Whatever You Do, Don't Run by Peter Allison

Born and raised in Sydney, Australia, he has a self-deprecating sense of humor that makes him an ideal narrator for a book about the challenges and elusive joys of dealing with tourists in the African bush. Peter Allison is a safari guide who has spent much of the last twelve years leading wildlife-viewing and ecotourism trips in Africa, mostly Botswana. He travels frequently to speaking appearances, and splits most of his time between Botswana, Sydney, and San Francisco. His safaris have been featured in National Geographic, Conde Nast Traveler, and on television programs such as Jack Hanna's Animal Adventures. Peter Allison is originally from Sydney, Australia. In this story Peter Allison tells of the time he became aware of unseen danger, and knew that somewhere within meters of him was a hunting lioness. The author's humor is exceeded only by his love and respect for the animals, and his goal is to limit any negative exposure to humans by planning trips that are minimally invasive-unfortunately it doesn't always work out that way New story: People often ask safari guides about the experience that frightened them the most. No one could make up these outrageous-but-true tales: the young woman who rejected the recommended safari-friendly khaki to wear a more 'fashionable' hot pink ensemble the lost tourist who happened to be drunk, half-naked, and a member of the British royal family establishing a real friendship with the continent's most vicious animal the Japanese tourist who requested a repeat performance of Allison's being charged by a lion so he could videotape it and spending a crazy night in the wild after blowing a tire on a tour bus, revealing that Allison has as much good-natured scorn for himself. As he serves the whims of his wealthy clients, he often has to stop the impulse to run as far away from them as he can, as these tourists are sometimes more dangerous than a pride of lions. Passionate for the animals of the Kalahari, Allison works as a top safari guide in the wildlife-rich Okavango Delta.

Peter Allison gives us the guide's-eye view of living in the bush, confronting the world's fiercest terrain of wild animals and, most challenging of all, managing herds of gaping tourists. A hilarious, highly original collection of essays based on the Botswana truism: 'only food runs ' With a new introduction and new material from the authorIn the tradition of Bill Bryson, a new writer brings us the lively adventures and biting wit of an African safari guide.

Whatever You Do, Don't Run by Peter Allison