A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush

By: Eric Newby

Narrated by: Richard E. Grant

A classic of travel writing, ‘A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush’ is Eric Newby’s iconic account of his journey through one of the most remote and beautiful wildernesses on earth.

It was 1956, and Eric Newby was earning an improbable living in the chaotic family business of London haute couture. Pining for adventure, Newby sent his friend Hugh Carless the now-famous cable – CAN YOU TRAVEL NURISTAN JUNE? – setting in motion a legendary journey from Mayfair to Afghanistan, and the mountains of the Hindu Kush, north-east of Kabul. Inexperienced and ill prepared (their preparations involved nothing more than some tips from a Welsh waitress), the amateurish rogues embark on a month of adventure and hardship in one of the most beautiful wildernesses on earth – a journey that adventurers with more experience and sense may never have undertaken. With good humour, sharp wit and keen observation, the charming narrative style of ‘A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush’ would soon crystallise Newby's reputation as one of the greatest travel writers of all time.

One of the greatest travel classics from one of Britain's best-loved travel writers, this edition includes new photographs, an epilogue from Newby's travelling companion, Hugh Carless, and a prologue from one of Newby's greatest proponents, Evelyn Waugh.

©1958 Eric Newby (P)1995 HarperCollins Publishers

Critic reviews

'The master storyteller. He transformed travel writing' Independent

'One of the most enjoyable reads of the last century' Herald Tribune

'The most successful travel writer of his generation. It's impossible to read this book without laughing aloud' Observer

'Endlessly entertaining and self-deprecating' Daily Mail

'Full of serendipity and surprise' The Economist

'A total success' New Yorker

'Notable addition to the literature of unorthodox travel … tough, extrovert, humorous and immensely literate' Times Literary Supplement

'”A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush” established him as a traveler who not only journeyed fruitfully but had the ability to bring his readers with him' William Trevor, Guardian

'I still think the last few sentences of “A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush” the funniest ending to any book I have read' Geoffrey Moorhouse, The Times

'The book that made [Newby's] reputation … typically ironic in its understatement' Observer

'Newby is easily the best of the bunch' Sunday Times

'All the lyricism, and spirit of adventure and discovery [in] Newby's work' The Times

'As good as its hype' Wanderlust

Abridged... not good...

The abridged version is bizarre-it ends rather like falling iff a cliff, no sense of story or closure.

Don't Buy It! It's Abridged.

What disappointed you about A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush?
It was abridged.

What other book might you compare A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush to and why?
I would prefer an unabridged edition of "A Short Wak in the Hindu Kush."

Which character – as performed by Richard E. Grant – was your favorite?
One of the tribesman whose name we don't know and who is really angry because he got cut out of the book by a clueless editor.

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush?
If I were the editor, I would return the book to its original published state and then get a new job.

Any additional comments?
Please stop it with these abridgments.