Human Nature: A Walking History Of The Himalayan Landscape

by Thomas Bell

Brand New

Hardcover

Published January 1, 2024

Reviews

[Nigel Roberts]

This is a wonderful book, and anyone who is interested in Nepal should read it.

There is much to love about Thomas Bell’s take on Nepal. The first is its anti-orientalist, somewhat deadpan style: as if what he sees is quite normal, and deserves to be treated that way. I can’t think of an equivalent approach by a non-Nepali; all those I am familiar with emphasize, in some measure, exotic differences.

Although Thomas Bell situates his book in an 18th century travel writing tradition dating back to Rousseau, it’s a very different take because it is written write from inside Nepalese society. Nepali history is sometimes treated as a default—a chance vacuum between great powers who found its independence mutually convenient; this book gives a much more balanced sense of Nepali agency.

The bookis also filled with important insights: how essential irrigated rice cultivation was to the Gorkhali supremacy, the persistence of varied origin stories and the ubiquitous belief in spirit life in an every day context, the suspicion of untamed nature and consequent importance of collective solutions to land management.

THe best book I have read on Nepal in years. You shouldn’t miss it.

[nokhrushchev]

In this book, Thomas Bell goes back and forth between a travelogue and a well-researched environmental history of the Himalayas. There are poetic meditations on the human condition and a lot of humor especially when he gets to summarizing religious origin myths. Bell's descriptions of the landscape and sceneries surrounding him are supplemented by beautiful black-and-white photographs that illustrate the scale of nature. My only gripe is the way the book is arranged, would've been easier for me to follow through if the four parts were further categorized into chapters but still I took my time with this book and really enjoyed it. And I did feel like the book ended kind of abruptly and was missing a 'conclusion' but a solid read through and through. R.I.P. Rajendra's power bank :(

[Brian Eyler]

This book gets better and better. Instead of four separate walks, to me it reads like a single trek with the first few days (first chapter) on the low, flat dusty roads. At the beginning you wonder where you are going and why you are doing this, but all the while you’re getting accustomed to the landscape and building anticipation for the mysteries and wonders that lie ahead in the higher elevations. Thomas Bell combines personal experience with Nepali and Tibetan folklore with the experiences of Westerners like himself who have encountered Nepal and the Himalaya over the centuries into an enlightening book about human nature and geography.

[Ananta Pathak]

A thoroughly engaging book covering history ,ecology , geography of Nepal in its various areas and phases. A very refreshing book unlike the usual trope on romanticising the Himalaya.Writer deservedly gives a reality check on the fragile nature of the life in the Himalaya and the inherent issues plaguing the nation.The description of the areas made me feel like visiting Nepal once again. Th various communities strading the terrain and varied geography of Nepal has been given enough space in the book.A welcome addition in fact on the writing on Himalaya

[Keegan O’Leary]

Different one that Ry’s mom got me for Christmas, the mix of history, local folklore and opinion on policy isn’t something I’ve read before. If it did one thing is it made me want to go back to Pokhara and hike in the Annapurna’s again, back to my backpacking roots