take from feeding or trekking!) And yes, a five-ton bull eats some 500 to 650 lbs of vegetation every day of its adult life (and the notoriously ‘bitchy’ females about half that amount) which, inevitably, leads to Harland’s thoughtful, well-balanced discussion on elephant management and culling in today’s Africa.

Harland is the kind of hunter who checks each and every cartridge by loading them into the rifle’s magazine, four at a time, and working the bolt until each has been cycled satisfactorily through the action. As a writer, his natural story-telling talent is so good that even his pre-hunt checklist is interesting to read! He recounts many a hunting story, some his own, some his mentor’s, Paul ‘Kambada’ Grobler, and some of those who did not survive their elephant encounters to put them down on paper themselves.

With Harland, you can be sure that there’s a moral to every story, or lessons to be learned along the way from the odd incidents and coincidences. Sometimes they serve as case histories, for example, to demonstrate the differing points of view on doubles versus magazine rifles, or whether a .470 with automatic ejection is faster to reload than a .500 without ejectors. His conclusion? When it comes to hunting elephants: “Expect the unexpected,†for even the finest heavy calibre “is not divine life insurance and cannot surmount human error.â€

While Harland was “psychologically soaked in big game hunting†from his earliest youth, and chronicles his evolution in his enjoyable autobiography The Hunting Imperative, A Biography of a Boy in Africa, he is more academic and less personal in The Art Of Elephant Hunting. He opens the book with very interesting chapters about the long interaction - starting with our prehistoric ancestors and mammoths - between mankind, pachyderms and ivory, - including the possible use of elephants to track down their own poachers.

In addition to well-written descriptive chapters on elephant anatomy, behaviour, and all the indicators that go into the fine art of tracking, Harland covers every possible calibre of rifle and every ammunition ever used on elephant, – from the point of view of the game warden, PH, and hunting client. He cites many examples from his own field experience. For example, when discussing .500 bore cartridges, he compares old Kynoch factory loads of 525-grain bullets propelled by 90 grams of Cordite, with his own loads with 600-grain bullets and 124 gr of IMR 4831 powder in a George Gibbs .505. In very frank terms, Harland discusses them all: from Winchester to Weatherby, and especially custom rifles.

Harland reminds even the wealthiest, most determined hunter that a heavy pair of tusks at the end of the safari “is a bonus and not a right,†that the real mission of a successful elephant hunt is the instant, painless death of the animal and an untraumatizing event for the herd.

Harland wrote this book in part because “all matters relating to hunting arouse debate, whether it’s rifles, cartridges, bullets, velocities, trophies, PHs, vehicles, and the vital spots for shooting an animal.†But his greater goal is to not only provide “plentiful information, but hopefully to instill respect and a raised level of esteem and affection for the grandest of the ‘Big Five’ animals.†In that, he also succeeds brilliantly because “Wonders never cease in the world of pachyderms.â€

Ndlovu – The Art of Hunting the African Elephant costs $55/350 rand in its standard edition, plus shipping and handling. It is available in the USA and in Africa from:
Rowland Ward Publications: www.rowlandward.com
Zimbi Books (South Africa): www.zimbibooks.com
Safari Classics Productions: www.craigboddington.com

Harland’s previous books, The Hunting Imperative and African Epic, are published by Rowland Ward Publications.

That's a very good review which I hadn't seen before. Thanks for posting it.

In a recent email with Richard, he mentioned going over to his publisher Rowland Ward. I told him to keep writing...don't stop!

Gee Whiz, Guys!
All your kind comments are highly appreciated. Thank you. It's also been great meeting some of my fellow elephant hunters via AR and even better, personally! Any of you visiting Zimbabwe will be in serious trouble if you don't put aside an hour to talk BS with me over a few beers!

I agree with those who loved TV Bulpin's 'The Ivory Trail'. I still have my copy given me at the age of 11 and it inspired me to become an elephant hunter. I met two of Bvekenya Barnard's offspring when I was game ranger (1965) in that area he hunted. He co-habited with the local Shangaan gals and had an unknown number of 'coloured' children.

Truly a classic of the old, romantic Africa of the big game hunter. Bulpin's 'The Hunter is Death', George Rushby's biography, is another.

Richard.

Richard,

I appreciate your logging on here at AR and allowing us 'mortals' to chat with you.

I'll be overnighting in Vic Falls next month on the way to Matetsi 5 for an ele bull. Any chance you'll be around there??? I'd love to buy a round or two!

PostDriver,

Thanks so much. I live the other end of Zim to the Victoria Falls and regret hugely that I will not be able to get there to meet with you. Mainly fuel shortages! I am also under a government eviction order and am possibly looking at being arrested and thrown out of my home on Monday. Needless to say, we will take this issue to the highest court if necessary.

My best wishes for a great safari in Matetsi.

Richard.
Author of: The Hunting Imperative; African Epic; Ndlovu-The Art of Hunting the African Elephant. (Rowland Ward Publications and Safari Press)

Richard,

Good luck tomorrow. We will remember you and your wife in our thoughts. Give 'em hell.

Yes, you and your wife are in my thoughts as well. Please keep us informed as to how things are going, and if there's anything we can do to help.

Is there still courts in Zim where these seizures can be contested successfully?

Dennis

Ah, Africa...some of it is wonderful and some of it...isn't.

I know you are fighting for your honor and family Richard. It is Monday at your place as I type these words. I know you have been dreading this day for a long time. My best to you and your family. Write when you can. I have an email to you as well.

Mike, Dennis, Bryan,

My wife and I say a huge 'Thank You All' for your concerns. Can't tell you how great it is to have such good friends. We are still at home and yes, the legal system is here to contest these events. My partner Ray (great grandson of William Finaughty of Elephant Hunting fame!) had good meetings today and sees lawyers tomorrow. Still, there's a long and tortuous road ahead, worse than a wounded buffalo through the jesse! At least with the latter, my .458 solves problems quickly.

By the way, anyone on AR who lives in Aussie and has the book 'African Epic' might like to know Paul Grobler lives there now. He is 84, but still has the sharpest of minds. If you want him to sign your book, I can let you know his e-mail address and you can contact him. THE greatest elephant hunter of all time, by far.

Richard.

Richard,

These days winning one day at a time is a victory. Sounds like you are still in your home and that makes today a victory. Here's to a long series of day-to-day victories.

Richard,

It's good to hear that you're still at home. One day at a time, my man.

Uh, I really don't think a .458 would help matters much right now (politicians in the jesse) ... but you never know .

I'll PM you a note to get Grobler's email addy.

Dennis

Very glad to hear that Richard. As to Mr. Grobler, you have my email address if you would be so kind as to get me his info. I would love to have both of your autographs on your book about him.