I gave myself a gift last week, because I had done a lot of work, made sure we will be able to pay the bills for a month or two, and I felt like I deserved a prize.
Also, I was looking for a birthday present for my brother, and as it usually happens, I bought a present for myself. Some things never change.

And today the mailman delivered a copy of Robert Frankopan’s The Silk Roads, the illustrated edition.
And boy is this a wonder.

Of course I have still to read the book, but I’ve browsed through it.
The book is a retelling of Frankopan’s classic The Silk Roads, a book about the intersection of history and geography, and the way we perceive the world.

A subject I love, done in a simply wonderful way, through erudition and beautiful art.
And as I held this big hardback with its cloth cover and gold foil lettering, I thought this is the sort of book I would have loved to have as a kid.

And I did have some great illustrated books as a kid – and being artistically impaired, art always fascinated me.
Paintings, sketches, maps, tapestries.
And this book has it all, in cartloads.

It will be a great read.
I can’t wait to dive in.