Description: During the West's great transition into the post-Colonial age, the country of Rhodesia refused to succumb quietly. During this long war many heroes emerged, but none more skillful and courageous than Captain Darrell Watt of the Rhodesian SAS. It is difficult to find another soldier's story to equal Watt's in terms of time spent on the field of batt
Brief description: Hannes Wessels was born in 1956 in Salisbury, Southern Rhodesia (now Harare, Zimbabwe) but grew up in Umtali on the Mozambican border. As a boy, holidays were spent with Game Department rangers; time on safari in Mozambique with the late Wally Johnson was a big influence on him. Wessels also grew to know Robert Ruark whose love of Africa, its people, politics and the written word left a lasting impression. He saw action in the Rhodesian bush war before acquiring a law degree which he chose not to use. He has hunted big game in Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Zambia and Tanzania in a 20-year career. In 1994 he was severely gored by a wounded buffalo which almost cost him his life. While no longer directly involved in hunting, he is part-owner of a lodge and game ranch in Zambia on the Zambezi and remains keenly interested in all matters relating to African wildlife and conservation. He has published Strange Tales from Africa in the USA, a collection of anecdotes from his hunting days. He is also a syndicated writer for Outdoor Life in the United States and is currently writing a history on the Rhodesian SAS. He is married to Mandy and has two daughters, Hope and Jana, and lives in Darling in the Western Cape of South Africa.
Review Quotes: "Focusing on the story of Captain Darrell Watt of the Rhodesian SAS, A Handful Of Hard Men recounts the trials and tribulations he and his team endured while resisting the forces of Robert Mugabe and Joshua Nkomo. Their story is nothing short of mind blowing - drinking their own urine and eating used teabags to survive when resupply missions failed. It's Impossible not to marvel at the bravery and determination of these soldiers - the term 'hard men' fails to do them justice.. -"-- "History of War"