Description
One of the great works of American nature writing. Peter Matthiessen’s The Tree Where Man Was Born is a luminous journey across the Serengeti plains, the Rift Valley, and the lands of the Maasai — where humanity itself may have begun.
Travelling through Kenya and Tanzania, Matthiessen writes with a naturalist’s eye and a novelist’s ear: the great migrations of wildebeest and zebra, the lions and elephants of the plains, the Maasai people whose lives are inseparable from the land. At its heart is Africa on the cusp of change — a wild world of extraordinary beauty, already under pressure from the modern age.
This edition features a foreword by Jane Goodall, who brings her own lifetime of East African experience to Matthiessen’s achievement. Essential for anyone drawn to Africa’s landscapes, its wildlife, and the deep questions of where we come from — rich, reflective, and enduringly readable.
The Tree Where Man Was Born is Peter Matthiessen’s classic account of East Africa — a luminous journey across the Serengeti plains, the Rift Valley, and the lands of the Maasai, where humanity itself may have begun. Part travel narrative, part natural history, it is one of the great works of American nature writing.
Travelling through Kenya and Tanzania, Matthiessen writes with a naturalist’s eye and a novelist’s ear: the great migrations of wildebeest and zebra, the lions and elephants of the plains, and the Maasai people whose lives are inseparable from the land. At its heart is a sense of Africa on the cusp of change — a wild world of extraordinary beauty, already under pressure from the modern age.
This edition features a foreword by Jane Goodall, who brings her own lifetime of East African experience to bear on Matthiessen’s achievement. Together, the two voices make this book essential reading for anyone drawn to Africa’s landscapes, its wildlife, and the deep questions of where we come from. A rich, reflective, and enduringly readable classic.
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