Explorers extraordinary

by John Keay

Armchair adventurers and lovers of the idiosyncratic will thoroughly enjoy John Keay's amusing account of notable, nutty personalities from the lunatic fringe of nineteenth century world travelers.Meet "contemptuous, trigger-happy" Savage Landor, who climbed the Himalayas without mountain climbing gear because he considered it "cheating". Fend off crocodiles with Mary Kingsly, the eccentric English spinster who traversed the swamps and steamy interiors of Africa in formal black skirts, high collars, cummerbunds, and furry hats. Consider the curious Frenchman Louis de Rougemont and his "Most Amazing Story a Man Ever Lived to Tell", and take a "Walk On the Weird Side" with Dr. Ludwig Leichardt, the "unsufferably prickly" German botanist who vanished without trace into the Australian Outback. There is also the tale of canoe-paddling evangelist John "Rob Roy" MacGregor, who sailed through the Suez Canal before it was built, and that of sailor John Dundas Cochrane, who tried to walk around the world. Finally, consider the strange fate of Isabelle Eberhardt, the morose "Amazon of the Sands" who died at the age of 27 a legend of the Sahara.John Keay has assembled a witty, satirical companion volume to his much heralded Eccentric Travelers that entertains as it recaptures the unique spirit of the long lost nineteenth century travel writing literary tradition.

256 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 1986

About the author

John Stanley Melville Keay FRGS is an English journalist and author specialising in writing popular histories about India and the Far East, often with a particular focus on their colonisation and exploration by Europeans.

John Keay is the author of about 20 books, all factual, mostly historical, and largely to do with Asia, exploration or Scotland. His first book stayed in print for thirty years; many others have become classics. His combination of meticulous research, irreverent wit, powerful narrative and lively prose have invariably been complimented by both reviewers and readers.

UK-based and a full-time author since 1973, he also wrote and presented over 100 documentaries for BBC Radios 3 and 4 from 1975-95 and guest-lectured tour groups 1990-2000. He reviews on related subjects, occasionally speaks on them, and travels extensively.

Reviews

[Stev Berru · Rating 4 out of 5]

De bonnes anecdotes d'aventure, malgrés quelques lacunes dans le rapport des récits de ces explorateurs du 19e siècle. On a une bonne liste de lecture de récit d'aventure à la fin du livre.