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Jungleland: A Mysterious Lost City and a True Story of Deadly Adventure – A WWII Spy's Perilous Search for Ciudad Blanca in Honduras's Wilderness
Armed with the personal notebooks of the mysterious World War II spy Theodore Morde, an adventurer who attempted to assassinate Adolf Hitler, journalist Christopher S. Stewart sets out in search of the lost White City, buried somewhere deep in the Mosquito Coast of Honduras. Stewart pieces together the whirlwind life and peculiar death of Morde, who sailed around the world five times before turning thirty, as he tries to verify Morde's claim of having discovered the "Lost City of the Monkey God."
In the tradition of The Lost City of Z and Lost in Shangri-La, Jungleland is in part a classic tale of man versus wild as well as a story of young fatherhood and a meditation on the timeless call of adventure—an epic search for answers in a place where nothing is guaranteed, least of all survival.
301 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 8, 2013
172 people are currently reading
2683 people want to read
About the author
Christopher S. Stewart
5 books22 followersChristopher S. Stewart is an investigative reporter at the Wall Street Journal, where he won the Pulitzer Prize with several colleagues in 2015.
Stewart is the author of Hunting the Tiger, a book about Zeljko Arkan Raznatovic, the Serbian mobster and warlord at the center of the 1990s Balkan wars. Jungleland is his second book.
His work has also appeared in GQ, Harper's, the New York Times Magazine, New York, Paris Review, Wired, and other publications.
Earlier, he served as deputy editor at the New York Observer and is a former contributing editor at Conde Nast Portfolio, where, among other things, he wrote about the Unification Church’s gun business and corruption in Iraq.
He lives with his family in New York.
Stewart is the author of Hunting the Tiger, a book about Zeljko Arkan Raznatovic, the Serbian mobster and warlord at the center of the 1990s Balkan wars. Jungleland is his second book.
His work has also appeared in GQ, Harper's, the New York Times Magazine, New York, Paris Review, Wired, and other publications.
Earlier, he served as deputy editor at the New York Observer and is a former contributing editor at Conde Nast Portfolio, where, among other things, he wrote about the Unification Church’s gun business and corruption in Iraq.
He lives with his family in New York.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 232 reviews
June 15, 2023
Honduras and the fabled city of Ciudad Blanca: the White City. Supposedly discovered by American explored Theodore Morde in 1939, the author decides to make an effort to rediscover it. Published 2013.
The book runs the dual storylines of Morde and the author who follow similar routes through the jungle of La Mosquitia in Honduras seeking the lost city. All the background or Morde before his jungle exploration and his work as a spy and subsequent death before he was able to return to excavate his discovery is covered, as well as the ups and downs of the authors own travel.For Stewart's part, it appears as much about his struggle to settle down in family life than exactly where he is heading.
One conjures up explorers of the Indiana Jones ilk, but the reality is far less glamorous. Hunger, mud, blisters, insects, snakes, long term lack of sleep... Not the same level of glamour. Stewart is in reality not an explorer, not even an outdoorsman. However he pushes himself beyond the reasonable in his jungle efforts, but must remain eternally grateful for the accompaniment of Chris Begley, an archeologist with a lot of actual experience! But really, who doesn't enjoy a jungle exploration book looking for lost cities? The author could have done with toning back the whining a bit - as others have said if he bothered breaking in his boots he would have avoided a lot of the issues.
Comparisons with David Grann's Lost City of Z (which I have read) and Douglas Preston's Lost City of the Monkey God (which I have not read) are both relevant - especially Preston's as this is also based on Morde's discovery.
It was a fairly quick read - short chapters alternating between Morde and the author, no element was dwelled on for too long. Stewart has picked up on a list of interesting characters in his own journey to break up the inevitable repetition of walking, insects and mud - from the many native guides to expat survivalists and recluses, gold hunters and logging pirates. The La Mosquitia jungle appears to be a good place to hide out!
Ultimately there are discoveries, and possible resolutions to some of Morde's mysteries he left, but individual readers would have to assess whether they were satisfied with the outcomes. I would probably need to read Preston's book before making a final judgement.
Like Grann's book, I place this at 3.5 stars, rounding down.
The book runs the dual storylines of Morde and the author who follow similar routes through the jungle of La Mosquitia in Honduras seeking the lost city. All the background or Morde before his jungle exploration and his work as a spy and subsequent death before he was able to return to excavate his discovery is covered, as well as the ups and downs of the authors own travel.For Stewart's part, it appears as much about his struggle to settle down in family life than exactly where he is heading.
One conjures up explorers of the Indiana Jones ilk, but the reality is far less glamorous. Hunger, mud, blisters, insects, snakes, long term lack of sleep... Not the same level of glamour. Stewart is in reality not an explorer, not even an outdoorsman. However he pushes himself beyond the reasonable in his jungle efforts, but must remain eternally grateful for the accompaniment of Chris Begley, an archeologist with a lot of actual experience! But really, who doesn't enjoy a jungle exploration book looking for lost cities? The author could have done with toning back the whining a bit - as others have said if he bothered breaking in his boots he would have avoided a lot of the issues.
Comparisons with David Grann's Lost City of Z (which I have read) and Douglas Preston's Lost City of the Monkey God (which I have not read) are both relevant - especially Preston's as this is also based on Morde's discovery.
It was a fairly quick read - short chapters alternating between Morde and the author, no element was dwelled on for too long. Stewart has picked up on a list of interesting characters in his own journey to break up the inevitable repetition of walking, insects and mud - from the many native guides to expat survivalists and recluses, gold hunters and logging pirates. The La Mosquitia jungle appears to be a good place to hide out!
Ultimately there are discoveries, and possible resolutions to some of Morde's mysteries he left, but individual readers would have to assess whether they were satisfied with the outcomes. I would probably need to read Preston's book before making a final judgement.
Like Grann's book, I place this at 3.5 stars, rounding down.
January 12, 2014
In reading Jungleland, I was reminded of the tale of the blind men who all describe an entirely different thing based on touching various parts of an elephant. There are significant elements there, and one can appreciate each, and somehow still not get a sense of the whole.
Jungleland is the tale of Wall Street Journal writer Christopher Stewart, on a quest. He had come across information about a remarkable American, Thomas Morde, who, in 1940, had discovered a long-lost city in the jungles of Honduras, The White City. Of course documentation of this was somewhat incomplete. We do not know if that is because Morde’s tale was a fabrication, because the information was consciously withheld for some unknown reason, or maybe the real info was simply mislaid in the 70 years since Morde’s discovery.
There is a gross similarity here to the 2009 book. The Lost City of Z. Stewart and Z’s author, David Grann, are both Brooklynites, with Stewart probably the more experienced adventurer/outdoorsman of the pair. They both follow the incomplete trail of explorers of an earlier time. In Grann’s case 1926. In Stewart’s 1940. Their explorer inspirations both had met bad ends. The explorers whose trail Grann was trying to follow in Z vanished, and were presumed to have met a grim fate in the darkest Amazon. Morde, the historical adventurer of Jungleland, met an early end of a different sort, post exploration, but maybe related to it. The similarities are enough so that one could easily have titled this book the Lost City of W. (no, not that W)
Stewart decided to trace Morde’s steps and rediscover this lost Jewel of the Patuca. He offers informative descriptions of a place most of the world had long forgotten, and that is before heading up river. Local color includes not only howler monkeys, brilliantly plumed birds and unpleasant critters known as bullet ants, but the most dangerous snake on earth, the Fer de lance, a fast hemorrhagic death in a lovely compact package, clouds of unpleasant flying creatures, and the joys of foot rot from walking in water for weeks on end. In addition to the native hazards of a natural bent, there are their human counterparts.
Among the folks living upriver, some are remnants of an ancient people, maybe descendants of the civilization that built the White City. Others are westerners, hiding out for reasons good and ill, some treasure hunters, the odd drug mule, and, of course, a lovely dose of local pirate. We hear tales of encroaching ranchers and farmers and learn something about how they go about dealing with residents who may object to their presence. The locals have varying amounts of intel about the vanished city. Some is useful. Some is not. The adventurers find promising indications, shards of civilization. Some ruins are indeed found. Is The Lost City of the Monkey God the White City or is the latter somewhere deeper into the jungle? Wondering if and when is part of the fun of reading Jungleland.
Stewart alternates between telling the story of his travels and those of Thomas Morde. He had dug up what he could on Morde, which was a fair bit. The guy had been a real Indy sort, an adventurer with a military background and an exciting career as a spy waiting for him. The tale of Morde’s career after his Lost City adventures is a fascinating adventure all on its own. The alternating tales format worked well, offering points of similarity and divergence in these remote places, across the seventy year gap.
Both Stewart and Morde were accompanied by people who had a bit more familiarity with the land. They both faced physical challenges, and both had to cope with the ever-present concern that it might all just be a wild quetzalcoatl chase.
There are observations made that have implications beyond the story at hand. From the 1940 tale:
So we have a book with a considerable collection of promising elements. Add to them the author’s very accessible style and you have a very easy and informative read. And yet, somehow, the whole did not seem to add up to the sum of its impressive parts. It never elevated to the level of, say, that other Lost City book, to which it bears a strong resemblance. I wish I could identify precisely what glue it is that, by it’s absence, fails to bind the parts together into a cohesive whole. But I lack the expertise to define the missing element. It was like walking into a room where several pictures hang, knowing that something has changed, but not knowing quite what. Maybe they have been rearranged. Maybe one has been replaced.
It may well be that for you the book will work completely. There is a lot of craft and talent on display, and enough information to make the journey worth your time. And I do love to read work by my fellow Brooklynites. But Jungleland, while an interesting adventure, remained for me an unfulfilled quest.
Pub. date for the trade paper version was January 7, 2014
Jungleland is the tale of Wall Street Journal writer Christopher Stewart, on a quest. He had come across information about a remarkable American, Thomas Morde, who, in 1940, had discovered a long-lost city in the jungles of Honduras, The White City. Of course documentation of this was somewhat incomplete. We do not know if that is because Morde’s tale was a fabrication, because the information was consciously withheld for some unknown reason, or maybe the real info was simply mislaid in the 70 years since Morde’s discovery.
There is a gross similarity here to the 2009 book. The Lost City of Z. Stewart and Z’s author, David Grann, are both Brooklynites, with Stewart probably the more experienced adventurer/outdoorsman of the pair. They both follow the incomplete trail of explorers of an earlier time. In Grann’s case 1926. In Stewart’s 1940. Their explorer inspirations both had met bad ends. The explorers whose trail Grann was trying to follow in Z vanished, and were presumed to have met a grim fate in the darkest Amazon. Morde, the historical adventurer of Jungleland, met an early end of a different sort, post exploration, but maybe related to it. The similarities are enough so that one could easily have titled this book the Lost City of W. (no, not that W)
Stewart decided to trace Morde’s steps and rediscover this lost Jewel of the Patuca. He offers informative descriptions of a place most of the world had long forgotten, and that is before heading up river. Local color includes not only howler monkeys, brilliantly plumed birds and unpleasant critters known as bullet ants, but the most dangerous snake on earth, the Fer de lance, a fast hemorrhagic death in a lovely compact package, clouds of unpleasant flying creatures, and the joys of foot rot from walking in water for weeks on end. In addition to the native hazards of a natural bent, there are their human counterparts.
Among the folks living upriver, some are remnants of an ancient people, maybe descendants of the civilization that built the White City. Others are westerners, hiding out for reasons good and ill, some treasure hunters, the odd drug mule, and, of course, a lovely dose of local pirate. We hear tales of encroaching ranchers and farmers and learn something about how they go about dealing with residents who may object to their presence. The locals have varying amounts of intel about the vanished city. Some is useful. Some is not. The adventurers find promising indications, shards of civilization. Some ruins are indeed found. Is The Lost City of the Monkey God the White City or is the latter somewhere deeper into the jungle? Wondering if and when is part of the fun of reading Jungleland.
Stewart alternates between telling the story of his travels and those of Thomas Morde. He had dug up what he could on Morde, which was a fair bit. The guy had been a real Indy sort, an adventurer with a military background and an exciting career as a spy waiting for him. The tale of Morde’s career after his Lost City adventures is a fascinating adventure all on its own. The alternating tales format worked well, offering points of similarity and divergence in these remote places, across the seventy year gap.
Both Stewart and Morde were accompanied by people who had a bit more familiarity with the land. They both faced physical challenges, and both had to cope with the ever-present concern that it might all just be a wild quetzalcoatl chase.
There are observations made that have implications beyond the story at hand. From the 1940 tale:
The American banana companies—Standard Fruit, based in La Ceiba and New Orleans, and United Fruit, out of Boston and Tela—had inserted themselves into this political void, and very little happened without their knowledge. They behaved like drug cartels that happened to sell fruit. The companies had muscled their way into most of Central America, with the help of the region’s cruelest dictators, and were notorious for their blood-soaked labor fights.This historical aspect was most welcome, as was learning of Morde’s life after he finished exploring.
So we have a book with a considerable collection of promising elements. Add to them the author’s very accessible style and you have a very easy and informative read. And yet, somehow, the whole did not seem to add up to the sum of its impressive parts. It never elevated to the level of, say, that other Lost City book, to which it bears a strong resemblance. I wish I could identify precisely what glue it is that, by it’s absence, fails to bind the parts together into a cohesive whole. But I lack the expertise to define the missing element. It was like walking into a room where several pictures hang, knowing that something has changed, but not knowing quite what. Maybe they have been rearranged. Maybe one has been replaced.
It may well be that for you the book will work completely. There is a lot of craft and talent on display, and enough information to make the journey worth your time. And I do love to read work by my fellow Brooklynites. But Jungleland, while an interesting adventure, remained for me an unfulfilled quest.
Pub. date for the trade paper version was January 7, 2014
February 27, 2013
Just finished the book, still waiting for something to happen. The subtitle suggests espionage, death and adventure and it's just not in here. I got the feeling that Stewart expected an epic trip filled with danger and adventure. He hyped the trip and all along he knew he would return to write a book about his adventure. Probably had the book deal already lined up. I'm guessing Stewart had to exaggerate a bit and build up near interesting events to make this book happen. The death in the sub title is some random motorcyclist who gets hit by a bus, then they arrive scene after the fact. Stewart sets you up with the anticipation of Bandits hijacking their car, they end up being two kids. He pays some "pirates" for a ride up the river and talks about how sketchy and dangerous it is, nothing happens. He forgets to bring leg protection against snakes and how he's really taking a chance without them, no snake bites. He brings up Jaguars, he ends up seeing some paw prints. His white city ends up being in everyone's own personal imagination.
Stewart no doubt had the trip of a lifetime for himself. I'm sure the hike was grueling and all the dangers that come with traveling in 3rd world countries and remote areas were present. I'm sure he found himself out there in the forest and it was life changing for him. I'm sure he missed his family and had his priorities altered. But nothing remarkable happens and this trip does not warrant a book. The sub title is really misleading, fortunately it was a quick read.
Stewart no doubt had the trip of a lifetime for himself. I'm sure the hike was grueling and all the dangers that come with traveling in 3rd world countries and remote areas were present. I'm sure he found himself out there in the forest and it was life changing for him. I'm sure he missed his family and had his priorities altered. But nothing remarkable happens and this trip does not warrant a book. The sub title is really misleading, fortunately it was a quick read.
December 1, 2021
This story of a man's quest to find the "lost city" of Ciudad Blanca in the Honduran jungle has been compared (at least by the publisher) to Lost in Shangri-La, the story of a plane crash in Dutch New Guinea at the end of WWII. I loved Mitchell Zuckoff's book of the survival of three of the crash victims.
But, this book in no way compares to Mr. Zuckoff's book. Unfortunately, author Christopher Stewart doesn't have the advantage of reporting on an event in which he doesn't have to participate. Mr. Stewart heads out into the jungle himself, and it's not a hale and hearty tale of adventure.
Mr. Stewart, by his own admission, hates camping, would rather take the subway than hoof a few blocks through Brooklyn, and has a paralyzing fear of snakes. So, that makes him the perfect person to explore the Honduran rainforest, right?
The author's quest is more about his inability to settle down peaceably with a wife, family and mortgage than it is about any lost city. Mr. Stewart is the one who is lost.
At first, I was excited about the author's quest. He is unquestionably a fine writer. But, as he interweaves his tale with that of a mid-twentieth century explorer, Theodore Morde, I became less and less interested. I'm a buy-and-hold kind of reader who doesn't like being jerked back and forth between alternating stories. I began skipping the Morde chapters to read Stewart's tale through.
But, honestly, the author's whining quickly got to me. He's tired, he has blisters on his feet, he's sick of rice and beans. Back home, his wife and daughter go it alone while Peter Pan Stewart slogs through the jungle trying to prove who-knows-what. (Sorry, I don't have a lot of patience for men who abandon their responsibilities to heed the call of adventure; e.g., "Off the Deep End: The Probably Insane Idea That I Could Swim My Way Through a Midlife Crises, And Qualify For the Olympics" or "The Fourth Fisherman: How Three Mexican Fishermen Who Came Back from the Dead Changed My Life and Saved My Marriage.")
The author might have made a really strong case for appreciating the value of hearth and home, had he not totally obliterated it in his acknowledgements. There, he says he hopes his son "if given the chance between seeking a lost city in the jungle and not, he'll always pick the jungle." Not the wife, child and home, I guess he means. I suspect this isn't the last quest book we'll be reading from this restless author.
But, this book in no way compares to Mr. Zuckoff's book. Unfortunately, author Christopher Stewart doesn't have the advantage of reporting on an event in which he doesn't have to participate. Mr. Stewart heads out into the jungle himself, and it's not a hale and hearty tale of adventure.
Mr. Stewart, by his own admission, hates camping, would rather take the subway than hoof a few blocks through Brooklyn, and has a paralyzing fear of snakes. So, that makes him the perfect person to explore the Honduran rainforest, right?
The author's quest is more about his inability to settle down peaceably with a wife, family and mortgage than it is about any lost city. Mr. Stewart is the one who is lost.
At first, I was excited about the author's quest. He is unquestionably a fine writer. But, as he interweaves his tale with that of a mid-twentieth century explorer, Theodore Morde, I became less and less interested. I'm a buy-and-hold kind of reader who doesn't like being jerked back and forth between alternating stories. I began skipping the Morde chapters to read Stewart's tale through.
But, honestly, the author's whining quickly got to me. He's tired, he has blisters on his feet, he's sick of rice and beans. Back home, his wife and daughter go it alone while Peter Pan Stewart slogs through the jungle trying to prove who-knows-what. (Sorry, I don't have a lot of patience for men who abandon their responsibilities to heed the call of adventure; e.g., "Off the Deep End: The Probably Insane Idea That I Could Swim My Way Through a Midlife Crises, And Qualify For the Olympics" or "The Fourth Fisherman: How Three Mexican Fishermen Who Came Back from the Dead Changed My Life and Saved My Marriage.")
The author might have made a really strong case for appreciating the value of hearth and home, had he not totally obliterated it in his acknowledgements. There, he says he hopes his son "if given the chance between seeking a lost city in the jungle and not, he'll always pick the jungle." Not the wife, child and home, I guess he means. I suspect this isn't the last quest book we'll be reading from this restless author.
September 19, 2017
I was not convinced by this book, I felt like I read a travel journey rather that a book detailing an important archaeological discovery. The story of Mord the explorer is well narrated but it's used more as a prop for the story rather than being an integral part of the plot . I wasn't satisfied with the ending (I won't give it away) , and even acknowledging that this is a nonfiction book the ending felt like a cliffhanger and a big letdown. But enough about the negatives , what I like about this book was the setting , I mean who wouldn't want to follow in the footsteps of a famous archaeologist among the jungle while at the same time going in an adventure. But that is not enough to salvage this book for me .
November 3, 2012
Jungleland tells the story of one journalist’s search for the White City (Ciudad Blanca) in the Honduran Jungle based upon some notes found from a World War II spy and adventurer named Theodore Morde who had claimed to discover the city prior to World War II. The city which resides in one of the most heavily wooded rain forests surrounded by indigenous tribes, drug runners and bandits. From the notes for Theodore Morde and interviews with his family the author decides to take a trip to find this lost city. For me the book fell short of expectations and the subtitle is misleading. There is little here about a WWII spy and the jump between present day and Morde was annoying and not in synch with what Stewart was following in his storyline. Expecting to see something related to Latin American history of the mysterious lost city there was little details other than descriptions of rain forest and no real anthropological analysis being done. The story is choppy with short chapters that alternate between Stewart and Morde. As some other reviewers have noted this book is not bad but there really is nothing here to sink your teeth into. The story of following a path from a previous explorer and speculating on what he was feeling at the time was uninteresting and for those interested in history this is a book to pass on.
July 22, 2023
"Jungleland" weaves together two stories: the first relates the exploration in Honduras of Theodore Morde in the early 1940's, just as Europe was plunging into World War II. The second is of the author's attempt to return to where Morde went, more-or-less, in modern times. Both expeditions were seeking the fabled "White City" spoken of by indigenous tribespeople for centuries, and both explorers found several ruined settlements, with stone-cobbled roads, high walls, and sites of buildings large and small swallowed up by centuries of jungle growth. In the end, neither explorer located the sought-for temple of the monkey god, or anything like it. But the stories of their attempts are both fascinating.
May 16, 2022
Not a bad story. Actually, I liked this one better than the more well known 'Lost City of the Monkey God' by Douglas Preston. Both are adventure stories about the author's search for the same "lost city" deep in the jungles of Honduras. This book, however, sticks to the story while the other drifts off topic into the author's medical problems and climate change.
Jungleland comes in two parts; one part biography about the adventurer and World War II spy Theodore Morde as described in his journals, and the other part is the author's own adventure through Honduras in search of the lost city. The author switches back and forth between the two as he followed relatively the same path through the jungle as Morde, albeit about 50 years later.
Both men traveled in small groups accompanied by local guides. They each ecountered some of the same threats, hardships, and dangers that would befall someone traveling a great distance through wild, hostile territory.
On a personal note-
This story brought back memories of my own week-long 2007 Peruvian Amazon adventure near Iquitos with my wife. Although our adventure was far safer and more accommodating and comfortable, some of the same threats loomed. We battled huge mosquitos, encountered 'caymanes' (crocodiles), piranha, constrictor type snakes including the anaconda (one fell out of a tree into the river near our canoe) thievish monkeys, and all kinds of strange looking spiders and other insects. Criminal elements (drug trade related) also exist in the Peruvian jungle where the vast rugged terrain makes law enforcement difficult. Wandering off into the wrong areas could get you kidnapped or killed. Through the years, many adventurous tourists who have traveled there wound up missing and were never heard from again. When we arrived to Iquitos, we learned that the body of an American tourist was found in a remote area just a week earlier. We did not learn of his cause of death.
Jungleland comes in two parts; one part biography about the adventurer and World War II spy Theodore Morde as described in his journals, and the other part is the author's own adventure through Honduras in search of the lost city. The author switches back and forth between the two as he followed relatively the same path through the jungle as Morde, albeit about 50 years later.
Both men traveled in small groups accompanied by local guides. They each ecountered some of the same threats, hardships, and dangers that would befall someone traveling a great distance through wild, hostile territory.
On a personal note-
This story brought back memories of my own week-long 2007 Peruvian Amazon adventure near Iquitos with my wife. Although our adventure was far safer and more accommodating and comfortable, some of the same threats loomed. We battled huge mosquitos, encountered 'caymanes' (crocodiles), piranha, constrictor type snakes including the anaconda (one fell out of a tree into the river near our canoe) thievish monkeys, and all kinds of strange looking spiders and other insects. Criminal elements (drug trade related) also exist in the Peruvian jungle where the vast rugged terrain makes law enforcement difficult. Wandering off into the wrong areas could get you kidnapped or killed. Through the years, many adventurous tourists who have traveled there wound up missing and were never heard from again. When we arrived to Iquitos, we learned that the body of an American tourist was found in a remote area just a week earlier. We did not learn of his cause of death.
July 1, 2016
It's about the jungles of Honduras! I enjoyed this so much, since I am somewhat familiar with the territory, though not La Mosquitia! The story paralleled two journeys in search of "the White City," one around 1938 and another around 2012. I found it a bit hard to keep the characters in each party separated and I was not entirely pleased with the ending, but it was a crackerjack adventure story and I highly recommend it.
"The scene was not unlike the old cowboy West, a place at the edge of civilization, ceaselessly teetering on the verge of chaos. As they walked, they noticed that men carried weapons: guns tucked visibly into their pants, machetes dangling off their belts. There was liveliness in the air, though it was hard to read: a land where you had to watch your back."
The same was true when I was in La Ceiba (and staying at the Grand Paris Hotel, same as the book characters did both in 1940 and in 2012). It was rather disconcerting to see men walking around town with machetes hanging on their belts, and even more so to have guards with AK-47s in my bank!
"The scene was not unlike the old cowboy West, a place at the edge of civilization, ceaselessly teetering on the verge of chaos. As they walked, they noticed that men carried weapons: guns tucked visibly into their pants, machetes dangling off their belts. There was liveliness in the air, though it was hard to read: a land where you had to watch your back."
The same was true when I was in La Ceiba (and staying at the Grand Paris Hotel, same as the book characters did both in 1940 and in 2012). It was rather disconcerting to see men walking around town with machetes hanging on their belts, and even more so to have guards with AK-47s in my bank!
April 27, 2020
The bits about Morde were interesting, the author's midlife crisis in the jungle not so much. He was such a whiny baby, good lord. Most of his problems could have been avoided if he'd bothered to break in his hiking boots before setting off. He spends a lot of time worrying about being killed by snakes or jaguars or bandits whereas I was impressed none of his traveling companions strangled him after the third straight day of bitching about his blisters non-stop. I wanted to strangle him and I wasn't stuck in a jungle with him!
February 28, 2020
I didn’t mind it, but honestly, The Lost City of the Monkey God is definitely a better read.
October 25, 2018
The author took an interesting trip through the Honduran jungle, following in the footsteps of an earlier explorer. However, all the descriptions of jungle travel get tedious at a certain point. I got bored.
March 12, 2020
Following Colonel Percy Fawcett’s Amazonian Saga, the Rain Forests of South America intoxicated me. A couple of years back I saw the book “JUNGLELAND” by Christopher Stewart, an adventurer and free lance journalist describing his trip through the Jungles of Mosquitio Coast of Honduras, trying locate the mysterious lost city Theodore Morde was supposed to have discovered in 1940, which was known as the Lost City of Monkey God – also famous in myths as “Ciudad Blanca” or White City.
In India we have what is called “Subh Muhurat” or Auspicious Time and it was only in February 2020 that the Subh Muhurat to read “Jungleland” came.
The narrative starts with Chris Stewart obsession to locate the mysterious White City. After detailed and painstaking research and follow up with the relatives of Theodore Morde, Chris Stewart in the company of archaeologist Chris Bigley retraces the steps of Morde and his companions, ultimately locating the city Morde most likely located by the descriptions available in Morde’s journals - Las Crucitas – was it actually the legendary lost city also known as Ciudad Blanca.
The travellers’ arrive in Honduras within a few days of a coup – the country is in turmoil – always a lawless place, at this time more dangerous.
Trying to locate the Lost City of Z in Amazonian forest David Grann found none of the dense jungles described by Fawcett in his journals. In a matter of eighty years, the forest cover had greatly reduced. The savage, naked Amerinds lived in a symbiotic relationship with the Amazonian rain forests for many millennia. And then the conquistadors, the civilized, white barbarians out to bring the savages to Christ while robbing them of their wealth and destroying their health, came. Within half a millennium the forest cover reduced, rainfall pattern changed and hundreds of species of fauna along with thousands of species of flora became extinct. As someone commented – Nature is bountiful and there is sufficient and more for needs of everyone, but not enough for even one person’s greed.
The forests of the Mosquitia jungles have similarly been denuded by the timber mafia. Chris Stewart writes in his book Jungleland “Soon there was no one but cattle and cut-down trees, dozens and dozens of blackened stumps in a wide-open space the size of probably six football fields. I was stunned and a little terrified. The impenetrable, supernatural-seeming mass of green that I had imagined had been completely and utterly slashed and burned. “So this is the jungle,” I said sarcastically. It didn’t exactly feel like Morde’s dense malarial wilderness.
“It used to be,” said Chris. “It was different in Morde’s day.”
Now the area looked like a giant lawn of ashes. Settlers, loggers, and ranchers had been clearing the jungle for years, illegally in many cases. “This is the colonization front,” Chris said. Jungle clearing was a problem all over Honduras. The colonizers took the land for houses or pasture, or just for the wood. Many times they didn’t replant anything.”
In the first decade of the twenty-first century, the country had lost about 7 million acres (about 10,000 square miles) of forestland — an area the size of the combined Hawaiian Islands. Some of the timber ended up in products sold in the United States. The U.S. embassy has reported that the clearing continues at a rate of about 3 percent a year, further shrinking Central America’s largest rain forest and everything — birds, beasts, bugs, and all manner of flora that double as herbal medicine for the local people — within. Yes the blatant selfishness and greed of the white man – money and more money – let the rain forest biosphere, ecosystem and environment be damned. He never realizes that all this lucre will be left behind and all the land he requires will be 30 / 35 square feet for his body to be interred. He leaves behind a ravaged raped environment, which will takes centuries, if not millennia to once again become pristine. To retain the pristine glory of the forests – for every tree cut 10 new saplings have to be planted, since only one or maybe two of these ten will continue growing to maturity and then contribute to the biosphere.
At the cost of repeating myself, within half a millennium of the white savage stepping on the shores of the New World and exploring the interiors of the Americas and the Dark Continent the forest cover reduced, rainfall pattern changed and hundreds of species of fauna (some exotic like Dodo, Great Auk, Tasmanian Tiger and others) along with thousands of species of flora became extinct, as did tribes of American Indians, Australian Aborigines and dark Africans.
Returning to the journey of Chris Stewart and Chris Bigley along with their local guides Pancho and Angel. Like Theodore Morde and Brown his companion, they started by staying at Paris Hotel in Le Ceiba where 70 years before the explorers had checked in. Tracing Morde’s route they travelled through the cleared jungles, the swamplands and some remaining jungles to Catacamas, an eight hour drive that took eleven hours.
From Catacamas, they took a bus to near Patuca and head upstream to Rio Blanco and tried to trace Morde’s Camp Ulak. They met with the Amerindians to get feedback on Ciudad Blanca. Tracing the route of Morde and his companions, they ultimately reach a site where there are many a mounds – the indicators of buildings buried underneath.
This was the area, where Chris Bigley made his first discovery of ruins in the jungles of Mosquitia coast. As he explains to Chris Stewart ‘“That assumption that there was little in the Mosquitia, that this was always pristine rain forest, uninhabited,” Chris said now, “you can see how that’s just wrong.” He seemed to take particular pleasure in the evidence undermining all the people who had challenged him over the years, those who had warned him he was wasting his time in the Mosquitia. Those people and their tired old arguments against a city ever existing in this rain forest. “Just look at this place!” he exclaimed.
On locating the ruins of Las Crucitas, amid the verdant green forests with towering peaks in the backdrop and howler monkeys providing the background cacophony (as described by Morde in his journal) one could conclude this was the Lost City of the Monkey God – was this then the Lost White City Ciudad Blanca?
The night before they set out for the ruins of Las Cruicitas, an old Pech chieftain explains that to locate the Lost City one has to know all the Indian dialects and if the person is lucky enough to locate the place – the guardians of the city would welcome he traveller, but once inside the guardians would prevent the return of the traveller. They do not like people casually coming and going from their city. This was Ciudad Blanca the Lost White City.
Explaining this concept further, Chris Bigley says, finding numerous ruins, initially he had concluded that there was not one but many Ciudad Blancas. Later, he understood the Lost City was a metaphor for what the Indians had lost, once they came in contact with the outsiders – their wealth, culture and even their lives. Ciudad Blanca was in their minds and memory and could not be located in the physical realm. Ciudad Blanca – the White City – would remain lost and could not be located in Americas.
The journey described in the book occurred in 2009, but four / five years later the journalist Douglas Preston using the latest laser aerial photography located the ruins of the Lost City of the Monkey God – and we can be sure that this is not the mythical Lost White City – the Ciudad Blanca.
The book is well written, the story line gripping and it is a page turner.
In India we have what is called “Subh Muhurat” or Auspicious Time and it was only in February 2020 that the Subh Muhurat to read “Jungleland” came.
The narrative starts with Chris Stewart obsession to locate the mysterious White City. After detailed and painstaking research and follow up with the relatives of Theodore Morde, Chris Stewart in the company of archaeologist Chris Bigley retraces the steps of Morde and his companions, ultimately locating the city Morde most likely located by the descriptions available in Morde’s journals - Las Crucitas – was it actually the legendary lost city also known as Ciudad Blanca.
The travellers’ arrive in Honduras within a few days of a coup – the country is in turmoil – always a lawless place, at this time more dangerous.
Trying to locate the Lost City of Z in Amazonian forest David Grann found none of the dense jungles described by Fawcett in his journals. In a matter of eighty years, the forest cover had greatly reduced. The savage, naked Amerinds lived in a symbiotic relationship with the Amazonian rain forests for many millennia. And then the conquistadors, the civilized, white barbarians out to bring the savages to Christ while robbing them of their wealth and destroying their health, came. Within half a millennium the forest cover reduced, rainfall pattern changed and hundreds of species of fauna along with thousands of species of flora became extinct. As someone commented – Nature is bountiful and there is sufficient and more for needs of everyone, but not enough for even one person’s greed.
The forests of the Mosquitia jungles have similarly been denuded by the timber mafia. Chris Stewart writes in his book Jungleland “Soon there was no one but cattle and cut-down trees, dozens and dozens of blackened stumps in a wide-open space the size of probably six football fields. I was stunned and a little terrified. The impenetrable, supernatural-seeming mass of green that I had imagined had been completely and utterly slashed and burned. “So this is the jungle,” I said sarcastically. It didn’t exactly feel like Morde’s dense malarial wilderness.
“It used to be,” said Chris. “It was different in Morde’s day.”
Now the area looked like a giant lawn of ashes. Settlers, loggers, and ranchers had been clearing the jungle for years, illegally in many cases. “This is the colonization front,” Chris said. Jungle clearing was a problem all over Honduras. The colonizers took the land for houses or pasture, or just for the wood. Many times they didn’t replant anything.”
In the first decade of the twenty-first century, the country had lost about 7 million acres (about 10,000 square miles) of forestland — an area the size of the combined Hawaiian Islands. Some of the timber ended up in products sold in the United States. The U.S. embassy has reported that the clearing continues at a rate of about 3 percent a year, further shrinking Central America’s largest rain forest and everything — birds, beasts, bugs, and all manner of flora that double as herbal medicine for the local people — within. Yes the blatant selfishness and greed of the white man – money and more money – let the rain forest biosphere, ecosystem and environment be damned. He never realizes that all this lucre will be left behind and all the land he requires will be 30 / 35 square feet for his body to be interred. He leaves behind a ravaged raped environment, which will takes centuries, if not millennia to once again become pristine. To retain the pristine glory of the forests – for every tree cut 10 new saplings have to be planted, since only one or maybe two of these ten will continue growing to maturity and then contribute to the biosphere.
At the cost of repeating myself, within half a millennium of the white savage stepping on the shores of the New World and exploring the interiors of the Americas and the Dark Continent the forest cover reduced, rainfall pattern changed and hundreds of species of fauna (some exotic like Dodo, Great Auk, Tasmanian Tiger and others) along with thousands of species of flora became extinct, as did tribes of American Indians, Australian Aborigines and dark Africans.
Returning to the journey of Chris Stewart and Chris Bigley along with their local guides Pancho and Angel. Like Theodore Morde and Brown his companion, they started by staying at Paris Hotel in Le Ceiba where 70 years before the explorers had checked in. Tracing Morde’s route they travelled through the cleared jungles, the swamplands and some remaining jungles to Catacamas, an eight hour drive that took eleven hours.
From Catacamas, they took a bus to near Patuca and head upstream to Rio Blanco and tried to trace Morde’s Camp Ulak. They met with the Amerindians to get feedback on Ciudad Blanca. Tracing the route of Morde and his companions, they ultimately reach a site where there are many a mounds – the indicators of buildings buried underneath.
This was the area, where Chris Bigley made his first discovery of ruins in the jungles of Mosquitia coast. As he explains to Chris Stewart ‘“That assumption that there was little in the Mosquitia, that this was always pristine rain forest, uninhabited,” Chris said now, “you can see how that’s just wrong.” He seemed to take particular pleasure in the evidence undermining all the people who had challenged him over the years, those who had warned him he was wasting his time in the Mosquitia. Those people and their tired old arguments against a city ever existing in this rain forest. “Just look at this place!” he exclaimed.
On locating the ruins of Las Crucitas, amid the verdant green forests with towering peaks in the backdrop and howler monkeys providing the background cacophony (as described by Morde in his journal) one could conclude this was the Lost City of the Monkey God – was this then the Lost White City Ciudad Blanca?
The night before they set out for the ruins of Las Cruicitas, an old Pech chieftain explains that to locate the Lost City one has to know all the Indian dialects and if the person is lucky enough to locate the place – the guardians of the city would welcome he traveller, but once inside the guardians would prevent the return of the traveller. They do not like people casually coming and going from their city. This was Ciudad Blanca the Lost White City.
Explaining this concept further, Chris Bigley says, finding numerous ruins, initially he had concluded that there was not one but many Ciudad Blancas. Later, he understood the Lost City was a metaphor for what the Indians had lost, once they came in contact with the outsiders – their wealth, culture and even their lives. Ciudad Blanca was in their minds and memory and could not be located in the physical realm. Ciudad Blanca – the White City – would remain lost and could not be located in Americas.
The journey described in the book occurred in 2009, but four / five years later the journalist Douglas Preston using the latest laser aerial photography located the ruins of the Lost City of the Monkey God – and we can be sure that this is not the mythical Lost White City – the Ciudad Blanca.
The book is well written, the story line gripping and it is a page turner.
March 13, 2013
Journalist Christopher Stewart first heard of the lost White City on the Mosquito Coast in the Honduras while reporting on the country's drug trade. It piqued his interest and he continued to investigate for his own curiosity. And then curiosity turned into obsession when he stumbled across the journals of Theodore Morde. Morde discovered a lost city in 1940 after four months spent hunting in the jungle. But Morde died before he revealed the location or was able to return to Honduras.
"I just kept wondering - what if? What if I really managed to retrace Morde's journey. What if I traveled to Honduras? What would I discover? Did I have the guts to try?"
Well, Stewart does. He joins forces with archaeologist Chis Begley who has spent over a decade travelling and studying the Honduran jungle. With two local guides they set off to follow in Morde's footsteps and perhaps discover the location of the Lost City.
Jungleland is told in alternating narratives - Morde's journey and Stewart's present day explorations. I found Morde's history fascinating and had great hopes for Stewart's as well. Stewart's 'adventure' fell short for me. Perhaps I came in with the wrong outlook. Based on the cover blurbs, I wanted more. The WWII spy line is misleading - it is but a small part of Morde's story. But, a lot of Jungleland is Stewart's personal struggle with settling down with a wife, a child and debt. Not what I was looking to read about, but I do appreciate his honesty is sharing these moment. For me, Begley seems the more interesting and certainly the more knowledgeable of the duo. I would like to read more of Begley's adventures.
I have to say I was very frustrated by the last chapter. They finally discover something interesting and Stewart leaves us hanging with Chris saying "Now, this is interesting." And that's it! The epilogue takes us back to New York and Stewart's life with no further explanation of what they found.
I chose to listen to Jungleland in audio book format. Jef Brick was the reader. I thought his voice was well suited to give voice to Stewart's words. It was easy to listen, quite expressive and portrayed the mental image I had created for Stewart. Listen to an excerpt of Jungleland. Read an excerpt of Jungleland.
I do like travel memoirs and this was an interesting premise. But I think the idea was very, very similar to David Grann's 'The Lost City of Z'. Which I preferred.
"I just kept wondering - what if? What if I really managed to retrace Morde's journey. What if I traveled to Honduras? What would I discover? Did I have the guts to try?"
Well, Stewart does. He joins forces with archaeologist Chis Begley who has spent over a decade travelling and studying the Honduran jungle. With two local guides they set off to follow in Morde's footsteps and perhaps discover the location of the Lost City.
Jungleland is told in alternating narratives - Morde's journey and Stewart's present day explorations. I found Morde's history fascinating and had great hopes for Stewart's as well. Stewart's 'adventure' fell short for me. Perhaps I came in with the wrong outlook. Based on the cover blurbs, I wanted more. The WWII spy line is misleading - it is but a small part of Morde's story. But, a lot of Jungleland is Stewart's personal struggle with settling down with a wife, a child and debt. Not what I was looking to read about, but I do appreciate his honesty is sharing these moment. For me, Begley seems the more interesting and certainly the more knowledgeable of the duo. I would like to read more of Begley's adventures.
I have to say I was very frustrated by the last chapter. They finally discover something interesting and Stewart leaves us hanging with Chris saying "Now, this is interesting." And that's it! The epilogue takes us back to New York and Stewart's life with no further explanation of what they found.
I chose to listen to Jungleland in audio book format. Jef Brick was the reader. I thought his voice was well suited to give voice to Stewart's words. It was easy to listen, quite expressive and portrayed the mental image I had created for Stewart. Listen to an excerpt of Jungleland. Read an excerpt of Jungleland.
I do like travel memoirs and this was an interesting premise. But I think the idea was very, very similar to David Grann's 'The Lost City of Z'. Which I preferred.
April 24, 2013
A modern day reenactment of an old explorer's search for a lost city in the same vein as David Grann's The Lost City of Z but not of the same calibre as that book. Christopher Stewart follows in the footsteps of Theodore Morde who explored Honduras during the late 1930s looking for the fabled "White City". Chapters alternate between telling Morde's story and Stewart's. Morde's story comes from extensive diaries he kept during his expedition and life. An entertaining story, well-written and an enjoyable read. The title of the book is a bit of a misnomer mentioning the WWII Spy bit as Morde did go on to do this after his exploration but this occupies only about two chapters of the book near the end. The book is about explorers, exploration, and lost civilizations, not wartime espionage. While the tale is a captivating read for those who enjoy jungle exploration, nothing much of actual note really happens. Neither Morde nor Stewart faced any unusual or unique dangers nor enthralling experiences. I enjoyed Morde's story the most. Stewart I found hard to like from the get-go. Here is a married man, father of a three-year old child who picks up and takes off for the jungle, a potentially life threatening action, for purely selfish reasons, trying to "find himself", etc. mostly against his wife's wishes though she doesn't make much fuss according to the author. I just found him an unlikeable, immature person and though he laments what he's done and "grows" through the experience, I found myself thinking about his poor wife and daughter left worrying about him back home while he basically traipsed around on this fool's errand. So, an interesting story but mostly for the historical aspect of Theodore Morde's story, in my opinion. I would have preferred a book just about Morde and not the author and his ego.
October 31, 2012
Stewart does a great job bringing the reader into the sweltering and oppressive jungle of Honduras through his own personal journey retracing the footsteps of explorer Theodore Morde. During Morde’s own venture into the depths of this perilous land in the late 30’s, he claims to have found the legendary White City, and 70 years later, Stewart is determined to uncover what Morde found. Stewart alternates between Morde’s narrative and his own. Leaving his family and the comfort of his Brooklyn home, the jungle proves a fierce deterrent, and Stewart’s misery is mildly off-putting as he laments the moisture, the food, the lack of accommodations, his fear of snakes, etc. But he does effectively convey the jungle’s capacity to devour history, everything saturated with dampness and rot, decaying traces of past civilizations beyond recognition.
Don’t put too much stock in the subtitle of “A Mysterious Lost City, a WWII Spy, and a True Story of Deadly Adventure.” Morde is an intelligence agent after his foray into the jungle, but there are few details of his exploits. In fact, Morde’s narrative was difficult for Stewart to follow because of the fragmentary records he left behind. Morde was very vague about the location of the White City in hopes that he would be the only explorer to have a claim to its discovery. This enigmatic attitude and the few clues are what lead Stewart to pursue the enduring legend into the dense and formidable rain forest. Many of the conclusions made are speculation, but the overall depiction of that region of the Mosquito Coast was captivating.
I received a complimentary copy of this book via the Amazon Vine program.
Don’t put too much stock in the subtitle of “A Mysterious Lost City, a WWII Spy, and a True Story of Deadly Adventure.” Morde is an intelligence agent after his foray into the jungle, but there are few details of his exploits. In fact, Morde’s narrative was difficult for Stewart to follow because of the fragmentary records he left behind. Morde was very vague about the location of the White City in hopes that he would be the only explorer to have a claim to its discovery. This enigmatic attitude and the few clues are what lead Stewart to pursue the enduring legend into the dense and formidable rain forest. Many of the conclusions made are speculation, but the overall depiction of that region of the Mosquito Coast was captivating.
I received a complimentary copy of this book via the Amazon Vine program.
October 2, 2013
When I first picked Jungleland up I was a wee bit wary. Was it going to be another Lost in Shangri-La? Tentatively I began reading. Pretty soon it had become a page turner. Christopher Stewart alternates between his present-day jungle adventure and that of Theodore Morde’s during the 1930s. Through the perils of the Honduras jungle both men went in search of lost cities. Morde made his discovery only to die a semi-mysterious death never having given the exact location of his lost city. Now Stewart sets out to retrace that trip and to find Morde’s city which, hopefully, is the legendary “White City“.
If you tend to despise those documentaries that set off on expeditions to locate long-lost somethings and never find it I do not recommend this book. BUT if you are looking for an adventure read by all means go for it. You won’t be disappointed.
As for the appropriateness of content; there is some gore – pretty graphic stuff – relating to the commonplace deaths which take place in Honduras. And there is a certain foul word that comes up more than once in the course of the tale. With that in mind I give this book a three out of five star rating. If it hadn’t been for the profanity the rating wouldn’t be so poor since it was a really entertaining read.
DISCLAIMER: In accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising” we would like to note that we have not received compensation for our book review of “Jungleland”.
reetchampionbookreview.wordpress.com
If you tend to despise those documentaries that set off on expeditions to locate long-lost somethings and never find it I do not recommend this book. BUT if you are looking for an adventure read by all means go for it. You won’t be disappointed.
As for the appropriateness of content; there is some gore – pretty graphic stuff – relating to the commonplace deaths which take place in Honduras. And there is a certain foul word that comes up more than once in the course of the tale. With that in mind I give this book a three out of five star rating. If it hadn’t been for the profanity the rating wouldn’t be so poor since it was a really entertaining read.
DISCLAIMER: In accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising” we would like to note that we have not received compensation for our book review of “Jungleland”.
reetchampionbookreview.wordpress.com
May 9, 2014
I was warned. I read enough reviews to know that this book does not live up to the exciting title, but I really love these tales of Amazon exploration: the dangerous natives, the many deadly creatures, the rain, the mud.
This book tries to do too much and falls far, far short of the goal. The narrative alternates between the story of Theodore Morde and Stewart's own quest to find the fabled "White City" in modern day Honduras.
Morde claimed to have found what he called the "Lost City of the Monkey God," before working as a spy during WWII, attempting to settle down to married life back in the States, and apparently committing suicide, never returning to Central America. His story was the most interesting part and could have been made into a book of its own.
Unfortunately, the other half of the book did not engage me at all. Stewart admits to hating camping even before embarking on this trip. He complains about everything along the way: the wet, the monotonous diet, etc. He leaves his wife and young daughter for a month (although considering the whining, you would think it was a lot longer than that) in a misguided attempt to retain his youth and adventurous spirit, but I just wanted him to shut up most of the time.
The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon is mentioned several times as his inspiration and this feels like a weak imitation. Read that, not this.
This book tries to do too much and falls far, far short of the goal. The narrative alternates between the story of Theodore Morde and Stewart's own quest to find the fabled "White City" in modern day Honduras.
Morde claimed to have found what he called the "Lost City of the Monkey God," before working as a spy during WWII, attempting to settle down to married life back in the States, and apparently committing suicide, never returning to Central America. His story was the most interesting part and could have been made into a book of its own.
Unfortunately, the other half of the book did not engage me at all. Stewart admits to hating camping even before embarking on this trip. He complains about everything along the way: the wet, the monotonous diet, etc. He leaves his wife and young daughter for a month (although considering the whining, you would think it was a lot longer than that) in a misguided attempt to retain his youth and adventurous spirit, but I just wanted him to shut up most of the time.
The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon is mentioned several times as his inspiration and this feels like a weak imitation. Read that, not this.
March 7, 2013
Another book in the style of "The Lost City of Z" except instead of Brazil we are in Honduras. Same alternating between the present quest and the early 20th Century quest of another explorer, this time an explorer turned OSS agent during WW II. This is a quick read and it's written in a can't put it down manner. Great maps too. Lots of them. And it even has pictures. Would have liked more of the actual ruins though. The author seems like the last type of guy to undertake this journey and it's entertaining reading as you listen to his pity parties and his whining about the physicality of the ordeal and missing his family-love the honesty. I just want to say "suck it up, you asked for it. Man up, dude." Really fascinating account of the man who claimed to find the White City but who called it"The Lost City of the Monkey God." That man was Theodore Morde, who grew up in New Bedford, MA and went on to become an OSS agent serving all over the world( mostly the Middle East) during WW II. He was even involved with von Papen, the Nazi ambassador to Turkey, in a plot to kill Hitler which FDR personally nixed. It's always a pleasure to find these fascinating accounts, thrillingly told about lost cities with harrowing escapes from wild animals, violent criminals, etc..
November 13, 2012
Intrigued by the tale of a fabled lost city and the adventures of an enigmatic explorer, a journalist plunges into the Honduran jungle in search of answers.
The legend of Ciudad Blanca, the White City, goes back to Spanish colonial days and has been compared to the search for El Dorado. It has attracted the attention of dreamers and gold-seekers and men like Charles Lindbergh, Frederick Mitchell-Hedges and George Heye, founder of the Museum of the American Indian, who bankrolled Theodore Morde’s expedition.
From that standpoint, Christopher Stewart does a credible job of telling of his experiences. Since he warns the reader upfront he’s not an experienced outdoorsman, I’m even willing to forgive his repeated whining about the hardships of his journey.
I do wish, though, he’d chosen to either confine the book to the life and adventures of Morde or told the story from the viewpoint of Chris Begley, the archaeologist who accompanied him. Begley has the experience and the credentials to provide more insight than the skimming of the surface Stewart provides on the mysterious civilization that left behind only moss-covered ruins and tantalizing questions about their fate.
The legend of Ciudad Blanca, the White City, goes back to Spanish colonial days and has been compared to the search for El Dorado. It has attracted the attention of dreamers and gold-seekers and men like Charles Lindbergh, Frederick Mitchell-Hedges and George Heye, founder of the Museum of the American Indian, who bankrolled Theodore Morde’s expedition.
From that standpoint, Christopher Stewart does a credible job of telling of his experiences. Since he warns the reader upfront he’s not an experienced outdoorsman, I’m even willing to forgive his repeated whining about the hardships of his journey.
I do wish, though, he’d chosen to either confine the book to the life and adventures of Morde or told the story from the viewpoint of Chris Begley, the archaeologist who accompanied him. Begley has the experience and the credentials to provide more insight than the skimming of the surface Stewart provides on the mysterious civilization that left behind only moss-covered ruins and tantalizing questions about their fate.
January 7, 2013
I really don't know why this book has such a low average rating, 'cause it's an enjoyable book and worth the four stars I gave it.
In some ways the jacket description is misleading, because the focus is really on Thomas Morde, explorer and spy, rather than Native culture or even the Cuidad Blanca itself. The reason for the author's obsession with Morde--the many similarities and parallels in their lives--is developed throughout the book. The narrative alternates between Stewart's adventures and Morde's.
The parallels between Jungleland and The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon are obvious. Z is a better book, I think because it incorporates more anthropology and archaeology. Jungleland would be much improved by adding some of that, but once you understand, however, that the book is really about Thomas Morde and not lost Central American civilizations, you see why that's missing.
In some ways the jacket description is misleading, because the focus is really on Thomas Morde, explorer and spy, rather than Native culture or even the Cuidad Blanca itself. The reason for the author's obsession with Morde--the many similarities and parallels in their lives--is developed throughout the book. The narrative alternates between Stewart's adventures and Morde's.
The parallels between Jungleland and The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon are obvious. Z is a better book, I think because it incorporates more anthropology and archaeology. Jungleland would be much improved by adding some of that, but once you understand, however, that the book is really about Thomas Morde and not lost Central American civilizations, you see why that's missing.
April 10, 2013
Confession: I love reading adventure stories. I love traveling to exotic locations through the pages of a book (and wouldn’t mind going to a few of them in real life!!).
But, I’m getting away from my point here.
The point is that I loved traveling deep into the jungle with Christopher S. Stewart in Jungleland.
It’s hard to believe sometimes that there are places on this planet that we have yet to explore, but Stewart finds one in his quest in Jungleland. Here, he travels to Honduras in search of the fabled White City, a mythical city made entirely of gold. Sounds like the plot of an Indiana Jones movie, right? Well, this story is entirely true and chronicles both Stewart’s adventure and an adventure that happened 70 years ago when a future WWII spy attempted to find the same lost city.
Read Shannon's full review at The Savvy Reader: http://thesavvyreader.ca/2013/100-wor...
But, I’m getting away from my point here.
The point is that I loved traveling deep into the jungle with Christopher S. Stewart in Jungleland.
It’s hard to believe sometimes that there are places on this planet that we have yet to explore, but Stewart finds one in his quest in Jungleland. Here, he travels to Honduras in search of the fabled White City, a mythical city made entirely of gold. Sounds like the plot of an Indiana Jones movie, right? Well, this story is entirely true and chronicles both Stewart’s adventure and an adventure that happened 70 years ago when a future WWII spy attempted to find the same lost city.
Read Shannon's full review at The Savvy Reader: http://thesavvyreader.ca/2013/100-wor...
December 2, 2014
Author follows the journal and writings of Ted Morde who searched the jungles of Honduras to find the long-lost "White City", Cuidad Blanca, during the days of World War II. Includes maps to highlight the treks of both Morde and Stewart for comparison.
Want to read
July 7, 2018Dewey 972.832
March 9, 2023
I don't know if this is actually a genre of book to be "in to," but for whatever weird reason I've found myself buying all the "i wandered around the jungle for a bit" books at the library sales of late, and I'm sort of okay with that.
So, I'm assuming you don't really need a list of books this is similar to. It's a journalist who goes wandering off for various reasons and it turns out the jungle is scary.
Now, let's break this down a bit.
"Mysterious Lost City"--I didn't have a clue when I picked this up, but afterwards did a youtube search and apparently this is a lost city that has since been looked into a few times since this publication. You may have heard it referred to as The Lost City of the Monkey God. Pretty decent name, as far as randomly made-up names go, I guess. Considering part of the draw of this (for me at least) was finding out if they were ever going to get to stinking place, I won't divulge any more here other than to say, as is always the case with these, the vast majority of the book is sort of about Stewart's "metaphorical" journey and blah blah. But don't worry, it's light on that bit.
"A WWII Spy"--Not nearly as much in here as I hoped about this part, but, considering the fact that this is a book written by what I assume is a reputable journalist, having this bit of factual backstory makes it fun. I think there's the novel-reader side of me that wanted this to be more of a chunk, but outside of just making things up, Stewart was pretty well stuck with what the facts were. Forgivable.
"A True Story of Deadly Adventure"--I mean, yeah. You're in the jungle. Everything wants to kill you. Adventure...hm...this one is tricky. For him, I'm sure it was. There are also some really good examples in here of how I feel like he must've maybe had this title foisted on him, as more than once, they cross paths with folks who are just living a regular old normal life in the midst of this area that Stewart considers a 'deadly adventure' to traverse. Perspectives. They're out there...
So, okay, why 3 out of 5 stars? It was just a little light on everything. I think the experience was probably very moving for the author, and he does a good job of putting you there in the jungle with him, but, and this is obviously no fault of his own, we already know he's going to live and make it back. That's just what happens in any book written in past tense. But there also isn't much on really gripping detail in any of the three subtitled points.
Don't believe the started and finished dates down there. That's just the day that I remembered to upload it to this, but, I think I read it in 2 or 3 evenings, so it's a quick little read. If you absolutely want to get into the "guy walks into the jungle to see what happens" genre (as it is now officially christened), it's not a bad place to start. These types of books tend to swing on a spectrum of too much backstory or not enough info or a hundred other varying characteristics that are difficult to balance. But, if you've never read any of these, it's a painless, easy, entertaining way to check this type of book out.
So, I'm assuming you don't really need a list of books this is similar to. It's a journalist who goes wandering off for various reasons and it turns out the jungle is scary.
Now, let's break this down a bit.
"Mysterious Lost City"--I didn't have a clue when I picked this up, but afterwards did a youtube search and apparently this is a lost city that has since been looked into a few times since this publication. You may have heard it referred to as The Lost City of the Monkey God. Pretty decent name, as far as randomly made-up names go, I guess. Considering part of the draw of this (for me at least) was finding out if they were ever going to get to stinking place, I won't divulge any more here other than to say, as is always the case with these, the vast majority of the book is sort of about Stewart's "metaphorical" journey and blah blah. But don't worry, it's light on that bit.
"A WWII Spy"--Not nearly as much in here as I hoped about this part, but, considering the fact that this is a book written by what I assume is a reputable journalist, having this bit of factual backstory makes it fun. I think there's the novel-reader side of me that wanted this to be more of a chunk, but outside of just making things up, Stewart was pretty well stuck with what the facts were. Forgivable.
"A True Story of Deadly Adventure"--I mean, yeah. You're in the jungle. Everything wants to kill you. Adventure...hm...this one is tricky. For him, I'm sure it was. There are also some really good examples in here of how I feel like he must've maybe had this title foisted on him, as more than once, they cross paths with folks who are just living a regular old normal life in the midst of this area that Stewart considers a 'deadly adventure' to traverse. Perspectives. They're out there...
So, okay, why 3 out of 5 stars? It was just a little light on everything. I think the experience was probably very moving for the author, and he does a good job of putting you there in the jungle with him, but, and this is obviously no fault of his own, we already know he's going to live and make it back. That's just what happens in any book written in past tense. But there also isn't much on really gripping detail in any of the three subtitled points.
Don't believe the started and finished dates down there. That's just the day that I remembered to upload it to this, but, I think I read it in 2 or 3 evenings, so it's a quick little read. If you absolutely want to get into the "guy walks into the jungle to see what happens" genre (as it is now officially christened), it's not a bad place to start. These types of books tend to swing on a spectrum of too much backstory or not enough info or a hundred other varying characteristics that are difficult to balance. But, if you've never read any of these, it's a painless, easy, entertaining way to check this type of book out.
July 26, 2023
In 2009, journalist Christopher S. Stewart left his Brooklyn apartment, wife, and child for a month to travel to Honduras, not to cover the military coup that was taking place as he arrived, but to begin his own personal search for the “Lost City of the Monkey God,” aka the “White City,” that was described by various explorers since the time of the Spanish conquistadors and most recently by American adventurer and World War II spy Theodore Monde. In 1941, Monde became an international celebrity after reporting that he had discovered the ruins of the once monumental stone city, inhabited by a perhaps unknown civilization, in the midst of the brutal Honduran rainforest. However, Monde never returned to the site, his life interrupted by WWII and other personal issues culminating in his death by suicide in 1954. Worse, he never divulged the exact location, and the city remained lost.
Stewart had always been fascinated by the stories of the Lost City and had developed quite an interest in Monde and his expedition, accumulating notebooks full of research and even meeting with Monde’s nephew who had possession of Monde’s personal papers and journals. He met with other explorers and anthropologists who had worked in Honduras. Finally, he decided he had to go and see for himself. In Jungleland, he tells the stories of the two expeditions, Monde’s and his own, in alternating chapters. Though 70 years apart, Stewart and Monde faced many of the same obstacles, the dangerous jungle itself and man. The Honduras of 1941 and of 2009 hadn’t changed much: corruption, unstable government, pirates, bandits, wanted men hiding out in the jungle, etc. Jungleland is very similar to David Grann’s The Lost City of Z and Douglas Preston’s The Lost City of the Monkey God, both excellent books on the subject of lost cities. Interestingly, archaeologists and anthropologists have made stunning discoveries in the last decade or two that have turned traditional thoughts about “civilization” in the rainforests of central and South America on their head. Orthodoxy had previously held that the rainforests could never have supported anything more than very small nomadic bands of hunters and gatherers. Now, evidence is mounting that there were, in fact, large stone cities with roads and irrigation systems supporting large, more sedentary, populations.
If you’re interested in the subject, I recommend reading any, or even better, all three books.
Stewart had always been fascinated by the stories of the Lost City and had developed quite an interest in Monde and his expedition, accumulating notebooks full of research and even meeting with Monde’s nephew who had possession of Monde’s personal papers and journals. He met with other explorers and anthropologists who had worked in Honduras. Finally, he decided he had to go and see for himself. In Jungleland, he tells the stories of the two expeditions, Monde’s and his own, in alternating chapters. Though 70 years apart, Stewart and Monde faced many of the same obstacles, the dangerous jungle itself and man. The Honduras of 1941 and of 2009 hadn’t changed much: corruption, unstable government, pirates, bandits, wanted men hiding out in the jungle, etc. Jungleland is very similar to David Grann’s The Lost City of Z and Douglas Preston’s The Lost City of the Monkey God, both excellent books on the subject of lost cities. Interestingly, archaeologists and anthropologists have made stunning discoveries in the last decade or two that have turned traditional thoughts about “civilization” in the rainforests of central and South America on their head. Orthodoxy had previously held that the rainforests could never have supported anything more than very small nomadic bands of hunters and gatherers. Now, evidence is mounting that there were, in fact, large stone cities with roads and irrigation systems supporting large, more sedentary, populations.
If you’re interested in the subject, I recommend reading any, or even better, all three books.
October 4, 2018
I love a good adventure book & this one delivers. It's about trying to find a lost white city in Honduras, following the trail an explorer left 70 years earlier.I have read Lost city of Z, The Unconquered & Search for Shangri-la plus many others who follow the paths of explorers so wasn't sure if this book would be any different.
The author seems not to have broken his boots in before he left so was immediately troubled by massive blisters & complained the whole time to his archaeologist buddy who had agreed to guide him through the region. Each short chapter is alternated with Morde's experiences, which is ok when Morde is in the jungle but kind of loses relevancy when he becomes a world war 2 spy. The spy part is only short though so that's ok. I think the book would have been better if the author was fitter, he said he was always to miserable to appreciate the beauty of the forest so there are not many positive descriptions of any of the birds (actually I don't think he saw any birds) or animals or scenery, except how it relates to possibly killing him.
He makes a few conclusions at the end which are interesting, I'm fascinated by the subject so will continue to read books like this but nothing ground breaking is revealed. It is a good read all the same & for re-introducing a forgotten explorer to the world.
The author seems not to have broken his boots in before he left so was immediately troubled by massive blisters & complained the whole time to his archaeologist buddy who had agreed to guide him through the region. Each short chapter is alternated with Morde's experiences, which is ok when Morde is in the jungle but kind of loses relevancy when he becomes a world war 2 spy. The spy part is only short though so that's ok. I think the book would have been better if the author was fitter, he said he was always to miserable to appreciate the beauty of the forest so there are not many positive descriptions of any of the birds (actually I don't think he saw any birds) or animals or scenery, except how it relates to possibly killing him.
He makes a few conclusions at the end which are interesting, I'm fascinated by the subject so will continue to read books like this but nothing ground breaking is revealed. It is a good read all the same & for re-introducing a forgotten explorer to the world.
June 30, 2023
This was similar to "Turn Right at Machu Picchu" (2011, sold about 200,000 copies) in that both authors were not outdoor types, both stories followed exploits of other explorers but Turn Right had an additional layer/level of insight, providing details of the Inca Empire. The Lost City culture(s)/builders are not so identified (and may have been the Tawahkas cAD1,000). The background information on Morde, the earlier discoverer was intriguing, especially the time in Turkey developing a plot to kill or capture Hitler.
I thought the author a fool to leave his wife and three year-old daughter (soon to be four) to go on such a dangerous outing. In the end he agreed. He also concluded the Lost City was a state of mind, no matter tow many ruins/sites were uncovered.
Although this book sold around 15,000 copies, another telling Douglas Preston's "The Lost City of the Monkey God" released a few years later (2017) sold ~600,000 copies. Three years ago I had read that book and don't remember much. I'm curious if they located the same sites, went the same routes, used the same sources (and if Stewart's book was referenced).
They were equally interesting. What made the Preston book sell forty times as many copies, besides having the more interesting title?
I'm rereading Preston's "Lost City of the Monkey God" to compare to Chris Stewart's "Jungleland." They were both searching for the same Ciudad Blanca, in Honduras. Preston does mention Stewart's 2011 book on pages 30-31 and goes even further suggesting Morde (the adventurer spy) was never looking for it but was seeking gold, and the fictional side story of the Lost City of the Monkey God caught the public's imagination so Morde let that tale have a life of it's own.
I thought the author a fool to leave his wife and three year-old daughter (soon to be four) to go on such a dangerous outing. In the end he agreed. He also concluded the Lost City was a state of mind, no matter tow many ruins/sites were uncovered.
Although this book sold around 15,000 copies, another telling Douglas Preston's "The Lost City of the Monkey God" released a few years later (2017) sold ~600,000 copies. Three years ago I had read that book and don't remember much. I'm curious if they located the same sites, went the same routes, used the same sources (and if Stewart's book was referenced).
They were equally interesting. What made the Preston book sell forty times as many copies, besides having the more interesting title?
I'm rereading Preston's "Lost City of the Monkey God" to compare to Chris Stewart's "Jungleland." They were both searching for the same Ciudad Blanca, in Honduras. Preston does mention Stewart's 2011 book on pages 30-31 and goes even further suggesting Morde (the adventurer spy) was never looking for it but was seeking gold, and the fictional side story of the Lost City of the Monkey God caught the public's imagination so Morde let that tale have a life of it's own.
January 7, 2022
Last year I read Douglas Preston's The Lost City of the Monkey God. Preston was in search of exactly the same city (also known as the White City) that Christopher Stewart was. Of course, neither of them found it. They both would have made their explorations before the other one had published. Although their accounts of life pushing through the jungle were horrible, I doubt reading the other's work would have stopped them since they both had access to memoirs of other explorers and went anyway. Both were influenced by Thomas Morde, who had been there 70 some years before, supposedly found the city, left mysteriously coded coordinates on his walking stick, and committed suicide before telling anybody exactly where he'd been.
At the end, Stewart's guide correctly surmises, "For the indigenous people, it seems in general that the legend refers to the last areas in which these groups lived prior to being in close contact with other groups, like where they lived before the Spanish arrived. Essentially the White City is the place [in their memory] that no longer exists anymore—their lost frontier, their lost lives, their lost autonomy, the good old days. They believe in it because it represents the past that they don’t want to forget.” He stopped for a second and then added, “It is their story.”
At the end, Stewart's guide correctly surmises, "For the indigenous people, it seems in general that the legend refers to the last areas in which these groups lived prior to being in close contact with other groups, like where they lived before the Spanish arrived. Essentially the White City is the place [in their memory] that no longer exists anymore—their lost frontier, their lost lives, their lost autonomy, the good old days. They believe in it because it represents the past that they don’t want to forget.” He stopped for a second and then added, “It is their story.”
July 30, 2018
This is not my usual genre, but I picked it up after seeing a GoodReads friend had read it and I was looking for something new. I gave it 4 stars because I found it to be a fast-paced read that fully immersed me in the author's account. Once I started reading it, I didn't want to put it down because I wanted to get to the part where they found the lost city (which ended up being a bit disappointing). I liked how Stewart alternated chapters between his own journey and that of his predecessor, Morde. I think what I liked most about his book was that it made me reflect on how different our lifestyles are across the globe. As Stewart was detailing what was, to him, the most unbearable and miserable conditions of trekking through the jungle, he would then stumble upon individuals or entire settlements where his perceived misery was their daily condition.
Similarly to when I read Wild by Cheryl Strayed, I found myself slightly irritated by the ignorance (or is it arrogance) of someone who is woefully untrained and unprepared taking on a dangerous and difficult journey to satisfy some not clearly understood (by me) personal growth.
In all, though, I found this an interesting read, and enjoyed learning about the topic.
Similarly to when I read Wild by Cheryl Strayed, I found myself slightly irritated by the ignorance (or is it arrogance) of someone who is woefully untrained and unprepared taking on a dangerous and difficult journey to satisfy some not clearly understood (by me) personal growth.
In all, though, I found this an interesting read, and enjoyed learning about the topic.
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