In this book he described his experiences and observations during three years (1843–1846) of travelling in Abyssinia, the modern territories of Eritrea and Ethiopia.

[1][2]) and Charlotte Mary, daughter of George Smith, of Foelalt, Cardiganshire, Wales, and Edwalton, Nottinghamshire[3] who was from the rising commercial class.

[4] Six months later he left Ruddington to attend Uppingham School (at the time a grammar school) in Rutland; after a short time, his mother remarried, and Parkyns was sent to be educated at Woolwich, then admitted a pensioner (a student without a scholarship, who pays for his tuition and meals) at Trinity College, Cambridge.

On Syra, the main island of the Cyclades, he met Richard Monckton Milnes, and they went on together to Istanbul, then to Egypt where they arrived in December 1842.

He was hoping to offer the Victorian reader "a tolerably accurate idea of Abyssinia and Abyssinians"[7] The book consists of 33 chapters which are divided in two volumes.

The first volume describes the journey from the coast to the capital and Parkyns's visit to the northern provinces, encounters with others, learning local languages and gaining new experiences.

The second volume describes Abyssinian manners and customs, natural history and Parkyns' route from Adoua to Abou Kharraz on the Blue Nile.

He believed that by identifying himself with the natives, he could attain the best results, thus, as he left Massawa, he decided that he would not try to preserve any European comforts.

In the book he also described his experiences of working as a silversmith for a year in Abyssinia, and offered detailed descriptions of, amongst other things, Abyssinian manners and customs, habits, personal appearance, dress, births and marriages, deaths and funerals, religion, superstitions.

He was considered to be "an excellent linguist", as owing to his travels he spoke "most of the lesser known dialects of the Nile basin and of Western Asia.