The River Of Doubt: Into the Unknown Amazon
By (Author) Candice Millard
Little, Brown & Company
Little, Brown & Company
8th February 2007
United States
General
Non Fiction
History of the Americas
981.105
Paperback
448
Width 153mm, Height 234mm, Spine 26mm
724g
In 1912, shortly after losing his bid to spend a third term as American President to Woodrow Wilson, Theodore Roosevelt with his son Kermit, a Brazilian guide and a band of camaradas set off deep into the Amazon jungle and a very uncertain fate. Although Roosevelt did eventually return from THE RIVER OF DOUBT, he and his companions faced treacherous cataracts as well as the dangerous indigenous population of the Amazon. He became severely ill on the journey, nearly dying in the jungle from a blood infection and malaria. A mere five years later Roosevelt did die of related issues. One extraordinary factor is the resistance and disbelief the well-respected Roosevelt faced upon what should have been a triumphant return. The region was considered so dangerous that most reputable exploration societies considered Roosevelt's discoveries improbable. The Amazon emerges as a world unconstrained by the rules of civilisation, a place where an ex-president becomes just another creature struggling to survive.
'A Terrific Story' Nicholas Shakespeare, DAILY TELEGRAPH 'Gripping' SUNDAY TELEGRAPH 'Millard has done a superb job. This armchair traveller was absolutely gripped - but very glad to stay put' HERALD 'Candice Millard's prose flows along as swiftly as the river' LITERARY REVIEW
Candice Millard is a staff writer for National Geographic, the organisation with which Roosevelt shared his discoveries.