The sketchbook has been the one constant in explorers' kits for centuries of adventure. Often private; they are records of immediate experiences and discoveries; and in their pages we can see what the explorers themselves encountered. This remarkable book showcases 70 such sketchbooks; kept by intrepid men and women as they journeyed perilous and unknown environments—frozen wastelands; high mountains; barren deserts; and dense rainforests—with their senses wide open. Figures such as Charles Darwin and Sir Edmund Hillary are joined here by lesser-known explorers such as Adela Breton; who braved the jungles of Mexico to make a record of Mayan monuments. Here are profiles; expedition details; and the artwork of pioneering explorers and mapmakers; botanists and artists; ecologists and anthropologists; eccentrics and visionaries. Here is the art of discovery.
#971308 in Books 2016-02-15Original language:English 9.21 x 1.00 x 6.14l; 1.10 #File Name: 1445654563272 pages
Review
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Letters From The FrontBy Philip H. KozloffAdrian Greenwood did historians interested in military history a real service in finding these letters; arranging them in sequence; researching the sometimes obscure references in the letters; filling in important context; and finally publishing it all. All this he did superbly well. The end product is an engaging read that adds substantially to our understanding of Wellington's campaigns in the Peninsula War with Napoleon. He has done this without sacrificing a very human view of the man who was Peter Le Mesurier.Peter entered the army with juvenile enthusiasm and ambition. Over the course of his letters; we see him develop and begin to appreciate him as a charming young man in a difficult situation. His sense of humour never leaves him and we can see that his devotion to his Guernsey family is a constant of his life. The more we read of his letters; the more we like him.We tend to think modern military warfare is different now than it was 150 years ago. This book intrinsically tends to challenge that perception because; from the point of view of the soldier in the trench; Le Mesurier's concerns and emotions will resonate and seem very modern to a soldier today. Wellington's army was surprisingly modern in that it provided personal postal services to its troops serving on the front lines in Spain and Portugal. We are fortunate that Le Mesurier took advantage of that service and wrote the letters so assiduously; that the letters were preserved over these 150 years; and that Adrian Greenwood brought them all together in such an appealing package.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Four StarsBy Mark KaczmarekAs described. Timely arrival.
