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Riposa nei luoghi del mondo: viaggio post-vita di mio padre
by Marlayna Glynn Brown Paola GattoGli affezionati lettori di Marlayna sanno già che il padre ha dedicato la sua vita all'alcol: riuscirà mai a trovare rendenzione e perdono per mano della figlia? Il viaggio dell'autrice per disperdere le ceneri del padre nei luoghi del mondo che lui non aveva mai potuto vedere, è l'allegoria di un viaggio spirituale e catartico, a tratti condiviso con i figli, nel tentativo di recuperare il rapporto con lui che non aveva mai vissuto e di trovare l'equilibrio interiore che ogni vera madre e persona realizzata deve avere. La narrazione, che si apre con la celebrazione di ciò che non esiste più, si svolge lungo le tappe di un viaggio tanto magnifico quanto ricco di sorprese, che agevolano il passaggio dei giovani figli dalla vita adolescenziale alla vita adulta e la maturazione personale di nuove consapevolezze, da cui può prendere finalmente le mosse una nuova vita.
Ripple Effects: How We're Loving Our Lakes to Death
by Ted J. RulsehLakes are among the Upper Midwest’s greatest treasures and most valuable natural resources. The Great Lakes define the region, and thousands of smaller lakes offer peace, joy, and recreation to millions. And yet, in large part because of the numbers of people who enjoy the local waterways, the lakes of Wisconsin, Michigan, and Minnesota face numerous challenges. Invasive species, pollution, defective septic systems, inadequate shoreland zoning laws, and climate change are present and increasingly existential threats. We are, quite possibly, loving our lakes to death. In his engaging and conversational style, Ted Rulseh details each of these challenges and proposes achievable solutions. He draws on personal experience, interviews, academic research, and government reports to describe the state of the lakes, the stresses they are under, and avenues to successful lakeside living for a sustainable future. Ripple Effects will be a go-to source for all who love lakes and who advocate for their protection; its driving question is summed up by one of Rulseh’s interviewees: “We love this lake. What can we do to keep it healthy?”
Rising Ground: A Search for the Spirit of Place
by Philip MarsdenThe travel writer and Cornwall native explores his home on a journey by foot to Land&’s End in this &“fascinating and hauntingly evocative&” memoir (Literary Review). A Guardian, Financial Times, Observer, and Scotsman Book of the Year In 2010, Philip Marsden moved with his family to a rundown farmhouse in Cornwall, England. From the moment he arrived, Marsden was fascinated by the landscape and the traces of human history all around him. Wanting to experience the place more fully, he set out to walk across Cornwall, to the evocatively named Land&’s End. Rising Ground is a record of that journey, but it is also so much more: a beautifully written meditation on place, nature, and human life that encompasses history, archaeology, geography, and the love of place that suffuses us when we finally find home. Firmly in a storied tradition of English nature writing that stretches from Gilbert White to Helen MacDonald, Rising Ground reveals the ways that places and peoples have interacted over time, from standing stones to footpaths, ancient habitations to modern highways. What does it mean to truly live in a place, and what does it take to understand, and honor, those who lived and died there long before we arrived? "A fascinating study of place and its meaning."—Observer, UK
Rising: Dispatches from the New American Shore
by Elizabeth RushHailed as “deeply felt” (New York Times), “a revelation” (Pacific Standard), and “the book on climate change and sea levels that was missing” (Chicago Tribune), Rising is both a highly original work of lyric reportage and a haunting meditation on how to let go of the places we love. <P><P>With every passing day, and every record-breaking hurricane, it grows clearer that climate change is neither imagined nor distant―and that rising seas are transforming the coastline of the United States in irrevocable ways. In Rising, Elizabeth Rush guides readers through some of the places where this change has been most dramatic, from the Gulf Coast to Miami, and from New York City to the Bay Area. For many of the plants, animals, and humans in these places, the options are stark: retreat or perish in place. <P><P>Weaving firsthand testimonials from those facing this choice―a Staten Islander who lost her father during Sandy, the remaining holdouts of a Native American community on a drowning Isle de Jean Charles, a neighborhood in Pensacola settled by escaped slaves hundreds of years ago―with profiles of wildlife biologists, activists, and other members of these vulnerable communities, Rising privileges the voices of those too often kept at the margins.
Risk Management for Events (Events Management)
by Julia Rutherford Silvers William O'TooleRisk Management for Events is a comprehensive and practical guide that supports academic and professional development programs to prepare individuals for entering or advancement in the international events industry. Events of all types are produced every day for all manner of purposes, attracting all sorts of people. Creating and managing the environment in which these people will gather carries with it awesome responsibilities — legal, ethical, and financial. To provide a safe and secure setting and to operate in a manner that ensures that the hosting organizations or individuals achieve their objectives in a proper and profitable way, event risk management must be fully integrated into all event plans and throughout the event management process.This new edition has been revised and updated to include: New case studies and examples from a wide range of international destinations and different types of events. Updated statistics and data throughout. New content on emergent risk, on-site decision-making, terrorism, and public health, including the COVID-19 pandemic, and corruption within events. Updated online material, including a case study archive and weblinks to useful resources. This will be an invaluable resource for all those studying events management.
Risk Management for Meetings and Events (Events Management)
by Julia Rutherford SilversEvents of all types are produced every day for all manner of purposes, attracting all sorts of people. Creating and managing the environment in which these people will gather carries with it awesome responsibilities — legal, ethical, and financial. To provide a safe and secure setting and to operate in a manner that ensures the hosting organizations or individuals achieve their objectives in a proper and profitable way, event risk management must be fully integrated into all event plans and throughout the event management process.Risk Management for Meetings and Events examines the practices, procedures, and safeguards associated with the identification, analysis, response planning, and control of the risks surrounding events of all types. Written by an experienced author it:* Provides a solid, easy-to-read conceptual foundation based on proven risk management techniques* Includes ready-to-use templates designed specifically as learning exercises for students and professionals* Comprehensively discusses effective strategies for managing the risks associated with design, planning and production of public and private events Risk Management for Meetings and Events is a comprehensive and practical guide which supports academic and professional development programs that prepare individuals for entering or advancement in the meeting and event management industry.
Risk and Hazard Management for Festivals and Events
by Peter Wynn-MoylanEvents of all types are produced every day for all manner of purposes, attracting all sorts of people. To provide a safe and secure setting in which people gather is imperative. Event risk and hazard management must be fully integrated into all event plans and throughout the event management process. Hazard management is the planning process required for the effective management of potential adverse incidents and areas of uncertainty. It involves intensive, detailed planning and cooperation to apply control systems to minimise hazards associated with venues, outdoor sites, work procedures, facilities, equipment and crowds of spectators. It involves planning for emergencies and security, and compliance with legal constraints and requirements. Risk and Hazard Management for Festivals and Events provides students with a comprehensive, fully integrated planning and management mechanism that can be applied to events of all types and size. The Event Safety Management System provides guidelines and processes for proactive methods to identify, assess and control hazardous conditions and practices. The system incorporates design of festival venues and sites, and unites the operational functions of crowd control, communications, security, terrorism prevention processes and emergency response protocols. Explanation of the causes of crowd disasters and studies into crowd behaviour are supported with international case studies. Written in an accessible, practical way, this book is essential reading for all events students and event managers.
Risk and Safety Challenges for Religious Tourism and Events
by Razaq Raj Maximiliano Korstanje Kevin GriffinTravellers today face many challenges from risk and safety issues. Focusing in particular on risk and safety issues faced by visitors to holy sites, this book looks at the unique challenges raised, where annual religious festivals are commemorated with mass gatherings lasting for days and large crowds require detailed disaster management plans. Beginning with a general section on risk management, covering areas such as disaster management, terrorism, crime and security, the book then delves deeper into specific issues and challenges. It reviews important topics such as understanding the behaviour of crowds, how to perform a risk assessment for a sacred space, and travelling in what some would regard as an increasingly hostile world. Examining critically all risk and safety challenges in this area of management, the book: - Includes a full section of global case studies, as well as discussion questions for each chapter, encouraging readers to translate theory into good practice. - Offers critical thinking on risk, vulnerability and long-term development for mass gatherings. - Covers the importance of disaster management practices and offers practical advice for ensuring attendees' safety. Mitigating risk at mass gathering events and festivals is an area that still needs further research, but this book brings together current thought and provides a valuable reference for those studying religion, tourism and events, as well as event organizers, emergency and hospital services, and local authorities.
Risk and Safety Challenges for Religious Tourism and Events (CABI Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage Series)
by Razaq Raj Alan Clarke Carlos Fernandes Geoffrey Skoll Yasin Bilim Kevin Griffin Dane Munro Hugues Seraphin Professor Maximiliano Korstanje Jahanzeeb Qurashi Ayesha Chowdhury Aynur Gülenc Birsen George Cassar Danielle Griffin Cyril Peter Yadukrishna P R Bernadette TheodoreTravellers today face many challenges from risk and safety issues. Focusing in particular on risk and safety issues faced by visitors to holy sites, this book looks at the unique challenges raised, where annual religious festivals are commemorated with mass gatherings lasting for days and large crowds require detailed disaster management plans. Beginning with a general section on risk management, covering areas such as disaster management, terrorism, crime and security, the book then delves deeper into specific issues and challenges. It reviews important topics such as understanding the behaviour of crowds, how to perform a risk assessment for a sacred space, and travelling in what some would regard as an increasingly hostile world. Examining critically all risk and safety challenges in this area of management, the book: - Includes a full section of global case studies, as well as discussion questions for each chapter, encouraging readers to translate theory into good practice. - Offers critical thinking on risk, vulnerability and long-term development for mass gatherings. - Covers the importance of disaster management practices and offers practical advice for ensuring attendees' safety. Mitigating risk at mass gathering events and festivals is an area that still needs further research, but this book brings together current thought and provides a valuable reference for those studying religion, tourism and events, as well as event organizers, emergency and hospital services, and local authorities.
Risk and Safety Management in the Leisure, Events, Tourism and Sports Industries
by Mark Piekarz Peter Mills Ian JenkinsRisk management can often be poorly understood and applied in the leisure, sport, tourism (including adventure) and event industries. In particular, there can be a tendency to see the management of risk as simply its avoidance or removal from activities, projects and business ventures. Unfortunately, this can reduce the quality of the activity experience, or mean opportunities for profits are missed. This book is therefore designed for students and practitioners who wish to improve upon past practices, make better management decisions and ensure safer operating environments. It includes: - an explanation of the core underpinning concepts of risk and safety, which can be used at different levels of management, in different countries, for all leisure related industry sectors; - numerous applied examples and case studies from around the world; - many practical hints and tips on how to analyse, assess and control risks and improve on safety; - explanations of the key legal and regulatory underpinnings of risk and safety; - how risk and safety management practices can be developed, and their relevance for health and safety assessments, project risk management and strategic planning.
Rituals and Traditional Events in the Modern World (Routledge Advances in Event Research Series)
by Warwick Frost Jennifer LaingMany events have evolved over centuries, drawing on local customs and conditions. However, as the world becomes increasingly globalised, traditional events and the identities they support are increasingly being challenged and rituals may be lost. Reacting against this trend towards homogeneity, communities strive to preserve and even recreate their traditional events, which may require rituals to be resurrected or reinvented for a new audience. The aim of this book is to explore the role of traditional events and rituals in the modern world. The 16 chapters cover a range of case studies of the performance of ritual through events, including their historical antecedents and development over time, as well as their role in society, link with identities both seemingly fixed and fluid and their continued relevance. The cases examined are not museum pieces, but rather vibrant festivals and events that continue to persist. Drawing on the power of history and cultural tradition, they are manifestations of heritage, existing in three temporalities: celebrating the past, occurring in the present and aiming to continue into and influence the future. Iconic events including Chinese New Year, Hogmanay and the New Orleans Mardi Gras are examined and examples are drawn from a diverse range of countries such as South Korea, China, Laos, the United States, Scotland, Italy, India and Haiti. This volume provides a deep understanding upon the role of tradition and ritual within events, from a global perspective and will be valuable reading for students, researchers and academics interested in events, heritage and culture.
River Master: John Wesley Powell's Legendary Exploration Of The Colorado River And Grand Canyon (American Grit #0)
by Cecil KuhneExperience John Powel's now-famous expedition through the Grand Canyon In 1869, Civil War veteran and amputee Major John Wesley Powell led an expedition down the uncharted Colorado River through the then-nameless Grand Canyon. This is the story of what started as a geological survey, but ended in danger, chaos, and blood. The men were inexperienced and ill-equipped, and they faced unimaginable peril. Along the way there was death, mutiny, and abject terror, but Powell persevered and produced a masterwork of adventure writing still held in the highest regard by the boatmen who follow his course today. With never-before-used primary sources and firsthand experience navigating Powell’s legendary route, Cecil Kuhne brings this remarkable chapter of frontier history to life. The American Grit series brings you true tales of endurance, survival, and ingenuity from the annals of American history. These books focus on the trials of remarkable individuals with an emphasis on rich primary source material and artwork.
River Monsters
by Jeremy WadeA tale of obsession and very big fish from Jeremy Wade, the presenter of ITV's RIVER MONSTERS.Over ten feet long, it weighs in at nearly a quarter of a ton. Covering its back are armoured plates made of bone. Five hundred stiletto-sharp teeth line its long crocodilian jaws. It's a prehistoric beast of staggering proportions; a fearsome creature from the time of the dinosaurs.But the Alligator Gar, an air-breathing survivor from the Cretaceous period is still with us today, patrolling inland rivers, hunting in murky waters shared by human communities.And for Jeremy Wade, described as the 'greatest angling explorer of his generation', the Gar and other outlandish freshwater predators have been an obsession for all his adult life. With names like Arapaima, Snakehead, Goonch, Goliath Tigerfish and Electric Eel, many of them have acquired an almost mythical status.In a quest that has taken him from the Amazon to the Congo, and from North America to the mountains of India, Wade has pursued the truth about these little known, often misunderstood animals. Along the way he's survived a plane crash, malaria and a fish-inflicted blow to the chest that, according to a later scan, caused permanent scarring to his heart.In RIVER MONSTERS, Wade delivers a sometimes jaw-dropping blend of adventure, natural history, legend and detective work. It reads like a hunt for the Loch Ness Monster. But it's all true. These are fisherman's tales like you've never heard before. The stories of the ones that didn't get away ...
River Road Rambler Returns: More Curiosities along Louisiana's Historic Byway
by Mary Ann Sternberg Elizabeth Randall NeelyIn River Road Rambler Returns: More Curiosities along Louisiana’s Historic Byway, Mary Ann Sternberg follows up her successful River Road Rambler with new delightful histories from Louisiana’s most famous route. Her latest explorations include a trip on a towboat as it pushes a fleet of barges down the river; the true story behind the Sunshine Bridge, fondly called the Bridge to Nowhere; a tour of one of the last working sugar mills along the River Road; stories about how two iconic plantation houses were saved; and much more.Well researched and engagingly written, River Road Rambler Returns provides keen observations on unappreciated places and offers rich histories of unusual attractions along the winding road that lines the Mississippi River between New Orleans and Baton Rouge.
River Road to China: The Search for the Source of the Mekong, 1866–73
by Milton OsborneIn 1866, six Frenchmen set out on a dangerous mission to seek a trade route up the Mekong. During the two years that followed, they would journey through more than four thousand miles of unmapped territory, from the tropical heat of the swamps of Vietnam and Cambodia to the bitter cold of the mountain ranges of southwestern China. Their historic expedition is the dramatic subject of River Road to China by world-renowned Southeast Asia expert Milton Osborne. Selected by The New York Times as one of the best books of 1975 when it was originally published, this edition has been updated to include a new postscript by the author and more than thirty full-color illustrations by the expedition's artist.
River Rough, River Smooth: Adventures on Manitoba's Historic Hayes River
by Anthony DaltonManitoba’s Hayes River runs over six hundred kilometers from near Norway House to Hudson Bay. On its rush to the sea, the Hayes races over forty-five rapids and waterfalls as it drops down from the Precambrian Shield to the Hudson Bay Lowlands. This great waterway, the largest naturally flowing river in Manitoba, served as the highway for settlers bound for the Red River colony, ferrying their worldly goods in York boats and canoes, struggling against the mighty currents. Traditionally used for transport and hunting by the indigenous Cree, the Hayes became a major fur trade route in the seventeenth to nineteenth centuries, being explored by such luminaries (Pierre Radisson (1682), Henry Kelsey (1690) David Thompson (1784), Sir John Franklin (1819), and J.B. Tyrrell (1892). This is the account of the author’s invitational journey on the Hayes from Norway House to Oxford House by traditional York boat with a crew of First Nation Cree, and later, from Oxford House to York Factory by canoe in the company of other intrepid canoeists – modern-day voyageurs reliving the past.
River Tourism
by Malcolm Cooper Bruce PrideauxRivers constitute a major tourism resource, providing spectacular settings, recreation facilities, a means of transport, a sense of heritage and adventure, and links with the environment and natural world. River tourism accounts for a significant proportion of the world's tourism consumption, with activities such as Nile cruises and rafting holidays making it an economically important area of tourism demanding in-depth analysis. This book explores river tourism from a range of perspectives including uses, heritage, management, environmental concerns, and marketing.
River Town: Two Years on the Yangtze
by Peter HesslerWhen Peter Hessler went to China in the late 1990s, he expected to spend a couple of peaceful years teaching English in the town of Fuling on the Yangtze River. But what he experienced - the natural beauty, cultural tension, and complex process of understanding that takes place when one is thrust into a radically different society - surpassed anything he could have imagined. Hessler observes firsthand how major events such as the death of Deng Xiaoping, the return of Hong Kong to the mainland, and the controversial consturction of the Three Gorges Dam have affected even the people of a remote town like Fuling.Poignant, thoughtful and utterly compelling, River Town is an unforgettable portrait of a place caught mid-river in time, much like China itself - a country seeking to understand both what it was and what it will one day become.
River Town: Two Years on the Yangtze
by Peter HesslerA New York Times Notable book, this memoir by a journalist who lived in a small city in China is “a vivid and touching tribute to a place and its people” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review). In the heart of China's Sichuan province, amid the terraced hills of the Yangtze River valley, lies the remote town of Fuling. Like many other small cities in this ever-evolving country, Fuling is heading down a new path of change and growth, which came into remarkably sharp focus when Peter Hessler arrived as a Peace Corps volunteer, marking the first time in more than half a century that the city had an American resident. Hessler taught English and American literature at the local college, but it was his students who taught him about the complex processes of understanding that take place when one is immersed in a radically different society.Poignant, thoughtful, funny, and enormously compelling, River Town is an unforgettable portrait of a city that is seeking to understand both what it was and what it someday will be.“This touching memoir of an American dropped into the center of China transcends the boundaries of the travel genre and will appeal to anyone wanting to learn more about the heart and soul of the Chinese people. Highly recommended.” —Library Journal“This is a colorful memoir from a Peace Corps volunteer who came away with more understanding of the Chinese than any foreign traveler has a right to expect.” —Booklist
River Vale (Images of America)
by Edmund A. ModerackiRiver Vale explores a historically rich community that has been known over the years as the Overkill Neighborhood, Harrington Township, Washington Township, and the borough of Eastwood. One of the first settled areas of the Kakiat Patent, River Vale was the scene of the Baylor Massacre, New Jersey's bloodiest skirmish of the Revolutionary War. The area's fine farmland enabled some of Bergen County's earliest settlers to flourish. Strong streams provided power for the mills and the famed Collignon chair factory.By the 1920s, a change came over the township. Its proximity to New York City made River Vale's land more valuable for recreation than for farming, and the township became known for its summer charms, golf courses, and ice arena. Visitors arriving in bus caravans traveled from urban areas to enjoy the pleasures of Herrmann's Grove, and fishermen flocked on opening day to angle for trout in the clear waters of the Hackensack River and the Pascack Brook. It was this very appeal that led to tremendous change as River Vale became one of North Jersey's attractive bedroom communities.
River Without a Cause: An Expedition through the Past, Present and Future of Theodore Roosevelt's River of Doubt
by Sam MosesA riveting journey down Theodore Roosevelt's "river of doubt" with a diverse crew of adventurers, scientists, and Indigenous leaders who shine light on the past, present, and future of a natural wonder.Sam Moses took part in the adventure of a lifetime when he, along with seventeen men and two women, embarked on the Rio Roosevelt Expedition. They would follow the former president's wake down five-hundred miles of extreme whitewater into the dark heart of the Amazon. The party was guided by two chiefs from the Cinta Larga tribe—the same tribe that stalked Roosevelt&’s expedition in 1914—who, between rapids, tell the story of the tribe&’s own Trail of Tears. After the wildest whitewater is past, Moses travels with the chiefs to their village to witness the massive illegal mahogany logging from their forest, the Roosevelt Indigenous Territory. River Without a Cause puts us in the raft during those heart pounding rapid descents, as we experience the drama, dynamics and disputes between the Bull Moose and his co-leader, Brazil&’s most famous explorer, the rigid Colonel Candido Rondon. As the Amazon stands on the precipiece of hope with the election of a new Brazillian president, River Without a Cause is a moving and galvanzing tale of adventure that is a fitting tribute to this world wonder.
River of Cliffs: A Linville Gorge History
by Christopher BlakeLinville Gorge was the first Wilderness Area on the East Coast, approved by Congress in 1964. “The Grand Canyon of the East” was named for William Linville, a member of a party of long hunters in 1766 who fell victim to a Shawnee attack. The difficult terrain made early settlements nearly impossible and logging unprofitable, and it remains one of the few examples of old-growth forest in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Unique rock formations, from Table Rock to the Chimneys, and miles of trails attract thousands of climbers, hikers and adventure seekers each year. In this revised edition, author Christopher Blake draws on American colonial reports, travel writings, diaries, fiction and numerous archival records to weave a narrative fabric of an American treasure.
River of Darkness: Francisco Orellana and the Deadly First Voyage through the Amazon
by Buddy LevyThe acclaimed author of Labyrinth of Ice charts the legendary sixteenth-century adventurer’s death-defying navigation of the Amazon River.In 1541, Spanish conquistador Gonzalo Pizarro and his lieutenant Francisco Orellana searched for La Canela, South America’s rumored Land of Cinnamon, and the fabled El Dorado, “the golden man.” Quickly, the enormous expedition of mercenaries, enslaved natives, horses, and hunting dogs were decimated through disease, starvation, and attacks in the jungle. Hopelessly lost in the swampy labyrinth, Pizarro and Orellana made the fateful decision to separate. While Pizarro eventually returned home in rags, Orellana and fifty-seven men continued into the unknown reaches of the mighty Amazon jungle and river. Theirs would be the greater glory.Interweaving historical accounts with newly uncovered details, Levy reconstructs Orellana’s journey as the first European to navigate the world’s largest river. Every twist and turn of the powerful Amazon holds new wonders and the risk of death.Levy gives a long-overdue account of the Amazon’s people—some offering sustenance and guidance, others hostile, subjecting the invaders to gauntlets of unremitting attacks and signs of terrifying rituals.Violent and beautiful, noble and tragic, River of Darkness is riveting history and breathtaking adventure that will sweep readers on a voyage unlike any other.Praise for Buddy Levy and River of Darkness“In River of Darkness, Buddy Levy recounts Orellana’s headlong dash down the Amazon. Like Mr. Levy’s last book, Conquistador, about the conquest of Mexico, River of Darkness presents a fast-moving tale of triumph over seemingly insurmountable odds. . . . Though impromptu, the expedition was one of the most amazing adventures of all time.” —Wall Street Journal“An exciting, well-plotted excursion down the Amazon River with the early Spanish conquistador. . . . [A] richly textured account of the rogue, rebel and visionary whose discovery still resonates today.” —Kirkus Reviews“A rollicking adventure . . . Levy successfully conveys the Amazon’s power and majesty, while shedding light on the futility of humanity’s attempt to tame it.” —The A.V. Club
River of Darkness: Francisco Orellana's Legendary Voyage of Death and Discovery Down the Amazon
by Buddy LevyFrom the acclaimed author of Conquistador comes this thrilling account of one of history's greatest adventures of discovery. With cinematic immediacy and meticulous attention to historical detail, here is the true story of a legendary sixteenth-century explorer and his death-defying navigation of the Amazon--river of darkness, pathway to gold. In 1541, the brutal conquistador Gonzalo Pizarro and his well-born lieutenant Francisco Orellana set off from Quito in search of La Canela, South America's rumored Land of Cinnamon, and the fabled El Dorado, "the golden man." Driving an enormous retinue of mercenaries, enslaved natives, horses, hunting dogs, and other animals across the Andes, they watched their proud expedition begin to disintegrate even before they descended into the nightmarish jungle, following the course of a powerful river. Soon hopelessly lost in the swampy labyrinth, their numbers diminishing daily through disease, starvation, and Indian attacks, Pizarro and Orellana made a fateful decision to separate. While Pizarro eventually returned home barefoot and in rags, Orellana and fifty-seven men, in a few fragile craft, continued downriver into the unknown reaches of the mighty Amazon, serenaded by native war drums and the eerie cries of exotic predators. Theirs would be the greater glory. Interweaving eyewitness accounts of the quest with newly uncovered details, Buddy Levy reconstructs the seminal journey that has electrified adventurers ever since, as Orellana became the first European to navigate and explore the entire length of the world's largest river. Levy gives a long-overdue account of the native populations--some peaceful and welcoming, offering sustenance and life-saving guidance, others ferociously hostile, subjecting the invaders to gauntlets of unremitting attack and intimations of terrifying rituals. And here is the Amazon itself, a powerful presence whose every twist and turn held the promise of new wonders both natural and man-made, as well as the ever-present risk of death--a river that would hold Orellana in its irresistible embrace to the end of his life. Overflowing with violence and beauty, nobility and tragedy, River of Darkness is both riveting history and a breathtaking adventure that will sweep readers along on an epic voyage unlike any other.From the Hardcover edition.
River of Forgotten Days
by Daniel SpurrA poignant voyage of discovery down the great Mississippi.Praised by such authors as John Barth, and George V. Higgins, Dan Spurr's gently powerful memoir, Steered by the Falling Stars, captured the hearts of readers with its story of death, rebirth, and redemption and its evocative description of life under sail. Now, Spurr takes us on another adventure, a voyage into not only the heartland of contemporary America but also back into the rough and ready days of exploration and discovery 250 years ago.Following the trail of the enigmatic French explorer Rene de La Salle, Spurr takes his seven-year-old son Steve and his grown daughter Adriana down the Mississippi from Chicago to New Orleans in the rundown, underpowered Belle. Throughout the journey, the juxtaposition of modern America on the river's banks and the untamed wilds of La Salle's day, as revealed through journals and historical documents, illuminates the changes in the land and its people over the intervening centuries.The inexorable flow of Spurr's clean and honest prose mirrors that of this greatest of American rivers. The voices of the river's denizens and the keen observations of the author's young and wide-eyed shipmates take us deep into the heart of an ever-changing American landscape.