Beyond the Coral Sea: Travels in the Old Empires of the South-West Pacific - Softcover

Moran, Michael

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0006552358 ISBN 13: 9780006552352

Publisher: Harper Perennial, 2009

Synopsis

Travels in the Old Empires of the South-West Pacific East of Java, west of Tahiti and north of the Cape York peninsula of Australia lie the unknown paradise islands of the Coral, Solomon and Bismarck Seas. They were perhaps the last inhabited place on earth to be explored by Europeans, and even today many remain largely unspoilt, despite the former presence of German, British and even Australian colonial rulers. Michael Moran, a veteran traveller, begins his journey on the island of Samarai, historic gateway to the old British Protectorate, as the guest of the benign grandson of a cannibal. He explores the former capitals of German New Guinea and headquarters of the disastrous New Guinea Compagnie, its administrators decimated by malaria and murder. He travels along the inaccessible Rai Coast through the Archipelago of Contented Men, following in the footsteps of the great Russian explorer 'Baron' Nikolai Miklouho-Maclay. The historic anthropological work of Bronislaw Malinowski guides him through the seductive labyrinth of the Trobriand 'Islands of Love' and the erotic dances of the yam festival. Darkly humorous characters, both historical and contemporary, spring vividly to life as the author steers the reader through the richly fascinating cultures of Melanesia. 'Beyond the Coral Sea' is a captivating voyage of unusual brilliance and a memorable evocation of a region which has been little written about during the past century.

About this title

Review:

‘Everything you wanted to know about cannibalism but were afraid to ask is here.’ Daily Telegraph

‘Filled with tales of wonder, sadness and extraordinary behaviour.’ Sunday Times

Short-listed for the Thomas Cook Travel Book Award 2004

‘A big book, filled with tales of wonder, sadness and extraordinary behaviour... there is no faulting his research, his integrity, or his ability to transport us to a very different and wonderful part of the globe.’
Anthony Sattin, Sunday Times

‘Recounts the adventures of a host of historical characters, ranging from a distinguished Polish anthropologist who was fascinated by the sex lives of natives to a young Errol Flynn who enthusiastically joined in. Moran’s work has all the ingredients of a fine travelogue... His research is meticulous... Everything you wanted to know about cannibalism but were afraid to ask is here.’
Gavin Bell, Daily Telegraph

‘If you’ve room for only one book in your baggage this year, take this one. Elegantly and powerfully written, evoking steaming jungle gorges, enervating heat, idyllic coral beaches, wrecked ships, deserted towns and people caught in limbo between the savage past and hopeless future, it is the work of a true traveller.......a meditation on the nature of humanity itself.’ Celia Brayfield, The Times

‘A beguiling account, both romantic and fascinatingly horrible, of an abrupt transition from the Stone Age to the present era of high technology in the islands collectively called Papua New Guinea... [Moran] is a reporter with a painterly eye, a tape-recorder ear and a dry sense of humour that enliven all his encounters... Reading this picturesque book may be as good as visiting Papua New Guinea, perhaps better.’
Patrick Skene Catling, Irish Times and Irish Independent

‘...this is not a quick flip around the islands, but rather a cultural history and a philosophical meditation on the nature of human existence where ‘primitive societies’ come into abrupt and painful collision with ‘modern civilisation’........his studied, detached but sympathetic calm is the dominant mood and style throughout this impressive and serious-minded book.’
The Times Literary Supplement

‘Moran’s fascination with the social habits of the region, his enthusiasm for his subject, his thorough research and his energetic travels have provided him with a richness of material so often lacking in travel books.’
Anthony Sattin, Sunday Times from ‘Travel Books: The Class of 2004 - Who will win the Thomas Cook Travel Book Award this year?’

‘He evokes not only the steaming rainforest and white-sand beaches, but the imperatives of an ancient people who are slipping from the grip of capitalism and Christianity..........Moran’s depiction makes you question the real nature of humanity.’
New Statesman – Recommended Christmas Books 2004

‘BEYOND THE CORAL SEA is a captivating book. Written in the tradition of the great Victorian travel narratives, it provides a glorious insight into one of the world’s most unknown quarters. Michael Moran has proved himself as a writer of astonishing ability and is a master of the most magical prose.’
Tahir Shah (Author of SORCERER’S APPRENTICE; TRAIL OF FEATHERS; IN SEARCH OF KING SOLOMON’S MINES).

‘Even iron-clad stomachs will reel at the accounts......left me questioning the sanctity of my own cultural perceptions. Moran’s description of his journey through these remote islands broadens horizons, in more ways than one.’
Wanderlust Travel Magazine

From the Publisher:

East of Java and west of Tahiti a bird of dazzling plumage stalks the Pacific over the Cape York Peninsula of Australia. In her wake, she spills clusters of emeralds on the surface of the deep. These are the unknown paradise islands of the Coral, Solomon and Bismarck Seas lying off the east coast of Papua New Guinea.

Along the way Michael Moran explores the role of superstition, magic rites and the occult in the lives of the islanders, including the trading route of the Kula Ring which unites many tribal island groups in a mystical exchange of symbolically valuable objects, one set travelling clockwise around the ring, the other anti-clockwise. His narrative is interwoven with the stories of eccentric residents past and present – such as the self-styled ‘Queen Emma’ of New Britain, who was born of an American father and a Samoan mother and built up a large empire of copra plantations, as well as trading in the fabled obsidian (black volcanic glass) and entertaining on a lavish scale with imported food and French champagne. Moran describes the historic anthropological work of Malinowski in the Trobriand Islands and also catches up with some of the adventurers, mercenaries, explorers, missionaries and prospectors he has encountered on previous journeys.

The islands were the last inhabited place on earth to be explored by Europeans and even today many remain largely unspoilt, despite the former presence of German, British and even Australian colonial rulers. In addition there has been a recent resurgence of cannibalism in the remoter areas. But rather than a tale of cannibals and blood, this is a journey in the romantic and adventurous spirit of Robert Louis Stevenson and an exploration of encroaching change in remarkably diverse cultures.

About this edition

• Publisher: Harper Perennial
• Publication date: 2009
• ISBN 10: 0006552358
• ISBN 13: 9780006552352
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 432