This is yet another book read due to a review in Planet.
This book is an interesting exploration of global connections which date back well before the processes that we tend to refer to as 'globalisation'. It gives a positive view of the legacy of the British in Aden, and suggest that most of Yemen's problems started after the British left, and focuses on warm and enduring friendship for the British within the older Yemeni generation. This is perhaps a selective view - but it is one person's journey and one person's story and we should respect it as telling an important part of the a shared history and a present relationship. We should also note that the journey recounted here took place in 1992 - and so the interval of time between us and the events in the book is now almost equal to the interval between the end of British rule in Aden and the events. It is good to hear this part of the story at a time when Yemen most enters our Western consciousness only in the context of a breeding ground for terrorism. One of the things most useful things that the book does is highlight the important part that Yemeni seaman played in the successful functioning on the British Empire, particularly during the 2 World Wars, and so when we do attribute a positive legacy to the Empire credit needs to be given to a wide diversity of people and not just plummy voice men in pith helmets.
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