4 out of 4 stars
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A life Lived on The Edge is a memoir written by Doug Stanyon and seems to be self-published. The author tells various stories about his journey through life; some are sombre, some informative, some entertaining. They cover facts about his profession, travels, relationships and nights out with comrades. Throughout the book, he doesn’t leave behind his old-school sense of humour. If he writes as he speaks, then it means the reader will be interacting with his ‘King’s/Queens English’ as spoken in the 60’s-70’s. He includes some slang from that era (like hooley, meaning drunken party), some that they used within their force and some local Shona tribe phrases here and there. He leaves a glossary of terms at the end of the book for the reader’s sake.
His stories are mostly from his time serving in the British South African Police, specifically within Rhodesia (current Zimbabwe). At some point, he and some of his friends from the force decided to take a break and travel the world in a quest to find the best country one would want to live in. This took the author through a journey full of adventure, fun (including a brawl here and there), hardships, hard-knock schooling and making new friends. He also had some receding hairline-pulling moments with his girlfriend/wife along the way. After his journeys through Europe, Asia, Australia and so on, he was back in Rhodesia, where he got back into the police force and served till Rhodesia as he knew it was no more.
Each chapter is concluded with a quote or short poetry lines that he attributes to the appropriate author. For example, “Hath man no second life? Pitch this one high!” (Matthew Arnold). He also includes maps where necessary (as depicted in those days) as well as pictures and document scans to give the reader some context to his stories.
The only other book I have read previously that comes close to this is In Teleki’s Footsteps by Tom Heaton, which follows his journey through East Africa either in the seventies or eighties. In one of his stories, Stanyon mentions a stint in Tangier, Morocco that brings to mind Mois Benarroch’s books that mention the place from time to time. I liked the fact that his stories are told from the perspective a European settler rather than from the view of those who fought for independence. His interactions with fellow African officers show he saw them as equals. I recommend this book to those who like memoirs, biographies and travel stories.
I rate this book with 4 out of 4 stars. The author tells his story in an easy to follow manner if the reader would find his British English palatable. One may want to keep a dictionary close by and a cushion under the seat for the seriously funny moments. He self-sensors strong language, so it isn’t that bad for young adults. There may be a few errors but not enough to disqualify this book as lacking in professionalism. He has organized it well into three parts comprising several short chapters within each, helping to break down the long book into manageable reading stints.
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A Life Lived on the Edge
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