Beating about the Bush Paperback - 2000

'Beating about the Bush' is the eagerly awaited follow-up to 'Barefoot Over The Serengeti', the tale of a young boy's life with the Masai, on the predator-rich plains of, what is now, the most famous game park on Earth. This book charts the life of David Read from the period of 1936 to 1952 in the colony of Tanganyika (modern day Tanzania), as he comes to grips with his first schooling, his move to the Lupa Goldfields and the onset of adult life. Caught up in the War he marches his regiment of Masai and Samburu warriors from Eritrea to Kenya before leading them via Madagascar to the jungles of India and Burma. After demobilisation he becomes a vetinary officer, and it is here that his childhood experience comes into its own, as he roams the African bush, gazetting East Africa's game parks, investigating ritual tribal murder and learning about the reclusive hunter-gatherer Ndorobo people. As a farmer, cattle dealer, hunter, aviator, fisherman, boat builder and author David had a unique quiver of qualifications. His heart and soul belonged to Africa, the place he never wanted to leave and the place he called home. In July 2015 David travelled his last safari accompanied by his family and hundreds of African and European friends