Review: Follow Me to Africa

Title: Follow Me to Africa

Author: Penny Haw

Publisher: 25th February 2025 by Sourcebooks Landmark

Pages: 300 pages

Genre: Historical Fiction | Women's Fiction

Synopsis:

Historical fiction inspired by the story of Mary Leakey, who carved her own path to become one of the world's most distinguished paleoanthropologists.

It's 1983 and seventeen-year-old Grace Clark has just lost her mother when she begrudgingly accompanies her estranged father to an archeological dig at Olduvai Gorge on the Serengeti plains of Tanzania. Here, seventy-year-old Mary Leakey enlists Grace to sort and pack her fifty years of work and memories.

Their interaction reminds Mary how she pursued her ambitions of becoming an archeologist in the 1930s by sneaking into lectures and working on excavations. When well-known paleoanthropologist Louis Leakey commissions her to illustrate a book, she's not at all expecting to fall in love with the older married man. Mary then follows Louis to East Africa, where she falls in love for a second time, this time with the Olduvai Gorge, where her work defines her as a great scientist and allows her to step out of Louis's shadow.

In time, Mary and Grace learn they are more alike than they thought, which eventually leads them to the secret that connects them. They also discover a mutual deep love for animals, and when Lisa, an injured cheetah, appears at camp, Mary and Grace work together to save her. On the morning Grace is due to leave, the girl—and the cheetah—are nowhere to be found, and it becomes a race against time to rescue Grace before the African bush claims her.

From the acclaimed author of The Invincible Miss Cust and The Woman at Wheel comes an adventurous, dual timeline tale that explores the consequences of our choices, wisdom that comes with retrospection, and relationships that make us who we are, based on the extraordinary real life of Mary Leakey.

My Thoughts

Penny Haw has written a wonderful piece of historical fiction inspired by the story of Mary Leakey, a woman who carved her own path to become one of the world's most distinguished paleoanthropologists. This book is a mixture of both nonfiction and fiction and I felt Penny weaved the two together seamlessly. I keen to read previous books written by Penny as she clearly understands these remarkable women who achieved great things and she wants this to be celebrated.

‘For Mary, the untamed Serengeti, with its tremendous wildlife, ancient beds of Olduvai Gorge, and warm embrace of the sun, evoked a primal connection to the world she’d never known. Even when she was alone there - perhaps mostly when she was alone - she experienced an unprecedented sense of composure and peace.’

Follow Me to Africa takes the facts and weaves the fiction into the life of Mary. For someone who had no formal education it is an incredible tale of determination and passion. Her discoveries and hard work earned her prestigious awards and honorary doctorate degrees. I knew of Richard Leakey so it was enlightening to learn more about his mother and her contributions to the origin of species. Penny made this a dual time narrative and has a much older Mary interacting with a young girl in a contemporary (1980s) timeline. The purpose of this was Penny’s desire to imagine what Mary looking back on her life might say to her seventeen-year-old self if she had the opportunity. “What would you tell your younger self?”

Penny’s book was well researched and written. I found both timelines engaging and also the cast of supporting characters. The historical note at the back of the book explains what was fact and what was fiction and Penny’s decisions on what to include. This book not only covers archaeology/palaeontology but also more personal topics such as relationships - marriage, family, friendships - and choices people make with the consequences and lessons learned from that. 

‘... what struck her most was how infinite her surroundings were. The only thing grander than the boundless savannah was the inestimable sky. Their combined magnitude made her feel at once insignificant and mighty.’

I, having lived and worked in Africa, feel such an affinity for the continent and love when books really capture the majesty and awe of the place. This book is full of love for Africa as seen through the land, the animals and the people. The courage Mary faced in going against expectations of the time for women and paving a way for women to work and be acknowledged in a field such as this was enthralling. 

‘There was no ultimate destination in her work, but a journey fueled by curiosity and driven by science. She owed her success to no one but herself.’

This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. The quoted material may have changed in the final release.

Review: A Guide to the Wars of the Roses

Title: A Guide to the Wars of the Roses

Author: Derek Ronald Birks

Publisher: 30th January 2025 by Pen & Sword History

Pages: 224 pages

Genre: History | Nonfiction (Adult)

Synopsis:

Provides a clear, accessible explanation of the conflict’s origins, key events, and aftermath, stripping away centuries of distortion.

So much has been written, and is still being written, about the Wars of the Roses – both in print and on the internet - that the interested student of history is in grave danger of being utterly overwhelmed. The key players in the conflict are very interesting personalities but they have become so distorted by caricature that they now appear as a procession of heroes and villains rather than living, breathing people.

The aim of A Guide to the Wars of the Roses is to help the reader understand what happened and why during the great political upheaval of the fifteenth century. It describes the origins, nature and aftermath of the wars in short, accessible chapters and explains how the period can be divided into three separate, though related, political crises.

In describing the rise of Richard, Duke of York, in the mid-fifteenth century, the Guide traces how his rivalry with Edmund Beaufort, Duke of Somerset, ultimately led to the deposition of the hard-pressed, and wholly unsuitable, King Henry VI. It also explains how the accession of a new king from the House of York failed to solve England’s political problems. The triumphant Yorkist faction is examined to chart how the fears and jealousies of its leading figures eventually led to a fatal instability at the heart of government.

By putting the wars firmly in their medieval context, the Guide seeks to strip away the hype of half a millennium to examine objectively the roles and motives of those involved, without seeking either to exonerate, or demonise, any particular individual. While the Guide is intended to be comprehensive, it is also an easy-to-follow manual for a subject which has often been dismissed as ‘too complicated’.

My Thoughts

This book is brilliant and I highly recommend it for anyone interested in learning about the War of the Roses in a most accessible and entertaining way. I have always had a fascination for all things Tudor but my fiction reading of late (I’m looking at you Annie Garthwaite) has led me to go further back to the time just before the Tudors and I am so glad I did! It can get confusing, however, this is the most plain speaking and comprehensive guide to this rich period in history. 

“... studying the politics of fifteenth-century England is not for the faint-hearted. It is a world of riveting personalities, savage battles, sudden switches of allegiance, violent feuds, the murder of innocents - and not so innocents - and Lord knows what other mayhem. You could find yourself up to your elbows in blood and gore…”

As the author himself states, “our fascination with interesting people and what they did in difficult circumstances is timeless.” Two of the most enticing aspects of this book is, firstly, the author looking at events as they unfolded and shutting out hindsight where possible. Secondly, the wit and charm Derek brings to this book. His words are so accessible and oftentimes filled with humour and sarcasm. For example: “The object of the exercise was to persuade Clarence to shut up and toe the line. It backfired because Clarence was always slow to take a hint” .... or .... “The removal of Clarence meant that no one now threatened Edward’s throne. Well, that’s good to know…”

This is not a stuffy, boring history book - the furthest thing from it. Derek’s approach of focusing on the facts and presenting them in an engaging way makes for fascinating reading. So much of what we know from this time was through a Tudor lens - “the Tudor view of what happened, constructed after the events to explain the Tudor success story.” How refreshing to see events not only through a wider lens but also in an entertaining and informative way.  

This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. The quoted material may have changed in the final release.