Not A Lot of Desert........

I don't mind idiosyncratic. Especially not in a book that tackles a vast, romantic subject like this. But you do have to keep your eye on the ball. And randomly inserted quotes about "deserts" aren't enough.

This is pretty random and disjointed. The Sonoran chapter is a superficial text about border politics. Eastern Egypt leads us to a consideration of monastic life. The Black Rock desert is all about Burning Man. Somehow, Australia manages to become boring.

This is interesting enough, I guess, if you are interested in just hanging out with this author. But there's more personal history, and less desert, than I would have preferred.

(Please note that I received a free ecopy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)

An intriguing look at the vast swaths of earth considered largely uninhabitable. The author boldly traverses these desert spaces and draws the reader in with a fascination travelogue-cum-memoir that also educates us on history and regional folklore. Highly recommended for armchair travelers everywhere!

The premise of the book struck me as odd, follow a man as he writes about wandering the desert. But Atkins is a strong writer and made the past and present of these places come to life as he revealed that while one word, 'desert', applies to all these places, they couldn't be more different. I like how he also conveyed the history of places such as Marilinga while in other places focused on the people he'd met. It's as if he knew each place had its own story to tell. One you can dip into and out of, or read cover to cover. I enjoyed revisiting it over weeks.

This is a book about tbe author's wanderings through the deserts of the world. We learn how each desert looks as well as a bit about the people that live in each. I found this book fascinating and if you think this book would be dry, well, I think you would be surprised at how the author describes the deserts and keeps you wanting to read more.

I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a review copy in exchange for my honest and unbiased opinion of it.

When reading the book's summary,oneI admittedly may be a bit off-put by the prospect of reading about a man's wanderings through some of the most barren places on the planet. However, following Atkins as he travels from the empty quarter to the American southwest to the Talamakan in Central Asia is anything but a slog. Far from it, one will encounter lands that are all quite similar, yet also unmistakably distinct with their physical characteristics, inhabitants, and their histories. "The Immeasurable World" will not only spark an interest in the deserts of the world, but feed it a little more with each passing chapter. By the time it's over, you'll definitely begin to see why the author couldn't help but keep venturing off into these sparse, quiet lands.