This book tells the story of exploration in America in the words of the explorers themselves. It consists of extracts from narratives of the early discoverers and explorers of the American continent from the Northmen in 10th century to 17th century Massachusets Bay Colony. – Summary by Kikisaulite [chương_files]
John Woodhouse Audubon (1812-1862), son of the famous painter John James Audubon and an artist in his own right, joined Col. Henry Webb’s California Company expedition in 1849. From New Orleans the expedition sailed to the Rio Grande; it headed west overland through northern Mexico and through Arizona to San Diego, California. Cholera and outlaws decimated the group. Many of them turned back, including the leader. Audubon assumed command of those remaining and they pushed on to California, although he was forced to abandon his paints and canvases in the desert…. Throughout the whole of this long journey Mr. Audubon took notes of scenes and occurrences by the way. In his descriptions he exhibits the keen observation of the naturalist and the trained eye of the artist. The result is a remarkable picture of social conditions in Mexico, of birds and trees, of sky and mountains and the changing face of nature, of the barrenness of the desert and the difficulties of the journey, of the ruined missions of California, of methods of mining, and of the chaos of races and babel of tongues in the gold fields. It was manifestly impossible to keep a daily journal, and the entries were made from time to time as opportunity occurred. Considering the circumstances under which they were taken, the notes are remarkable for their accuracy. Because it was not edited by Audubon, the text (and this recording) ends abruptly. – Summary by Book Introduction and David Wales [chương_files]
For more than three hundred years an intense desire has been felt by explorers to discover and reveal to the world the secrets of the immediate regions of the North Pole. Nor has this desire been confined to mere adventurers. This volume sketches the latest American efforts (from the second Grinnel expedition to that of the “Polaris”), second to no others in heroism and success, and abounding in instructive and intensely interesting adventures both grave and gay. – Summary from the preface [chương_files]
Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz was the fourth of 14 Oz books written by L. Frank Baum (1856-1919). Published in 1908, while Baum was resident in Coronado, California, it is considered one of the “darker” of the Oz tales. However, it also is enlivened by Baum’s considerable wit, penchant for puns, and dry social commentary. In this title, Dorothy, her kitten Eureka, Jim, a cab horse, and Zeb, a ranch hand, descend into the earth through a rift opened by an earthquake. There they encounter the “humbug” wizard who once ruled Oz. In their journey back to the earth’s surface, they meet a number of potentially dangerous magical peoples and creatures including the cold-blooded Mangaboos, invisible bears, the flying wooden Gargoyles, a den of dragonettes, and an eccentric inventor. With a little help from Ozma, the group end up in Oz where they are treated to feasts and celebrations. The animals end up humbled by a few of their experiences in Oz, where all animals can talk, and return home a little wiser. (Summary by Judy Bieber) [chương_files]
“THE ARCTIC EXPEDITION of 1875 left England on 29th May, crossed the Atlantic to Davis Straits in a succession of storms, and entered the Arctic regions on 4th July. It sailed with orders to ‘attain the highest northern latitude, and, if possible, reach the Pole.’” This is the story of the crew of the HMS Alert, on its voyage of exploration up the Baffin Sea and toward northern Greenland. LibriVox volunteers wish to thank the volunteers of Distributed Proofreaders for their work over the last 20 years to convert public domain books into e-books. “Shores of the Polar Sea” was DP’s 35,000th title. Congratulations and Happy 20th Anniversary Distributed Proofreaders! (Summary by MaryAnn, LV reader and DP proofer). [chương_files]
What would you do if you discovered a dragon living in a cave on a hill above your home? Make friends, read poetry together? It turns out that not all dragons are intent on pillaging the countryside. Some might actually enjoy peace, quiet, and the occasional banquet. The Boy of this story knows how to handle dragons, and life is good… until a knight in shining armor arrives in town to exterminate his friend! It doesn’t matter that it’s a “good” dragon — rules are rules, you know! (Summary by Mark) [chương_files]
Herbert Vaughan arrives at Mount Welcome, a sugar plantation on the island of Jamaica, after his father had passed away. His arrival is not exactly welcomed, and it sets off a chain of events involving intrigue, romance, jealousy and, of course, voodoo. [chương_files]
Clement Seadon is a young man of free spirit and a lust for a life of independence. However after receiving an odd request from a lawyer he is compelled to involve himself in the prevention of a dangerous plot to swindle an heiress. – Summary by Howard Skyman [chương_files]
The Roosevelt–Rondon Scientific Expedition was the famous survey that took place in 1913-14 to follow the path of the Rio da Dúvida (“River of Doubt”) in the Amazon basin. The expedition was jointly led by Theodore Roosevelt, the former President of the United States, and Colonel Cândido Rondon, the Brazilian military engineer known for his explorations of the Western Amazon Basin and his lifelong support of Brazilian indigenous populations. Almost from the start, the expedition was fraught with problems: diseases left the explorers in a constant state of sickness; the canoes were unsuitable to the rapids and were lost; the food provisions were unsufficient, and the encounters with animals and wild native tribes, a source of concern. Of the 19 men who went on the expedition, only 16 returned. On October 1915, the Brazilian leader of the expedition, Colonel Cândido Rondon gave three public lectures in Rio de Janeiro, in which he offered his first hand account of the Roosevelt-Rondon Expedition and of his more encompassing work of laying telegraph lines across the wilderness of Brazil, allowing for the integration of the recent Republic. Throughout his life, Rondon laid over 4,000 miles of telegraph line through the jungles of Brazil, while opening roads, clearing lands, mapping the land, and establishing cordial relations with the Indians. He maintained contact with several indigenous peoples. In his lectures, translated into English soon after their publication in Portuguese, besides describing all the adventures of the exploration of the Amazon, also told by Roosevelt in […]
This is a fairly substantial western, written in 1911 by Harold Bell Wright, then a major bestselling author. (His best-known novel is “The Shepherd of the Hills”) Strangely, the winning of Barbara Worth is a small part of the story, though she is one of the main characters. She was a foundling, discovered with her dying mother in the desert. She takes the name of her adopted father, Jefferson Worth. He is perhaps the main character; he is a capitalist, with very humanitarian qualities. He is pitted against other capitalists, ones with little concern for the good of the settlers attracted to the desert they are developing. The story concerns the efforts to reclaim the desert (Jaquinn Valley), by diverting waters of the Colorado River into canals that will make the land suitable for crops and cities. (Wright could not possibly have imagined the low water level of the Colorado River of today.) Wright wrote about capitalism vs. labor in several of his novels, and he does here. He often showed biased support for labor; however, he also showed a real effort to understand the role of each. In his time there were almost no regulations on capitalists, and there was, in fact, great abuses by the barons. This conflict is the heart of the story. But it is also a story of the loyalty of several employees of Jefferson Worth–loyalty, and love toward Worth, and also toward his adopted daughter. (A silent film of the book was Gary Cooper’s […]
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