Tab Article

Ratings: ★★★★★ (5/5)
Genre: Travel, Travelogue, Anthropology, History, Non-Fiction

Book Review:
''Obscure Kingdoms'' by Edward Fox is a brilliantly entertaining and deeply insightful travel book that takes readers on a fascinating journey to some of the world's most intriguing royal courts. In this debut work, Fox proves himself to be a major writing talent, as A.C. Grayling notes in the Financial Times, with his ''dry and sharply observant prose'' making for a truly captivating read.

The book chronicles Fox's adventures as he travels to Tonga, Oman, Nigeria, Swaziland, and Java in search of kingship. With wit, patience, and boundless curiosity, he explores the elusive nature of royalty, examining the roles of kings both as powerful heads of state and as splendid cultural relics. He delves into the ceremonial, the supernatural, and the often bizarre realities of power, real and imagined. As Katie Hickman writes in The Times Literary Supplement, ''today's travellers must journey deeper. In this, Edward Fox admirably succeeds.''

This is an original, highly entertaining, and thought-provoking work that invites comparison with the great travel writers. It is an essential read for anyone interested in travel, anthropology, history, or the enduring mystery of royalty and power in the modern world .