Kenya is a popular subject for writers! However compared to the wealth of information available on some other Africa countries, only a limited number of books have been written about the wider aspects of life and travel in Tanzania. Here is a small selection of recommended titles on both countries to provide background information or to get you in the mood before you leave. For more choice visit a good book shop.
General Guidebooks
Kenya Insight Guide, ed. M Amin (Apa)
Kenya, a visitor’s guide, A Curtis (Evans)
Glossy, travel brochure-type books, with colour photos throughout, providing good background information.
Kenya - the Rough Guide (Rough Guides)
Kenya (Lonely Planet)
Less glossy, more practical guide aimed mainly at independent travellers.
Tanzania, Zanzibar & Pemba - (Lonely Planet)
Mountain Guidebooks
Guide to Mount Kenya and Kilimanjaro, Iain Allen (MCK, Kenya). Africa's two highest mountains, mainly for mountaineers and technical climbers. Good background details.
East Africa International Mountain Guide, Andrew Wielochowski (West Col). Technical climbing and mountaineering routes on the crags, ice, snow and big walls.
Background Reading
Many hundreds of books have been written about all aspects of life and travel in East Africa. Here is a small selection of recommended titles to provide background information or to get you in the mood before you leave.
No Man’s Land, George Monbiot (Macmillan) Highly recommended. A recent(ish) investigative journey through Kenya and Tanzania providing much deeper background insights than the usual safari based accounts and travelogues. Perfect reading for the flight but disturbing in parts.
North of South, Shiva Naipaul (Penguin) Travel narrative through E. Africa with sharply observed insights - very funny.
The Tree Where Man Was Born, Peter Matthiesson (Pan).Walking combined with philosophy, producing sharp but gentle observations about the peoples and landscapes in the remoter parts of Kenya and northern Tanzania.
Mount Kenya, John Reader (Elm Tree) A personal account of a walk on Mount Kenya, from the farmland and foothills, through the forest and moor land, to the peak area and finally to the summit of Nelion. Excellent colour photos throughout capture Mount Kenya in all its moods. Hardback.
Snowcaps on the Equator, C Ward, I Allen & G Boy (Bodley Head) Excellent colour photos (with accompanying essays) of Africa's dramatic and mysterious equatorial peaks, including Mount Kenya, Mount Elgon and some of Kenya's northern ranges. Hardback.
No Picnic on Mount Kenya, Felice Benuzzi (Kimber) Gripping and inspiring account of three Italian prisoners of war attempting to reach the summit of Mount Kenya in the 1940s.
Going Down River Road, Meja Mwangi (Heinemann, African Writers). Modern, urban novel by a Kenyan writer.
Facing Mount Kenya, Jomo Kenyatta (Heinemann, African Writers) Culture, attitudes and history of Kikuyu people by the man who became first president of Kenya.
Kilimanjaro, John Reader (Elm Tree). A personal account of a walk up Mount Kilimanjaro, from the farmland and foothills, through the forest and moor land, to the high glaciers and finally to the summit of Uhuru. Plenty of background information about early exploration and mountaineering, natural history and glaciation. Excellent colour photos throughout capture Kilimanjaro in all its moods.
Scramble for Africa, Thomas Pakenham (Weidenfeld & Nicolson) superb history of the colonising period.
Africa, Sandford J Ungar (Touchstone). Excellent potted history of each country. Concentrates on relatively recent events of each country as they emerged from colonization to independence.
Origins Reconsidered, Richard Leakey and R Lewin. Tracing the evolutionary history of modern humans’ emergence from East Africa.
Wildlife Guides
Field Guide to the Birds of East Africa, J Williams (Collins) This is the one I’ve used for ages and it’s been great, but I’m going to change it soon – see www.africanbirdclub.org/countries/Africa/books.html
Field Guide to the Larger Mammals of Africa, Dorst and Dandelot (Collins). Two guides widely acknowledged to be the most comprehensive and authoritative of their kind.
Island Africa, The Evolution of Africa’s Rare Animals and Plants, Jonathan Kingdon.
Portraits of the Wild, Behaviour studies of East African Mammals, Cynthia Moss.
Safari Companion, A Guide to Watching African Mammals, Richard D. Estes
Maps
Kenya (Lonely Planet) Travel Atlas. Good details of Kenya and relevant parts of Northern Tanzania.
Kenya Tourist Map (Macmillan)
Kenya Map (Nelles Verlag). Both maps show the whole country, with acceptable accuracy.
Mount Kenya, A Map and Guide (EWP / West Col) Best for detail and routes.
Mount Kenya (Ordnance Survey World maps). A nice looking map, but scale of the main peaks is insufficient to show any detail required.
Kilimanjaro, Map and Guide (EWP / West Col). Recently drawn, detailed map of Kilimanjaro. Useful information for walkers and climbers on history, vegetation etc.
Kilimanjaro (Ordnance Survey World Maps) Reprint of beautifully drawn map originally surveyed in 1965, with new information for tourists and walkers overprinted, although scale of main peaks area is insufficient to show detail required. With notes on routes, geology, weather, etc.
Nairobi has several good book shops stocking a wide selection of guidebooks, European and African fiction, souvenir issues and glossy coffee-table books.
Compiled by Chris Morris (Into Africa UK)