Skeletons on the Zahara: a True Story of Survival by Dean King
recommended by Emily B.
This is the true story of the 1815 shipwreck and subsequent capture and enslavement of Captain James Riley and his crew by nomads off the coast of North Africa. This well-researched book vividly conveys the horrendous experience of slavery and desert life as no more than chattel. But it also does a beautiful job of describing the incredible physical challenges all desert-dwellers face. It gives the reader a sense of respect and even sympathy for the harshness of the culture in one of the world’s most savage climates, where survival-even for the captors- is often on a razor’s edge.
Wamego Public Library Staff Picks 