Want a NOOK? Explore Now
With classic simplicity and a painter's feeling for atmosphere and detail, Isak Dinesen tells of the years she spent from 1914 to 1931 managing a coffee plantation in Kenya.
A reissue of the book that inspired the critically acclaimed movie version. Set in Africa, it is the story of Dinesen's years in Africa--together with Shadows on the Grass.
| 1. | Kamante and Lulu | |
| The Ngong Farm | 3 | |
| A Native Child | 21 | |
| The Savage in the Immigrant's House | 40 | |
| A Gazelle | 61 | |
| 2. | A Shooting Accident on the Farm | |
| The Shooting Accident | 81 | |
| Riding in the Reserve | 94 | |
| Wamai | 105 | |
| Wanyangerri | 120 | |
| A Kikuyu Chief | 136 | |
| 3. | Visitors to the Farm | |
| Big Dances | 153 | |
| A Visitor from Asia | 165 | |
| The Somali Women | 170 | |
| Old Knudsen | 181 | |
| A Fugitive Rests on the Farm | 189 | |
| Visits of Friends | 198 | |
| The Noble Pioneer | 205 | |
| Wings | 217 | |
| 4. | From an Immigrant's Notebook | |
| The Wild Came to the Aid of the Wild | 239 | |
| The Fireflies | 240 | |
| The Roads of Life | 241 | |
| Esa's Story | 243 | |
| The lguana | 246 | |
| Farah and the Merchant of Venice | 248 | |
| The Elite of Bournemouth | 250 | |
| Of Pride | 250 | |
| The Oxen | 251 | |
| Of the Two Races | 254 | |
| A War-Time Safari | 255 | |
| The Swaheli Numeral System | 262 | |
| "I Will Not Let Thee Go Except Thou Bless Me" | 263 | |
| The Eclipse of the Moon | 265 | |
| Natives and Verse | 265 | |
| Of the Millennium | 266 | |
| Kitosch's Story | 267 | |
| Some African Birds | 272 | |
| Pania | 275 | |
| Esa's Death | 277 | |
| Of Natives and History | 280 | |
| The Earthquake | 283 | |
| George | 284 | |
| Kejiko | 285 | |
| The Giraffes Go to Hamburg | 286 | |
| In the Menagerie | 289 | |
| Fellow-Travellers | 292 | |
| The Naturalist and the Monkeys | 293 | |
| Karomenya | 295 | |
| Pooran Singh | 298 | |
| A Strange Happening | 300 | |
| The Parrot | 303 | |
| 5. | Farewell to the Farm | |
| Hard Times | 307 | |
| The Death of Kinanjui | 320 | |
| The Grave in the Hills | 329 | |
| Farah and I Sell Out | 347 | |
| Farewell | 364 | |
| Shadows on the Grass | 373 |
My favorite book to date. It is surprisingly the only book I can ever recall reading that truly proves that the book is better than movie.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.chantera55
Posted June 14, 2012
Isak Dineson's memoir is a classic of its kind. Hemingway called it the best book ever written about Africa. Baroness Blixen (who wrote as Isak Dineson) vividly brings to life the African landscape and all its inhabitants--human and animal--in the early years of the twentieth century. In revealing the beauty and unique cultures of that time and place, she reveals her own great humanity.
In Shadows on the Grass, she shares additional anecdotes and insights into a vanished time and place.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted May 3, 2000
I read this book as an application project for Honors 9 Geography. The helpful parts in this book was the quotes for the five themes of Geography. The Native people made Place Cultural very easy to understand. I liked that there aren't short little chapters in the book, but instead units in each chapter. I learned alot about Africa, the Native people, and the culture. Dinesen made this book seem real, which it was, I was always seeing pictures in my mind while I was reading. I feel that Out Of Africa was at my reading level and was challenging also. I would recommend this book to people who like to read for fun and if you like long books. The book didn't hold my attention very much because of the length.
1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.9272598
Posted August 8, 2011
A beautiful trip to an africa that once was.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Bookmeister
Posted April 27, 2009
This grouping of stories pictures an Africa long lost, and a whole time long lost. Dinesen has a lyrical style of writing that transcends the lack of structure. At the bottom, she is an episodic writer with occasional flashes of brilliant insight and a flair for description. Anyone who has seen the movie will benefit greatly from seeing the basis from which it evolved. While not "light" reading, it is a journey worth taking none-the-less.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted April 22, 2009
No text was provided for this review.
Anonymous
Posted May 25, 2011
No text was provided for this review.
Anonymous
Posted October 25, 2008
No text was provided for this review.
Anonymous
Posted November 14, 2008
No text was provided for this review.
Overview
With classic simplicity and a painter's feeling for atmosphere and detail, Isak Dinesen tells of the years she spent from 1914 to 1931 managing a coffee plantation in Kenya.
A reissue of the book that inspired the critically acclaimed movie version. Set in Africa, it is the story of Dinesen's years in Africa--together with Shadows on the Grass.