Originally published in 1990, this book tells of Thomas Bass's two-year journey across Africa, from Timbuktu to the Zambezi River, during which he spent most of his time in the company of scientists. In the course of his travels, he met a Cambridge-educated Kenyan-biologist trying to link the African spirit world with Western scientific methods, a Nigerian virologist fighting a losing battle to vaccinate the children of his country, and many others. In this book Bass' challenging tales dispel the many stereotypes about Africa.