Product Description

The actor and writer reads the account of his third and most ambitious world adventure: an anti-clockwise circumnavigation of the world's largest ocean, the Pacific. With tales of head-hunters in Borneo and eating maggots in Mexico, Palin evokes the full colour and richness of the Pacific Rim.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #93555 in Books
• Published on: 2003-08-04
• Released on: 2003-08-04
• Number of discs: 6
• Format: Audiobook
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 6
• Binding: Audio CD

Amazon.co.uk Review
Having gone round the world and down the poles in Around the World in 80 Days and Pole to Pole, it seems fitting that Michael Palin should complete his travel odyssey for the BBC by completing Full Circle, the book which describes his journey through the 18 countries which border the Pacific Rim, and which make a rough circle of 11,000 miles in diameter. The result is a journey which, even by Palin's standards, is truly epic.

Pole to Pole represents what is probably Palin's most ambitious piece of travel writing to date, as he gradually begins to piece together a common Pacific culture, as he travels through Russia, Japan, China, Southeast Asia, Australia and South America. Often the sheer scope of the journey becomes overwhelming and slightly impressionistic, but as ever Palin's wit and wonder at his discoveries and encounters is unflagging, from the wonders of the ancient civilisations of Asia to the startling modernity and squalor of Latin America. It's all enough to turn you into a Buddhist, and, in Full Circle, Palin comes as close to conversion as it's possible for an old Python. --Jerry Brotton

Customer Reviews

Michael Palin's longest journey of them all
Michael Palin's "Full Circle" trip involved traveling all of the way around the Pacific Ocean. He (and his film crew) started at the Bering Strait in Alaska and then traveled down the Asian side of the Pacific, crossed over to Cape Horn, and traveled up through South and North America, returning to Alaska.

The trip covered 50,000 miles through 17 countries in ten months. Specifically, these countries were visited: USA (Alaska), Russia (Siberia), Japan, S. Korea (entry to N. Korea was denied), China, Vietnam, Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, Australia, New Zealand, Chile, Bolivia, Peru, Colombia, Mexico, USA (California and Washington), Canada (British Columbia) and back to Alaska again.

This trip, like the other ones done by Michael Palin for the BBC, was filmed for viewing as a television mini-series. (This version is available on DVD.) Afterwards, Michael Palin and Basil Pao (the stills photographer in the filming crew) created this book as an alternative record of the trip.

The book is richly illustrated with Basil Pao's beautiful photographs. Michael Palin's text is wonderful because he has a way of finding interesting places and people and of describing them with warmth and humor.

The diversity of the many countries and places is amazing. Artic wilderness, tropics, deserts, cramped cities, huge rivers, high mountains, etc., etc. There are many high points along the way, the most exciting being when Michael Palin had to lasso a camel while standing in the back of a pickup truck that was going over bumps and around bends at break-neck speed!

At the same time, Michael Palin does not shy back from visiting and describing the thought-provoking places along his journey. The Russian Gulag in Siberia, Hiroshima and the remembrance of the atomic bomb, the demilitarized zone between North and South Korea and the border between Mexico and the United States are all discussed with unusual insight.

This book easily deserves five stars. Except for the audio version, that is.

The nice thing about the audio version is that Michael Palin reads the book himself, and he does a great job as a reader. But the audio version does not include Basil Pao's beautiful photographs, of course, and worst of all, it's abridged. My dislike of abridged audio books results in me giving the audio book version only three stars.

Rennie Petersen

The book does not match up to the TV programme
The companion to the TV series of the same name does not add much that was not seen on the screen. In fact despite the many glossy photos, the atmosphere which was ably captured on television has not been transferred to print. The book takes the form of a diary of the former Python's travels around the Pacific Rim, and details his and the crew's experiences. The TV series worked well as it highlighted the cultural diversity of the area and the spectacular, but these are elements which can not be converted to book form without a far more in depth commentary which was not possible for an author who typically spent two days in each city. I would recommend buying the video rather than the book.

Going through the motions
Michael Palin's adventures without doubt have caputured people's imagination. Most of the time Michael Palin seems to be enjoying himself in hi own idiosyncraitic way.
With previous journeys Around the World In 80 Days and Pole to Pole under his belt it seems that Full Circle wasn't something that he was to keen on doing.
Starting his adventures in Alaska and making his way through the bleak Eastern Russian seaboard through into China and Vietnam.
Unfortuntely Palin's wife suffers from a brain tumour whilst he is the Phillipines he shares his worries and concerns as he makes a round trip from Northern Australia back home and bravely returns to complete the adventure.
The disappointing thing about the audiobook is you only get an abrigded version of Palin's adventures and don't match the TV series for humour or fun.