The Robber of Memories by Michael Jacobs
Running through the heart of Colombia is a river emblematic of the fascination and tragedy of South America, the Magdalena. Considered by some the most dangerous place in the world, travellers along the river - for centuries the only route into the vast South American interior - were at the mercy of tropical disease, dangerous animals and precarious barges. A third of the victims of 'la violencia', Colombia's period of civil conflict which began in the 1950s, ended up in its waters. Townships alongside it have experienced some of the worst massacres in South American history. In 2011, Michael Jacobs travelled its whole length to the river's source high up in Andean moorlands controlled by guerrillas. In spellbinding prose, The Robber of Memories charts the dangers he negotiated - including the claustrophobic, snail-slow journey upriver by a vast tugboat and a terrifying three day encounter with the FARC - while uncovering the river's history of pioneering explorations, environmental decline and political violence. An extra dimension was added to his journey by a chance meeting with Gabriel Garcia Marquez, whose memories are rapidly fading and increasingly concentrate on the enchanted Magdalena of his youth. As Jacobs delves into the history of destruction and decay along the river, he also makes a deeply personal exploration into memory and its loss. Coincidentally, not far from the river's banks, lies a group of townships with the highest incidence of early onset Alzheimer's in the world. Jacobs reflects on the lives of his father, and his mother - sufferers respectively from Alzheimer's and dementia - as he travels upstream towards what comes to seem like a heartland of mystery, magic and darkness.
Michael Jacobs was born in Italy and studied Art History at the Courtauld Institute in London. He is the author of several travel books, including Andes (Granta, 2010) and was shortlisted for the 2004 Thomas Cook prize. He lives in Spain and London.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9781847084071 |
| ISBN 10 | 1847084079 |
| Title | The Robber of Memories |
| Author | Michael Jacobs |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Hardback |
| Publisher | Granta Books |
| Year published | 2012-11-01 |
| Number of pages | 256 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |