Mountains of the Moon

one of the last great geographical explorations was in order to find the source of the Nile..British Victorian hero and adventurer Richard Burton took a young John Speke under his wing and attempted to find the answer to this great mystery..Burton, translator of the 'Kuma Sutra' was an adventurer through and through..wanting to experience native customs and cultures and to understand them not just use them for the purposes of the journey. The relationship between Burton and Speke is the heart and soul of this book. Their differences become more profound the deeper their adventure takes them and finally Speke leaves Burton as he goes for the glory for himself. Burton's life comes to a sad end for such a richly led life. This is an incredible book. Rich, exciting, thrilling.

A marvellous novel about the brilliant explorer and writer Richard Burton and his young protege John Hanning Speke and there ill-fated attempt to locate the source of the White Nile in the east African highlands. In the process we see the difficulties faced by Victorian explorers and you can only marvel at the bravery of the men to undertake such journeys.We see the recriminations that erupt in London when Speke claims (rightly but without real proof) that Victoria is the source and how Burton is sidelined and eventually is lucky to find positions in the worst jobs in the foreign service. A sad end for one of the worlds greatest explorers. I can feel no sympathy for the end that Speke met with, but read it for yourself. Now a movie, but the film cannot capture a fraction of the book.

Can you help? PBS ran a series on this subject some years ago. I'd like to find a copy.