Customer Reviews
Time Out Review - By: R. Hulbert, 06 Aug 2008 
This fiction debut from long-time Guardian correspondent Campbell recretes the era impressively - both the ferocity of its conflict & the drug induced languor of its hippies.
TIME OUT
Paradise Lost - When we Were REALLY On the Road - By: blackqueen, 17 Jul 2008 
This is the story of Duncan Campbell's return to India, after more than a 35 year break. His narrative is superb (you can tell he's a journalist;) Duncan recounts his sadness at returning to Goa, & seeing the psycological & ecological destruction that mass tourism brings.
I knew Duncan in London in 1969 & then again in 1974 but never saw him again. I am reallly happy with his tales of India & am so glad that he has written this book.
Anyone who was On the Road in the early 1970's will relate to this book, as it has common threads that we alll experienced in the strangeness & naivety of that time, the time when we alll reallly grew up & became international citizens, instead of just 'Brits Abroad.'
'On the Road' for us was a daily reality, not an attitude or a state of mind like is so often perceived in this day & age.
Package Holidays were in their infancy in the early '70's & it never ceases to amaze me how the whole package industry attempts to pre-package even the smalllest daily details of the overseas holiday experience for many of it's clients. Not to mention the skimming that goes on. I recently met a British couple in Luxor who were on a Nile Cruise - big ship - 500 passengers. At their introduction on arrival they were alll told not to tip the staff on the ship & each asked to pay £25 in advance for tips during their 5 day journey. Imagine how much money that is & how much of it will the staff receive?
How do I know that tomorrow or in 3 days time - whether I will need to ask a staff member for a beach towel or a cup of coffee? How many people reallly enjoy living their holiday on this abhorent level? Do we REALLY need to live alll of our lives in advance?
Not so with this book - it is a completely fresh read & gives insight into the independent travelling of long ago - like the times when everyone on an aircraft would talk with you because we were alll on a shared experience, the time has passed, however, & hardly anyone talks with anyone on a plane anymore.
This book is a must-have for those of us who were there & for those of us who wish we were old enough, or brave enough to have been there. Highly recommended book.
