“Though Burton scoffed at all forms of religious superstition—whether the fetishes of the Fan cannibals or the death ceremonies of his own Church of England—he dwelt fascinated upon all things accounted devilish in his own time. Once he even contemplated writing a biography of Satan himself… But Burton’s preoccupation with things Satanic was only one aspect of the man. In the catholicity of his interests he seemed to have been a true man of the Renaissance. He was soldier, explorer, ethnologist, archaeologist, poet, translator, and one of the two or three great linguists of his time. He was also an amateur physician, botanist, zoologist and geologist, and incidentally a celebrated swordsman and superb raconteur… And in a world where there seemed to be very little left to be discovered, he sought out the few remaining mysteries… But Burton’s real passion was not for geographical discovery but for the hidden in man, for the unknowable, and inevitably the unthinkable. What his Victorian compatriots called unclean, bestial or Satanic he regarded with almost clinical detachment. In this respect he belongs more properly to our own day.”

Publisher: Norton
Paperback: 390 pages
Illustrated

“Following his spectacular pilgrimage to Mecca and Medina in 1853, Burton mounted an even more harrowing expedition in 1854 to Harar, the Somali capital, accompanied by three young British officers. Four months later, after leaving his companions on the Somali coast and disappearing into the desert, he entered the city alone. Disguised as an Arab merchant, he spent 10 days ‘in peril of his life,’ but his daring and diplomacy, his ability to pass as an Arab and his sound knowledge of Mohammedan theology allowed him to leave as boldly as he had walked in. His successful penetration of the Muslim citadel made him the first European to do so without being executed… The text provides a vivid narrative of Muslim beliefs, manners and morals, documents the pleasures and hazards of desert life and contributes a vast amount of invaluable geographic, ethnographic and linguistic data.”

Publisher: Dover
Paperback: 544 pages

“The following women are not to be enjoyed:
A leper
A lunatic
A woman turned out of caste
A woman who reveals secrets
A woman who publicly expresses desire for sexual intercourse
A woman who is extremely white
A woman who is extremely black
A bad-smelling woman
A woman who is a near relation
A woman who is a female friend
A woman who leads the life of an ascetic
And lastly, the wife of a relation, of a friend, of a learned
Brahman, and of the king”
First printed in 1883, this is an ancient Indian men’s guide to sex. How to bite, how to kiss, who needs a good slapping, how to seduce, and how to match the depth of her “yoni” to the size of your “lingam” for the “highest union” of sexual satisfaction. GR

Publisher: Berkley
Paperback: 308 pages

“It is for his pilgrimage in 1853 to Mecca and Medina and the most sacrosanct shrines of Islam that Burton is best known—and for his celebrated book that recorded his experiences during the journey. Successfully posing as a wandering dervish, he gained admittance to the holy Kaabah and to the Tomb of the Prophet at Medina and participated in all the rituals of the Hadj [pilgrimage]. He is still one of the very few non-Moslems to visit and return from Mecca… Whether telling of the crowded caravan to Mecca, engaging in minute analysis of Bedouin character, waxing lyrical about a desert landscape or reporting conversations with townsfolk or fellow pilgrims, Burton gives us a vivid picture of the region and its people.”

Publisher: Dover
Paperback: 436 pages

“It is for his pilgrimage in 1853 to Mecca and Medina and the most sacrosanct shrines of Islam that Burton is best known—and for his celebrated book that recorded his experiences during the journey. Successfully posing as a wandering dervish, he gained admittance to the holy Kaabah and to the Tomb of the Prophet at Medina and participated in all the rituals of the Hadj [pilgrimage]. He is still one of the very few non-Moslems to visit and return from Mecca… Whether telling of the crowded caravan to Mecca, engaging in minute analysis of Bedouin character, waxing lyrical about a desert landscape or reporting conversations with townsfolk or fellow pilgrims, Burton gives us a vivid picture of the region and its people.”

Publisher: University of Texas
Paperback: 479 pages
Illustrated

“The years Burton spent in India (1842-49) were the crucial formative ones. This was where he first learned about Islam, first mastered the art of disguise, first revealed his dazzling talents as a linguist. Yet these years are also the least known and least documented in the great explorer’s life. By boldly going in Burton’s footsteps to Sindh, Bombay and Goa and interviewing dozens of the subcontinent’s experts on Burton and the Raj, Ondaatje has shed new light on this obscure chapter and brought back new wisdom.” Beautifully illustrated with color photographs by the author and historical pictures.

Publisher: HarperCollins
Hardback: 320 pages
Illustrated

“In 1861, Sir Richard Francis Burton, one of the Victorian era’s greatest scholar/adventurers, entered the British Foreign Office as consul in Fernando Po, a Spanish island off the coast of West Africa. Over the next three years, he embarked on many short expeditions to the mainland, amassing a huge store of information on the indigenous peoples of the region. He later wrote five books about his travels and exploration. This present volume is one of the best known, a fascinating, detailed description of Burton’s long journey to his post, his arrival at Fernando Po and his first investigations of the lives and customs of native tribes dwelling along the West African coast.”

Publisher: Dover
Paperback: 624 pages
Illustrated