SEVEN YEARS IN TIBET

In this fascinating memoir Pigott-Smith's intonations reveal practically nothing of the German rogue who befriended the boy Dalai Lama in Tibet. His mellifluous British cadences are in the style of documentary narration -- excellent documentary narration, in fact -- not of personal confession. Anyone expecting a spiritual journey will be disappointed. The schematic abridgment tells an arresting tale of how a fugitive from the World War rose to prominence in an exotic locale and met the living incarnation of Buddha before being forced to flee. Whatever enlightenment Harrere achieved from the horse's mouth, as it were, gets short shift. Y.R. ©AudioFile, Portland, Maine [Published: MAR/APR 98]