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The Other Worlds: Offbeat Adventures of a Curious Traveler
By Tom Mattson. 2020
“None of it was meant to be: the stories and anecdotes that appear in this book, my travels to far-flung…
other worlds, being face-to-face with hundreds of strangers. Yet here we are, and there I’ve been, and somehow, strangers became friends.” From the Introduction Meet Tom Mattson’s friends including Maribel, on a park bench in Havana; Braulio, a silver miner in Bolivia; Chema, a Guatemalan fisherman —- and dozens more around the world. Discover the stories of their lives, their experiences, and their histories, so different from your own. Be charmed by the Minnesota storyteller who draws you into The Other Worlds with ease and who delights in sharing the sights, sounds, smells, and serendipities of his adventures with armchair - and active - travelers everywhere.It's A Wonderful World: Inspiring Stories About Ordinary People and God's Grace
By Jill Opstal-Popa. 2019
It’s a Wonderful World is a celebration of ordinary people whose lives cross in extraordinary ways at different parts of…
the world. Coming to the end of their own strength, and unsure of what to do next, the characters discover God’s plan through His marvelous matchless grace in receiving the revelation of Jesus and what he can do, and how He heals and changes lives. Shown in the past lives of Jill’s grandmothers, and Paul’s grandparents, a binding of the generations together can be seen in their ordinary circumstances, mistakes, second chances, victories and joys. Looking back at how older generations struggled with their human desires, fears, and challenges, helps one to embrace his or her humanity, in order to then receive the supernatural solutions needed in everyday life. The stories of Paul and Jill’s journey will compel one to look beyond himself to the greater needs of this world with its devastating happenings, and how with the collaboration of everyone, the world can be changed one life at a time. The reader may shed a tear, laugh out loud and just feel good reading about underdogs becoming champions, orphans placed in a family, and victories won despite impossible odds. True stories are used throughout this biography to inspire as well as to entertain with a light sense of humor. The author would like to convey that everyone is important, though from different backgrounds and walks of life, and that children are beloved by God and should be treasured, defended, and cherished, regardless the situations that they have come from. Children can have a new beginning and a new happy home or “Lar Feliz”. From the poor simple life of Romania, to the advanced culture of the Netherlands, to the wild developing Brazil, the reader will be able to explore new cultures and lands through the eyes of the author. Cultural differences will be discussed, when they sometimes collide, and when they find a beautiful harmony of working together for the Kingdom of God. The true hero is someone who tries when everyone else gives up and building a team or an army is more valuable than standing out alone. Love, grace, adventure, friendship, marriage, courage, romance, and faith are aspects of the lives of these ordinary people. God loves the world, the people in it with their failings, sorrows, disappointments, and imperfections, so much that He gave His son, Jesus which cost Him everything because He loves the world.Magnificent Desolation: The Long Journey Home from the Moon
By Buzz Aldrin, Ken Abraham. 2009
On July 20, 1969, Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin became the second human to walk on the moon. Here, he…
offers a first-person account of the lunar landing that came within seconds of failure, and gives an insider's perspective on how being part of NASA's nonstop public relations 'world tour' led him into a downward spiral of depression and alcoholism. The book continues on an optimistic note through Aldrin's recovery, his second marriage, and his work opening the doors of space tourism for all. Color historical and personal photos are included. Co-author Ken Abraham is a New York Times bestselling author.The Essential Lewis and Clark
By Meriwether Lewis, Anthony Brandt, William Clark. 2018
With nuanced observations from the star author and historian, here are the celebrated journals documenting Lewis and Clark's legendary expedition…
into the uncharted American West, abridged into a single volume and translated into modern English.At the start of the 19th century, Meriwether Lewis and William Clark embarked on an unprecedented voyage of discovery. Their assignment was to explore the newly acquired Louisiana Territory and record the geography, flora, fauna, and people they encountered along the way. This updated edition of the captains' journals combines historical insight from editor Anthony Brandt with the rich detail of Lewis and Clark's original writing, as well as archival maps and artwork. An enthralling portrait of the unspoiled West, this true-life adventure story is a window to the dawning of America--from encounters with grizzly bears to councils with tribal leaders and perilous mountain crossings.Going to Extremes: The Adventurous Life of Harry de Windt
By Stephen Wade. 2016
Harry de Windt (1856–1933) was a man who, by any standards, was a personality, a marked presence in the world…
of Victorian and Edwardian literature and social life. He was a member of the literary circle around Oscar Wilde and his friend and lover, Bosie (Lord Alfred Douglas); he was active in the world of the turf; and he travelled he took on dangerous journeys with relish, crossing vast tracts of the British and Russian empires for the sheer thrill of it. This book traces his life and adventures, at home and abroad, and also gives an account of his early work on military service in Sarawak, Malaysia, his expert knowledge of the Russian prison system, and his later Great War role running a POW camp. Many of his books reflect epic journeys against the odds: From Paris to New York by Land, Savage Europe, Siberia As It Is and others. His autobiographical work, My Restless Life, perhaps sums up his nature.Interesting facts: * Harry de Windt was brother to the Ranee of Sarawak and fought against rebels there in his early career * He visited the penal colony on the Russian island of Sakhalin close to the same time that Anton Chekhov went there * He appeared as a witness in the trial for libel of Lord Alfred Douglas, as he blamed Winston Churchill for the heavy losses in the Battle of Jutland * On his travels he met a host of interesting people from murderers to statesmen5 years on the road: 1,000 travelling anecdotes
By Ruben Arnal. 2019
A five-year trip around the world through 145 countries and many other places that aren’t recognised as such by the…
United Nations. Hundreds of anecdotes that include deportations, time travel, rituals, nights spent at the police station, military escorts and encounters with wild animals and curious people. A chant dedicated to life, where you will also find lots of advice about transport, visas, accommodation, insurance, vaccines, safety and what to do in each country.Asian Odyssey
By Dmitri Alioshin. 2020
Asian Odyssey, first published in 1940, is the autobiographical account of Dmitri Alioshin’s experiences in Siberia and Mongolia in the…
chaotic, often extremely violent times following the Russian Revolution. Alioshin, an officer in the Imperial Army, served in the army of the White Russians under General Kolchak and Baron von Ungern-Sternberg, then in the communist Red Army, and later joined the ill-fated American Expeditionary force as an interpreter under General Graves. Alioshin’s account makes for fascinating reading as he describes the bitter fighting between communist and Imperial forces, the shifting loyalties of the soldiers, the plundering of captured villages, the harsh landscape including a trek across the Gobi Desert, and the ways of life of the Mongols, Cossacks, and other groups. The book ends with Alioshin returning to his father’s home in Harbin, China, but little is known about Alioshin’s subsequent life. Included are 10 pages of illustrations.Lands of Lost Borders: Out of Bounds on the Silk Road
By Kate Harris. 2018
NATIONAL BESTSELLERWINNER OF THE RBC TAYLOR PRIZE "Every day on a bike trip is like the one before--but it is…
also completely different, or perhaps you are different, woken up in new ways by the mile."As a teenager, Kate Harris realized that the career she most craved--that of a generalist explorer, equal parts swashbuckler and philosopher--had gone extinct. From her small-town home in Ontario, it seemed as if Marco Polo, Magellan and their like had long ago mapped the whole earth. So she vowed to become a scientist and go to Mars. To pass the time before she could launch into outer space, Kate set off by bicycle down a short section of the fabled Silk Road with her childhood friend Mel Yule, then settled down to study at Oxford and MIT. Eventually the truth dawned on her: an explorer, in any day and age, is by definition the kind of person who refuses to live between the lines. And Harris had soared most fully out of bounds right here on Earth, travelling a bygone trading route on her bicycle. So she quit the laboratory and hit the Silk Road again with Mel, this time determined to bike it from the beginning to end. Like Rebecca Solnit and Pico Iyer before her, Kate Harris offers a travel narrative at once exuberant and meditative, wry and rapturous. Weaving adventure and deep reflection with the history of science and exploration, Lands of Lost Borders explores the nature of limits and the wildness of a world that, like the self and like the stars, can never be fully mapped. Advisory: This book offers only partial accessibility. We have kept it in the collection because it is useful for some of our members. Benetech is actively working on projects to improve accessibility issues such as these in the future.The Immortal Irishman: The Irish Revolutionary Who Became an American Hero
By Timothy Egan. 2016
From the National Book Award-winning and best-selling author Timothy Egan comes the epic story of one of the most fascinating…
and colorful Irishman in nineteenth-century America. The Irish-American story, with all its twists and triumphs, is told through the improbable life of one man. A dashing young orator during the Great Famine of the 1840s, in which a million of his Irish countrymen died, Thomas Francis Meagher led a failed uprising against British rule, for which he was banished to a Tasmanian prison colony. He escaped and six months later was heralded in the streets of New York -- the revolutionary hero, back from the dead, at the dawn of the great Irish immigration to America. Meagher's rebirth in America included his leading the newly formed Irish Brigade from New York in many of the fiercest battles of the Civil War -- Bull Run, Antietam, Fredericksburg. Twice shot from his horse while leading charges, left for dead in the Virginia mud, Meagher's dream was that Irish-American troops, seasoned by war, would return to Ireland and liberate their homeland from British rule. The hero's last chapter, as territorial governor of Montana, was a romantic quest for a true home in the far frontier. His death has long been a mystery to which Egan brings haunting, colorful new evidence. A New York Times BestsellerReaching Beyond Boundaries: A Navy SEAL's Guide to Achieving Everything You've Ever Imagined
By Don Mann, Kraig Becker. 2019
For the last decade, decorated Navy SEAL, accomplished athlete, and bestselling author Don Mann has been traveling across the country…
giving motivational talks and in the process inspiring hundreds with the secrets behind his awe-inspiring achievements. In Reaching beyond Boundaries, Mann brings his much sought-after wisdom to the page. As an elite Navy SEAL, Mann performed seemingly impossible tasks on a regular basis. Here he details the lessons he learned from his training and shows how the rest of us can apply those teachings to our daily lives in terms of learning to push beyond our internal boundaries and achieve the goals we’ve set for ourselves, both professionally and personally. Reaching Beyond Boundaries teaches how to set and conquer both micro- and macro-goals through removing excuses, having the right mindset, and learning from successes and failures. Making your dreams a reality is possible. With Reaching Beyond Boundaries you can begin to realize your fullest potential today.Harold Innis on Peter Pond: Biography, Cultural Memory, and the Continental Fur Trade
By William J. Buxton. 1998
Best known for his writings on economic history and communications, Harold Innis also produced a body of biographical work that…
paid particular attention to cultural memory and how it is enriched by the study of neglected historical figures. In this compelling volume, William Buxton addresses Innis's engagement with the legacy of the fur trader and adventurer Peter Pond. Harold Innis on Peter Pond comprises eight texts by Innis, including his 1930 biography of Pond as well as his writings on the explorer's myriad activities. The book also features a collection of eight letters exchanged between Innis and Florence Cannon, a descendent of Pond with a strong interest in her ancestor's life and times, and an unpublished 1932 article on Pond's 1773–75 activities as a fur trader on the upper Mississippi, written by Innis's former student R. Harvey Fleming. Situating Innis's writings on Pond in relation to his broader body of biographical work, Buxton interprets what these texts tell us about Innis's intellectual practice, historiography, and the writing of biography. The book explores how Innis's perspectives shifted with changing intellectual and political circumstances and shows that his advocacy of Pond as an unrecognized "father of confederation" challenged conventional views of Canadian nation-building. A critical edition of previously overlooked biographical texts, Harold Innis on Peter Pond traces what these writings disclose about the biographer's character and values even as they discuss their subject.Enduring Patagonia
By Gregory Crouch. 2001
Patagonia is a strange and terrifying place, a vast tract of land shared by Argentina and Chile where the violent…
weather spawned over the southern Pacific charges through the Andes with gale-force winds, roaring clouds, and stinging snow. Squarely athwart the latitudes known to sailors as the roaring forties and furious fifties, Patagonia is a land trapped between angry torrents of sea and sky, a place that has fascinated explorers and writers for centuries. Magellan discovered the strait that bears his name during the first circumnavigation. Charles Darwin traveled Patagonia's windy steppes and explored the fjords of Tierra del Fuego during the voyage of the Beagle. From the novel perspective of the cockpit, Antoine de Saint-Exupry immortalized the Andes in Wind, Sand, and Stars, and a half century later, Bruce Chatwin's In Patagonia earned a permanent place among the great works of travel literature. Yet even today, the Patagonian Andes remain mysterious and remote, a place where horrible storms and ruthless landscapes discourage all but the most devoted pilgrims from paying tribute to the daunting and dangerous peaks. Gregory Crouch is one such pilgrim. In seven expeditions to this windswept edge of the Southern Hemisphere, he has braved weather, gravity, fear, and doubt to try himself in the alpine crucible of Patagonia. Crouch has had several notable successes, including the first winter ascent of the legendary Cerro Torre's West Face, to go along with his many spectacular failures. In language both stirring and lyrical, he evokes the perils of every handhold, perils that illustrate the crucial balance between physical danger and mental agility that allows for the most important part of any climb, which is not reaching the summit, but getting down alive. Crouch reveals the flip side of cutting-edge alpinism: the stunning variety of menial labor one must often perform to afford the next expedition. From building sewer systems during a bitter Colorado winter to washing the plastic balls in McDonalds' playgrounds, Crouch's dedication to the alpine craft has seen him through as many low moments as high summits. He recounts, too, the riotous celebrations of successful climbs, the numbing boredom of forced encampments, and the quiet pride that comes from knowing that one has performed well and bravely, even in failure. Included are more than two dozen color photographs that capture the many moods of this land, from the sublime beauty of the mountains at sunrise to the unrelenting fury of its storms. Enduring Patagonia is a breathtaking odyssey through one of the world's last wild places, a land that requires great sacrifice but offers great rewards to those who dare to challenge it.Natural Rivals: John Muir, Gifford Pinchot, And The Creation Of America's Wilderness
By John Clayton. 2019
A dynamic examination that traces the lives of two of the most influential figures—and their dueling approaches—on America's natural landscape.…
John Muir, the most famous naturalist in American history, protected Yosemite, co-founded the Sierra Club, and is sometimes called the Father of the National Parks. A poor immigrant, self-taught, individualistic, and skeptical of institutions, his idealistic belief in the spiritual benefits of holistic natural systems led him to a philosophy of preserving wilderness unimpaired. Gifford Pinchot founded the U.S. Forest Service and advised his friend Theodore Roosevelt on environmental policy. Raised in wealth, educated in privilege, and interested in how institutions and community can overcome failures in individual virtue, Pinchot’s pragmatic belief in professional management led him to a philosophy of sustainably conserving natural resources. When these rivaling perspectives meet, what happens? For decades, the story of their relationship has been told as a split between the conservation and preservation philosophies, sparked by a proposal to dam a remote Yosemite valley called Hetch Hetchy. But a decade before that argument, Muir and Pinchot camped together alongside Montana’s jewel-like Lake McDonald in, which was at the heart of a region not yet consecrated as Glacier National Park. At stake in 1896 was the new idea that some landscapes should be collectively, permanently owned by a democratic government. Although many people today think of public lands as an American birthright, their very existence was then in doubt, and dependent on a merger of the talents of these two men. Natural Rivals examines a time of environmental threat and political dysfunction not unlike our own, and reveals the complex dynamic that gave birth to America's rich public lands legacy.Magellan’s Voyage Around the World: Three Contemporary Accounts
By Charles Edward Nowell. 2018
“…a fundamental work for anyone who desires both the English version of the story of this path-breaking voyage and an…
up-to-date evaluation of the scholarly production about the voyage that has appeared during the last four and a half centuries.”—Lewis Hanke, Columbia UniversityToday when men orbit the globe in a few minutes, it is difficult to imagine the awe that accompanied the news of the three years’ voyage completing man’s first circumnavigation of the earth. Wonder and amazement marked the contemporary accounts of Magellan’s hazardous adventure; and now the three best accounts have been gathered into one volume and provided with an introduction and commentary based on the most accurate historical information available by an eminent scholar of Hispanic studies.Included are translations of the accounts by Antonio Pigafetta, one of the eighteen actual survivors of the 241 who undertook the voyage; by the secretary of Emperor Charles V, Maximilian of Transylvania, who wrote a long report based on first-hand accounts to his father, the Cardinal of Salzburg; and by Gaspar Correa, a Portuguese historian, who twenty years later wrote of the voyage mixing fact with fanciful tales of the Far East.Several of the maps prepared for this edition are in the style of the period and represent conceptions of the world as seen by cartographers and navigators at the beginning of the Age of Discovery.Mask and Flippers: The Story of Skin Diving
By Lloyd Bridges. 2018
Through his work in motion pictures, Lloyd Bridges appreciated the impact of skin diving upon this medium and presented an…
exciting picture of future possibilities in underwater photography. The author’s role in Sea Hunt made him keenly aware of the revolution developing in the fields of salvage diving, treasure hunting, search and rescue, science, gold mining, and other virgin areas open to skin divers with imagination and enterprise. He described methods, techniques, and tools already in use and gave an exciting glimpse of future possibilities.First published in 1960, here is the complete story of skin diving as an exciting new field for fun, adventure, and opportunity open to millions of average swimmers. Those who are willing to accept the challenge of exploring and conquering a new world can benefit from past mistakes and the accumulation of experience by early skin divers; and perhaps become tomorrow’s pioneers who have yet to conquer the problems of great depths and reap the harvest on the bottom of the sea.Arctic Odyssey: The Life of Rear Admiral Donald B. MacMillan
By Everett S. Allen. 2018
IN THESE PAGES, the reader will meet one of America’s foremost seafaring men and explorers. Donald B. MacMillan (1874-1970) was…
born in Provincetown on Cape Cod and orphaned at an early age. After working his way through Bowdoin College and a brief stint at teaching, he became one of Robert E. Peary’s chief assistants on the arctic expedition that finally fought its way across the bitter Polar Sea to reach the North Pole.There followed a series of arctic expeditions spanning nearly half a century to Labrador, Baffin Island, to King Christian Island, Ellesmere Island and other unknown areas of the Arctic, resulting in valuable work in botany, ornithology, meteorology, and anthropology. He proved that Crocker Land did not exist.The story of the schooner Bowdoin, which for many years visited the North with a crew of scientists and amateurs, is told in detail, as well as the researchers and friendships developed with the Eskimos, in which Miriam MacMillan played a significant part.Arctic Odyssey is the thrilling story of a rich and exciting way of life, centering in the lusty and vigorous personality of one of the last and most colorful representatives of the heroic era of arctic exploration.Everett S. Allen (1916-1990) was an experienced newspaper reporter for The Standard-Times in New Bedford, Massachusetts. For many years he followed the career of Rear Admiral MacMillan and worked closely with him while writing this book.Richard Halliburton’s Second Book of Marvels - The Orient
By Richard Halliburton. 2018
Boys and girls all over the world know the name of Richard Halliburton. They have heard grown-ups talk about The…
Royal Road to Romance, The Glorious Adventure, New Worlds to Conquer, The Flying Carpet and Seven League Boots. These books have broken records in the field of travel and adventure. They are bestsellers year in and year out.Now Mr. Halliburton has written a book just for his younger friends (but just to try and keep father and mother or uncle and aunt away from it!) and in it he has kept a promise he made to himself when he studied geography in school. In those days his eager wish was to travel, to see the places he had read about. He swore that when he became a man he would see that his sons not only studied their geography but lived it too. Now he has been to the four corners of the world and beheld the wonders of nature and man. But he is a bachelor, and has no sons of his own. So he has adopted all boys and girls and here he takes them with him on a personally conducted tour to live geography with him—the most thrilled geography anyone could imagine.Following on from his Book of Marvels: The Occident, this present volume provides another exciting tour for school students—introducing the people, religions, architecture, customs, and scenery from Greece to Mt. Fuji in Japan, multi-cultural regions then called “The Orient,” complete with maps of his travel routes.No dramatic incident, no fascinating legend relating to his marvels has been omitted. Richard Halliburton has spared himself no trouble, no expense to make this book complete and beautiful. The illustrations are many and inspiring. Out of his first-hand knowledge of the notable scenes and works of our world, he has chosen those that have most appealed to his own imagination, and with his story-telling gift, simple, direct, enthusiastic, he makes them live to the imagination of all boys and girls. For he has the heart of a boy and he speaks to the heart of youth.Richard Halliburton’s Book of Marvels: The Occident
By Richard Halliburton. 2018
Boys and girls all over the world know the name of Richard Halliburton. They have heard grown-ups talk about The…
Royal Road to Romance, The Glorious Adventure, New Worlds to Conquer, The Flying Carpet and Seven League Boots. These books have broken records in the field of travel and adventure. They are bestsellers year in and year out.Now Mr. Halliburton has written a book just for his younger friends (but just to try and keep father and mother or uncle and aunt away from it!) and in it he has kept a promise he made to himself when he studied geography in school. In those days his eager wish was to travel, to see the places he had read about. He swore that when he became a man he would see that his sons not only studied their geography but lived it too. Now he has been to the four corners of the world and beheld the wonders of nature and man. But he is a bachelor, and has no sons of his own. So he has adopted all boys and girls and here he takes them with him on a personally conducted tour to live geography with him—the most thrilled geography anyone could imagine.This book represents the cream of his adventures. Beginning with the wonders of our own continent we travel and adventure with him to South America and to Europe.No dramatic incident, no fascinating legend relating to his marvels has been omitted. Richard Halliburton has spared himself no trouble, no expense to make this book complete and beautiful. The illustrations are many and inspiring. Out of his first-hand knowledge of the notable scenes and works of our world, he has chosen those that have most appealed to his own imagination, and with his story-telling gift, simple, direct, enthusiastic, he makes them live to the imagination of all boys and girls. For he has the heart of a boy and he speaks to the heart of youth.This is the true story of Colonel Edward Marcus Despard, the character in the fifth series of the BBC's popular…
television drama Poldark. Colonel Despard was the last person to be sentenced to hanging, drawing and quartering in Britain - for high treason, an alleged plot to kill the king. His execution on 21st February 1803 was witnessed by twenty thousand hushed onlookers. Their silence was ominous, for few believed he was guilty. His death would tear apart a Britain still reeling from the impact of the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars. But who was Edward Marcus Despard? Was he, as his comrade-in-arms on the Spanish Main Lord Nelson believed, an outstanding British army officer of unimpeachable honour, courage and patriotism? Or, as the white slave-owners of the Caribbean claimed, a traitor not only to his nation but to his race, who had married a local woman and championed the rights of freed slaves?And when Despard returned to London to answer these allegations, did he commit himself to the cause of political reform in Britain's best interest? Or did he join a shadowy international terrorist conspiracy dedicated to the murder of George III and the overthrow of the state? Despard's contested fate marked the sensational climax to a British revolution that never happened, but it also presaged the birth of modern democracy.'Compelling, absorbing and wide-ranging . . . Jay weaves a complex variety of themes, many with overtly topical resonances, into Despard's journey from hero to traitor'Sunday TimesHunters on the Track: William Penny and the Search for Franklin
By W. Ross. 2019
Captains of whaling vessels were experienced navigators of northern waters, and William Penny was in the vanguard of the whaling…
fraternity. Leading the first maritime expedition in search of Sir John Franklin, he stood out not just for his skill as a sailor but for his curiosity about northern geography and his willingness to seek out Inuit testimony to map uncharted territory. Hunters on the Track describes and analyzes the efforts made by the Scottish whaling master to locate Franklin's missing expedition. Bookended by an account of Penny's whaling career, including the rediscovery of Cumberland Sound, which would play a vital role in British whaling a decade later, W. Gillies Ross provides an in-depth history of the first Franklin searches. He reconstructs the brief but frenetic period when the English-speaking world was preoccupied with locating Franklin, but when the means of that search – the ships chosen, the route taken, the evidence of Franklin's traces – were contested and uncertain. Ross details the particularities of each search at a time when no fewer than eight ships comprising four search expeditions were attempting to find Franklin's tracks. Reconstructing events, relationships, and decisions, he focuses on the work of Penny as commander of HMS Lady Franklin and Sophia, while also outlining the events of other expeditions and interactions among the officers and crews. William Penny is respected as one of the most influential and innovative figures in British Arctic whaling history, but his brief role in the Franklin expedition is less known. Using primary sources, notably private journals from each of the expeditions, Hunters on the Track places him at the forefront of a critical chapter of maritime history and the geographical exploration that began after Franklin disappeared.