Something to Write Home About: Reflections From the Heart of History
edited by Claude Colart and Sahm Venter
(Jacana)
Reading this collection of short pieces written by journalists based in foreign countries is like living life through their eyes.
Largely made up of ”on the road” moments, this is a collection that can truly be appreciated by travellers, or fellow journalists. Stories range from an account of what can only be called traveller’s sickness to being caught in a war zone trying to get in while everyone else is trying to get out.
The stories of war-ravaged countries are heart-rending, not only because you feel drawn into the dangers but also because the human suffering that so infrequently makes it into print or on to television, is so acutely described.
Something to Write Home About is an eclectic collection. The writing styles differ vastly and what the journalists chose to submit varies from letters home to diary accounts and snapshots of a moment in time.
Some anecdotes leave the reader wanting to know more; others are impressive in their banality. Often a knowledge of history is required to work out when the journalist is writing.
That said, these are the only shortcomings of a book that is a piece of history and a grim reminder to always travel with toilet paper.