The World: Life and Travel 1950-2000
by Jan Morris
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"In a collection of her travel writing and reportage from over five decades, Jan Morris - a constant traveller - has produced a unique portrait of the late-twentieth century. Ranging from New York to Venice, and the Middle East to South Africa, Jan Morris was a witness to such seminal moments as the Eichmann trial, the first ascent of Everest, the fall of the Berlin Wall and the handover of Hong Kong." "Offering a tremendously perceptive and highly personal view of the world, she is as much show more concerned with conveying the 'feel' of these moments as the events themselves. And, as ever, she displays her unique and inimitable literary style, at once funny, wise and sad."--BOOK JACKET. show lessTags
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Member Reviews
This is great travel writing. Morris is an astute observer wherever she goes. I thought she got a little testy in her later years. I guess one would be a little jaded and a bit too demanding after 50 years of travel, but this is just a little cavil. By and large, I loved going along with her wherever she went.
I'm a big fan of travel writing, and I also enjoy current affairs books of the John Simpson autobiography ilk, so this collection of travel articles written by Jan Morris over a 50 year period sounded just like my cup of tea. And so it was, more or less.
I loved the prose, and if I was sometimes forced to reach for a dictionary, at least I felt that my mind was being expanded - gallimaufry is now in my vocabulary! With hindsight, this isn't really a cover-to-cover sort of book, and that's how I read it. I'd suggest more of a dipping in and out approach. Despite this, it was very enjoyable and I'll be looking out for others by the same author.
I loved the prose, and if I was sometimes forced to reach for a dictionary, at least I felt that my mind was being expanded - gallimaufry is now in my vocabulary! With hindsight, this isn't really a cover-to-cover sort of book, and that's how I read it. I'd suggest more of a dipping in and out approach. Despite this, it was very enjoyable and I'll be looking out for others by the same author.
She was at Everest when Edmund Hilary came down. She travelled to Casablanca to change her sex. She was at Nuremberg, Kashmir, Capetown. She is the grande dame of travel writers adn this book is her greatest hits. A world of pleasure.
-- Michael
-- Michael
Great collection by the peerless travel writer of her time.
Cincuenta años viajando dan para recorrer varias veces el mundo y para llenar muchas páginas. RBA ofrece una amplia antología de los textos de Jan Morris, una de las más notorias escritoras que ha dado el género de la literatura de viajes. Una travesía por países y ciudades de los cinco continentes bajo una perspectiva viva e inteligente.
Spanish
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Published Reviews
Still, Morris maintains her ironist’s accreditations. An acute, idiosyncratic collection, full of what the author, at home at last, always liked best: fizz.
added by John_Vaughan
The first thing to be said about Jan Morris is that she has emerged from her experiences as a first-class writer. This was not something one could say with any great conviction about her previous persona, James Morris. Although there are good passages in "The World of Venice," for instance, there are also some shockingly bad ones; possibly the affectation and pretentiousness, the occasional show more descents into Lawrence Durrell whimsy, were products of the insecurity he felt in his earlier role. Possibly we writers should all undergo the occasional sex change as a means of keeping us on our toes and generally toning us up. At all events, she now writes in a fine, robust, self-confident style. If one can, without offense, attribute sexual characteristics to a prose style, I should say the new Morris was noticeably the more masculine, and it comes as something of a shock, when she is describing a journey across Singapore harbor, to read: "Spray got in our eyes, oil got on our skirts." show less
added by John_Vaughan
Lists
Best of Travel Narratives
142 works; 28 members
Best Travel Writing - Non-Fiction
110 works; 6 members
Author Information
88+ Works 10,628 Members
Jan Morris served as an intelligence officer with the 9th Queen's Royal Lancers, studied at Oxford University, and was a reporter for the Times and the Guardian before launching a successful career as a novelist, history author, and travel writer
Common Knowledge
- Original publication date
- 2003
- Dedication
- To the Honour of Wales
Er Anrhydedd Cymru - Disambiguation notice
- 'A Writer's World is the UK title. 'The World' is the US title.
Classifications
Statistics
- Members
- 386
- Popularity
- 81,075
- Reviews
- 5
- Rating
- (3.88)
- Languages
- English, Spanish
- Media
- Paper, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 7
- ASINs
- 4
