A Short Ride in the Jungle: It's nearly here.....

A friend recently told me that when Edward Gibbon presented King George III’s brother The Duke of Gloucester with a copy of his second volume of The Decline and Fall of The Roman Empire, the Duke replied; ‘Another demned thick book. Always scribble, scribble, scribble! Eh Mr Gibbon?’ Well, after a year of riding, scribbling and much drinking of tea, my demned thick book, A Short Ride in the Jungle: The Ho Chi Minh Trail by Motorcycle, will be coming to a bookshop near you on 7 April, 2014. Hoorah!

You can already pre-order the book on Amazon, and it will be available in all major book shops in the UK on 7 April. Details of a mini launch tour sponsored by Boxer Gin will be released shortly.

In the meantime, here’s what a few people have said about A Short Ride in the Jungle.

‘Compassionately but without sentimentality, Ants describes lands victimised in the recent past by militarism at its worst and now assaulted by consumerism at its most ruthless. She also provides many entertaining vignettes of eccentrics met en route, disasters narrowly avoided and happy encounters with kind people in remote regions of wondrous beauty.’ Dervla Murphy, legendary Irish travel writer

‘A beautifully written tale teeming with descriptive gems and wickedly funny anecdotes, all delivered in an earthy, self-effacing style that has the words spilling off the page. Utterly absorbing and impossible to put down. A traveller’s delight and classic-to-be!’
Jason Lewis, author and the first person to circumnavigate the planet by human power alone

‘Antonia Bolingbroke-Kent’s new book is a gripping travelogue which is at once both intimate and worldly-wise. Honest in her bravery (and brave in her honesty), she recounts a thrilling journey, not just through the splendour of South-East Asian landscapes, but also through the horror of Southeast Asian history – all atop the seat of the world’s most iconic motorbike.’ Charlie Carroll, author of No Fixed Abode

‘Ants has pulled off not only a demanding and original adventure but a great read too. A Short Ride in the Jungle informs and entertains in just the right measures, taking the reader on an action packed journey through Southeast Asia’s trails and jungles, as well its equally torrid history.’ Lois Pryce, Motorcycle Adventurer and Author

‘An epic book about an epic trail. Bolingbroke-Kent captures the sights, sounds and colour of the legendary Ho Chi Minh Trail in all its surviving glory. And she captures it the only realistic way – on the back on an ageing motorbike.’ Kit Gillet, Freelance Journalist and Videographer