Search - The Songlines

Chatwin was one of the best travel writers in the 1980s and 1990s. In this account he explores the area around Alice Springs, in central Australia. He meditates on the meaning of nomadism, the evoluationary basis for our violent ways, and the implications of the emergence of our species under conditions such as the semi-arid Serengeti savanna. He also writes about the Songlines, the invisible paths along which aboriginal Australians travel to make observances that keep the world in balance. Anthropologists probably grit their teeth reading this, but for us lay members of the public, it is interesting stuff.

I thought I would get more on Australian aboriginal mythology but got how they live today.

For me this book was a window into the world of a completely different culture. Not only does it show how people lived in the illiterate world, but how their civilization survived. The deep history of the songlines has a compelling magic that unites the people with the land in a way that no western culture has seen. If you want to explore a new way of seeing the world, read this wonderful book.