Synopsis
South America’s most culturally rich, vibrant, but also troubled nation. In the journal he kept during his trip, he gives a vivid account of the towns and cities he visited, the landscapes he travelled through, and the people he met.
Illustrated throughout with colour photographs taken on the trip, and permeated with his warmth and humour, this is a vivid and varied portrait of a complex country.
Review
Michael Palin’s In Venezuela is an enlightening and unflinching portrait of a country too often reduced to headlines and statistics. Palin captures Venezuela in all its contradictions: its extraordinary natural beauty and warmth sit alongside an ever-present sense of unease, the legacy of violence and instability that once earned Caracas the grim title of the most dangerous city in the world. He does not shy away from this darker side, instead allowing it to form a constant undercurrent to his travels, reminding the reader that this is a nation living with the consequences of political and social upheaval.
There is pointed criticism throughout of Nicolás Maduro’s government and the way Venezuela is being run, alongside observations on the United States and the Trump administration that feel particularly resonant given the current global political climate. Palin’s writing is, as ever, accessible and engaging – captivating without ever becoming dense or overly academic. That said, there were moments when I found myself wishing he would linger longer, dig deeper, and tell us more. The sense that there is so much left unsaid can occasionally feel frustrating, especially when the subject matter is so rich and complex.
What truly elevates the book, however, is Palin’s ability to balance tension with humour. He intersperses his descriptions of places and people with wry, often laugh-out-loud anecdotes, even in situations that seem genuinely threatening – including their detainment by military intelligence, and the surreal moment when the agents discover Palin’s performance in Monty Python’s The Life of Brian. The result is a book that is deeply engaging and never overwhelming, yet one that stops just short of full immersion. In Venezuela offers a compelling window into a fascinating and troubled country, even if it leaves you wishing you could step a little further inside.
The Ink Thief 