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Los fantasmas de tsavo (NARRATIVA DE VIAJES)
Fascinante libro de aventuras y viajes que sigue las huellas de cuatro científicos empeñados en aclarar los secretos de los fieros leones devoradores de hombres que habitan al sureste de Kenia. Philip Caputo, buen conocedor de lo que significa cazar y ser cazado por peligrosos depredadores, describe en este apasionante relato, la belleza, la secreta astucia y la fuerza terrible de estos animales tan magníficos como esquivos.
232 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2002
19 people are currently reading
651 people want to read
About the author
Philip Caputo
38 books319 followersAmerican author and journalist. Author of 18 books, including the upcoming MEMORY AND DESIRE (Sept. 2023). Best known for
A Rumor of War,
a best-selling memoir of his experiences during the Vietnam War. Website: PhilipCaputo.com
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 59 reviews
October 27, 2008
The book opens with gripping tales of lion hunting in Africa. There was the famous tale of two man-eaters in Tsavo, Ghost and Darkness, which had killed and devoured hundreds of humans at the end of the 19th century. There have been other outbreaks. Why? What makes these man-eaters different from the wooly-maned lords of the Serengeti? The opening, the first couple of chapters, is wonderful, but it is downhill from there, mostly following Caputo as he accompanies others in their research or hunting.
Caputo raises the possibility that the short-maned 19th century killers were members of a subspecies of lion, a throwback to an earlier, cave-dwelling ancestor. These lions (preserved in the Field Museum in Chicago) have physical differences from the usual lion. They are taller, heavier, but with smaller skulls. In reading, I was hoping that DNA analysis would resolve the dispute, but it appears not to have entered the debate. We are left with musings about the alternative possibilities. Differences in lions, and in their interest in feeding on humans, might be understood in different ways. Availability of food was one determining factor. In areas with ample game there was little need to add humans to the menu. But when prey is scarce, people become more likely targets. Also, the Tsavo lions, lived a hard-scrabble existence, one in which their primary prey was Cape Buffalo, one of the most dangerous creatures on the continent. Although these lions adapted by becoming larger, taller, with more powerful forelegs and shoulders than their Serengeti cousins in order to survive on such a difficult diet, people were an easy choice when available.
What is the significance of lion manes? It appears that there is a tradeoff between status, advertising advantage, and body heat management cost. The darker the mane the healthier, the stronger the male lion is likely to appear. But only to a point. As one moves lower in elevation, the hotter it gets, and the more that mane costs. That may be why all not all adult males have manes.
Caputo raises the possibility that the short-maned 19th century killers were members of a subspecies of lion, a throwback to an earlier, cave-dwelling ancestor. These lions (preserved in the Field Museum in Chicago) have physical differences from the usual lion. They are taller, heavier, but with smaller skulls. In reading, I was hoping that DNA analysis would resolve the dispute, but it appears not to have entered the debate. We are left with musings about the alternative possibilities. Differences in lions, and in their interest in feeding on humans, might be understood in different ways. Availability of food was one determining factor. In areas with ample game there was little need to add humans to the menu. But when prey is scarce, people become more likely targets. Also, the Tsavo lions, lived a hard-scrabble existence, one in which their primary prey was Cape Buffalo, one of the most dangerous creatures on the continent. Although these lions adapted by becoming larger, taller, with more powerful forelegs and shoulders than their Serengeti cousins in order to survive on such a difficult diet, people were an easy choice when available.
What is the significance of lion manes? It appears that there is a tradeoff between status, advertising advantage, and body heat management cost. The darker the mane the healthier, the stronger the male lion is likely to appear. But only to a point. As one moves lower in elevation, the hotter it gets, and the more that mane costs. That may be why all not all adult males have manes.
May 4, 2013
This is a book about man-eating lions. You may as well stop reading this review now, because can you really go wrong? I mean, even though the author went to Africa to work with researchers in the hopes of gaining scientific knowledge of the animals, is it wrong that my favorite parts were accounts of the man-eating itself?
Different researchers have different theories about the lions of Tsavo and they carry out careful experiments in an attempt to uncover answers. Are the mane-less lions of this region a separate species? Are they products of their environment, harsher than that of the Serengeti lions? Are they truly man-eaters by nature or is this just a backup plan for sick and injured individuals? These are the questions the author attempts to answer in his journeys.
Interesting stuff. Where the book falters, in my opinion, is when the author - an otherwise engaging writer - waxes on about the humility he feels in being out in the field and finding he's not the top predator in the food chain. It's a fair enough observation the first time, but after one too many wide-eyed discussions of it and references to god, it comes across as naive from someone who's a professional writer in his 50's. Has this man never gone outside before? Has it never occurred to him that other animals don't see as us as their lords and masters, but as chucks of meat? I don't think you have to face man-eating lions to experience this - I have felt like prey in California cougar country or encountering bears in the Shenandoah Valley. I will give him credit though in that towards the end of the book, he lets it be known that one of the researchers seems to be sick of hearing him talk about this. I hear ya.
Again, the best parts were the accounts of the lions actions. Their behaviors appear to be so...primate-like, so well thought-out and cunning. Makes you want to get into the lions heads.
Different researchers have different theories about the lions of Tsavo and they carry out careful experiments in an attempt to uncover answers. Are the mane-less lions of this region a separate species? Are they products of their environment, harsher than that of the Serengeti lions? Are they truly man-eaters by nature or is this just a backup plan for sick and injured individuals? These are the questions the author attempts to answer in his journeys.
Interesting stuff. Where the book falters, in my opinion, is when the author - an otherwise engaging writer - waxes on about the humility he feels in being out in the field and finding he's not the top predator in the food chain. It's a fair enough observation the first time, but after one too many wide-eyed discussions of it and references to god, it comes across as naive from someone who's a professional writer in his 50's. Has this man never gone outside before? Has it never occurred to him that other animals don't see as us as their lords and masters, but as chucks of meat? I don't think you have to face man-eating lions to experience this - I have felt like prey in California cougar country or encountering bears in the Shenandoah Valley. I will give him credit though in that towards the end of the book, he lets it be known that one of the researchers seems to be sick of hearing him talk about this. I hear ya.
Again, the best parts were the accounts of the lions actions. Their behaviors appear to be so...primate-like, so well thought-out and cunning. Makes you want to get into the lions heads.
April 27, 2018
I will start by saying I read this book by accident about 18 years ago. I just never remembered to put it on here. As I recall, it wasn't a bad read. BUT..... when I purchased it, I had mistaken it for MAN EATERS OF TSAVO. The book I was actually looking for but didn't write down the name and when I went to the book store I grabbed this book by accident. As I recall it wasn't bad, I was just disappointed because I figured out rather quickly that I had the wrooooong book. Despite that, I did read it till the end and remember it having some very interesting info. Technically, it's the first book I ever read as a hobby. it was the next book, MAN EATERS OF TSAVO, that made me fall in love with books.
December 23, 2010
Caputo travels through Kenya stalking lions alongside scientists with opposing views on why these particular animals in Tsavo sometimes track, kill, and eat humans.
Tsavo means place of slaughter in KiKamba. Generally, when referred to geographically, Tsavo refers to Tsavo East National Park in Kenya. This area is noted for lions. More spefically-man-eating lions. In 1898, two man-eating lions nicknamed Ghost and Darkness, killed an estimated 135 people. Another noted period of man-eating lion terror occurred in the early 1990s. Man-eaters have taken people before, in-between, and since these two studied periods in Kenyan and wildlife research history. Caputo tracks lions with two groups of scientists who hold opposing views on why the lions in this particular part of Africa 1)don't have manes and 2)sometimes use people as a food source. Is it evolution? Is it food source issues? Is it the geography? Are the lions passing the want for human flesh to their young? Or is it all nonsense? Several of the scientists prove to be interesting characters. Some of them take a disproved hypothesis personally.
Caputo describes Africa in both picturesque and horrifying terms. Forget the idea of a safari for rich white people. It is hot. There are insects carrying diseases that will easily kill you. A rhino, hippo, lion, or water buffalo could charge and you and remove chunks of your body before you'd even think to run. He tempers this harsh living with sunsets of unspeakable beauty and quiet moments of amazement at how wild Africa is. It's not the "wild" of a naive tourist. It is a primeval wild.
Never mind all the theories. Yes, the research is fascinating. However, my favorite thing about this book was the details of how the lions would choose particular people to eat. I loved the descriptions of their day-to-day behavior, even the lazy parts (of which there are many, lions are very lazy).
Tsavo means place of slaughter in KiKamba. Generally, when referred to geographically, Tsavo refers to Tsavo East National Park in Kenya. This area is noted for lions. More spefically-man-eating lions. In 1898, two man-eating lions nicknamed Ghost and Darkness, killed an estimated 135 people. Another noted period of man-eating lion terror occurred in the early 1990s. Man-eaters have taken people before, in-between, and since these two studied periods in Kenyan and wildlife research history. Caputo tracks lions with two groups of scientists who hold opposing views on why the lions in this particular part of Africa 1)don't have manes and 2)sometimes use people as a food source. Is it evolution? Is it food source issues? Is it the geography? Are the lions passing the want for human flesh to their young? Or is it all nonsense? Several of the scientists prove to be interesting characters. Some of them take a disproved hypothesis personally.
Caputo describes Africa in both picturesque and horrifying terms. Forget the idea of a safari for rich white people. It is hot. There are insects carrying diseases that will easily kill you. A rhino, hippo, lion, or water buffalo could charge and you and remove chunks of your body before you'd even think to run. He tempers this harsh living with sunsets of unspeakable beauty and quiet moments of amazement at how wild Africa is. It's not the "wild" of a naive tourist. It is a primeval wild.
Never mind all the theories. Yes, the research is fascinating. However, my favorite thing about this book was the details of how the lions would choose particular people to eat. I loved the descriptions of their day-to-day behavior, even the lazy parts (of which there are many, lions are very lazy).
August 22, 2012
This is a sort of combination science and travel book. Unfortunately the "science" side was much weaker than the "travel" side.
The author writes of his trips to east-central Africa on photographic safari, tracking the lions of Tsavo, and his adventures. Apparently safari vacations, at least in the Tsavo, are not for the faint of heart -- it's close to 100 degrees all the time, you're very far from civilization, there's a real chance of getting mauled and/or eaten by some wild animal, and there are long periods of being bored to death punctuated by short periods of being frightened to death. Caputo had a ball, but I'm not sure I'd be willing to sign up for that trip.
The Tsavo lions are different from the lions further north in that they are larger, their skulls are shaped differently, they are more aggressive and much more likely to attack humans, and their manes are often sparse to non-existent (maybe that's why they're so aggressive: inferiority complex). Caputo wrote about the debate between biologists about this; some of them believe the Tsavo lions could be a different subspecies or species altogether, while others believe the differences aren't significant and can be accounted for by environmental factors. I think it's a very interesting question and would like to know the answer. However, not reaching any conclusions about this, Caputo is finally like, "Who cares, I'd rather it remain a mystery, they're awesome anyway." The affect, to me, was like slamming the door in my face.
I would still recommend this book, but for intrepid armchair travelers rather than armchair zoologists.
The author writes of his trips to east-central Africa on photographic safari, tracking the lions of Tsavo, and his adventures. Apparently safari vacations, at least in the Tsavo, are not for the faint of heart -- it's close to 100 degrees all the time, you're very far from civilization, there's a real chance of getting mauled and/or eaten by some wild animal, and there are long periods of being bored to death punctuated by short periods of being frightened to death. Caputo had a ball, but I'm not sure I'd be willing to sign up for that trip.
The Tsavo lions are different from the lions further north in that they are larger, their skulls are shaped differently, they are more aggressive and much more likely to attack humans, and their manes are often sparse to non-existent (maybe that's why they're so aggressive: inferiority complex). Caputo wrote about the debate between biologists about this; some of them believe the Tsavo lions could be a different subspecies or species altogether, while others believe the differences aren't significant and can be accounted for by environmental factors. I think it's a very interesting question and would like to know the answer. However, not reaching any conclusions about this, Caputo is finally like, "Who cares, I'd rather it remain a mystery, they're awesome anyway." The affect, to me, was like slamming the door in my face.
I would still recommend this book, but for intrepid armchair travelers rather than armchair zoologists.
September 4, 2016
If you've seen the movie, "The Ghost and the Darkness" (Val Kilmer & Michael Douglas), you are going to want to read this book and get a notion about what makes a "man-eater."You are going to want to know about how a large predator like a lion goes about killing and eating you.
Caputo eloquently waxes poetic about the African "bush" and laments the effect progress has had on the environment, the culture and the wildlife. The author, a Vietnam veteran of note, has his moments on "safari" including an unlikely NDE ( "near death experience") that will surprise you. At the time the author also notes the sorrow that he is is experiencing as his mother suffers from dementia. That touched me in many ways.
A highly recommended read and I'm going to get a copy of John Patterson's "The Man-Eaters of Tsavo" as a follow-up. Patterson is the engineer/hunter featured in the movie. Also Peter Capstick's "Death in the Long Grass"is recommended by the author.
Caputo eloquently waxes poetic about the African "bush" and laments the effect progress has had on the environment, the culture and the wildlife. The author, a Vietnam veteran of note, has his moments on "safari" including an unlikely NDE ( "near death experience") that will surprise you. At the time the author also notes the sorrow that he is is experiencing as his mother suffers from dementia. That touched me in many ways.
A highly recommended read and I'm going to get a copy of John Patterson's "The Man-Eaters of Tsavo" as a follow-up. Patterson is the engineer/hunter featured in the movie. Also Peter Capstick's "Death in the Long Grass"is recommended by the author.
January 8, 2021
Fierce maneless lions are on the prowl and hungry, looking for something to snack on in the night. In the book, "Ghosts of Tsavo", the author Philip Caputo writes about the terrors that occur in Kenya. The book was published in June 2002, by the National Geographic Society in Washington D.C. It tells the tale of lions when they ferociously attack innocent people and slaughter with no remorse. He writes this non-fiction work that showcases his interests in Tsavo lions, even so that their unique features and behavior are the reasoning behind him going to Kenya to help ongoing research. Through his journey he researches these lions behavior and physical features to uncover their strange truths. Caputo is a brave and determined man, having encountered savage lions. Overall, I thought that "Ghosts of Tsavo" was monotonous and lacked exciting aspects that encouraged me to keep reading because of the authors' run on sentences and repetition throughout the story.
Throughout reading "Ghosts of Tsavo", the author used long in depth sentences that were overall unnecessary, even to get the point across to the reader. A quote conveys,
We stop to take photographs, trying to imagine the scene 102 years ago, the work crews lowering the steel grinders and wood beams onto the stone piers, track gangs spiking down the track, their labors interrupted by flash floods that turn the Tsavo into a racing sluice, tearing trees out by the roots-- ‘whirling them along like straws’, Patterson wrote. (Caputo 57)
As he continues to write like this, the book becomes difficult to comprehend. Caputo in Kenya, watching lions in the savanna plains seemed all he could write about, and writing in such detail caused the story to unnecessarily slow. After reading sentences, I would continuously reread passages because they were so dull I had a hard time concentrating. If it were not for his run-ons I might have gained new and exciting knowledge.
Next, the author often stated ideas repeatedly. An author's use of repetition in writing can be used as a symbol and to show an important meaning, like in the “Scarlet Ibis” by James Hurst, when he used motifs like red, dead, and bird to tell the story. Unlike “The Scarlet Ibis”, however, Philip Caputo went on to write about his time in Kenya with seemingly identical events. Although the people accompanying him varied, he would write about experiences that were practically the same, which made the story extremely hard to pay attention to and overall boring. His experiences usually consisted of: staying somewhere in the savanna, being scared and intrigued by the lion's behaviors, asking himself recurring questions, and researching before moving on to work with other researchers who were all trying to do the same thing. This sequence of events shows how the book overall was the same repeating short story.
As I have seen in Philip Caputo’s other works, they consist of the same type of material that would not interest anyone who had not enjoyed "Ghosts of Tsavo". He is well known for his memoirs and war books, that are similar to "Ghosts of Tsavo", non-fiction, with his audience ranging from young to old. Some titles include, "A Rumor of War" and "The Voyage". Being an Honors English student and having read many nonfiction books such as biographies and titles including, "The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind" and "The Omnivore's Dilemma" provides me with the background to leave a worthy review. Each one of those books had engaging qualities that made the reading exciting unlike "Ghosts of Tsavo". Because of this, I would not recommend this book to anyone.
To deduce, out of five stars I would rate this book a one because it was uninteresting and lacked compelling aspects that wanted me to keep reading. The authors' run on sentences and repetition throughout the story is the main reason for this book’s low rating. This book severely lacked intriguing points and made it excruciating to read through. "Ghosts of Tsavo" is a non-fiction story that I will not be reading again nor recommend to anyone interested in a good read.
Caputo, Philip. Ghosts of Tsavo. Washington D.C., National Geographic Society, June 2002.
Throughout reading "Ghosts of Tsavo", the author used long in depth sentences that were overall unnecessary, even to get the point across to the reader. A quote conveys,
We stop to take photographs, trying to imagine the scene 102 years ago, the work crews lowering the steel grinders and wood beams onto the stone piers, track gangs spiking down the track, their labors interrupted by flash floods that turn the Tsavo into a racing sluice, tearing trees out by the roots-- ‘whirling them along like straws’, Patterson wrote. (Caputo 57)
As he continues to write like this, the book becomes difficult to comprehend. Caputo in Kenya, watching lions in the savanna plains seemed all he could write about, and writing in such detail caused the story to unnecessarily slow. After reading sentences, I would continuously reread passages because they were so dull I had a hard time concentrating. If it were not for his run-ons I might have gained new and exciting knowledge.
Next, the author often stated ideas repeatedly. An author's use of repetition in writing can be used as a symbol and to show an important meaning, like in the “Scarlet Ibis” by James Hurst, when he used motifs like red, dead, and bird to tell the story. Unlike “The Scarlet Ibis”, however, Philip Caputo went on to write about his time in Kenya with seemingly identical events. Although the people accompanying him varied, he would write about experiences that were practically the same, which made the story extremely hard to pay attention to and overall boring. His experiences usually consisted of: staying somewhere in the savanna, being scared and intrigued by the lion's behaviors, asking himself recurring questions, and researching before moving on to work with other researchers who were all trying to do the same thing. This sequence of events shows how the book overall was the same repeating short story.
As I have seen in Philip Caputo’s other works, they consist of the same type of material that would not interest anyone who had not enjoyed "Ghosts of Tsavo". He is well known for his memoirs and war books, that are similar to "Ghosts of Tsavo", non-fiction, with his audience ranging from young to old. Some titles include, "A Rumor of War" and "The Voyage". Being an Honors English student and having read many nonfiction books such as biographies and titles including, "The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind" and "The Omnivore's Dilemma" provides me with the background to leave a worthy review. Each one of those books had engaging qualities that made the reading exciting unlike "Ghosts of Tsavo". Because of this, I would not recommend this book to anyone.
To deduce, out of five stars I would rate this book a one because it was uninteresting and lacked compelling aspects that wanted me to keep reading. The authors' run on sentences and repetition throughout the story is the main reason for this book’s low rating. This book severely lacked intriguing points and made it excruciating to read through. "Ghosts of Tsavo" is a non-fiction story that I will not be reading again nor recommend to anyone interested in a good read.
Caputo, Philip. Ghosts of Tsavo. Washington D.C., National Geographic Society, June 2002.
October 21, 2022
I bought this book to read in October hoping it’d be a good nonfiction scare. The only thing scary is how bored I was especially in the second half. It starts out strong, but then is a bunch of useless descriptions of expeditions to observe lions, with some philosophical tidbits about his struggle of the extravagance of this expedition while so many Africans suffer from hunger, oh and countless moments of writing on how African has humbled him. Caputo states lion research is “hours and hours of boredom punctuated by moments of sheer boredom,” which also describes this book. Another irony, he slightly criticized Col. Patterson’s, “The Man-Eaters of Tsavo” as “a Victorian drawing room book slurred with unnecessary adjectives, covered in the damask of dated figures of speech, darkened by the heavy drapery of melodramatic phrases.” That sentence alone is exactly what he just said he didn’t like! He uncovers no mystery and tries to cover how little he has to write about with overly descriptive writing about the other people on the expedition, other animals, his thoughts, his camera lenses, and even his dreams. Some interesting points here and there, but not worth the read.
July 8, 2021
2.25-2.5 range
This was disappointing, as it had started well. The stories of the lions of Tsavo were interesting and what I was expecting from the book, and the writing style itself made it easy to get through the book fairly quickly. However, as we got further from these stories and more into Caputo’s visits to Tsavo it went downhill. It became meandering and less about the lions as it gave way to Caputo’s musings and discussions of how the people he travelled with did or did not get along (which, frankly, did not interest me.) And there were points where Caputo’s judgments were coming through in a way that rubbed me the wrong way (conveniently forgetting he was indeed also a tourist when talking about pasty American tourists and couch potatoes; calling a typical response from elephants to their home being invaded a “tantrum”, among others.) And, in a few instances, there was racist and ableist language from Caputo and others.
This was disappointing, as it had started well. The stories of the lions of Tsavo were interesting and what I was expecting from the book, and the writing style itself made it easy to get through the book fairly quickly. However, as we got further from these stories and more into Caputo’s visits to Tsavo it went downhill. It became meandering and less about the lions as it gave way to Caputo’s musings and discussions of how the people he travelled with did or did not get along (which, frankly, did not interest me.) And there were points where Caputo’s judgments were coming through in a way that rubbed me the wrong way (conveniently forgetting he was indeed also a tourist when talking about pasty American tourists and couch potatoes; calling a typical response from elephants to their home being invaded a “tantrum”, among others.) And, in a few instances, there was racist and ableist language from Caputo and others.
December 5, 2021
I read this interesting book because I am a fan of Mr Caputo's work, I'm a Leo fascinated by the big cats, and because I really enjoyed the film about the Tsavo lions, The Ghost and the Darkness. Much of the book is essentially Mr Caputo's journal from two separate trips to Tsavo in search of answers about the lions who dwell there. Specifically he explores the various evolving points of view regarding why apex predators become man-eaters and whether the often mane-less Tsavo lions are part of a subgroup distinct from the more common examples of Panthera Leo found on the African savanna. Mr Caputo has lived a very interesting life which he shares in both his novels and non-fiction like this book. I'm glad that I could vicariously experience some of what he saw in Vietnam, and what he did in Tsavo, without the attendant danger.
February 15, 2021
This is a great history, both natural and human, of the lions of Tsavo in Kenya. Remember the movie Ghost in the Darkness? This was about the 2 man eating lions in the late 1800’s that dispatched over a hundred people building the bridge over the Tsavo river. It is a creepy movie and true! This area has always fascinated me. I (hopefully) will be able to see it with my own eyes this summer. This is a wonderfully readable book including much of the research being done on the lions in the area recently, trying to determine why these lions have no mane and are bigger than the Serengeti lions. I can’t wait to see a maneless male!!
March 29, 2020
I typically enjoy books that take place in East Africa. Because I had heard that Caputo was a good writer, I was disappointed in this book. It told of man-eating lions in the early 1900’s and the more recent research into this phenomenon. Is there a different lion species in the Tsavo region of Kenya, a maneless, larger lion? The telling seemed a bit disjointed to me. I would still recommend it, however.
September 2, 2021
3.5 *, so I rounded up to 4. I found this book interesting, as I have been fascinated by the lions of Tsavo ever since watching the movie, The Ghost and the Darkness. The movie left me wanting to visit the Field Museum to view the lions myself. The author had a similar fascination, and actually visited Tsavo with lion researchers. His narrative was well written, and I share some of his feelings, in the desire to leave some of the mystery intact.
October 7, 2021
A reasonable walk through some of the history of the man-eaters of Tsavo from 1898. A good read that only faltered a bit when the author mused too much on God and whether man was special, etc. The author made several trips to Africa to accompany researchers looking to investigate the maneless lions of Tsavo. Next to find the original book on the Ghost and the Darkness from 1907. It will be a time capsule, but it is the genesis of this book and is still in print.
February 24, 2018
I have read several books of this subject and have found all of them astounding and intriguing. To know this is a true story of two lions doing what had never been something lions did in pairs is amazing. If you haven;t rad the books, this one or others, pick them up. I also loved the movie "The ghost and the darkness" linked to the books.
September 11, 2021
This book was a must-read for me since I will be visiting the area. Hopefully, I will not be eaten by a lion.
I really enjoyed this book, which really has two threads. One is the historical account of the lions called The Ghost and The Darkness. The other is about modern-day research into lions, those in Tsavo and others in other parts of Africa.
I really enjoyed this book, which really has two threads. One is the historical account of the lions called The Ghost and The Darkness. The other is about modern-day research into lions, those in Tsavo and others in other parts of Africa.
October 2, 2023
An interesting look at man-eaters and what makes them tick. An equally fascinating study of male lions and why they have manes. A great travelogue with some thoughtful prose about what it’s like being in Africa as someone studying wildlife while keeping in mind the poverty and war on the continent.
October 18, 2017
Enjoyed the chapters about the Man Eater of Mfuwe and the Tsavo Man-Eaters, but I got so bored with the rest of the book and just kinda stopped reading it.
February 11, 2018
Very interesting read! Gives a whole new prospective on lion behavior.
March 2, 2018
Exploration of what makes a lion become a man-eater. A bit of a Kenya travelogue and serious investigation of the behavior of maned and in-maned lions. Fascinating.
November 29, 2019
Very good
Well done account of researching lions in the wild and the philosophical tangents the mind can take when faced with basically watching cats for hours.
Well done account of researching lions in the wild and the philosophical tangents the mind can take when faced with basically watching cats for hours.
August 30, 2021
Don't hang around lions that are used to eating people.
September 9, 2021
This book tries too hard to be profound, when in actuality it's just a memoir of an old white guy tramping around in the bush. But it was good enough for me to not lose interest, and finish it.
September 11, 2022
Interesting. It's not about the attacks on the Uganda Railway per se, but more about the (1998) state of the region and lion research.
I aim to read Patterson's original account.
I aim to read Patterson's original account.
December 3, 2022
Should have read another book............
November 23, 2023
Interesting take on the Patterson story including other tales from Africa.
June 3, 2025
An excellent and intriguing book, this was an account of the man-eating lions of Tsavo and the search for why and whether the lions are a different sub-species from the savannah lions. Terrific.
January 7, 2013
They were called The Ghost and The Darkness, two adult male African lions, that haunted the scrub brush of the Tsavo River at the turn of the century.
In 1898, they killed more than 135 Indian and African railway workers, laboring to throw a bridge across the Tsavo River, before Lt. Col. John Patterson, in an epic and harrowing nine-month struggle, hunted the lions down and killed them.
Today the lion's are stuffed and displayed in the Field Museum in Chicago, but the question of what spawned their behavior, what drove them to become that most feared of all animals ( to us anyway) - a maneater, remains unanswered and mainly unexamined by science.
In the Ghosts of Tsavo, Phil Caputo, author of A Rumor of War, Horn of Africa, and numerous other books, examines the Tsavo lions, looking at two separate lines of scientific research that are now attempting to explain supposed behavioral and physical differences (Tsavo lions are maneless - sometimes, very aggressive, and may be a subspecies of lion that was thought to have died out 8,000 years ago) between Tsavo lions and other African lions. Journeying into the field with the scientests, Caputo offers a welcome insight into the scientific methodology in studying these animals, and brings a raw, visceral sense of the dread, fear, strength and admiration that the lions can generate.
Tsavo, in case you are interested, means "place of slaughter".
At times Caputo's writing is, by turns, chillingly effective at making the reader aware of the power of the lion and why so many of us fear the dark beyond the fire, mixed with the more clinical approach of scientific study. There is an undercurrent of Caputo's awareness of his own mortality ribboning through the story that makes the lions appear less of an animal, and more of a archetype of death, staring at you with yellowed, predatory eyes.
The book is generally engrossing but at times the abrupt shift in tone is disconcerting and uneven. As with most scientific studies, there is no real conclusive point to the lion study, or for that matter to the book. It is a good tale of a journey, but a final arrival at a destination would have also been nice.
For more about the Tsavo lions, read Col. Patterson's Maneater's of Tsavo for the definative account (and a rippin' great adventure story to boot (if a trifle Victorian in tone)). You can also download it (and many other public domain texts) free from Project Gutenberg.
There are also two Hollywood interpretations of the story, one of which, The Ghost and The Darkness, starring Val Kilmer and Michael Douglas, is now on DVD. Interestingly enough, they had to import the lions used in the filming from Canada, and, with the filmakers usual lack of attention to detail, they used two fully-maned males, rather then the sparsely maned Tsavo cats....
In 1898, they killed more than 135 Indian and African railway workers, laboring to throw a bridge across the Tsavo River, before Lt. Col. John Patterson, in an epic and harrowing nine-month struggle, hunted the lions down and killed them.
Today the lion's are stuffed and displayed in the Field Museum in Chicago, but the question of what spawned their behavior, what drove them to become that most feared of all animals ( to us anyway) - a maneater, remains unanswered and mainly unexamined by science.
In the Ghosts of Tsavo, Phil Caputo, author of A Rumor of War, Horn of Africa, and numerous other books, examines the Tsavo lions, looking at two separate lines of scientific research that are now attempting to explain supposed behavioral and physical differences (Tsavo lions are maneless - sometimes, very aggressive, and may be a subspecies of lion that was thought to have died out 8,000 years ago) between Tsavo lions and other African lions. Journeying into the field with the scientests, Caputo offers a welcome insight into the scientific methodology in studying these animals, and brings a raw, visceral sense of the dread, fear, strength and admiration that the lions can generate.
Tsavo, in case you are interested, means "place of slaughter".
At times Caputo's writing is, by turns, chillingly effective at making the reader aware of the power of the lion and why so many of us fear the dark beyond the fire, mixed with the more clinical approach of scientific study. There is an undercurrent of Caputo's awareness of his own mortality ribboning through the story that makes the lions appear less of an animal, and more of a archetype of death, staring at you with yellowed, predatory eyes.
The book is generally engrossing but at times the abrupt shift in tone is disconcerting and uneven. As with most scientific studies, there is no real conclusive point to the lion study, or for that matter to the book. It is a good tale of a journey, but a final arrival at a destination would have also been nice.
For more about the Tsavo lions, read Col. Patterson's Maneater's of Tsavo for the definative account (and a rippin' great adventure story to boot (if a trifle Victorian in tone)). You can also download it (and many other public domain texts) free from Project Gutenberg.
There are also two Hollywood interpretations of the story, one of which, The Ghost and The Darkness, starring Val Kilmer and Michael Douglas, is now on DVD. Interestingly enough, they had to import the lions used in the filming from Canada, and, with the filmakers usual lack of attention to detail, they used two fully-maned males, rather then the sparsely maned Tsavo cats....
August 19, 2013
This is a shame. What starts as a fascinating account of the lions of Tsavo and their predilection for man eating quickly becomes the wandering, directionless travelogue of a tourist.
The first few chapters are full of compelling stories about the man eaters, most notably the famed pair that plagued the railroad construction and were finally killed by Patterson and later stuffed and displayed in the Field Museum. These early chapters are packed full of anecdotal evidence that these maneless man eaters are quite possibly a different, older species than the well known, golden maned lions of nature shows. They have bigger teeth, some say. They live in caves, some say. They don't grow manes...like saber tooth tigers. This is all a tremendous start for what is sure to be a book that explores its own early promises...right?
Think again. After a great introduction, Caputo joins the hunt himself- by going on a safari in Tsavo. Here we're treated to his random musings on Africa, very little information on lions, and an odd lambasting of tourists, which he most certainly is one himself. Perhaps he thinks that an interview or two precludes him from the distinction, but lets face it; he took his wife on vacation and thought it was worth a few chapters. Nice try, but you're a tourist so get off your horse, friendo.
On a return trip, he actually meets up with some scientists and participates in a few hilariously stupid 'experiments' involving dummy lions in an attempt to unravel the purpose of manes. Sadly, but maybe not surprisingly, the scientists involved didnt give much credence to the theory that Tsavo lions are genetically different. Naturally, they put little or no effort into studying the thought further. Remember kids, any evidence can be used to backup your hypothesis if you write your thesis creatively. Unfortunately they were there to find what they were looking for and no more. Pity. Oddly enough, by the end the author himself admits that he doesn't want to know more about the elusive title creatures. Not to pry, but why the hell did you write a book on the topic then, guy?
After a few hundred pages of this soft, semi-vacuous heartwood, he wraps up with a chapter containing the book's only real hard data on man eaters. Obviously it's an attempt to deliver on the introduction, but it comes as too little too late. It's odd, the intro and conclusion belong to a completely different book than the body of the text. Lit 101 is sharpening its red pencil...
The first few chapters are full of compelling stories about the man eaters, most notably the famed pair that plagued the railroad construction and were finally killed by Patterson and later stuffed and displayed in the Field Museum. These early chapters are packed full of anecdotal evidence that these maneless man eaters are quite possibly a different, older species than the well known, golden maned lions of nature shows. They have bigger teeth, some say. They live in caves, some say. They don't grow manes...like saber tooth tigers. This is all a tremendous start for what is sure to be a book that explores its own early promises...right?
Think again. After a great introduction, Caputo joins the hunt himself- by going on a safari in Tsavo. Here we're treated to his random musings on Africa, very little information on lions, and an odd lambasting of tourists, which he most certainly is one himself. Perhaps he thinks that an interview or two precludes him from the distinction, but lets face it; he took his wife on vacation and thought it was worth a few chapters. Nice try, but you're a tourist so get off your horse, friendo.
On a return trip, he actually meets up with some scientists and participates in a few hilariously stupid 'experiments' involving dummy lions in an attempt to unravel the purpose of manes. Sadly, but maybe not surprisingly, the scientists involved didnt give much credence to the theory that Tsavo lions are genetically different. Naturally, they put little or no effort into studying the thought further. Remember kids, any evidence can be used to backup your hypothesis if you write your thesis creatively. Unfortunately they were there to find what they were looking for and no more. Pity. Oddly enough, by the end the author himself admits that he doesn't want to know more about the elusive title creatures. Not to pry, but why the hell did you write a book on the topic then, guy?
After a few hundred pages of this soft, semi-vacuous heartwood, he wraps up with a chapter containing the book's only real hard data on man eaters. Obviously it's an attempt to deliver on the introduction, but it comes as too little too late. It's odd, the intro and conclusion belong to a completely different book than the body of the text. Lit 101 is sharpening its red pencil...
December 22, 2014
I'm in two minds about this book, much like Caputo seems to be in his writing as he jumps between the science of the animals, their ecology, behaviour etc. and the philosophical musings he scatters amongst the scientific endeavours he is following. I enjoyed the science side of this book as Caputo details each of the various theories about the Tsavo lions and the experiments being undertaken to determine whether they are in fact a separate species or subspecies of Panthera leo. Although he never addresses why genetic testing isn't done which surely would resolve much of these questions? However my enjoyment was tempered by the amount of philosophical musing that he includes, which are interesting to start with (and on a personal note rather insightful given that I have no qualms accepting that humans are prey...how could we not be?). But the same point is made repeatedly and while I'm sure he had this recurring feeling when he was in Africa, it wasn't necessary to keep repeating it. Or if you must at least change it a little, or expand on it or something. Of course many readers may not find this quite so irksome and may enjoy the philosophy surrounding the idea of humankind being on the menu. Overall not a bad book but a little muddled between being a work of science, philosophy and travel journal.
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