Africa's Great Rift Valley by Pavitt Nigel, Nigel Pavitt (Photographer)

From the Publisher

Africa's Great Rift Valley is the largest, longest, and most conspicuous feature of its kind on earth. It stretches some 3,500 miles, from Ethiopia in the north to Mozambique in the south. The landscape ranges from searing salt flats 500 feet below sea level to snow-capped mountains towering over 16,000 feet.

In addition to its spectacular scenery, the region hosts a rich flora and fauna, with the greatest concentration of grassland animals anywhere. Its native species include three of the four living great apes of the world -- chimpanzees, bonobos, and gorillas. Further, it is the most probable birthplace of mankind. The old strata of its volcanic soils contain fossil remains of humanity's earliest ancestors, dating back millions of years at sites made famous by Louis and Mary Leakey, Richard and Meave Leakey, and Donald Johanson, which still yield more evidence of evolution. And, living there today are countless indigenous people -- including the Maasai and other well known groups who maintain traditional ways in the modern world.

Author/photographer Nigel Pavitt has lived in East Africa for forty-five years and has traveled the length and breadth of the Rift Valley during many journeys. He tells the story of its geological evolution, its tribal life, and its exploration by Europeans, including such fascinating characters as Sir Richard Burton, Dr. David Livingstone, and Henry Morton Stanley. In more than 200 stunning color photographs, he pictures the Valley in all its richness -- the landscape, the plants and animals, and the daily life and stirring rituals of the native peoples. Few books about places in the world contain such a variety of information and delight -- from geological and evolutionary history to tales of exploration and conquest, as well as intimate stories of peoples living close to nature.

Library Journal

The Great Rift Valley encompasses eastern Africa from Ethiopia south to Mozambique and as far west as Rwanda and the borders of the Democratic Republic of Congo. A native of England, Pavitt has lived in Kenya for 45 years and has traveled through as much of the region as wartime conditions permitted. The more than 200 stunning color photographs presented here feature the region's dramatic volcanoes and valleys as well as its people. While he describes some of the surviving indigenous wildlife, his text emphasizes the history of Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi, and Rwanda, including the great explorers who charted the unknown interior in the 19th century and the customs and traditions of the Maasai, Pokot, Konso, Batwa, and other tribes. The Rift Valley is an ancient land, a probable cradle of humankind, in many inaccessible areas still untouched, but it is also ever-changing owing to global warming, active volcanoes, war, and social disruptions. This is the only book in print on the valley for a general readership; an earlier book, Collin Willock's Africa's Rift Valley (o.p.), emphasized the region's natural history. Despite its price, this is an excellent choice for both public and academic libraries.-Beth Clewis Crim, Prince William P.L., VA Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.

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