The Last Barbarians: The Discovery of the Source of the Mekong in Tibet - Hardcover

Peissel, Michel

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0805045341 ISBN 13: 9780805045345

Publisher: Henry Holt & Co, 1997

Synopsis

An expert on Tibetan history explores the source of the powerful Mekong River, sharing his memories of a rare expedition into forbidden areas of Tibet that charted the origins of this majestic waterway. 12,500 first printing.

About this title

From Library Journal:

Peissel (Dangerous Environments, Chelsea House, 1993) is a British-educated French authority on Tibet, which he has visited frequently. This book recounts his 1994 expedition to "discover" the headwaters of the Mekong River. There is much description of the more hidden parts of this remote land and the Khamba people who inhabit it. To get permission to enter the area, Peissel claimed his purpose was to do research on the remarkable native horses. An incurable romantic, he often rails against the modern age and the Chinese intrusions and at times gives the reader more of himself than of Tibet. Yet he is informed and interesting, and this book is an important contribution for general readers and specialists. Americans learned much about the mouth of the Mekong River during the Vietnam War: here we are shown the other end. A recent, more political book is Barbara Erickson's Tibet: Abode of the Gods (LJ 4/1/97). Recommended for public and academic libraries.?Harold M. Otness, Southern Oregon Univ. Lib., Ashland
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review:

Peissel's account of his 1994 expedition into Qinghai Province is so intrinsically exciting that this story cannot fail to grip the reader's imagination.... The Last Barbarians certainly has its moments; it ought to be read, but one always feels that he missed many of the chances his experience gave him to have made it far better. -- The New York Times Book Review, Richard Bernstein

About this edition

• Publisher: Henry Holt & Co
• Publication date: 1997
• ISBN 10: 0805045341
• ISBN 13: 9780805045345
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 253