Camels in the Sky Travels in Arabia

A unique tour of the largest sand desert in the world. The name Rub 'ul Khali (Empty Quarter) belies the immense diversity and life it harbours, says the author who lived and toured the Arabian deserts for over thirteen years as a journalist. A compulsive traveler since his student days, Ahamed describes in lyrical prose the history, pre-history, archaeology, legends, folklore and travails of the émigré Asian work force that tames the harsh desert. The book is perhaps the first Arabian travelogue by an Indian which takes a comprehensive view of Arabia beyond the Hajj to Mecca, which is guided anyway. It is probably witnessing the swansong of the fabled Bedouin culture in the wake of the oil tide that is distorting the Arab culture alongside the changing landscape. A valuable guide for the Saudi-bound.

V. Muzafer Ahamed is currently the Periodicals Editor of the Kerala-based 'Madhyamam' group. He worked in Saudi Arabia for 13 years for the Jeddah-based 'Malayalam News' daily. He won the Kerala Sahitya Academy prize for travel writing in 2010 and is the author of seven books in Malayalam. He hails from Perintalmanna in Malappuram district of Kerala. 2. P. J. Mathew, the translator, is a bilingual journalist with two decades of experience in English journalism in New Delhi and three decades in Malayalam in Kerala. He oversaw the launching of three newspapers from Kerala and headed the journalism training programmes of three institutions and boasts of a host of leading journalists as their guru. He turned to translation after turning 65, and has brought out six volumes in Malayalam and two in English, This book is his third work of translation.