River of the Gods by Candice Millard

First Line: As he walked through the storied gates of Alexandria in the fall of 1801, a young British officer named William Richard Hamilton found himself in the middle of a stunning tableau-- abject misery set against the lost grandeur of the Pharaohs.

 

The source of the Nile River had been shrouded in mystery for thousands of years until a frenzy of interest in ancient Egypt inspired European powers to send out waves of expeditions to map the unknown corners of the world and extend their empires. 

Two explorers were sent out by England's Royal Geographical Society to find the Nile's headwaters: Richard Burton and John Hanning Speke. Burton spoke twenty-nine languages, was a decorated soldier, and an atheist. Speke was a young aristocrat and Army officer, passionate about hunting and determined to make his mark on the world.

The two men clashed from the beginning on a journey of tremendous hardships, illness, and one setback after another. After two years, Burton became too ill to continue, but Speke did and ultimately claimed he'd found the source of the Nile. Speke rushed to take credit for his discovery, and when Burton disputed it, Speke launched another expedition to prove his claim. The two became venomous enemies.

Yet there was a third man on both expeditions, his name obscured, whose exploits were even more extraordinary. Without a former slave named Sidi Mubarak Bombay, neither Burton nor Speke would have come close to the headwaters of the Nile. In fact, neither one of them would probably have survived.

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Candice Millard is a Must-Read author for me. All of her books have been fascinating. In River of the Gods, the two main characters, Richard Burton and John Hanning Speke, were so diametrically opposed that I found it easy to take sides. 

 

Richard Burton spoke several languages, believed in traveling as a native in whichever country he found himself in, didn't believe in converting anyone to Christianity, and only killed animals when it was necessary.  His main problem was that he could be much too blunt for the delicate sensibilities of others.

John Hanning Speke was a young aristocrat who was pompous, sloppy with details, and-- as an editor found out later to his horror-- was a total nightmare as a writer. He joined Burton in the expedition to the headwaters of the Nile for the glory, and he was completely capable of lying to get what he felt he deserved. On top of that, he loved to go hunting and blast away at anything that moved whether the men on the expedition needed the meat or not.

Sidi Mubarak Bombay was even more exceptional than Richard Burton. He was captured, enslaved, and shipped from his East African home to India. When his owner died, he joined the army and eventually traveled back to Africa. There he used his resourcefulness, linguistic powers, and courage to become a guide. There is no doubt that, without men like Bombay to lead, carry supplies, and protect these European expeditions, none of them would have been a success. 

Once again, Millard has crafted a fascinating history of the exploits of extraordinary people. Although slow-paced at times, River of the Gods is riveting.

 

River of the Gods: Genius, Courage, and Betrayal in the Search for the Source of the Nile

by Candice Millard

eISBN: 9780385543118

Knopf Doubelday © 2022

eBook, 424 pages

 

Non-Fiction

Rating: A-

Source: Purchased from Amazon.

On My Radar: Camilleri & Millard

Just to prove that my reading diet does not consist of crime fiction and nothing but crime fiction, I thought I'd share two books that are on my radar. One will be released this month, and the second will be released in May. I'm really looking forward to getting my hands on both, and you just might be interested, too! Let's start with the April release....

Andrea Camilleri's The Revolution of the Moon will be released on April 18, and those of us familiar with his Inspector Montalbano mysteries will be thrilled to know that the excellent Stephen Sartarelli has translated this book, too. Here is the synopsis from Amazon:

"From the author of the Inspector Montalbano series comes the remarkable account of an exceptional woman who rises to power in 17th century Sicily and brings about sweeping changes that threaten the iron-fisted patriarchy, before being cast out in a coup after only 27 days. 

Sicily, April 16, 1677. From his deathbed, Charles III's viceroy, Anielo de Guzmán y Carafa, marquis of Castle Rodrigo, names his wife, Doña Eleonora, as his successor. Eleonora de Moura is a highly intelligent and capable woman who immediately applies her political acumen to heal the scarred soul of Palermo, a city afflicted by poverty, misery, and the frequent uprisings they entail.

The Marquise implements measures that include lowering the price of bread, reducing taxes for large families, re-opening women's care facilities, and establishing stipends for young couples wishing to marry—all measures that were considered seditious by the conservative city fathers and by the Church. The machinations of powerful men soon result in Doña Eleonora, whom the Church sees as a dangerous revolutionary, being recalled to Spain. Her rule lasted 27 days—one cycle of the moon.

Based on a true story, Camilleri's gripping and richly imagined novel tells the story of a woman whose courage and political vision is tested at every step by misogyny and reactionary conservatism."

I love biographies of women like Eleonora de Moura, don't you?

Candice Millard has written three books, and I'd highly recommend the two I've read. Destiny of the Republic is the fascinating account of one of our little-known presidents, James Garfield, while The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey is one of the best books I've ever read. Period. Now you can undoubtedly see why I'm looking forward to the May 30 paperback release of Hero of the Empire: The Boer War, a Daring Escape, and the Making of Winston Churchill! Here's the book's synopsis:

"At the age of twenty-four, Winston Churchill was utterly convinced it was his destiny to become prime minister of England. He arrived in South Africa in 1899, valet and crates of vintage wine in tow, to cover the brutal colonial war the British were fighting with Boer rebels and jumpstart his political career. But just two weeks later, Churchill was taken prisoner. Remarkably, he pulled off a daring escape—traversing hundreds of miles of enemy territory, alone, with nothing but a crumpled wad of cash, four slabs of chocolate, and his wits to guide him.

Bestselling author Candice Millard spins an epic story of bravery, savagery, and chance encounters with a cast of historical characters—including Rudyard Kipling, Lord Kitchener, and Mohandas Gandhi—with whom Churchill would later share the world stage. But Hero of the Empire is more than an extraordinary adventure story, for the lessons Churchill took from the Boer War would profoundly affect twentieth century history."

Candice Millard is positively brilliant at writing riveting, little-known history as though it were the absolute best in fiction. She's a must-read author for me.


I wonder which books will appear on my radar next? Only time will tell!


 

Destiny of the Republic by Candice Millard

First Line: Crossing the Long Island Sound in dense fog just before midnight on the night of June 11, 1880, the passengers and crew of the steamship Stonington found themselves wrapped in impenetrable blackness.

One of the best books out of the thousands that I've read over a lifetime is Candice Millard's The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey. It's a perfect blend of history, in-depth character analysis, and narrative drive. This book cemented Theodore Roosevelt as one of my favorite presidents and Candice Millard as a writer to watch. When I first read about Destiny of the Republic, I knew I would be getting a copy. Some things are just chiseled in stone. What I didn't realize is that Millard's book would make me (once more) shake my head at what's left out of history books-- especially those that are supposed to be educating children-- and make me mourn the death of a man who could've done so much for this country.

When I was in school, all I learned about President James Garfield were two facts: (1) he wasn't in office long enough to do anything, and (2) he was assassinated by a crazy person. That's it. Leave it to a gifted historian like Millard to show me just how much I wasn't taught. Garfield was a truly extraordinary man. He was born to a life of extreme poverty in a log cabin in rural Ohio, yet he grew to be a formidable scholar, a celebrated member of Congress, and a president who swore to take on the corrupt political machine running the country.

Garfield knew personally the power of education to transform lives, and he never sought any political office he won-- including the office of President of the United States. Those who believed in him nominated him and worked to get him elected, one such campaign costing the whopping sum of $150. He had a clear vision of what this country could become-- through education, science, equality-- and it didn't take others long to realize this. When geologist and explorer John Wesley Powell needed support for a surveying expedition, he turned to Garfield, and with his help, Powell explored the Colorado River and the Grand Canyon.

Threaded throughout the diamond mine of information about Garfield is the story of a small-minded man who believed the world owed him fame and wealth and glory. This con man who skipped out on hotel bills was Charles Guiteau, the man who would shoot President James A. Garfield in the back.

Millard builds her character study of Garfield until the reader is heartbroken that the man was never allowed to work on his vision for this country. You know what Guiteau is going to do, but it's still painful when the assassination attempt occurs. What the author then proceeds to show us is that the real assassination occurred during the two months that it took Garfield to die. Too weak to  carry on with his duties, Garfield was left to the self-aggrandizing ministrations of a doctor while the political jackals circled to tear off juicy chunks of privilege for themselves before the lions moved in.

What is most horrifying is the fact that Garfield did not have to die, and Millard weaves contemporaries Alexander Graham Bell and James Lister into her narrative to prove the point. There were sterile operating procedures (championed by Lister) in effect at this time. There were people, like Bell, who were working to make medical diagnoses easier. What really killed James Garfield were greed and willful ignorance-- two of the things he'd fought against his entire life.

What makes this book so good is that Candice Millard makes the reader care passionately about the death of a president that took place well over a century ago, and she makes us realize that the very same things that happened then are happening now. Millard is a must-read author for me, and if you like well-researched history that reads like the best fiction, give her a try. I'm sure you'll come to feel the same way I do.

Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President 
by Candice Millard

ISBN: 9780767929714

Anchor © 2012

Paperback, 398 pages

American History

Rating: A

Source: Paperback Swap