Pathfinders: A Global History of Exploration

by Felipe Fernández-Armesto

Overview

"A brilliant and readable book…a rich study of humankind's restless spirit." —Candice Millard, New York Times Book Review

Greeted with coast-to-coast acclaim on publication, Fernández-Armesto's ambitious history of world exploration sets a new standard. Presenting the subject for the first time on a truly global scale, Fernández-Armesto tracks the pathfinders who, over the past five millennia, lay down the routes of contact that have drawn together the farthest reaches of the world.

The Wall Street Journal calls it "impressive...a huge story [told] with gusto and panache." To the Washington Post, "Pathfinders is propelled by an Argonaut of an author, indefatigable and daring. It's a wild ride." And in a front-page review, the Seattle Times hails its "tart and elegant presentation...full of surprises. Fernández-Armesto's lively mind, pithy phrasing, and stunningly thorough and diverse knowledge are a constant pleasure."

A plenitude of illustrations and maps in color and black and white augment this rich history. In Pathfinders, winner of the 2007 World History Association Book Prize, we have a definitive treatment of a grand subject.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780393242478
Publisher:	Norton, W. W. & Company, Inc.
Publication date:	08/05/2013
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	464
Sales rank:	46,553
File size:	14 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Felipe Fernández-Armesto, the William P. Reynolds Professor of History at the University of Notre Dame, is the author of Pathfinders: A Global History of Exploration and Our America: A Hispanic History of the United States. He lives in South Bend, Indiana, and London.

Table of Contents

1. Stretching: The First Trail-Finders from Gathering Cultures to Great Empires

Editorial Reviews

Like the heroic adventurers whose stories Fernández-Armesto recounts so well, we have before us countless frontiers, the thrill of the unknown and, for a fortunate few, the pleasure of being first.
— The New York Times

Candice Millard

Readers of history will delight in Fern ndez-Armesto's latest. The Tufts historian (Millennium) deftly manages the near-impossible task of a comprehensive account of world exploration from the dawn of humankind while maintaining an interesting tone throughout. The evocatively titled chapters ("Reaching," "Stirring," "Springing") follow a well-organized outline, and short sections keep the reader from feeling overwhelmed with information. Beginning with Homo erectus's migrations from East Africa to the rest of the continent and to Eurasia a million and a half years ago, the book examines how and why cultures spread throughout the world. Each section of the globe is examined, from the Tigris and Euphrates to the Pacific Islands, the Middle East and Africa. Along the way, technological and scientific leaps, such as sails, cartography and the cure for scurvy are explained. Fern ndez-Armesto also looks at the important role economics and politics have played in world exploration, The author excels when he narrows the focus, such as when he places Columbus into historical context so that the magnitude of his journey and its difficulty are fully felt. This volume truly covers everything the title claims, resulting in a rich history of our world. 16 pages of color illus., 44 b&w illus., 48 maps. (Oct.) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

Publishers Weekly

Noted historian Fernandez-Armesto (The Americas) escorts us on journeys ranging from Egyptian queen Hatshepsut's second millennium B.C.E. linkup with Punt to 19th-century explorations of Africa and the South Pacific. Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

Library Journal

A sober look at the great-and not so great-explorers of history. Fern ndez-Armesto (History/Tufts Univ.; Humankind, 2004, etc.) views exploration as the means by which the various branches of the human race that spread apart before the rise of civilization came back into contact. The story begins in ancient times, with the peoples of the Indus valley, China, Egypt and Mesopotamia establishing trade routes and spheres of influence as early as the second millennium b.c. Most of these left no written records, though Egypt's adventures into central Africa were extensively documented. Across Asia, the Silk Road diffused Chinese goods as far as the Mediterranean. And early sailors took advantage of regular monsoons to establish trade across the Indian Ocean. At the same time, the Polynesians were crossing the Pacific and the Thule Inuit conquered the Arctic in craft that would seem hopelessly primitive if they had not proven themselves in the toughest conditions. Surprisingly, except for the Vikings, Europeans were latecomers to the game of navigation. The author takes pains to show how far ahead the Chinese, Indians and Arabs were, trading over wide areas at a time when western sailors hardly dared leave sight of land. That began to change in the 14th century, as the Portuguese and Spanish-marginal societies at the time-tried to get a slice of the trade that was making eastern nations wealthy. Progress was slow, and often accidental-Fern ndez-Armesto maintains a healthy skepticism toward most of the famous names of history. Columbus and Magellan get faint praise; Lewis and Clark are "heroic failures"; and most of the more recent explorers fare even worse in his estimation. For anyone whodreams of adventure in far places: Despite the author's resistance to hero-worship and romanticism, this is a colorful compendium of history's risk-takers, with a welcome emphasis on non-European and non-English-speaking pathfinders. Agent: Bruce Hunter/David Higham Associates

Kirkus Reviews