In this delightful hybrid of a bookÂpart memoir and part travel journalÂthe bestselling author takes us deep into the mountains of Nepal with a trio of botanist friends in search of native Himalayan plants that will grow in her Vermont garden. Alighting from a plane in the dramatic Annapurna Valley, the ominous signs of Nepal's Maoist guerrillas are all aroundÂan alarming presence that accompanies the travelers throughout their trek. Undaunted, the group sets off into the mountains with Sherpas and bearers, entering an exotic world of spectacular landscapes, vertiginous slopes, isolated villages, herds of yaks, and giant rhododendron, thirty feet tall. The landscape and flora and so much else of what Kincaid finds in the HimalayaÂincluding fruit bats, colorful Buddhist prayer flags, and the hated leeches that plague much of the tripÂare new to her, and she approaches it all with an acute sense of wonder and a deft eye for detail. In beautiful, introspective prose, Kincaid intertwines the harrowing Maoist encounters with exciting botanical discoveries, fascinating daily details, and lyrical musings on gardens, nature, home, and family.
From the Trade Paperback edition.
Product details
Publisher : National Geographic (17 July 2007)
Language : English
Hardcover : 208 pages
ISBN-10 : 0792265300
ISBN-13 : 978-0792265306
Item Weight : 381 g
Dimensions : 13.97 x 2.29 x 21.08 cm
Best Sellers Rank: #542,736 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
#906 in Gardening & Landscape Design
#2,355 in Travel Writing (Books)
#28,589 in Biographies & Autobiographies (Books)
Customer Reviews: 4.0
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