Andes
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- $30.99
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- $30.99
Publisher Description
Stretching for over 5500 miles, and containing the highest active volcanoes in the world, the largest salt flat, the highest lake, and peaks rivalled in size only by the Himalayas, the Andes impress by statistics alone. But beyond the range's sheer immensity is its concentration of radically contrasting scenery and climates. In this remarkable book, Michael Jacobs journeys from the balmy Caribbean to the inhospitable islands of the Tierra del Fuego, through the relics of ancient civilizations, to retrace the footsteps of previous travellers. His route begins in Venezuela, following the path of the great 19th-century revolutionary Sim�n Bol�var. On his way Jacobs attempts to uncover the stories of those who have shared his fascination, and to reveal the secrets of a region steeped in history, science and myth.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
The Andes, earth's longest mountain range, spans seven countries, from Colombia to Argentina, include rain forests and deserts, virtually deserted areas, massive cities, Incan ruins, pre-Incan ruins, Spanish ruins, and more. It's a lot to take on, but Jacobs (The Factory of Light: Tales from My Own Andaluc an Village), author of numerous travel books, is nothing if not game. He braves high altitude, terrifying bus rides, endless delays, crime-ridden cities, and wackjob mystics. He's read all earlier accounts, from Che Guevara to Mario Vargas Llosa, along with history, geology, and archeology, and uses their work to supplement his own and to show the overlapping routes and varying agendas of Francisco Pizarro, Simon Bolivar, and generations of explorers and scientists. Jacobs is a good writer, balancing different strands past and present, contemporary politics, the Spanish Conquest, his own history and that of the people he meets but he's a great traveler: well connected, tireless, enthusiastic, and interested in everyone he meets. While we could use less of his Spanish village and his dog and a few more notes on why he goes where, he conveys the region's difficulties and challenges as well as its beauty and enduring fascination.
