Into the Heart of Borneo

This was passed to me from a friend who extols O’Hanlon as a brilliant and entertaining travel writer. It is very good. O’Hanlon and a friend, James Fenton, went to Borneo on 1963, deep into the jungle in search of the lost rhinoceros of Borneo. This is a witty, intelligent, humourous and at times downright funny account of preparations for the trip and the trip itself; a trip replete with adventures and dangers. It recounts a time that is altogether different from our own, and better for it. O’Hanlon and Fenton teamed up with three Ibans who saw them through every trouble and challenge (and one of whom saved Fenton’s life when he fell into rapids). The book is a study in ethnography with various groups encountered, or just show more sensed in the mysteries of the jungle. Perhaps the final word goes to Wallace, quoted by O’Hanlon: “The more I see of uncivilized people, the better I think of human nature, and the essential differences between civilized and savage men disappear.” show less

I first read this book as a sullen fifteen year old, sitting in a caravan on a family holiday. It made me laugh out loud. Redmond O’Hanlon and James Fenton travel into the jungles of Borneo on a quest for the Borneo wallowing rhinoceros. Redmond has an endearing love of ornithology and arcane jungle lore, and his obsession with fauna and bumbling attempts to cope with life on a jungle expedition are constant source of hilarity for those around him. Redmond, James and the three Iban guides constantly tease, play tricks and annoy each other as they search for someone who may have seen the elusive rhinoceros.
I’m a lot older than fifteen now, but this book still makes me laugh.

Into the Heart of Borneo is Redmond O'Hanlon's first book that made his name as a travel writer, prior to this he was an academic and TLS book reviewer. He made a number of further trips in the 80s and 90s producing 3 more travel books to the Amazon, Congo and North Atlantic. I read the Amazon account first and found this to be similar in approach. There is a Boswell (O'Hanlon) writing about a curmudgeon Johnson (poet James Fenton) accompanied by a handful of native guides whose main interests are boiled bushmeat and jungle women, colorful bird sightings and descriptions of other flora and fauna. The Borneo book is not nearly as grotesque as the Amazon book, it is more civilized. O'Hanlon is oddly juvenile in the Amazon account, show more unhinged at times, though he was years older. In Borneo he maintained decorum, perhaps finding a voice. show less

Redmond O'Hanlon is a geek with a yearning for rare birds. When he decides to launch an expedition to the rainforests of Borneo, he drags his best friend, a poet, along for company. O'Hanlon does a good job describing Borneo's unique tribal culture as well as the hardships faced by these two unlikely adventurers. The adorable friendship between them is icing on the cake.

Recommended to me after reading the Amazone book. It was less gruesome, more about the beautiful nature of the area. Entertaining to read, but it ended a bit sudden, half-way the second exploration! The way the Ukit-teacher spoke English was fun!

Mildly entertaining. British humor always seems so forced as to not be overly funny. The trip would have been more interesting had the author discussed it more and done a better job at leaving the humor out. Ditto for the book itself. Currently in Sumatra, I plan on going to Borneo in August and am doing mild background reading. This copy was purchased in Penang, Malaysia at Sam's in the heart of the Old Town. Tis a print-on-demand book, and a cheapie at that.

could've used a little more violence. who knew the jungle was so benign?