Bad Ass Librarians of Timbuktoo

So, I couldn't resist picking up this book:  The Bad-Ass Librarians of Timbuktoo by Joshua Hammer. Of course, all librarians are "bad-ass" -- just ask one what s/he's involved in and you'll know what I mean -- but these guys were heroic under extraordinary circumstances.

Here's the book blurb:  "In the 1980s, a young adventurer and collector for a government library, Abdel Kader Haidara, journeyed across the Sahara Desert and along the Niger River, tracking down and salvaging tens of thousands of ancient Islamic and secular manuscripts that had fallen into obscurity. The Bad-Ass Librarians of Timbuktu tells the incredible story of how Haidara, a mild-mannered archivist and historian from the legendary city of Timbuktu, later became one of the world’s greatest and most brazen smugglers.

In 2012, thousands of Al Qaeda militants from northwest Africa seized control of most of Mali, including Timbuktu. They imposed Sharia law, chopped off the hands of accused thieves, stoned to death unmarried couples, and threatened to destroy the great manuscripts. As the militants tightened their control over Timbuktu, Haidara organized a dangerous operation to sneak all 350,000 volumes out of the city to the safety of southern Mali."

Abdel Kader Haidara

This well written tale left me awestruck by the determination of Haidara and the many people who helped him save these priceless manuscripts, frequently putting their very lives at risk. Today, many of the salvaged volumes remain in danger from poor storage conditions, despite  monumental efforts to preserve them. 

The Timbouktou Manuscript Project web site provides additional information about this endeavor and links to a database of manuscripts as well as to some of the libraries set up to house them, including a library established by Haidara, himself, to house his own family's manuscript collection.