Musings of an Old Shikari: Reflections on Life and Sport in Jungle India

This elegant book gives a wonderful feeling of Shikari’s life in India several decades ago. Even the reader’s musical ear is wooed by wildlife sounds expertly caught in the writing of this book. One’s appreciation of verbal expression soars from the exquisite timeless prose of the colonel’s Musings. Shikari life in Raj times is brought delicately to the reader’s feet to be absorbed thoroughly. The excellent photographs and drawings are hardly necessary to conjure up the scenes; they come as an added delight to the exquisitely rolling verbal descriptions with that essential light touch (the ability to laugh at oneself) while taking Jungle life seriously. The author has a lively sense of the fun whilst appreciating the serious things of life. While this evokes the sense of mystery, delights and dangers reposed in wilderness, it has significant lessons for those in the serious business of wildlife management. Not only does the reader learn much of Shikari history in India, but also of a boyhood in Scotland vividly brought to consciousness. One comes away with an outstanding portrait of a man who enjoys whatever life brings, and has time and patience a-plently to express his concepts with excellent clarity. A thoroughly enjoyable trek though the end of the nineteenth and early twentieth century Shikari’s existence, from the pen of someone who expresses himself accurately while extracting knowledgeable delight from any situation.