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Book Review, © Copyright 1997, Jim Loy
The important word in the title here is "death." This book is about death, not death of game animals in Africa, but death of the big game hunters, tourists, and natives. These deaths have occurred in the past, and they still occur today. And Mr. Capstick is very good at telling these stories.
The chapters:
Lion: This, the largest chapter, begins with the death of Peter Hankin, who was killed in his sleep when a hungry lion entered his tent, in 1974. The author tells of his own gun bearer, Silent, who drove off an attacking lion, by hitting it in the face four times, with a Coke bottle.
Elephant: Being charged by a bull elephant can be quite a thrill. Don't climb a tree, by the way.
Leopard: Some of these have killed hundreds of people, even as late as 1960. The author was saved from death, by taking a cigarette break.
Cape Buffalo: The author stalks a killer cape buffalo (which was wounded by a poacher), and gets run over, after shooting it four times.
Hippo: The author outruns an attacking wounded hippo. They will still attack boats, and kill people.
Crocodile: The author witnesses the death of a native woman. Almost every day, people are killed by crocodiles. The author tells of a 14-foot (medium large) crocodile which attacked and killed a rhinoceros.
Rhino: In the past, rhinos have been known to attack railroad locomotives. The locomotives won, barely.
Snakes: The author shoots an outhouse full of holes, and then burns it down, trying to kill a black mamba.
Underrated Killers: Wild dogs, hyenas (have eaten lots of humans), sable antelope (the author is attacked by one that killed a lion), and clients ("Never permit a person with a cocked rifle behind you").
This is exciting reading. Capstick has written other exciting books, like Death In The Dark Continent. He is also the editor of a series of classic books on Africa, which he brought back into print.
One of my favorite quotes, from another of Mr. Capstick's books: "The morning sky had brightened to the color of the white fur growing from my tongue."
To order this book, click Amazon.com (goes directly to this book). Also available in hardcover.