Tropic of Capricorn by Simon Reeve
In Tropic of Capricorn, Simon Reeve sets out on a global adventure through ten countries following the line of the Southern Tropic: Namibia, Botswana, South Africa, Mozambique, Madagascar, Australia, Chile, Argentina, Paraguay and Brazil. Travelling through breathtaking landscapes, home to an abundance of unique and spectacular flora and fauna, Simon witnesses some of the most striking natural wonders on Earth - from the shifting sands of the Namibian desert to the gigantic waterfalls of Iguzu in Brazil. But it is the people that inhabit these lands that intrigue him the most.Simon delves deep into cultures where often startling traditions are still practiced today, such as the use of gang rape as a punishment for breaking aboriginal law in Australia. He grapples with the turbulent histories that remain etched on the people and the places they inhabit, and with the wide-ranging tensions that shape the identity of these vastly disparate countries, all linked by an invisible line. From the impact of German colonialism in Namibia and diamond mining and civil war in Botswana, to Nazi war criminals in mysterious Paraguay and a controversial nuclear power station built on an earthquake fault line in Brazil, Simon writes about the important issues that are happening today and reveals parts of our world little understood or known about - until now.