Personal Narrative of a Journey to the Equinoctial Regions of the New Continent: Abridged Edition (Penguin Classics)

And so much more...botany, zoology, ecology, astronomy, climate, ocean currents, geography, geology, anthropology, the list goes on.After reading two outstanding biographies on Alexander Von Humboldt...Gerard Helferich’s “Humboldt’s Cosmos” and Andrea Wulf’s “The Invention of Nature...” I decided to read his personal narrative while exploring and naturalizing in Venezuela. Amazing and still significant today!In 1799 Humboldt and botanical companion Aime Bonpland spent sixteen months combined on the coast of Venezuela and interior along the Orinoco River. His stories, descriptions, way of life and day to day existence in the tropics is striking...keep in mind, this is over two hundred years ago.Thousands of new plant and animal species, lost and soon to be extinct cultures, astronomical and physical observations, geographical measurements... all while dodging jaguars, crocodiles, hordes of pestering and festering mosquitoes, skin boring insects, disease, venomous snakes, etc.This is a well done abridgement of Humboldt’s narrative...if it wasn’t condensed, it would be thousands of pages.The reason for four stars and not five? In truth, his exploits on the Venezuela coast can be somewhat tiring and redundant, but once they travel up the Orinoco the excitement begins...plus, the map is quite vague and generalized whereas in the two books cited above they are more informative.“Everything is Interrelated”- Humboldt

I just got done reading Darwin's "Voyage of the Beagle", so I was prepared for an other suffocatingly self-absorbed narrative. The first 100 pages of this are kind of deadly, like an older relative strapping you to a chair and forcing you watch 100 reels of their old travel slides. Things pick up after that when he and his companion penetrate into the interior of the jungle and spend time with the indigenous peoples.Many anti-civilization sentiments are expressed, which is, for me, very gratifying. There are a lot of fun little facts and observations, too.This edition has been very well edited, which enhanced it's readability for me, a layman.I think it's safe to say that Humboldt was gay, which makes the prose lighter and more emotional. A big plus for me.The text itself is only 300 pages. The info for the book says it's 400 pages in all. I guess there is a long introduction, but I don't think it was 100 pages long.I did find myself rushing through the last quarter of the book, so I guess it wasn't that engaging or satisfying. But I'm not a science buff.

part of a collection of books I'm reading on Alexander von Humboldt, looking forward to learning more.

I am a history major so I am used to having to just get my way through books whether I like them or not. This book was required for a class and while there were many interesting things most of it was pretty drab. It was a very slow read and I was so glad when I was finished. The main reason is probably because Humboldt was writing from a scientific perspective and was not out to entertain readers and some off the flow could have been lost in the translation. The interesting part of this book and what made it progressive at the time was that Humboldt was really the first European allowed to travel through South America and record his findings.

Fabulous account of von Humboldt's genius, passion for exploration and learning, commitment to excellence, his singular humanity for today's confused world, and his joy in the life of our precious, precious EARTH!Bradley A. TePaske, PhDJungian Analyst, Religious Historian, Artist

Great story narrative. Only wish there was a map or some link to the locations of his adventures.

Quite interesting, sometimes fascinating--like his description of his trip up and into the volcano on Teneriffe.

every paragraph was a learning experience. I wa amazed at the scientific wrok in the jungles of South America.buy this one

I admit to not reading the whole of the introductory text but what I read was useful. I then skipped to Humboldt's narrative and was pleased with how enjoyable it was to read and felt familiar with his way of discovering new places despite the centuries of time in between. Very much a travel story describing the natural environment, people and places but light on his more scientific findings. I sat with large maps of both Tenerife and Venezuela by my side which helped in understanding the scale of exploration on foot, with mules and in canoes. Would definitely recommend reading this for fireside pleasure and certainly if lucky enough to visit these places.

By all accounts, Humboldt didn't know what to leave out of his book, so it makes sense to have an abridged edition.My copy arrived in good condition, although the packaging seemed a bit basic.

O produto chegou rápido e em ótimas condições de entrega