The Book of Exploration

by Raymond John Howgego

A chronological tour of the history of exploration in the style of The Map Book, by the world's leading expert.

Before the turn of the 19th century, ventures into uncharted lands required material or spiritual reward to justify the perils of shipwreck and hostile natives, and dangers yet unknown. Until recent times exploration for the sake of knowledge alone was rare, and mostly undertaken by intrepid traders, gold seekers and valiant Christian missionaries.

The Book of Exploration elegantly presents more than 150 of the most influential and unusual journeys of discovery, setting each firmly in its historical context. Chronicling the personalities and motivations, the conditions that had to be endured, and the contribution these explorations have made to our knowledge of the world, it is replete with extraordinary personalities: the heroic adventurers who set out into the unknown, battling against the elements in order to commit their findings to journals and maps; the pioneers who risked everything in search of fabled riches; and the explorers who set out to conquer the deserts, poles and oceans of the globe.

Organized simply and chronologically, beautifully illustrated with contemporary maps, paintings, journal entries and other artifacts, and with entertaining asides and sometimes unorthodox interpretations based on the author's lifetime study of the subject, The Book of Exploration is a sumptuous feast for anyone interested in world history and geography.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Travel

360 pages, Hardcover

First published August 13, 2009

Reviews

[GoldGato · Rating 4 out of 5]

Here is a coffee-table-ish book on the history of all the world’s known explorers since the 16th century BCE. It’s big, it’s heavy, and it’s a page-turner thanks to the nice layout and chronological approach to the subject matter. Starting with the Immortal Voyage in ancient Egypt and ending with the Trans-Arctic Expedition of 1969, the book looks at each nook and cranny of the earth that was discovered through the centuries.

Each explorer/expedition receives two pages, with the text explanation on the left and the illustrations/photos on the right. This is what makes the reading so easy, as you know what you’re going to get and you know it’s going to be something that moved the exploring compass forward in history. The illustrations, including many maps, are beautiful and provide context for the journeys. I never lost interest, which makes this a successful “good” read.

Book Season = Year Round (intrepid seekers)

[James (JD) Dittes · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book covers a wide array of explorations from 1470 BCE to 1968. Most of the explorers covered are European, but Howgego fits in a few women and Asians, too. One continent whose exploration was new to me was Australia, which features in seven or eight entires.

As richly illustrated as this book is, I was disappointed not to find maps of the explorations. It would have really helped me to imagine.

[Maria · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not particularly scholarly, but filled with discoveries.