James Riley's Harrowing Experiences in Africa

M Colt: Really interesting story and was captivated throughout. It can be slightly difficult (had to look up place names) in some places as it uses language from the 1700’s but fairly clear considering.

Canada on Oct 15, 2023

Russ: Being Arabic, I enjoyed the book. I've read books about the empty quarter and they read similar. I would recommend

United States on Jun 12, 2023

Clinton Lee Callaway: Captain James Riley was a very distant relative of mine, so the story takes a more personal meaning to me. However, it is also of note that, President Abraham Lincoln was influenced by Captain Riley's experiences through his writings, as he even "listed Suffering in Africa as one of the three most influential works that shaped his ideology, particularly, his view on slavery.” He notes the other two as Pilgrim’s Progress and the Bible (see Wikipedia).

United States on Mar 15, 2023

MO: As a history buff with a fascination with the slave trade this story smacked me upside the head. I had seen a documentary of this story some years ago and it left an imprint on me. And it turned out Riley had written a book on his experiences! Intriguing from start to finish. The human story of grit, determination and surrender spoke to my soul. I highly recommend this book. It could be a very good movie.

United Kingdom on Jul 21, 2022

Sana Essid: very good account of those times and people - fascinating

United Kingdom on May 18, 2016

Jack Scherting: This is the book to read when you think you've got it bad. The dreadful experience of being the captain of a ship that goes aground on the coast of north Africa only to be enslaved by a group of semi-civilized desert nomads leaves one amazed as to what the absolute limits of human endurance truly are. Why did Abraham Lincoln keep this book next to the Bible? I see in it the structure of a genera common at that time: the Captavity Narrative. In them, the reporter recounts the experience of falling under the control of demonic forces, the suffering endured, the fervent appeals for divine intervention, followed by recovery and return to safety and home. At the root of this morbidly engaging tale of tears is the ever present belief -- of some -- in the right of one human to possess another. I suspect that Lincoln kept this narrative as a constant reminder of the evil inherent in that "peculiar institution."

United States on Nov 27, 2015

YorkieBallo: Saw a documentary on TV on this story so had to buy the book glad I did couldn't put it down till I read it through!

United Kingdom on Mar 25, 2015

JOE GUIDE: A powerful story of languishing in the deserts after being captured after being shipwrecked in Africa. Captain James Riley's story so fascinated Lawyer Abraham Lincoln it was one of his top ten books on his personal library. A exceptional book, but there is a great deal that the reader will come to grips with under this books covers.

However, it is too easy to see that tribal conflict and economic and physical slavery is still ripe throughout Africa to this day, it's chains tend to hold back many men, women and children and the economies throughout the nations of Africa East to West, and North to South. Look at what's really happening throughout Nigeria, Somalia, and Sudan to this day. You will see in this book that tribal confederations and slavery continues its cycle of evil throughout Africa. One thing is for certain, there will always be chaos and economic woe, as fresh voices seek peaceful change and the desire to break of Ol' Pharaoh's chains.

There will always be wars and rumors of wars, and tribes fighting for power and control through the sufferings in Africa to this day intertwined with day to day struggles by individuals, communities, tribal confederations...

United States on Mar 12, 2014

LGLH: This is a review of the Kindle version of this edition of the book, which both my husband and I read and thoroughly enjoyed.

If you're considering opting for one of the free digital versions available online - which is what I did to begin with, not knowing then about this version - go for this instead, which is good value. It's based on a 1960s edition, and it is much superior in that there are no funny OCR errors that are so frequent in the free versions as to make them almost unreadable.

There's a lot that can be said about this book. The reader can - depending on his or her orientation - admire it as an example of (1) fortitude in the face of despair and impossible conditions; (2) justification for a belief in Divine providence; (3) the possibility of brotherhood between men of very different origins, religion and expectations; (4) loyalty among peers, etc.

One of the things for which the book is best-known is that it made Abraham Lincoln's list of most-influential books because its description of slavery from the perspective of Christian, once-free men is so vivid.

Like other readers, we are fascinated, of course, by the sheer endurance manifested...

United States on Jan 25, 2012