Dervla Murphy Bücher

Die irische Autorin erzählt in ihrem Tagebuch, wie sie zusammen mit ihrer damals sechsjährigen Tochter Rachel den Winter 1974/75 in Baltistan, einer von Pakistan verwalteten Hochgebirgsregion verbrachte.

Dervla Murphy begins her autobiography in Lismore, Co Waterford. Her father was the county librarian and her mother a chronic invalid. She portrays the strain that her mother's increasing illness had on the family.

Describes day-to-day life in the camps where hundreds of children are living in squalor while a handful of dedicated volunteers do their best to feed and care for them, attempting to keep disease at bay with limited resources.

Exploring South Africa during a pivotal time in its history, Dervla Murphy's journey spans over 6000 miles across all nine provinces. Her narrative captures the contrasts of life in the country, from impoverished ex-"homeland" villages to affluent white neighborhoods. Through her interactions with diverse communities, including the vast black township of Khayelitsha and rural Boers, she offers profound insights into the social and cultural dynamics of post-apartheid South Africa, reflecting on both the challenges and connections within this evolving landscape.

This is the first travel book that tested the idea that a five-year-old daughter makes for a useful international travelling companion. Together Dervla Murphy and her daughter Rachel with little money, no taste for luxury and few concrete plans meander their way slowly south from Bombay to the southernmost point of India, Cape Comorin.