I doubt I'll get there unless either, the country becomes completely "normal" or I have Palin's pedigree. His books include accounts of his journeys, novels ( Hemingway's Chair and The Truth) and several volumes of diaries. This was his first documentary travelogue since visiting North Korea in 2018 which was equally short and it is now eleven years since his last trip lasting multiple months which saw him explore Brasil. I haven’t seen that so not sure if there’s stuff here he couldn’t say on camera but was fun reading for an insight into Iraq today.

Palin appeared in some of the most famous Python sketches, including "The Dead Parrot", "The Lumberjack Song", "The Spanish Inquisition" and "Spam". Iraq seems as though it was once a very beautiful country and while that beauty is still there, it's been marked with years of hostility and war. Genial and comforting whilst containing his signature wit and necessary depth and critique when needed.He has also made several much-acclaimed travel documentaries, his journeys taking him to the North and South Poles, the Sahara Desert, the Himalayas, Eastern Europe and Brazil. And he considers the role that Iraq’s other great natural resource – oil – plays in both providing wealth and threatening political stability. But then in 2018, heh teamed up with Channel 5 with a headline-grabbing trip to North Korea, and in 2022, aged 79, it was off to Iraq. But there are patches of light amid the dark: boisterous New Year celebrations in Akre, the friendliness of generals and colonels at ‘Checkpoint Cheerful’, and public poetry readings in Baghdad. now an older, and somewhat jaded, Palin and team travel along the length of the Tigris (mostly in Iraq).

ISIS remain a big threat (Palin likens sandbagged roadblocks to the North in the 80s), many of the ancient ruins are really modern versions rebuilt by Hussain, corruption is rife, increasing global temperatures will impact places like Iraq more than most, and people want to leave, which just holds the place back. At the next he would be visiting the war-torn city of Mosul, or learning about the horrific Speicher massacre in Tikrit. At the same time, Michael charts the course of one of the great rivers of the world, showing how the water that gave life to such ancient settlements as Babylon and Ur is now becoming a scarce and hotly contested resource. In combinatie met de vele foto’s die hij tijdens zijn reis maakte, schetst Palin een levendig portret van een complex land, dat maar weinig buitenstaanders écht te zien krijgen.Now he shares the journal he meticulously kept during his trip, in which he describes the very varied places he visited, the people he met and the impressions he formed of a country that few outsiders now venture to see. Auch wenn das Buch alles hatte, was mir an den Büchern von Michael Palin gefällt, konnte er mich nicht so fesseln wie sonst. Please note: On occasion, due to the complexity and personal nature of some book signing requests, Michael may not dedicate and sign exactly as requested. Into Iraq his latest book and TV venture, is in the tradition of all that he has done in his earlier works.

Into Iraq is a journey I wouldn’t make so this is a unique opportunity to see somewhere through the eyes of a trusted companion. Die Abenteuer aus 1001 und einer Nacht faszinieren nicht nur den kleinen Michael und auch der erwachsene Mann denkt noch oft an die Sehnsucht nach diesem magischen Land zurück, das er zwischen den Zeilen entdeckt hat.

Bookplates are official labels which are signed by the author and then fixed to the title page of the book. Come down the travelators, exit Sainsbury's, turn right and follow the pedestrianised walkway to Crown Walk and turn right - and Coles will be right in front of you. This account imparts its knowledge lightly, may make you want to visit, and reminded me of how much I miss the country I briefly lived in. I am grateful for the many journeys we have shared but mostly the change of attitude he has given me in my own trips. Palin manages to reveal the beauty of this ancient land as well as the devastating scars of conflict on the land and it’s people.