J. H. Patterson (1867–1947)

A classic originally published in 1907. Based on the movie, starring Val Kilmer, which was really good. The book? Not so good. Set in Africa, the hunters are the ones being hunted by a ferocious lion.

Great book. Suspenseful, informative, and even funny at timea.

The author, writing a hundred + years ago, assumes the reader is interested in dangerous lion attacks. Now that stuff wasn't boring by any means, but the real value from this is a glimpse into the attitude and perspective of extreme pro-colonialism from a primary source. Its wild.

Although not a fan of hunting, the early 20th century hunting books were the majority of books about Africa, making them of broader interest, so I have a lot of these. The fascinating thing about this one is that Patterson was overseeing the building of a bridge, a major undertaking, and only incidentally had to stalk and kill the maneating lions to preserve his workforce. Therefore he was the ultimate multitasker.