Michael Asher (explorer)
Encyclopedia
Michael Asher is an author, historian, deep ecologist
, and notable desert
explorer
who has covered more than 30,000 miles on foot and camel. He spent three years living with a traditional nomad
ic tribe in the Sudan
.
, in 1953, and attended Stamford School
. At 18 he enlisted in the 2nd Battalion
the Parachute Regiment, and saw active service in Northern Ireland during the The Troubles
there in the 1970s.
He studied English at the University of Leeds
, at the same time serving in B Squadron, 23rd SAS Regiment. He also studied at Carnegie College, Leeds, where he qualified as a teacher of Physical Education and English.
In 1978-9 he worked for the RUC Special Patrol Group anti-terrorist patrols, but left after less than a year. He took a job as a volunteer English teacher in the Sudan in 1979.
The author of twenty published books, Asher has lived in Africa for much of his life, and speaks Arabic and Swahili. He is married to Arabist and photographer Mariantonietta Peru, with whom he has a son and a daughter, Burton and Jade. He currently lives in Nairobi, Kenya.
, Sudan, on the edge of the Sahara desert,where camel herds still passed up the caravan route known as the Darb el-Arba'in
, the Forty Days Road. He later bought a camel and rode alone to Darfur, from where he joined a herd travelling along this route – a total distance of 1,500 miles (2,400 km)
in 1980, Asher transferred to Gineina in western Darfur
, where he taught English. He became interested in the life of pastoral nomads, travelled alone by camel through Darfur and was arrested by border police. He returned to Gineina where he worked for two years, learning Arabic and acquiring his own camels. He began work on his first book, In Search of the Forty Days Road.
In 1982, Asher gave up teaching and went to Kordofan, to live with the Kababish – a nomad tribe - as one of them. He claimed that, at this time, elements of the tribe were
almost entirely isolated from the outside world. He remained with them over much of the next three years, herding camels, accompanying families on their annual migrations, travelling with a salt-caravan to the oasis
of El-Atrun, and accompanying camel herds to Egypt
.
In 1985, Asher was asked by UNICEF Sudan to organise a camel caravan in the Red Sea Hills to take aid to Beja nomads cut off by the current drought and famine. On this expedition Asher met UNICEF publicity officer Mariantonietta Peru, an Italian: they married in 1986. A graduate of the University of Rome, Peru was a fluent Arabic speaker who had studied at the White Fathers institute, and at Ain Shams University in Cairo: she was also a UNICEF-trained photograher.
Following their marriage in London, in 1986, Asher and Peru arrived in Nouakchott Mauretania
, to make the first west-east crossing of the Sahara desert by camel and on foot. After three months in the oasis of Chinguetti
training with camels they set out in August 1986. Passing through Mauretania
, Mali, Niger
, Chad, and the Sudan
, they finally arrived at the Nile at Abu Simbel
in southern Egypt in May 1987, having made a journey of nine months and 4500 miles by camel, the first recorded crossing of the Sahara from west to east by non-mechanical means. The feat was lauded by a report in Reuters
as 'the last great journey man had still to make.'
From 1989–90 Asher was employed by UNICEF as Project Officer for the Joint UNICEF/WHO Nutrition Support Project (JNSP), working among the Beja nomads of the Red Sea Hills, in the eastern Sudan.
In 1991 Asher crossed the Western Desert of Egypt, by camel, from Mersa Matruh on the Mediterranean coast, to Aswan
in southern Egypt. He travelled with a single Bedouin companion: for almost a month the two travellers did not see another human being, and two of Asher's five camels died on the way. Asher commented that this journey was '"as near as one could get to travelling on another planet'.
In 2001, while living for two years in Morocco, Asher started Lost Oasis Expeditions, organising small-group treks by camel, mainly working with the British travel company, Exodus. Having moved back to Nairobi, he extended these treks to the Bayuda Desert of the Sudan in 2004, becoming the first operator of camel expeditions in that country.
In 2008, Asher returned to Darfur
with team from Tufts University
, on a mission sponsored by UNEP, to assess the impact of the civil war there on the livelihoods of the Northern Rizaygat
camel herders - the so-called 'Jinjaweed'.
Asher has made expeditions in many other desert areas, including the Cholistan and Thar Deserts, Western Australia, Sinai, Syria, Iraq, Libya, Algeria, Oman, Yemen, Saudi-Arabia, Jibuti, Ethiopia, and Morocco, and has also travelled on foot in Tibet, and by canoe in Papua New Guinea.
's account of his travels among the Bedouin
of Arabia's Empty Quarter
in the 1940s. Though Asher later knew Thesiger and wrote a biography of him, (Thesiger
) he claimed that there was an ambivalence in the explorer's attitude to the industrial world: he despised machines and mass culture, yet enjoyed his privileged place in the establishment. Asher has claimed that Thesiger was never able to reconcile this paradox, or to admit that the destruction of pre-industrial cultures emanated from the very element of society of which he was proud to be part.
Like Thesiger, Asher admired and even idealized the nomads: he claimed that while living with them he wanted simply to become one of them, but realized that this was ultimately impossible, as their world too was on the brink of change. In Thesiger
and Last of the Bedu, Asher rejected what he claimed was Thesiger's 'paternalism', citing the questionable spectre of 'a rich man telling poor men that they are better off poor.' Asher declared that it was for the nomads themselves to decide their own future.
Asher later revoked this attitude entirely: as a member of the Deep Ecology Movement he came to believe that industrial society destroys the environment and livelihoods of indigenous peoples and forces them into civilization, where, having been deprived of their sustainable way of life, they become dependent on an unsustainable system. He claims that this system will ultimately disintegrate as a result of overshooting the earth's carrying capacity, and that the ecological crisis has already gone beyond tipping point.
Asher maintains that the key to understanding the relationship between non-industrial and industrial peoples is the concept of 'poverty'. Though the nomads lacked material goods, he has said, they were not actually 'poor' - they had all they needed for a sustainable life. Poverty, he says, is a product of civilization, in which some groups have more wealth than others, maintaining their access to benefits by the threat of force.
Asher has suggested that pastoral nomadism may be increasing in some places, as a result of peak oil and record food prices, and that, as it makes sustainable use of marginal land, pastoralism may be one of the best ways of adapting to the ecological crisis.
, celebrated in the popular books of two of its members, under the pseudonyms Andy McNab
and Chris Ryan
. Following in the patrol's footsteps in the Iraqi desert, Asher interviewed many eye-witnesses in Arabic, and was able to cast doubt on the authors' sensationalised accounts.
The results were published in his book The Real Bravo Two Zero, and in the Channel 4 TV documentary of the same name, and serialised for 4 days in the Daily Mail
. Asher's book reached No.5 in the Sunday Times best-seller chart, and raised a storm of controversy. Asher claimed that his main achievement, though, was in exonerating Sgt. Vince Phillips, who died on the mission, and who had been blamed for its failure. Phillips' family received an official letter of exoneration from the Ministry of Defence
as a result of Asher's work.
Following the success of this book, Asher was commissioned to write a number of other non-fiction works combining military history with North Africa, the Middle East, and the desert environment. These include Get Rommel, Sands of Death, The Regiment, and Khartoum, the Ultimate Imperial Adventure. Asher has also written a biography of T.E. Lawrence - Lawrence - the Uncrowned King of Arabia, and is currently working on a military adventure series entitled Death or Glory, set in North Africa in WW2.
Various of Asher's books are published in 12 languages, including French, Italian, German,Dutch, Swedish, Spanish, Polish, Chinese, Arabic, Hungarian, Czech and Korean.
Asher has contributed frequently to leading newspapers including The Guardian
, The Times
, The Telegraph
, The Independent
, The Daily Mail, The Washington Post
, The Observer
, The Sunday Times
, The Sunday Telegraph, The Scotsman
, Scotland on Sunday
and magazines including Reader's Digest
, The Geographical Magazine, Hello
, Conde Nast Traveler
, and many others.
Deep ecology
Deep ecology is a contemporary ecological philosophy that recognizes an inherent worth of all living beings, regardless of their instrumental utility to human needs. The philosophy emphasizes the interdependence of organisms within ecosystems and that of ecosystems with each other within the...
, and notable desert
Desert
A desert is a landscape or region that receives an extremely low amount of precipitation, less than enough to support growth of most plants. Most deserts have an average annual precipitation of less than...
explorer
Exploration
Exploration is the act of searching or traveling around a terrain for the purpose of discovery of resources or information. Exploration occurs in all non-sessile animal species, including humans...
who has covered more than 30,000 miles on foot and camel. He spent three years living with a traditional nomad
Nomad
Nomadic people , commonly known as itinerants in modern-day contexts, are communities of people who move from one place to another, rather than settling permanently in one location. There are an estimated 30-40 million nomads in the world. Many cultures have traditionally been nomadic, but...
ic tribe in the Sudan
Sudan
Sudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
.
Biography
Michael Asher was born in Stamford, LincolnshireStamford, Lincolnshire
Stamford is a town and civil parish within the South Kesteven district of the county of Lincolnshire, England. It is approximately to the north of London, on the east side of the A1 road to York and Edinburgh and on the River Welland...
, in 1953, and attended Stamford School
Stamford School
Stamford School is an English independent school situated in the market town of Stamford, Lincolnshire, England. It has been a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference since 1920.-History:...
. At 18 he enlisted in the 2nd Battalion
2nd Battalion, The Parachute Regiment
The Second Battalion, The Parachute Regiment is a battalion-sized formation of the British Army's Parachute Regiment and subordinate unit within 16th Air Assault Brigade whose Commanding Officer was Lieutenant Colonel Joseph O'Sullivan....
the Parachute Regiment, and saw active service in Northern Ireland during the The Troubles
The Troubles
The Troubles was a period of ethno-political conflict in Northern Ireland which spilled over at various times into England, the Republic of Ireland, and mainland Europe. The duration of the Troubles is conventionally dated from the late 1960s and considered by many to have ended with the Belfast...
there in the 1970s.
He studied English at the University of Leeds
University of Leeds
The University of Leeds is a British Redbrick university located in the city of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England...
, at the same time serving in B Squadron, 23rd SAS Regiment. He also studied at Carnegie College, Leeds, where he qualified as a teacher of Physical Education and English.
In 1978-9 he worked for the RUC Special Patrol Group anti-terrorist patrols, but left after less than a year. He took a job as a volunteer English teacher in the Sudan in 1979.
The author of twenty published books, Asher has lived in Africa for much of his life, and speaks Arabic and Swahili. He is married to Arabist and photographer Mariantonietta Peru, with whom he has a son and a daughter, Burton and Jade. He currently lives in Nairobi, Kenya.
Travels
In 1979, Asher taught English in DongolaDongola
Dongola , also spelled Dunqulah, and formerly known as Al 'Urdi, is the capital of the state of Northern in Sudan, on the banks of the Nile. It should not be confused with Old Dongola, an ancient city located 80 km upstream on the opposite bank....
, Sudan, on the edge of the Sahara desert,where camel herds still passed up the caravan route known as the Darb el-Arba'in
Kharga Oasis
El-Kharga , also known as Al-Kharijah, is the southernmost of Egypt's five western oases. It is located in the Libyan Desert, about 200 km to the west of the Nile valley, and is some 150 km long. It is located in and is the capital of New Valley Governorate...
, the Forty Days Road. He later bought a camel and rode alone to Darfur, from where he joined a herd travelling along this route – a total distance of 1,500 miles (2,400 km)
in 1980, Asher transferred to Gineina in western Darfur
Darfur
Darfur is a region in western Sudan. An independent sultanate for several hundred years, it was incorporated into Sudan by Anglo-Egyptian forces in 1916. The region is divided into three federal states: West Darfur, South Darfur, and North Darfur...
, where he taught English. He became interested in the life of pastoral nomads, travelled alone by camel through Darfur and was arrested by border police. He returned to Gineina where he worked for two years, learning Arabic and acquiring his own camels. He began work on his first book, In Search of the Forty Days Road.
In 1982, Asher gave up teaching and went to Kordofan, to live with the Kababish – a nomad tribe - as one of them. He claimed that, at this time, elements of the tribe were
almost entirely isolated from the outside world. He remained with them over much of the next three years, herding camels, accompanying families on their annual migrations, travelling with a salt-caravan to the oasis
Oasis
In geography, an oasis or cienega is an isolated area of vegetation in a desert, typically surrounding a spring or similar water source...
of El-Atrun, and accompanying camel herds to Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
.
In 1985, Asher was asked by UNICEF Sudan to organise a camel caravan in the Red Sea Hills to take aid to Beja nomads cut off by the current drought and famine. On this expedition Asher met UNICEF publicity officer Mariantonietta Peru, an Italian: they married in 1986. A graduate of the University of Rome, Peru was a fluent Arabic speaker who had studied at the White Fathers institute, and at Ain Shams University in Cairo: she was also a UNICEF-trained photograher.
Following their marriage in London, in 1986, Asher and Peru arrived in Nouakchott Mauretania
Mauretania
Mauretania is a part of the historical Ancient Libyan land in North Africa. It corresponds to present day Morocco and a part of western Algeria...
, to make the first west-east crossing of the Sahara desert by camel and on foot. After three months in the oasis of Chinguetti
Chinguetti
Chinguetti is a ksar or medieval trading centre in northern Mauritania, lying on the Adrar Plateau east of Atar.Founded in the 13th century, as the center of several trans-Saharan trade routes, this tiny city continues to attract a handful of visitors who admire its spare architecture, exotic...
training with camels they set out in August 1986. Passing through Mauretania
Mauretania
Mauretania is a part of the historical Ancient Libyan land in North Africa. It corresponds to present day Morocco and a part of western Algeria...
, Mali, Niger
Niger
Niger , officially named the Republic of Niger, is a landlocked country in Western Africa, named after the Niger River. It borders Nigeria and Benin to the south, Burkina Faso and Mali to the west, Algeria and Libya to the north and Chad to the east...
, Chad, and the Sudan
Sudan
Sudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
, they finally arrived at the Nile at Abu Simbel
Abu Simbel
Abu Simbel temples refers to two massive rock temples in Abu Simbel in Nubia, southern Egypt on the western bank of Lake Nasser about 230 km southwest of Aswan...
in southern Egypt in May 1987, having made a journey of nine months and 4500 miles by camel, the first recorded crossing of the Sahara from west to east by non-mechanical means. The feat was lauded by a report in Reuters
Reuters
Reuters is a news agency headquartered in New York City. Until 2008 the Reuters news agency formed part of a British independent company, Reuters Group plc, which was also a provider of financial market data...
as 'the last great journey man had still to make.'
From 1989–90 Asher was employed by UNICEF as Project Officer for the Joint UNICEF/WHO Nutrition Support Project (JNSP), working among the Beja nomads of the Red Sea Hills, in the eastern Sudan.
In 1991 Asher crossed the Western Desert of Egypt, by camel, from Mersa Matruh on the Mediterranean coast, to Aswan
Aswan
Aswan , formerly spelled Assuan, is a city in the south of Egypt, the capital of the Aswan Governorate.It stands on the east bank of the Nile at the first cataract and is a busy market and tourist centre...
in southern Egypt. He travelled with a single Bedouin companion: for almost a month the two travellers did not see another human being, and two of Asher's five camels died on the way. Asher commented that this journey was '"as near as one could get to travelling on another planet'.
In 2001, while living for two years in Morocco, Asher started Lost Oasis Expeditions, organising small-group treks by camel, mainly working with the British travel company, Exodus. Having moved back to Nairobi, he extended these treks to the Bayuda Desert of the Sudan in 2004, becoming the first operator of camel expeditions in that country.
In 2008, Asher returned to Darfur
Darfur
Darfur is a region in western Sudan. An independent sultanate for several hundred years, it was incorporated into Sudan by Anglo-Egyptian forces in 1916. The region is divided into three federal states: West Darfur, South Darfur, and North Darfur...
with team from Tufts University
Tufts University
Tufts University is a private research university located in Medford/Somerville, near Boston, Massachusetts. It is organized into ten schools, including two undergraduate programs and eight graduate divisions, on four campuses in Massachusetts and on the eastern border of France...
, on a mission sponsored by UNEP, to assess the impact of the civil war there on the livelihoods of the Northern Rizaygat
Rizeigat
The Rizeigat, or Rizigat, or Rezeigat are a Muslim and Arabic tribe of the nomadic Bedouin Baggara people in Sudan's Darfur region. The Rizeigat belong to the greater Baggara Arabs fraternity of Darfur and Kordofan and speak Sudanese Arabic...
camel herders - the so-called 'Jinjaweed'.
Asher has made expeditions in many other desert areas, including the Cholistan and Thar Deserts, Western Australia, Sinai, Syria, Iraq, Libya, Algeria, Oman, Yemen, Saudi-Arabia, Jibuti, Ethiopia, and Morocco, and has also travelled on foot in Tibet, and by canoe in Papua New Guinea.
Themes
Asher's early writings were influenced by Arabian Sands , explorer Wilfred ThesigerWilfred Thesiger
Sir Wilfred Patrick Thesiger, CBE, DSO, FRAS, FRGS was a British explorer and travel writer born in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia.-Family:...
's account of his travels among the Bedouin
Bedouin
The Bedouin are a part of a predominantly desert-dwelling Arab ethnic group traditionally divided into tribes or clans, known in Arabic as ..-Etymology:...
of Arabia's Empty Quarter
Empty Quarter
The Rub' al Khali or Empty Quarter is one of the largest sand deserts in the world, encompassing most of the southern third of the Arabian Peninsula, including most of Saudi Arabia and areas of Oman, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. The desert covers some The Rub' al Khali or Empty Quarter...
in the 1940s. Though Asher later knew Thesiger and wrote a biography of him, (Thesiger
Thesiger
-People:* Alfred Henry Thesiger , a British jurist* Ernest Thesiger , an English stage and film actor* Eric Thesiger , a British soldier and Page of Honour to Queen Victoria...
) he claimed that there was an ambivalence in the explorer's attitude to the industrial world: he despised machines and mass culture, yet enjoyed his privileged place in the establishment. Asher has claimed that Thesiger was never able to reconcile this paradox, or to admit that the destruction of pre-industrial cultures emanated from the very element of society of which he was proud to be part.
Like Thesiger, Asher admired and even idealized the nomads: he claimed that while living with them he wanted simply to become one of them, but realized that this was ultimately impossible, as their world too was on the brink of change. In Thesiger
Thesiger
-People:* Alfred Henry Thesiger , a British jurist* Ernest Thesiger , an English stage and film actor* Eric Thesiger , a British soldier and Page of Honour to Queen Victoria...
and Last of the Bedu, Asher rejected what he claimed was Thesiger's 'paternalism', citing the questionable spectre of 'a rich man telling poor men that they are better off poor.' Asher declared that it was for the nomads themselves to decide their own future.
Asher later revoked this attitude entirely: as a member of the Deep Ecology Movement he came to believe that industrial society destroys the environment and livelihoods of indigenous peoples and forces them into civilization, where, having been deprived of their sustainable way of life, they become dependent on an unsustainable system. He claims that this system will ultimately disintegrate as a result of overshooting the earth's carrying capacity, and that the ecological crisis has already gone beyond tipping point.
Asher maintains that the key to understanding the relationship between non-industrial and industrial peoples is the concept of 'poverty'. Though the nomads lacked material goods, he has said, they were not actually 'poor' - they had all they needed for a sustainable life. Poverty, he says, is a product of civilization, in which some groups have more wealth than others, maintaining their access to benefits by the threat of force.
Asher has suggested that pastoral nomadism may be increasing in some places, as a result of peak oil and record food prices, and that, as it makes sustainable use of marginal land, pastoralism may be one of the best ways of adapting to the ecological crisis.
Military History
In 2000, Asher was commissioned to go to Iraq with a film crew to investigate the story of the ill-fated SAS patrol, Bravo Two ZeroBravo Two Zero
Bravo Two Zero was the call sign of an eight-man British Army SAS patrol, deployed into Iraq during the First Gulf War in January 1991. According to one patrol member's account, the patrol were given the task of "gathering intelligence;.....
, celebrated in the popular books of two of its members, under the pseudonyms Andy McNab
Andy McNab
Sergeant ‘Andy McNab’ DCM MM is the pseudonym of an English novelist and former SAS operative and soldier.McNab came into public prominence in 1993, when he published his account of the failed Special Air Service patrol, Bravo Two Zero for which he was awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal in...
and Chris Ryan
Chris Ryan
Sergeant ‘Chris Ryan’ MM is the pseudonym of a former British Special Forces operative and soldier turned novelist...
. Following in the patrol's footsteps in the Iraqi desert, Asher interviewed many eye-witnesses in Arabic, and was able to cast doubt on the authors' sensationalised accounts.
The results were published in his book The Real Bravo Two Zero, and in the Channel 4 TV documentary of the same name, and serialised for 4 days in the Daily Mail
Daily Mail
The Daily Mail is a British daily middle-market tabloid newspaper owned by the Daily Mail and General Trust. First published in 1896 by Lord Northcliffe, it is the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling daily newspaper after The Sun. Its sister paper The Mail on Sunday was launched in 1982...
. Asher's book reached No.5 in the Sunday Times best-seller chart, and raised a storm of controversy. Asher claimed that his main achievement, though, was in exonerating Sgt. Vince Phillips, who died on the mission, and who had been blamed for its failure. Phillips' family received an official letter of exoneration from the Ministry of Defence
Ministry of Defence
In states where the government is divided into ministries, the Ministry of Defence may refer to that part of the government responsible for matters of defence, usually including all branches of the military and is usually controlled by a Defence minister or minister of defence.-List of Defence...
as a result of Asher's work.
Following the success of this book, Asher was commissioned to write a number of other non-fiction works combining military history with North Africa, the Middle East, and the desert environment. These include Get Rommel, Sands of Death, The Regiment, and Khartoum, the Ultimate Imperial Adventure. Asher has also written a biography of T.E. Lawrence - Lawrence - the Uncrowned King of Arabia, and is currently working on a military adventure series entitled Death or Glory, set in North Africa in WW2.
Awards and Acclaim
- 1996 - Elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature
- 1994 - Awarded the Ness Award of the Royal Geographical SocietyRoyal Geographical SocietyThe Royal Geographical Society is a British learned society founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical sciences...
, for desert exploration and work with camels - 1997 - Awarded the Mungo Park MedalMungo Park MedalThe Mungo Park Medal is awarded by the Royal Scottish Geographical Society in recognition of outstanding contributions to geographical knowledge through exploration and/or research, and/or work of a practical nature of benefit to humanity in potentially hazardous physical and/or social...
of the Royal Scottish Geographical SocietyRoyal Scottish Geographical SocietyThe Royal Scottish Geographical Society is a learned society founded in 1884 and based in Perth. The Society has a membership of 2500 and aims to advance the science of geography worldwide by supporting education, research, expeditions, through its journal , its newsletter and other publications...
for desert exploration on foot and with camels - 2008, US author and historian Dean King, author of Skeletons on the ZaharaSkeletons on the ZaharaSkeletons on the Zahara: A True Story of Survival is a 2004 nonfiction book written by maritime historian Dean King. Based directly on Captain James Riley's memoir Sufferings in Africa, Amazon.com listed Skeletons on the Zahara as their #6 Best History Book of 2004...
and UnboundUnbound (book)Unbound: A True Story of War, Love, and Survival is a narrative nonfiction book by author Dean King. It follows the stories of the 30 women who undertook the Long March as part of the Chinese Red Army in 1934. While only 10,000 of the original 86,000 soldiers survived the 4,000 mile trek, all 30...
, wrote of Asher, "Having walked the entire breadth of the Sahara himself & examined the lives of Wilfred Thesiger and T.E. Lawrence, 2 of the greatest desert explorers of the past century, Asher understands this passion, this place and these people as well as any Westerner alive."
Novels
- The Eye of Ra (1999)
- Firebird (2000)
- Rare Earth (2002)
- Sandstorm (2003)
- Death or Glory 1: The Last Commando (2009)
- Death or Glory 2: The Flaming Sword (2010)
- Death or Glory 3: Highroad to Hell (TBD)
Non-fiction
- In Search of the Forty Days Road: Adventures with the Nomads of the Desert (1984)
- A Desert Dies (1986)
- Impossible Journey – Two Against the Sahara (1988)
- Shoot to Kill: A Soldier's Journey Through Violence (1990)
- Thesiger (1994)
- The Last of the Bedu: In Search of the Myth (1996)
- Lawrence: The Uncrowned King of Arabia (1998)
- The Real Bravo Two ZeroBravo Two ZeroBravo Two Zero was the call sign of an eight-man British Army SAS patrol, deployed into Iraq during the First Gulf War in January 1991. According to one patrol member's account, the patrol were given the task of "gathering intelligence;.....
: The Truth Behind Bravo Two Zero (2002) - Get Rommel: The British Plot to Kill Hitler's Greatest General (2004)
- Khartoum: The Ultimate Imperial Adventure (2005)
- Sands of Death: An Epic Tale of Massacre and Survival in the Sahara (2007)
- The Regiment: The Real Story of the SAS (2007)
- Sahara (with Kazoyoshi Nomachi) (1996)
- Phoenix Rising – The UAE Past, Present & Future (with Werner Forman) (1996)
Various of Asher's books are published in 12 languages, including French, Italian, German,Dutch, Swedish, Spanish, Polish, Chinese, Arabic, Hungarian, Czech and Korean.
Asher has contributed frequently to leading newspapers including The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
, The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
, The Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
, The Independent
The Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
, The Daily Mail, The Washington Post
The Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
, The Observer
The Observer
The Observer is a British newspaper, published on Sundays. In the same place on the political spectrum as its daily sister paper The Guardian, which acquired it in 1993, it takes a liberal or social democratic line on most issues. It is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper.-Origins:The first issue,...
, The Sunday Times
The Sunday Times
The Sunday Times is a British Sunday newspaper.The Sunday Times may also refer to:*The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times...
, The Sunday Telegraph, The Scotsman
The Scotsman
The Scotsman is a British newspaper, published in Edinburgh.As of August 2011 it had an audited circulation of 38,423, down from about 100,000 in the 1980s....
, Scotland on Sunday
Scotland on Sunday
Scotland on Sunday is a Scottish Sunday newspaper, published in Edinburgh by The Scotsman Publications Ltd and consequently assuming the role of Sunday sister to its daily stablemate The Scotsman...
and magazines including Reader's Digest
Reader's Digest
Reader's Digest is a general interest family magazine, published ten times annually. Formerly based in Chappaqua, New York, its headquarters is now in New York City. It was founded in 1922, by DeWitt Wallace and Lila Bell Wallace...
, The Geographical Magazine, Hello
Hello
Hello is a salutation or greeting in the English language. It is attested in writing as early as the 1830s.-First use:Hello, with that spelling, was used in publications as early as 1833. These include an 1833 American book called The Sketches and Eccentricities of Col...
, Conde Nast Traveler
Condé Nast Traveler
Condé Nast Traveler is a US magazine published by Condé Nast. It has its origins in a mailing sent out by the Diners Club club beginning in 1953, listing locations that would take the card. It began taking advertising in 1955. In order to attract more advertisers, it became a full-fledged magazine,...
, and many others.
TV documentaries
- In Search of Lawrence
- Death, Deceit and the Nile'
- The Real Bravo Two Zero
- Stalking Hitler's Generals
- Survivors
- Paradise is Burning