Outposts: Journeys to the Surviving Relics of the British Empire

This is a terrifically entertaining book. I recently went to hear Simon Winchester speak about his latest book "The Men Who United the States" and was so captivated by his personality and the glimpses of his own life that he offered during the talk that I began searching through his other titles and decided that this one would be a book that I'd enjoy because it would take me to exotic locations, provide me with a history lesson at each location, and entertain me at the same time. I was not disappointed. Mr. Winchester has a keen eye for the small telling detail as well as for the larger picture. Having visited some of the locations in the book, it was very apparent that the things he observed in 1984 when he wrote this book, in many instances, are still true today. Many times the statement is made that on any journey -- many times it's the "getting there" that is half the fun and that's true in this book also because Mr. Winchester certainly had to expend a lot of effort and endured some very interesting circumstances while attempting to get where he was going. Mr. Winchester isn't the first writer to try to determine why the British Empire melted away until now there are only remnants of it scattered around the world but I believe that he is the first writer to visit those distant and scattered and in some instances almost forgotten shores and to report back on what remains at the end of the day.

Outposts is perhaps the oddest of Winchester's many books; surely it is the most melancholy. The three years of journeys that were required to complete the book--which took Winchester to dozens of far-flung destinations spattered across the globe--was apparently both exhausting and disheartening. Or, perhaps we should dispense with the word "apparently": Winchester makes his exhaustion (with the travel, with the topic) and his disappointment more than clear. His typical humor is largely absent and, when it is not, it is decidedly brittle. Indeed, in the end Winchester finds himself in a territory that is truly unfamiliar to him: that of acting as a political and cultural critic of his own country and his own times. The reader, meanwhile, realizing that Winchester completed the manuscript some 24 years ago and that the dire situations he described can only have gotten worse, feels Winchester's melancholy all the more. (In 2004, Harper brought out a new edition of the book with an updated introduction; I have not read it.) This is perhaps among the more obscure of Winchester's books; it is, in any case, one of the few whose destination is not the past. I have always had the sense that Winchester was more in his element when he was delving into history, but the present in Outposts seems a particularly unhappy destination.

I picked this book for adventure, perhaps travel, a bit of learning.I am so glad that my small wishes were so exceeded by the great and great many stories. There is too little space here to wax on,, so I must say that here is a book that should be required reading for most all of us out here, especially politicians, travelers, Naval persons, and all who might be, or are not. It is a warm book you need for a long winter's night.And if you have lived in the West of the USA outside of all the cities, maybe on a ranch or farm or small struggling town of 287 souls, it is perfect, for the vast plains and desert are much like the great oceans. A place for the mind, home for the soul and a purpose for the life too many others see as small.Wade RumneyCamano Island

I can live with the chapters that are outdated; I mean, Winchester wrote this two decades ago, the 'first published' date tells you this. I see no need for him to have to update anything. It's a travel book from the early 1980's.What did annoy me though was Winchester's constant and, one must assume, deliberate ploy of interchanging the words English/ England with British/ Britain, as if they meant the same thing.Whether Winchester liked it or not (and I'm sure he probably didn't) the Empire was British; England may well have been in control but the constant interchange often found in the same paragraph is a real kick in the teeth to the hundreds and thousands of Welsh and Scots that helped form the fledgling Empire.The book cover has the Union Flag on it. It's there for a reason.

Good book. Quick service.

A well written account of a journey to the tenements of the empire. Author has a keen eye, talent for description and a deep appreciation for people.

Love this book. You are always going to get great quality writing from Simon Winchester. The question with Winchester is whether or not the story he is telling is of interest to you specifically. This one shifts gears so many times that there is no question but that there will be something of great interest to you. Also, the story of the journey itself is inherently interesting. One thing that I would love to have from Winchester, that he hints at toward the beginning, is a full blown book on Northern Ireland.

Interesting for an anglophileA bit of a filler for him in his writing.. however other Winchesters were more prominent in significance.

This book gives the history of the British Colonies as well as the author's recent visit. I am finding it so interesting and in places quite funny.

Very interesting book. Not the first by Simon Winchester that I've read, and he does choose intriguing subjects. He is also an amazing traveller so you know you're getting a first hand account. Don't always agree with his leftish views but they haven't spoilt this book for me.

A marvellous (if a bit dated) window into the scraps of the former British Empire. Winchester captures the despairing spirit of the people in these places beautifully.

Having read Simon Winchester' s later books it is a bit disconcerting to find so few footnotes. Pleasant to look back with rose tinted glasses at what set the British Empire apart from the other colonial powers.

Fascinating glimpse of the early 80's, but badly needs updating to what's current 30 years on. Mr Winchester could fly to St Helena in 2016 for starters :-)