Posted by ccarr
Annis,
I hope you post your impressions of the Burnaby book. It sounds like something I'd enjoy reading.
I'm sure you'd enjoy this book. Burnaby's style is articulate, straightforward, and lacking in self-aggrandizement. He has a great eye for detail, ear for cadence of language and a nice sense of humour. It's easy to see why his journal has been reprinted so many times. You get a clear impression of someone who would have been great fun to be around, a man with a contagious zest for life. I should add that Burnaby was a loyal soldier of the British Empire at its height, and his views sometimes reflect that.
I'm going to see if I can find a copy of the sequel
On Horseback Through Asia Minor, in which Burnaby recounts his 1876 journey from Constantinople into Asia, to see what the Turks and Russians were up to.
Frederick Gustavus Burnaby as painted by Tissot, looking very debonair. After reading
A Ride to Khiva, it's hard to imagine him without his sheepskin suit!
