Richard Halliburton's Complete Book of Marvels

by Richard Halliburton

Book in good condition like new no dust jacket. one minor bend on end book in fine condition

Genres: Travel, Geography, Nonfiction, History, Adventure, School, Childrens

640 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1937

About the author

Writer, Lecturer, and World Traveler, Richard Halliburton published numerous books during his short lifetime. During his world travels, he visited exotic locales such as the Taj Mahal in India, climbed the Matterhorn, flew across the Sahara desert in a bi-winged plane, and swam the entire length of the Panama Canal. He also roamed the Mediterranean Sea retracing the route followed by Ulysses in Homer's Odyssey and crossed the Swiss Alps on the back of an elephant in a recreation of Hannibal's expedition. Halliburton died (or, more accurately, disappeared) in March 1939 as he and his crew attempted to sail a Chinese junk, the Sea Dragon, from Hong Kong to San Francisco as a publicity stunt. The vessel was unseaworthy and went down in a storm around March 23-24, 1939. His body was never recovered

Reviews

[Mir · Rating 4 out of 5]

Aw, dorktastic! I can totally imagine some nerdy little kids of yesteryear poring intently over this tome, memorizing its factual information and dreaming of visiting these marvellous dams, bridges, and geographic features. Halliburton's voice is perfect for the book: he's just so excited about even the driest data! This delight in factual information is especially impressive in an individual so outdoorsy and adventurous, as these qualities are not often found together.

This book made a generation of children dream of travel and adventure. I can't imagine it holding much interest for the youngsters of today, however. What attraction could these figures and grainy black and white photos* hold in the era of wikipedia and (in color!) travel documentaries?


*Halliburton was actually a pretty good photographer; the cheap reproductions in this book don't do his work justice. I couldn't find alternate versions of the ones from the book, but here's a photo of his "Hangover House" in Laguna, designed by his friend William Alexander (Alexander's partner Paul Mooney was Halliburton's editor).

[Penelope Dreadfulle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the third book I received from my father for my tenth birthday along with The Good Master and The Singing Tree, both by Kate Seredy... But this one was different. Instead of the brand new book smell I was used to smelling on birthdays and Christmas, I smelled the old book library smell. My father had received this book for his tenth birthay from his father and chose this day to pass it on to me. He gave it to me to show me the world. For that is what this book contains, no more and no less than the world...stories of marvelous faraway places told by the adventurer who saw them first hand at a time when getting there was oftentimes more wonderous than the sight of the marvel itself.

The book is divided in two (I believe it was actually two books when first published in 1937), the first part being the Occident and the second, the Orient. Mr. Halliburton writes as if he were your fourth grade teacher, taking you on a field trip around the world. He takes you from the newly built "Transbay" Bridge (now the Bay Bridge) and Golden Gate Bridge in Califonia, across the US to the Grand Canyon, Hoover Dam, Niagra Falls, through central and South Amrica to Chichen Itza, Machu Picchu, and Iguazu Falls, and accross the Atlantic to Gibralter, Vesuvius, Pompeii and the Parthenon...and that's just the first half. My favorite chapter in the first half of the book describes the blue grotto on the island of Capri. I have dreamed of seeing the silver blue light painted on the walls of the grotto ever since, though in this day and age, I doubt you'd be allowed to take a swim in it...

The orient starts with a tour of the seven wonders of the ancient world (the lighthouse of Alexandria always amazed me...) and moves on through Timbuctoo (I remember being ecstatic to find out it's a real place...I had thought Bugs Bunny made it up), Victoria Falls, a Baghdad much different than the one we hear about in the news, Petra, Lhasa, Angkor Wat, and the Mountain I was born in sight of: Fujiyama.

The sights I mention here are only a sampling...How can you pack the world into a single book review? I cannot even begin to tell you how much I love this book. So I will leave you with the insciption my father left me on the frontispiece: "When I was a young boy, I acquired my love of travel and adventure by reading--and one of the most exciting books I ever read was this one. I give it now to you with the prayer that you will enjoy many pleasant hours traveling with Mr. Halliburton on his journey around the world."

Thanks Dad. I did.

[Kerri (Book Hoarder) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book fascinated me as a kid - my grandmother had it as two separate books, actually... I need to check to see if she still has them! I used to reread them all the time, completely captivated, and I think that's when and how I developed my love for history.

Halliburton's writing is easily accessible and makes this easy reading for children and adults alike, and can easily instill a wonder for the world and a desire to travel. I'd definitely recommend it, even if some information will undoubtedly be outdated after the seventy years that have passed since he travelled.

[Summer · Rating 5 out of 5]

MARVELous!

Well, this was an adventure! We went to many places I have heard of, and some that I have been to, but there were so many I had never heard of, and people I would like to learn more about. Some may be annoyed with what might be perceived as exaggeration of his experiences in the book, and they may be right, but by the end I just felt like I was talking to a friend. I loved how he mixed the lore and facts with an adventure of his own in each chapter. He must have read and loved The Odyssey as a boy because it seemed like he never could get enough of adventure. In some aspects he reminded me of my Grandpa Charlie a bit. The sense of wonder in all the wonderful things there are to see in the world is definitely the same. And doing the things that he wasn't quite permitted to do, but did anyway, or so he says. I learned a lot and even though G, my oldest complained about it a fair amount throughout the last two years, when I asked him how he rated the book, he said "5 stars!!!"

[Amy Harris · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh my, what can we say about this absolute treasure of a book? My son and I have spent the past 2 years with Halliburton, through AO's years 5 & 6, being guided on a journey around the world. Now that we are finished, it's hard to imagine not taking a trip with Halliburton each week! We have both learned so much and been inspired to add countless locations to our bucket lists. This is the most fun we have ever spent learning about geography. I am thankful I found a beautiful, vintage edition that I hope will be a part of our family library for generations.

[Nate Golon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Halliburton sits on top of the Golden Gate Bridge, and there is no road far below, as it's still under construction. An amazing look at the world through the eyes of a worldwide traveler in the 1930s.

[Peggyzbooksnmusic · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book belonged to my deceased Mother. It was gifted to her by her favorite Uncle Bob when she was about 10 years old. I read this SO many times as a child. Unfortunately it was eventually lost. She thought she might have lent it out. Precious memories!

[Kelly Sedinger · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh, wow, this book...this is a volume that informed so much of my life, filling my youth with wonder at a time when I was particularly open to it. My mother got a copy somehow, on an interlibrary loan or something like that, when I was 14 or 15, and it just hit me between the eyes. A few years later she tracked down a copy for me for Christmas, and the book has occupied a treasured place in my personal library ever since.

(Story: My mother apparently commissioned my older sister, who lived in a large city at the time and therefore had more access to used booksellers, to find the book. One day my sister calls home and talks to Dad, who knows none of this, and gives him the message that she found the book Mom was looking for, the "Complete Book of Marvels". So later on, Dad quite innocently says to Mom, while I'm in the room -- because he doesn't know, why wouldn't he say it -- "Oh, Tracey called, she said she found that book you were looking for, the Book of Marvels." Mom hit the roof, she was so incensed that the secret was out. Anyway....)

Richard Halliburton was an adventurer of the old school, a guy who traveled around the world by the seat of his pants, intending to see EVERYTHING, and he very nearly did. He wrote many amazing travel books, but this is the one that got me in the heart. It's a travelogue of one amazing thing in the world after another, from the Pyramids to the Panama Canal to Niagara Falls to Iguazu to Mt Fuji to Nepal to the Taj Mahal to the Louvre. It's an amazing book that's just teeming with a sense of wonder about the world.

(A caveat: Halliburton was a well-to-do white man living in the opening decades of the 20th century, and he occasionally displays many of the attitudes common to white Western men of the day. Yes, he is occasionally racist and/or sexist. It doesn't sink the book in any way, but it IS there.)

[Crystal Laws · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! My kids and I are hallfway through this awesome book. We "travel" with Halliburton in our big world atlas and we're getting a wonderful grasp of geography. So much better than just memorizing from a political map. It has inspired us to actually travel to see amazing places (we never go anywhere). 🙂

Edited to add: We are now finished and my kids are quite sad. They loudly groaned when I told them it was over. Best geography lessons EVER.

[Ruth · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a kid I adored this book. It still colors the way I see the world. I wish I could remember who gave it to me.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I LOVED THIS BOOK!

Which is all the more amazing because this was one of my mom's favorite & treasured childhood books, and she always wanted my sister and me to read it when we were kids. We never did (until now). It became family shorthand for lovingly attempting & failing to force something on someone.

Now I have no idea why I never gave it a chance while I was a kid, but 30-some years later - so good!!! It's just really fun for readers of all ages, and it ages much much better than I was afraid it would (with the exception of the Timbuktu chapter!). It's also such an amazing snapshot of a point in time - when someone could travel so widely and explore both ancient sites as well as see the construction of new ones (the Golden Gate Bridge and Hoover Dam!). I also feel like there's now more focus on the wonders of the natural world, which is great, but Halliburton's marvels were such a wonderful mix of the familiar, the classic, and the totally new-to-me!

[Naomi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing descriptions of visiting places all around the world. I wish this had been my geography and history textbook growing up. I'm enjoying it as much as my boys.

[Anna · Rating 5 out of 5]

You are there! Five stars with a caveat: both my son and I found the chapter on Timbuctoo (entitled "The Slave City") quite disturbing - Halliburton and his friend buy two child slaves to keep off the bats that have been driving them crazy during their stay in the city. It did provoke some discussion, but I am still not sure if it was worth the distress. There are a few other instances of racist ideas that are easily edited if reading aloud. In general it is a beautiful mix of fact and story that will take you to places you may never be able (or brave enough!) to go in person.

[Shipley · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is not a children's book, but it was the book that my father read to my brother and me every night for what seemed like years during my childhood. I have the best memories of this book -- though my memories are more about being cuddled up with my dad and brother on my brother's bed than they are about the adventures Halliburton describes.

[Michelle Fournier · Rating 5 out of 5]

2024 2nd read through with another child!

You know it is a fascinating read when I am glad to have one more student with whom to read this book! 💜

[Lenny Husen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really wish I could give this SIX STARS--often I rate books 5 out of 5--meaning, I got the maxium possible out of a book that I hoped for going in. But I wish there was a way to add a plus or some other symbol to designate "this is one of the best books I have ever read and if you are a human being, you need to read this" and this is one of those books.
Hallburton was a Professional Adventurer who lived from 1900 to 1939, when he died in a storm at sea when his ship sank. But before that, he traveled the world, and wrote these two amazing, wait, let me say AMAZING volumes about all the World Wonders that existed in the 1920's to 1930's. He also describes in full the 7 Wonders of the World in Ancient Times, as he traveled to each site where 6 of those were and one still exists. The first volume is the Occident (Western World) and the second volume is the Orient. The books were published a year or two before he died.
The book is full of maps and black-and-white photos. It is a treasure beyond belief. I only wish I had read this when I was young. It is written so romantically, with fascinating details and stories and legends, one asks oneself, "Why can't children be taught history THIS way?!!!" instead of the way I was taught where anything interesting or exciting was expunged or skipped completely and sanded down to dullness.

This book makes me want to travel the world and endure hardships just to see the things Halliburton saw and to go where he went. He was Gay or Bisexual, never married or had kids, went to Princeton, did everything possible he could.
He climbed all the things which is my Ultimate Wish--to be allowed to climb up all the buildings, the towers, the minarets, the pyramids, every Man-Made structure that has stairs.
Nowadays this is usually impossible--always the highest storeys are blocked off from tourists.
But Halliburton climbed them all!!!

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

Even though it’s nearly 100 years old, and now we have Pinterest and TripAdvisor, this travelogue was fascinating. I learned about so many places I never knew existed. Halliburton is an extremely gifted storyteller. The descriptions were so vivid it did not matter that the photos were black and white. We did start laughing at the end that he seemed to meet an impossible number of important people. He seemed to be in the right place at the right time with unlikely frequency. But, he could have simply been a bold, magnetic personality in an era when outsiders were a curiosity.

Note - there is one chapter set in Africa that I found appalling - his treatment of the young boy they hired as a servant. Even knowing this was from an era of white colonialism, I still could not excuse it. Not enough to make me give up the book - but next time I read this to a child we will skip that chapter.

[Rosie Gearhart · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fascinating geography book and worth every penny I paid! Halliburton takes you along with him on his many adventures around the world in the early 20th century. There are black and white pictures throughout the book that the author took, but we also looked up pictures online after reading about each place. Perfect for ages 7 to 99!

One caution: there is a chapter where he buys two children as servants/slaves and then later returns them. It’s a good chapter to read together with your children so you can discuss. Other than that, the rest of the book is fine to hand over to them.

[Sophia Ewing · Rating 1 out of 5]

For some people this book would be great. This review will give u the pro’s and con’s of the book 📖. First the pro’s, it had a lot of good details, it had a lot of good marvelous places, and his humor was ok sometimes. Con’s, I felt like ether through in’s him off of everything he dragged me to, or through my self, his humor was brutal, he made u go everywhere with him, and he had to may details. Maybe this can help you or not just my opinion. 😜

[Dawn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Written for a young audience, this book is about travel to fifty-five special destinations throughout the world, and the history of each place as well as a thorough description, just as though you were actually there. The book was written in the years between the world wars, and the author shows the genuine respect he had for whatever culture he was visiting.

[Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A reread from childhood. This was a favorite book growing up. My 6th grade teacher read it to us and I fell in love with the stories and adventures.

[Jamie · Rating 3 out of 5]

It’s mostly a re-hash of all his other adventures, which I’ve already read.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I LOVE this book.

[Rachel Wofford · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very entertaining for 8+. Well-written and informative!

[Brandy Sexton · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have not read the entire book, but his excitement, energy, and detail was a welcome addition to our geography studies.

[Grayson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Golden Gate Bridge, Rio de Janeiro, and Angkor, walled City were my favorite chapters.

[Shannon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely fantastic narrative-style geography book. Will re-use with my younger children again when they're a bit older!

[Staci · Rating 5 out of 5]

My oldest read this out loud to us for school for the past 18 months. It was a favorite for our family!

[Laurel · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was strongly suggested by Ambleside Online for homeschool required reading, and when I bought my copy from eBay it was a rare find as it was still very much out of print at the time. Now it’s easier to find via Living Books Press and I must say, if you can get a copy, you should. Halliburton’s incredible way of weaving history into each of the “Marvels” he details in the book is just completely captivating. My kids and I learned about new historical figures and fascinating sights that I had no idea about…me, a history lover! It’s such a shame Halliburton died so young, and we got so few stories from him.

[Bobfathyahoo.com · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm 68 years old and I'm reading this book again to see if it conjures up the fascination it did when I first read it at age 10 or reread it at age 12. Halliburton was truly gifted in making faraway and historical places come alive in a style that could appeal to children and adults. It's a tragedy he was lost at sea when he was only 39. What marvels would he have found in the world of the 1970's? I keep trying to think of the wonders of today's world and wish there was a Halliburton to make them as interesting and exciting as the marvels of ancient times and the world of the 30's.