Just finished and am a bit breathless from the effort. What I expected from this is not at all what I got. I should haver re-read the title and focused on the word "art of hunting". I expected a detailed "how to" book by one the greatest living authorities on elephant hunting. Rather, I was treated to the "art" of the hunt for Ndlovu.

I think this is his third book and it is an ambitious effort. He covers vast territory of subject matter from the rifle to the tracking to shot placement to the stories of the goofed up hunt to purist form on hunting - one on one in the remotest parts of the Zambezi Valley.

A couple of things stand out - his utmost respect and knowledge of his quarry. Mr. Harland is a pro and treats the elephant as an antagonist, not an enemy. He writes in a humble manner but with conviction. I was most struck by his comments on rifles and his opinions of the various makes and calibers. I kept waiting for a statement like "this is the best elephant killer ever made". You won't see that. He takes you logically through his decision and experience process and logically tells why he likes the .458 WM in the Mannlicher Shoenaur (sp?). In summary, his logic prevails and you will like what you read.

Another great surprise is the forward written by Craig Boddington. It is easily one of the best forwards I have ever read. CB's essay is worth the price of the book.

On the downside, the quality of the book itself (pages and binding) is average. I am used to the offerings by Safari Press and this is an average presentation. The photo's in the book are great in terms of subject matter, but the quality of the reproduction in the book is average to poor. There is a discussion in the book on photography and of taking pics of your trophy with examples. This is the first I have seen in a book of this type, but the overall quality of the photo in the book could be better.

There is also a long appendix with discussions about bullets, ballistics and other topics. These are not written by Mr. Harland but are a nice addition.

Overall, this is a very solid book and a worthwhile read by anyone going on a first or second or tenth elephant hunt. On the "dogcat" scale, I rate this an 8 out of 10 with the only drawback being the quality of the actual book. The content is a 10 out of 10.

In my dreams and on my wishlist - I would add Richard Harland to a dinner for four to include Craig Boddington and Peter Flack with me there to listen.

Dogcat:

What company published (and where) the book? This has everything to do with the qualilty of the printed product, especially photo reproduction.

Bill Quimby

Bill,
I will check my copy, but it was a local company in Zim. I will get that info and put it out here.

quote:

Dogcat:

What company published (and where) the book? This has everything to do with the qualilty of the printed product, especially photo reproduction.

Bill Quimby

Published by: Ivory Imprints
Harare


Design and layout: Mag-Set Publications ( African Hunter Magazine )
Harare


Seloushunter

I would suspect that Zimbabwe's printers and binderies have problems operating at all, thanks to problems and shortages of every kind in that country, and I would bet a million Zim dollars that that they are using 30-year-old equipment.

Ant Williams and Don Heath (African Hunter Magazine dba Mag-Set Publicaitions) deserve medals for getting anything at all published under the circumstances there.

Bill Quimby

quote:

Originally posted by billrquimby:
I would suspect that Zimbabwe's printers and binderies have problems operating at all, thanks to problems and shortages of every kind in that country, and I would bet a million Zim dollars that that they are using 30-year-old equipment.

Ant Williams and Don Heath (African Hunter Magazine dba Mag-Set Publicaitions) deserve medals for getting anything at all published under the circumstances there.

Bill Quimby

Bill,
I agree with you 100%. Doing any business there must be very tough. We only have to deal with the Democrats here.

As I mentioned - content is outstanding in this book and I highly recommend it.

Yes, one of my top 5 favorites and easily my favorite elephant specific book. Besides the aforementioned quality issues (which are beyond their control), it's excellent!