Out of Africa

Karen Blixen

Out of Africa is a memoir that takes you through roughly two decades of the protagonist's life spent in a new land, building a home away from home. We cover Blixen's journey, from her arrival in British East Africa (present day Kenya) to her departure later on.

In her time there, we encounter her engagement with the prospect of a new life, the people at the coffee plantation, the visitors that bring their stories and the human-animal relationships that are harboured in the wilderness – connecting her to nature. We meet Kamante, who makes an effort to learn European cooking; Kinanjui, a Kikuyu community leader who is well respected; Farah, who becomes a close confidant; and Denys Finch Hatton, who showcases Blixen's deepest companionship and becomes a symbol of her appreciation of Africa.

At once an autobiography and a memoir, the book also serves as a chronicle of British colonial history in its diminishing decades. Respect for community and culture, the exploration of local traditions and customs and the fierce independence that Blixen embodies form the core of the narrative. One understands the transformative power of community and land and how they can change a person indefinitely.