Three Letters from the Andes

Book excerpt: These three letters were written by Patrick Leigh Fermor to his wife in 1971, when he was journeying through Peru with a group of friends. A few minor Andean peaks were climbed -- though not by the author -- and a number of the more popular sights were visited briefly. Yet for anyone looking for the key to the author's fascination as a travel writer, the clues are all here. His characteristic sense of wonder, his scholarship, which makes brief but effective appearances, and his professionalism, in foregoing pleasure jaunts so that he could write up his impressions while they were still fresh.