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| Bad Lands: A Tourist on the Axis of Evil (Lonely Planet Travel Literature) | 
 enlarge | Author: Tony Wheeler
Publisher: Lonely Planet Publications
Category: Book
List Price: £7.99
Buy Used: £3.20
You Save: £4.79 (60%)
New (33) from £3.55
Avg. Customer Rating:  6 reviews
Sales Rank: 50631
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 327
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.8
Dimensions (in): 7.7 x 5 x 0.9
ISBN: 1741791863
Dewey Decimal Number: 910.4
EAN: 9781741791860
ASIN: 1741791863
Publication Date: April 1, 2007
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews: Read 1 more reviews...
 That is an unusual Axis of Evil, but a rather good book May 25, 2008
That is a strange `Axis of Evil', Tony Wheeler (TW) has put together in his book `Badlands', even though the nine countries (Afghanistan, Albania, Burma, Cuba, Iran, Iraq, Libya, North Korea and Saudi Arabia) all sound pretty good candidates for this axis of evil. TW covers every singly country both in terms of its history - which I think adds a lot of value to the book - and travels he has done there at any time in the last 30-odd years and again quite recently. He has quite a few of `before-and-after stories' to tell and I do like his witty observations about the various places he has visited although now and then he could be a bit less sarcastic.
Albania I found a rather odd choice of his. Hoxha, which did run the country in a somewhat unusual manner, has been dead for over 20 years and except for his pill boxes there should be nothing to tell. Libya is now counted amongst the good countries ever since Gaddafi (spelling?) started behaving like a good boy.
On the other hand, I loved his account of North Korea, which is probably the most fascinating country I have ever been to myself, so I could relate quite well to TW's stay in the country. Personally I think, it should have scored higher on The Evil Meter.
I could think of some more countries to be added to this Axis of Evil and TW goes through a whole lot of potential candidates or shall we say candidates with a lot of potential. One candidate definitely to be added he lists on the last page of his book. Yes, it should definitely be on the list, but I shall not name it here.
If you love travel stories to unusual places then Tony Wheeler's book is a must-read for you.
 Gallivanting through the Axis of Evil May 10, 2008
"Libya is one of the most comprehensively trashed countries I've ever visited." - Author Tony Wheeler in BAD LANDS
Co-founder (with his wife, Maureen) of Lonely Planet Publications, Tony Wheeler here describes his travels through nine countries generally considered "bad lands" by Western societies because of their poor treatment of their own citizens, their involvement in terrorism, and the threat they pose to other countries. The nine are Afghanistan, Albania, Myanmar (Burma), Cuba, Iran, Iraq, Libya, North Korea, and Saudi Arabia. Except for areas in Iraq which Wheeler was careful to skirt, none of the nine are particularly dangerous for the individual visitor.
In the genre of travel essays, BAD LANDS is commendably out of the ordinary in that it includes a 16-page center section of color photographs. I guess if your book is being published your own publishing company, you can afford this extravagance.
While reading the first chapter on Afghanistan, I thought Wheeler's writing rather stiff and I was somewhat dreading the experience of the whole. But in following chapters, he loosens up considerably and becomes a congenial and wryly humorous guide. For instance, this paragraph about Cuba:
"Every other woman walking by was wearing the standard Cuban fashion statements: short, tight, low, high, stretched. Preferably in Lycra ... In Cuba no women can be too big, too wide, too round for Lycra. 'Thrusting femininity' was the two-word definition of the Cuban approach to fashion, according to one visiting travel writer ..."
Published in 2007, BAD LANDS provides a roomy front window for the reader to peer out into the contemporary society of each nation visited, as well as useful rear window overlooking their recent pasts.
I'd award five stars except for the last two chapters, "The Evil Meter" and "Other Bad Lands: The Extended List." In the former, Tony rates, on a scale of 1 to 10, each of the nine subject nations: 1-3 points for domestic oppression, 1-3 for support or participation in terrorism, 1-3 for international belligerency, and a bonus point for Personality Cult centered around the national leader. I didn't mind so much that Wheeler calibrated his meter with such countries as the United States, Australia, the UK, and France and found them registering on the scale, albeit at a low level. But, when he carried the concept over into the latter chapter and mentions such garden spots as Somalia, Congo/Zaire, Angola, Haiti, Papua New Guinea, Pakistan, Syria and (in his mind) the evil conjoined twins, Israel and Palestine, without making even the most rudimentary mention of an obvious twosome, resurgent Russia and China, then I began to doubt his objectivity. Perhaps he should just stay with travel writing and skip the editorializing.
Drop the political posturing September 27, 2007
This is the first Lonely Planet I've read by the original author Tony Wheeler.
After having recently read a similar series linked to the DP author David Lloyd Pelton, Wheeler starts comparatively jittery.
Mixed mumblings and party line politics give way to a more flowing, humourous and generally interesting narrative as you continue through.
One of the main drawbacks with this guide is the political bobbing and weaving.
To be honest, I don't care for reading Tony's views on how the world works.
Otherwise; it's an interesting overview on visiting dangerous places from a one of the world's leading travel proffesionals.
 I expected a much better book June 28, 2007
8 out of 9 found this review helpful
Saw this in a shop and purchased it straight away as it sounded interesting and promised a different persepctive on these countries.
I was disapointed by the style of writeing which offered a few insights but not much more than just a mundane storey of one mans travel, which did at time appear to give the reader the impression that it was only written to satisfy the authors ego.
I expected more from such a seasoned traveller. Not worth the money
Fascinating travelogue May 14, 2007
6 out of 9 found this review helpful
This is a really readable book about Tony Wheeler's visits as a tourist to countries that are (or were until fairly recently) deemed as 'bad lands' by most of the rest of the world. It's a very personal view of each country's activities and exploits, and Mr Wheeler does make the point that few, if any, countries in the world can claim to have a clear conscience. It's really interesting to read about the people and places in the countries that were visited - as a woman, the most scary place to me would be Saudi Arabia where it seems that women have no rights or freedoms at all. I'd loved to have read about some of the countries listed as "also-rans" such as Somalia, DR Congo, Haiti etc, but I'd guess that visiting a lot of those places as a tourist would be difficult if not impossible. And after what Mr Wheeler has to say about the North Korean government, I doubt as if they'll be letting him back in...! ;)
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