This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Free Book Program, which is open to all readers and is completely free. The author will provide you with a free copy of their book in exchange for an honest review. You and the author will discuss what sites you will post your review to and what kind of copy of the book you would like to receive (eBook, PDF, Word, paperback, etc.). To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email.
This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Review Exchange Program, which is open to all authors and is completely free. Simply put, you agree to provide an honest review an author's book in exchange for the author doing the same for you. What sites your reviews are posted on (B&N, Amazon, etc.) and whether you send digital (eBook, PDF, Word, etc.) or hard copies of your books to each other for review is up to you. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email, and be sure to describe your book or include a link to your Readers' Favorite review page or Amazon page.
This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Donation Program, which was created to help nonprofit and charitable organizations (schools, libraries, convalescent homes, soldier donation programs, etc.) by providing them with free books and to help authors garner more exposure for their work. This author is willing to donate free copies of their book in exchange for reviews (if circumstances allow) and the knowledge that their book is being read and enjoyed. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email. Be sure to tell the author who you are, what organization you are with, how many books you need, how they will be used, and the number of reviews, if any, you would be able to provide.
Reviewed by Carine Engelbrecht for Readers' Favorite
A Rock and a Hard Place is a memoir chronicling the experiences of author George Zelt as a geologist in mostly Southern Africa in the 1970s. The title plays on several different facets of its meaning. For academic purposes, he turns over a fair amount of rocks, but it also plays on his experiences in the difficult social landscape of apartheid-era South Africa and the minefield of academic politics. Additionally "rock" was also a term once used to refer to the more conservative members of the Afrikaner community. When George finds himself at odds with the Afrikaner who holds the keys to his ultimate academic success, his position becomes increasingly difficult. He uncovers curiosities of various kinds - both human and inanimate - and spends a vacation in the unspoiled Okavango Delta with a hygiene-challenged Australian and an Irishman who seems to be a walking encyclopedia on Africa. There are tense moments, but also the unexpected magic of close encounters with elephants, rhinos, hippos and crocodiles.
Africa lures adventurers with the promise of freedom and hints of tall tales and wild legends. Even as recently as the 1970s, when the continent seemed precariously juxtaposed between an idealized western dream and the bitter consequences of the white man's passing, some glimpses of the old Africa remained. With A Rock and a Hard Place, George Zelt captures some of that lingering glamour. One finds humor and nail-biting tension. He bemoans missed opportunities and highlights some of the idiosyncratic contrasts of apartheid, but while the author is rightly critical of apartheid, he seems a little more tolerant of the softer discrimination of Anglophone colonialism. Or is that me trying to project 21st-century attitudes on the past? I'm not sure. But social commentary only comprises part of the narrative. Read on and the book will also instill awe in you for Africa's geographic uniqueness and a healthy respect for its wildlife, both large and small, balancing beauty and inherent dangers.
