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The Book Smugglers of Timbuktu

The Book Smugglers of Timbuktu The Quest for This Storied City and the Race to Save Its Treasure

Hardback (04 May 2017)

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Paperback (17 May 2018) RRP $20.34 $17.77

Publisher's Synopsis

Two tales of a city: The historical race to reach one of the world's most mythologized places, and the story of how a contemporary band of archivists and librarians, fighting to save its ancient manuscripts from destruction at the hands of al Qaeda, added another layer to the legend.

The fabled city of Timbuktu has captured the Western imagination for centuries. The search for this 'African El Dorado' cost the lives of many explorers but Timbuktu is rich beyond its legends. Home to many thousands of ancient manuscripts on poetry, history, religion, law, pharmacology and astronomy, the city has been a centre of learning since medieval times.

When jihadists invaded Mali in 2012 threatening destruction to Timbuktu's libraries, a remarkable thing happened. A team of librarians and archivists joined forces to spirit the precious manuscripts into hiding. Based on new research and first-hand reporting, Charlie English expertly tells this story set in one of the world's most fascinating places, and the myths from which it has become inseparable.

About the Publisher

William Collins

A new imprint launched in February 2013 (formed from bringing together HarperPress and the Collins trade list), William Collins publishes high quality non-fiction encompassing history, biography, science, politics, natural history, reference, business, philosophy and religion. Named after the man who founded the original publishing company in 1819, William Collins draws on the values of integrity, authority and clarity which were so much part of his vision, with a stellar non-fiction list and a very strong heritage. A rich and varied list includes Max Hastings, Simon Schama, David Starkey, John Major, Sir David Attenborough, Sherard Cowper-Coles, Richard Holmes, Richard Davenport-Hines, Juliet Gardner, Paula Byrne and Professor Brian Cox.

Book information

ISBN: 9780008126636
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Imprint: William Collins
Pub date:
DEWEY: 966.23
DEWEY edition: 23
Language: English
Number of pages: 416
Weight: 708g
Height: 164mm
Width: 241mm
Spine width: 37mm