A Far-Off Place

by Laurens van der Post

The story of a long, perilous journey undertaken by four survivors of a a teenage boy of European descent, a young white girl, and two Bushmen. The basis for a major film release from Walt Disney Pictures.

Genres: Fiction, Africa, Adventure, South Africa, Historical Fiction, Namibia, Adult Fiction

324 pages, Paperback

First published January 28, 1974

About the author

Sir Laurens Jan van der Post was a 20th Century South African Afrikaner author of many books, farmer, war hero, political adviser to British heads of government, close friend of Prince Charles, godfather of Prince William, educator, journalist, humanitarian, philosopher, explorer, and conservationist.

Reviews

[Daren · Rating 4 out of 5]

This novel follows on from A Story Like the Wind, continuing the story of Francois, the young son of a settler family in (what I take to be) Zimbabwe.

Very hard to review without plot outlining, although much is given away by the blurb. What can be said is that for a young adult book (which this certainly is), there is a high level of violence, certainly in the first half, which is best described as the escape part, before it evolves to the journey part.

The reasons I identify it as young adult are threefold.

Firstly, the themes are very simplified - bad men come, kill good people. There is little explanation about the macro detail of the story. Instead it is focused on the micro detail of what happens hour to hour. This therefore avoids the politics and high level philosophy to explain why a Chinese led band of mercenaries with African soldiers are found in a remote area killing settlers!

Secondly there are some far too convenient setups to share the plot. On two occasions our protagonist is able to creep up on the enemy and overhear conversations which give huge amounts of backstory. There just happen to be two mercenaries sitting by a fire discussing their entire thoughts on why they are there? Too easy.

Thirdly, it outlines a basic philosophy of harmony with nature, of mutually beneficial interaction between all the races in the area, and a sort of naive utopia vibe. Our main characters are astute, wise, physically able and have a level of intelligence quite unrealistic in youth. They show moral character beyond reproach, and feel guilt for situations not of their making. It is all a bit... young adult.

Having said that, and I realise that came across as very negative, if you can overcome that minor annoyance, then this book, like the first book, is an excellent story. Plenty of action, the coming of age aspect, plenty of detail in the 'escape and journey' and bushmen cultural fact (San people, i think they are known as now) added in to the story (and van der Post is surely well placed to have this accurate - irrespective of the question marks over the authenticity of some of his non-fiction works, he is clearly very knowledgeable).

Absolutely worth a look, at 4 stars.

[Gary · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Far Off Place is the sequel to the bestseller by Laurens Van der Post, 'A Story Like The Wind'. Hunters Drift is a farm in Matabeleland (today part of Zimbabwe)
It is the home of Pierre Paul Joubert known affectionately by all who live there as 'Ouwa', where European, Matabele and Bushmen live in harmony with each other , and with the great flora and fauna of Africa.
This is before the forces of destruction and death, Marxist terrorists, massacre the whole population of Hunter's Drift , as they carve a path of blood through Southern Africa.
The only survivors are Ouwa's teenage son, Francois, Nonnie, the young daughter of a colonial governor and his Portuguese wife, both murdered by the terrorists and Francois' beloved hunting dog, Hintza. They are joined by a young Bushman, Xhabbo, and his wife, Nuin Tarra.
The four young people and brave dog , must pass through bush and desert , to safety , while pursued by the cold-blooded killers.
'A Far Off Place' is a heartwarming story of love hope and courage, and of survival against overwhelming odds. It is about the fine balance between all living creatures.
Not least it highlights the death and suffering caused so many times by those forces of evil that hide behind the slogans of revolution and 'Liberation'.

[August · Rating 5 out of 5]

Should be read with A Story Like The Wind...both are fantastic. All the children and animals in my family have been named after the extraordinary characters in these two books.

[SparksofEmber · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the continuation of the story begun in A Story Like the Wind. The tale initially centers on Francois Joubert, a boy coming of age, & his life near the Kalahari desert; his wonder at the world & culture around him & the unique relationship he & his family have with the local population. This world is fragile, though, which is seen through many omens and foreshadowing. Meanwhile, Francois continues to mature through a friendship with a young lady newly introduced to the African wilds & his secret friendship with the Bushman whose life he saves. Eventually, the unseen political tensions break - & the story becomes "a long, perilous journey undertaken by four survivors of a massacre: a teenage boy of European descent, a young white girl, and two Bushmen."


What was unique to me about the book/s was the incredible amount of backstory & set-up that occurs. Van Der Post explains everything - in long detail. The actual action-part of the story doesn't begin until toward the end of the first book. The first book sets the foundation for the incredible adventure of the 2nd. But without the rich backdrop painted by the first book, you'd never be able to believe in the continuing story. The detail was confusing initially because I kept waiting for the "story" to happen - but before I knew it I got caught up in the richness of the tale & when the action finally begins to occur, you're at the edge of your seat, so caught up in the tension. And because you know what has made Francois the young man he is, you believe he can succeed - something you'd scoff at otherwise.

[Michael Sorensen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I would never have discovered this book if it hadn't been for the totally incredible movie (which starred a very young Reese Witherspoon) by Steven Speilberg's Amblin Entertainment. The movie stuck with me for weeks, and I had to own the books. Tracking them down in the days before Amazon and the Internet was a bear--but finally my sister-in-law found me a copy. I was disappointed that the hero of the book was a man (Reese had done a bang-up job as the heroine) with the typical (for it's time--1964) clinging vine female support cast. Still, it was a cracker-jack adventure, set against the Belgian Congo revolution. Read this and watch the movie!!!

[Mike · Rating 5 out of 5]

Again, just like the book that precedes this one and begins this tale --- "A Story Like The Wind" --- this is magnificent story telling on an epic scale that one seldom encounters. Reading this is a transformational experience. I've seldom encountered any work of fiction so thoroughly grounded in philosophy --- in this case, about modern man and his relationship to the natural world. I can see, though, that some readers might feel that this degree of philosophical underwriting is overdone. But I am in awe of what this author has accomplished --- this story is going to stick with me for a long time.

[Sonny · Rating 5 out of 5]

Like almost every young American boy of the 50s, I grew up loving adventure. We watched Tarzan, Sargent Preston (of the Mounties), Lassie, and the Lone Ranger on TV. We played cowboys and Indians. We also grew up near a wooded area that we loved to venture into, with its snakes, muskrats and snapping turtles. While A Far Off Place is advertised as a young adult novel, I would argue that this is literature and not a children’s adventure story. The book is a continuation of the story begun in van der Post’s novel A Story Like the Wind. Both books are exceptional and should be read in order to fully understand the events, although the author includes a prelude to provide the necessary background for the second novel. The two novels together take the reader on a unique journey of discovery into the primordial world of southern Africa following World War II.

The primary character in the two books is François Joubert, an adolescent who possesses the cool and calm of a man, who has been taught the way of life in the bush. He was born and raised on his father’s farm, Hunter’s Drift. Toward the end of the first novel, he meets Nonnie, the young daughter of a retired colonial governor who was building a home nearby. Soon after, their families are murdered by terrorist “freedom fighters.” Warned by his Bushman friend, Xabbo, and his wife Nuin-Tara, the foursome hides in a nearby secret cave. However, the terrorists, knowing that they were not able to kill the son, begin a hunt to find him. Knowing this, the foursome, along with Francois’ noble hunting dog, Hintza, flee for their lives across the bush and then the desert to escape the murderous intent of the terrorists.

What makes this different than the typical Young Adult fare is the moral conflict, the rich social texture, the character development, and the genuine seriousness of the obstacles these young people face. In reading these two novels, one is immersed in Africa, its wildlife, the requirements for survival, how to camp in the bush, how to move silently, and how to travel fast and light in an emergency. But the stories are so much more. The reader really gains an understanding of life in the bush in Africa. These books are epic narratives, better even than Wilbur Smith’s more conventional thrillers of southern Africa.

[Graham · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this when it first came out and it made a huge impression on me. It was the first book I had read that was set in Africa and I was totally enchanted. The white people in the book were of little interest to me growing up in Northern Ireland, (I was surrounded by bigoted white people) it was the Bushmen that I was smitten with. I remember I read this book in a few day and then went back and read it again.

I often thought of reading this book again, but was worried that, now that I am much older, I would find it full of colonial conceit or poorly vailed racism. The white man's burden or some other racist claptrap.

To me the Africans in this book were the hero's and the backdrop of the Kalahari Desert was breathtaking. I was transported to a different world on my own planet. The mid 70's in Northern Ireland was a place of unremitting violence and hatred. As a young nerdy, teenage reader, this book took me out of the terrible day to day existence and into a world of adventure and moral certanies. A place far removed from my life at the time.
Wonderful simply wonderful.

You know, maybe I will read it again! To walk again across the Kalahari desert, with Xhabbo and his wife Nuin-Tara. Oh it is so tempting.....

[Shefi]

Brilliant. Unforgettable. Van der Post captures not only the magic of Africa from the knowledgeable point of view of someone who was born and grew up there and knew the names of things and their history, but also the magic of how the world looks to young teenagers. This is the sequel "A Story Like the Wind", which is basically a very long and detailed introduction to this story which is where the action happens - the long trek through Africa pursued by murderers of the protagonists' parents. You'll learn a ton of stuff about Africa, the Bushmen, the Kalahari, but also gain insights and wisdom into life and higher values.

[Graham Bear · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love old books. This one is a classic . It's a timeless evocative book that took me back to that wonderful period of history where there were still places left to explore. Laurens Van Der Post has been an inspiration to me for many years. It is a travel book not a novel. Some other reviewers have not read the book and claim it is a sequel . It is not.

[Julieann Wielga · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the continuation of the book The Story Like the Wind. Their author is a man born in the interior of Southern Africa in 1906, one of the last of 15 children and to parents of European descent. The first book sets up the setting and the characters on a great farm at a great crossroads in southern African. The main character is 13 year old Francois and his dog who is not raised so much by his busy parents but by much beloved others: a bushman nanny, a bantu cook, a bantu overseer, a neighbor of European descent who runs a wildlife reserve not to far away. These two books is a coming to age story of young Francois. Francois' school work is organized by his high-minded father, but that takes very little time in comparison to the time he spends learning the ways of the farm, the lives of the animals, the challenges and beauties of the bush, markmanship, the games of the bantu children and the langauges of the bantu and the bushmen. He seems much older than 13 and he needs to be, when his parents both die. His father dies of a broken heart when his educational views of equality are disparaged by the government. HIs mother dies when all whom he loves are massacred at Hunter's Drift by a multinational army with communist leanings. In the second book, Francois and Nonnie, his companion from a nearby farm are forced to walk across the great bush and desserts to the fat side of southern Africa, a journey of over a year, with only their beloved companion, a bushman couple of about their same age. They are pursued by detachments of the enemy army and hottentot trackers. This part of the second book reminded me of the kind of play that we did as children where groups of us pursued each other with guns across the expanses of the neighborhood. I can imagine Van Der Post using his own childhood fantasies as the starting place for this book.
The two books clearly came from a man in love with the words and ways of being of the bantu and bushman of Africa.He is also writes deeply about the ecosystem of the great Africa. One loves his account of each lion's voice, of each snake, of the many crocdiles....of the birds. (Also very clear about the place of woman in all the African societies as supportive of their men.) It is a serious book. One character's life depends on each step taken and each word in the book.
The writing is fluent but heavy with the perfect word carefully selected. I often stopped and reread sentences to hear what nuance he was trying to catch with a surprising word choice. This is a book for the broad reader who can appreciate the world as was in a FAR AWAY PLace.

[Rrshively · Rating 4 out of 5]

What an adventure! Two young teens in Africa led by a bushman and his "utterly woman" escape a massacre. They trek across vast deserts for many months living on what the desert has to offer with the goal of reaching civilization to report what has occurred. In the midst of the action the author adds paragraphs of philosophic thinking which may or may not interest the reader. The boy, Francois, might seem almost too precocious and capable. However, his actions are plausible given his upbringing on the edge of the bush as described in A Story Like the Wind which is the first in this 2 book series. Also, he is intended to be a mythic and heroic character that will engage the reader. Francois and Nonnie love each other in a permanent fashion although they are very innocent and virginal in their love. This love helps them to survive and help each other and become real friends with the bushman. The author gives awesome descriptions of the land which is the land of his childhood. This book was very loosely interpreted in a movie by the same name where the girl is the outdoor expert and the boy is the untried city dweller. Women's rights have come into their own! I also think this book was the author's reaction to the Chinese Communists attempts to overtake Angola.

[Sue · Rating 4 out of 5]

A continuation of the story which was started in "A Story Like the Wind". Francois, Hintza and Nonnie are forced to flee with the bushman companions Xhabbo and his wife Nuin-Tara. They flee into the desert in order to escape the "enemy" who wants to kill them. It is a story of survival and endurance to continue on to a place of safety.
I think I actually liked this a bit better than the first one. Maybe it was partly because, having read the first, I was prepared for the tedious, detailed writing and it didn't bother me as much. Yet it seemed as if this one moved along more and it was easy to get caught up in the suspense of danger of their escape. I struggle a bit with the ending because it seemed to go back to a degree of wordiness that was hard to follow. Yet I also don't know what could have been done differently. I enjoyed the descriptions of survival in the desert and how they found appropriate plants and water to sustain them. If it's possible to have a good sense of letdown, I felt it when it was all over. It was a sense of there-isn't-any-more-sorry-to-see-it-end. Both books are keepers.

[Beth · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one takes place exactly where A Story Like the Wind leaves off. Francois and his friends, survivors of a horrific disaster, must escape across the thousand mile Kalahari desert, pursued by enemies and overcoming tremendous obstacles. After I finished it I wanted to go back and read it all over again.
And I still love the Disney movie starring a young Reese Witherspoon, even though it just tiny shaddow of the book (the main character is a girl for crying out loud).
It is still a great adventure in its own right.

[Ellen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the sequel to A Story Like the Wind. I liked this one better, by the time this story starts we already know the characters and there is very little re-explanation that one finds in a sequel. The story starts out very intensely where the last book ended and follows the kids for over a year across the African desert to safety. A rather grand adventure with a happy ending. Many of the descriptions were poetic and the dramatic bits did get you excited for the characters to triumph. This was not a quick read, the words are dense on the page and it is slow going, but worth it.

[Kathryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this after reading the prequel, "A Story Like the Wind", and also remembering seeing the Reese Witherspoon movie as a kid. After "A Story" took me so long to read, I was nervous to pick this up but I could not put it down! Who knew walking through the desert would be so engaging! This is an amazing story of survival and the bonds of friendship.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Again with the wow. This carried, even further, the realization of how we no longer have a relationship with the earth and the living creatures in it. It's really sad to be one of those "other" people who just don't get it. I will try harder.

[Kim Howard · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved the movie when I was younger, so I was curious to read the book it was loosely based on. While the movie was good, and the book is extraordinary! This book and it's companion, A Story Like the Wind, are two of my favorite books ever written. Highly recommended!

[Tim · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good story, but it comes across very preachy and there's a lot of long winded, boring internal narrative from the main character. I didn't finish the book because the writing style got to me.

[Addie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just as good as the sequel! Love these books!

[SBF · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoy survival stories, I like stories of people challenged to overcome incredible odds, I love beautiful friendships and pure romances, and I love great writing that makes the reader think, that has something to say. Laurens van der Post's duology, A Story Like the Wind and A Far-Off Place, is all of these things, and they're my favourites of the novels I've read in the past year. The beautiful prose transported me to the Kalahari desert with Francois (aka Foot of the Day), Luciana (aka Nonnie), Xhabbo, and Nuin-Tara, sharing in their struggles and joys as they walk over 2,000 km to safety after their families are massacred. I'd seen the 1993 Disney movie based on these books (mostly on A Far Off Place) back when it was first released, and somewhere in the back of my mind I'd tucked away the information that this movie I liked pretty well was based on a book. It only took me 25 years to get around to reading it! I'm glad I was an adult reading this, since the writing would likely be a little dense for younger readers. These books capture a time and place now vanished from today's world and was idealized even then, but what makes the story last is the characters and how much you care about them as you read. I was on the edge of my metaphorical seat more than once as I read, with the tension of pursuit driving the group across the desert. Francois's and Nonnie's budding relationship, relying on each other to deal with their trauma, Xhabbo and Nuin-Tara's bravery and love for their friends, and the descriptions of the beautiful lands of southern Africa all form an amazing story I'll read again.

[Penelope · Rating 3 out of 5]

Laurens van Der Post is a splendid liar. This is a cracking yarn, and you can see the author's military expertise as he tells of this small group of travellers outwitting the big armies that are pursuing them. Underlying the plot is a deep eco-political philosophy, which is articulated in the dialogues that occur three or four times in the book, some of which are too long for my liking, where characters talk about killing: when they feel it is justified and when it is wasteful and therefore feels wrong. In the last chapter this philosophy is articulated like this: "there were stars in the sky whose light even now had not yet reached the earth and whose existence one could only tell because of their effect on the movement of other stars. It was precisely so with the life of men on earth. Their deeds were like a kind of starlight that came into being at the moment they were enacted but whose meaning would take years still to reach life itself. and later, If life on earth were to survive,, not a single man, plant, bird or animal must be allowed to lose its life except through some great necessity of life itself, and in the losing all men should join in with every plant and animal and bird to praise it and mourn as that of something infinitely precious.

[Karen GoatKeeper · Rating 3 out of 5]

There is a first novel before this one. It is summarized before this one gets started.
Francois lives at Hunters Drift in South Africa. Nonnie, the daughter of a neighbor is with him when they hear Xhabbo, a Bushman friend, giving an urgent call. They go to meet him just before dawn. Behind them a rebel army descends on Hunters Drift killing all who are there and in the nearby villages.
The rebels know about Francois and are seeking him to kill him. Xhabbo and his wife Nuin-Tara lead the group out across Africa dodging their enemies and coping with the desert and swamp lying in their path.
This book should be fun to read. It's filled with word pictures of South Africa, landscapes and animals. It gets tedious as the author spends pages discoursing on his philosophy disguised as being about or from one of the characters. If the reader stubbornly plows through this, there are lots of interesting items and descriptions worth the effort.

[Skye · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book gave me great insights into the Bushmen way of life and navigating in the world, and the author very deftly juxtaposed this with the (so-called) modern, Euro-centric way of living and perceiving the world and our place in it. He did it with great perception and insight and outstanding sympathy and appreciation for the Bushmen and women of Africa, now recognized as the original human and the first ancestor of us all.

I was slightly disappointed with the ending, which praised so much the British military and their "saving" the two travelers who had journeyed with the help of their San Friends across the outback for a year. It seemed to ignore the coloniality of this "savior", but that is small criticism for a very readable, enjoyable and remarkable story.

I was lucky enough to meet the author and have a signed version of it.

[Ann Hein · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredible book. The "story" is of two young Europeans crossing the desert with two Bushmen in order to escape being killed. but it's about so much more..philosophy, colonialism, racism, wildlife and relationships. Couldn't begin to tell all. Beautiful descriptions of African wildlife and of some of the tribes, also some of the white settlers that lived and worked with the Africans. Highly recommend it. A previous book by the author sets the scene, but you can read this book without reading the first one since the introduction gives away the secret at the end of the first book.

[Mr J · Rating 5 out of 5]

Van Der Post at his best

A wonderful book - I read it 30 years ago, and on second reading was just as good. In the final pages he proselytises a little on his personal philosophy (through the voice of a main character, Mopani Theron), but it’s also an excellent philosophy - LvdP was a true child of Africa and I can understand why King Charles (then Prince) looked up to him. I cannot recommend this book enough, and I also strongly recommend the reader to read the prequel first (“A Story Like the Wind”).

[Garry Duncan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Impressive for the depth of the author’s knowledge of the wild lands of Africa and its Bush People. Worth the read if only to be transported back to the time and place and appreciate the raw beauty and scale of the landscape, its indigenous people, animals and. plants. Once the journey was over, I found the last few pages couldn’t hold my attention. I’m glad that I read it, which is thanks to other members of Goodreads for the recommendation.

[Nora · Rating 5 out of 5]

The most evocative, poetical and engaging novel you could ever hope to read. The politics of southern Africa are extremely complex but this needn't concern you as all you need to know is that evil shows its face where ever humans go whilst the natural world goes on as best it can. Four humans and a dog face daily challenges to reach a safe harbour and in so doing produce a series of way markers full of meaning. Heart tugging, uplifting, tear jerking, delightful all in one.

[Mina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Endearing story of the growing relationship between Francois and Nonnie and their bushman friends Xhabbo and Nuin-Tara (and the dog Hintza) as they escape across the African bush and desert. As with 'A Song Like the Wind' there are rich descriptions of the flora, fauna and landscape. There is a lot of introspection and it is as much a story of self discovery as it is of courage and survival.

[Drucie · Rating 4 out of 5]

After having read the first book in this series, "A Story Like the Wind", I wanted to find out what happened to Francois and Nonnie after their families were murdered by mercenaries. Their journey to safety was a long slow, dangerous, slog, but interesting none-the-less as they were accompanied by a bushman and his wife.