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| Cry of the Kalahari | 
| Authors: Mark James Owens, Cordelia Dykes Owens
Publisher: Mariner Books
Category: Book
List Price: $16.00
Buy Used: $1.21
You Save: $14.79 (92%)
New (25) Collectible (2) from $8.44
Avg. Customer Rating:  27 reviews
Sales Rank: 63948
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 384
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.8
Dimensions (in): 8.2 x 5.5 x 0.6
ISBN: 0395647800
Dewey Decimal Number: 591.96811
UPC: 046442647809
EAN: 9780395647806
ASIN: 0395647800
Publication Date: October 15, 1992
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: Shows some signs of wear, and may have some markings on the inside. 100% Money Back Guarantee. Shipped to over one million happy customers. Your purchase benefits world literacy!
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| Customer Reviews:
 No Words To Describe... July 26, 2004
6 out of 6 found this review helpful
This book was absolutely fantastic. I laughed, I cried, and I felt like I was living in the Kalahari along with the authors and their wild friends. When I finished the book, I logged onto Amazon to see if the Owens' had written any more books on Africa. Couldn't find any, but I promise if they write any more, I will buy the hardback! Enjoy this wonderful book.
 Reader Beware July 24, 2004
20 out of 29 found this review helpful
As a general read about African wildlife and people living in the wild researching the wildlife, this is a wonderful story. The Owens are good storytellers, have a fluency of style to their writing, and plenty of anecdotes to relate and entertain.
But it's pretty sickening when they brag that they set up camp in Botswana without the government's permission ("They'll find us there soon enough" -- although the Owens never do explain how they got around the government afterwards). They also openly admit they were unprepared for the hardships of life in wild Botswana, that they knowingly drove through monsoonal floods in an inadequate vehicle, ditto driving straightacross the salt pans (where their tracks will remain for hyndreds of years, if they don't hit a spot in the pan that swallows them up. So much for conservation.) The fact that the Owens lasted so long is due to good fortune triumphing over stupidity.
Deception Valley is now on the tourist itinerary. I've been to other parts of the Kalahari, and can testify that their descriptions are accurate. Read and enjoy, but you would do much better with Beverly Joubert, Pieter Kat, Cynthia Moss, and a host of other more responsible "wild" researchers who can also tell a good story.
An exciting read! April 20, 2003
4 out of 9 found this review helpful
I can't say enough good things about this book. It is entertaining, exciting, educational and above all a testament to why we need to respect and preserve animals.
Good read July 9, 2001
5 out of 8 found this review helpful
This book is very well done, and does not overstate the case for conservation at all. The Owenses are quite balanced in their views, for example, accepting hunting as being consistent with conservation. They may not be allowed back in Botswana, but the reason is because they embarrased the government into doing something besides pandering to mining interests and the unfortunate local politics. Decide for yourself whether they are right about the effects of fencing and cattle ranching on wildlife, and about the benificial effects of eco-tourism, after reading their book. In any case, you will enjoy their adventures with the animals whether or not you agree with their views about conservation.
A+ Wildlife, F- Conservation August 13, 2000
37 out of 53 found this review helpful
Mark and Delia Owens do an excellent job in telling a story but their work is not accepted by international conservation thinkers. They try to defend wildlife at all costs which eventually leads to resentment of villagers towards wildlife and thus no incentive to protect it. Thr Owenses are no longer allowed into the democratic country of Botswana. And I don't blame Botswana. I was offended at how they portrayed the Tswana (the dominant ethnic group of Botswana) as nothing but a threat to wildlife. Cry of the Kalahari gives the impression that the Tswana and the bushmen of the Kalahari have no right to use the resources of their land and should be dislocated elsewhere. Their discription of the wildebeast fencing problem in inaccurate. They were not the first to report it as they claimed and in fact they never did a formal study of the fencing problem before they screamed out to the international community for help. Turns out fences help wildlife as well as hurt is by keeping cattle out of protected zones and thus free buffalo, wildebeasts and others from having to compete with them. The Owenses do an excellent job describing wildlife and tell a captivating story but they take a step backwards in trying to conserve the animals they love. By giving the impression that all cattle, all people and all development is evil they propogate the myths of Africa that many more enlightened Botswana park service officials have been trying to dispell.
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Wildlife, nature and the Environment
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