The White Rock: An Exploration of the Inca Heartland

Description

The lost cities of South America have always exercised a powerful hold on the popular imagination. The ruins of the Incas and other pre-Colombian civilisations are scattered over thousands of miles of still largely uncharted territory, particularly in the Eastern Andes, where the mountains fall away towards the Amazon. Twenty years ago, Hugh Thomson set off into the cloud-forest on foot to find a ruin that had been carelessly lost again after its initial discovery. Into his history of the Inca Empire he weaves the story of his adventures as he travelled to the most remote Inca cities. It is also the story of the great explorers in whose footsteps he followed, such as Hiram Bingham and Gene Savoy.

Hugh Thomson has led many research expeditions to Peru. He is also a film-maker and has won many awards for his documentaries, which include Indian Journeys with William Dalrymple. He lives in Bristol. More details can be seen at www.thewhiterock.co.uk

Hugh's fantastic discovery of a new Inca site has caused a lot of interest in him and the paperback of THE WHITE ROCK, which I've given a press date of 27 June. Hugh was interviewed on the Today programme yesterday and a large news article about the discovery appeared in the Telegraph (6th June) and also on Points West News on BBC 1. Hugh has written a piece for the Sunday Times news review (9th June) and he wrote a piece for the Daily Mail (29th June). Articles have also appeared in Times (6th June) and Mail (6th June) and Daily Telegraph (8th June). Hugh has written a piece about the discovery for Traveller magazine. There was also be an article, by Nicholas Woodsworth, in the Financial Times on 29th June about travel writers, which mentioned THE WHITE ROCK. Hugo is being interviewed by his local paper, the Western Daily Press and BBC Radio Bristol, as well. '...interesting, funny, informative...Thomson is aborn storyteller, and he sensitively writes about the lost world of the Incas and so proves himself a better spokesman for their culture that the swashbuckling explorers who went before.' Sarah Jenkins, TNT magazine 'Thomson strikes me as...a robust version of Robert Byron...his dogged pursuit of his quarry, in his ability to take the rough with the smooth, in his narrative skill and especially in his knowledgeable analysis of architecture...Engrossing.'Geoffrey Moorhouse, NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW 'Thomson is a terrific storyteller...[his] wit, eye for detail and reverence for humanity set him apart from the average travel-adventure writer he is as good as a traveler could hope for.