Author: F A Mitchell-Hedges
Publisher: Elek Books
Published Date: 1954
Book Rating *****
This is a fascinating autobiography and seems to come
straight out of a “Boys Own” Annual.
Mitchell-Hedges runs away from school when threatened with corporal punishment
at 13 and his life goes from one adventure to another, but he always seems to
fall on his feet in his quest to see the world.
He travels to the USA and meets a few millionaires (it seems
too good to be true) and manages to make his fortune in playing card and on the
stock market – a career he declined in the UK for fear of being trapped. In the
process he takes on responsibility for an orphan who later in life, after
schooling becomes a travelling companion.
He then spends years travelling around the Carribean fishing,
catching truly monster fish to over 2 tons on tackle he get made at a shipyard,
and exploring seeking tribes and uncovering
old ruined cities. It appears a thrill a minute.
He even finds a glass Mayan skull which becomes the basis
for the Indiana Jones film. Many of the artefacts
he uncovers can be seen in museums in the UK
and USA.
If you like reading about people challenging themselves, as
well as tales of huge fish, then this is undoubtedly the book for you.