Rediscovering 'Arabian Sands' : A Review

Wilfred Thesiger’s writing is often described as spare, minimal, and austere; and rightly so. Yet, when he chose, it could also be strikingly vivid and lyrical.

Arabian Sands is a masterpiece that has rightfully taken its place amongst the finest books of travel writing and adventure. It is at once an elegiac, poetic lament as well as a journalistic attempt at recording the last gasps of a vanishing way of life. In it, Thesiger covered his epic journeys on camel-back, crossing the Empty Quarter between 1945 and 1950- perhaps the happiest years of his colourful and interesting life.

It is a snapshot of an Arabia prior to the massive, sweeping economic development spurred by the discovery of oil. It covers in minute detail the relationships between the many tribes, their traditional ways of life, the sparse majesty of the endless dunes, the plants and the wildlife, such as it was. This snapshot is supported by his remarkable photographs which seem so far removed and exotic, yet oddly, so much more contemporary than others taken in that time, owing to how candidly they depict their subjects.

What elevates the book is his keenly observed description of the personalities of his fellow travelers- their warmth, their kindness and their adherence to the strict codes of honour that enabled Bedu societies to exist and survive in the unforgiving and harsh desert environment.

Thesiger described their patience, generosity, humour and light-hearted gallantry with much affection and he openly acknowledged them as having these qualitites in much ‘greater measure’ than himself. He was deeply respectful of and full of admiration for his companions and he made every effort to understand their behaviour, their beliefs and their motivations as they undertook these phenomenally dangerous expeditions across the sands.

He attempted to live exactly as his guides did- even choosing to forgo wearing shoes so that he could walk barefoot on the blazing sands just like them. In return, he earned the love and respect of his companions in equal measure. The comradeship he shared with his two closest travel companions, Bin Kabina and Bin Ghabaisha, as well as with the many others who he met along the way make these journeys come alive.

He was an Etonian born into an aristocratic family and he read History at Oxford. Yet, it is clear from the outset that he was happiest when he was away from the clamour of modern civilisation and found deep satisfaction in the smaller joys- the simplicity and freedom of a life of adventure, far removed from the comforts and privileges of the society into which he was born.

In Arabian Sands, seemingly, his travel party is always perilously close to running out of food and water, pursued by raiding parties, dependent entirely on their fate and coming close, too close at times, to perishing. Life in the empty quarter is often dangling by a thread, just one accident or unfortunate occurrence away from disaster. Yet he remained incredibly understated about these dangers and discomforts.

Instead, he devoted much of the book to lambent descriptions of the beauty around him. Therefore, when he was summarily asked to leave the Gulf and felt that perhaps he might not be welcome there in the future, we can empathise with him and feel his pain.

Published nine years after he left the region, this nostalgic pain that seems to underscore his entire manuscript:

"The valleys when I woke at dawn were filled with eddying mist, above which the silhouettes of the dunes ran eastwards, like fantastic mountains towards the rising sun. The sky glowed softly with the colors of the opal. The world was very still, held in a fragile bowl of silence. Standing at last on this far threshold of the Sands I looked back, almost regretfully, the way we had come."

Anyone who has travelled to this part of the world or is fortunate enough to have lived here will enjoy reading this very much.

In addition to Arabian Sands, Motivate also publishes several other of Sir Wilfred's books. Visit our website to find out more. 

Pictured: Ian Fairservice (right), Sir Wilfred Thesiger and British diplomat Edward Henderson, meeting with the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan in 1990.