The best-selling co-author of Bill O'Reilly's Killing series traces the divisive effort of adventurers Richard Francis Burton and John Hanning Speke to discover the source of the Nile River, analyzing seven character traits shared by forefront explorers and how their examples can be practically applied to modern problems.

" ... the writings of the men and women who traversed, circumnavigated, and settled the continent ..."--Cover.

Discover the extraordinary history and thrilling frontiers of exploration with this gorgeously illustrated guide from The Explorers Club, the esteemed home of the world's most prominent explorers. The discovery of the North and South Poles. The summiting of Everest. The moon landing. The (largely unknown) birth of climate change science. These are just some of the stories from The Explorers Club, the organization that, since its inception in 1904, has pushed the envelope of human curiosity. This guided tour of The Club’s most riveting journeys includes hundreds of photos and fascinating anecdotes about The Club’s distinguished members, including Teddy Roosevelt, Neil Armstrong, and Jane Goodall. From the darkest depths of the ocean to the highest points on Earth and to outer space and beyond, this book shares not just the inspirational history of modern exploration, but also reveals how it has evolved and continues to be relevant—even urgent—today.

Set against the backdrop of World War I, a covert group of elite adventurers sets off to find the golden city of Buddhist myth on a journey that takes them from the polar north and the Mongolian deserts through the Asian canals and the Himalayas.

"This fascinating new installment in the popular Lives of . . . series of collective biographies is full of juicy tidbits about history's greatest explorers"--

For more than a century, The Explorers Club has been the meeting place for some of the most daring adventurers on the planet. It's a legendary oasis, where a man just back from the Gobi Desert might kick back and, over some port, have a chat with a fellow off to Bandung.This updated edition includes a new foreword by Richard Wiese, the 44th president of The Explorers Club, and an all-new photo insert that takes readers inside the exclusive club and its world-famous adventure archives. Here then, are some of the best tales ever swapped at that capital of adventure, including: Anthony Fiola on being in close quarters with a polar bear Charles Lindbergh on his famous flight Felix Reisenberg on the Arctic Anne Keenleyside, Ph. D. on cannibalism Roald Amundsen on the explorer Stefansson Mervyn Cowie on hunting killer lions Jean-Marc Boivin on hang-gliding Curtis and Kathleen Saville on oceanic rowing E. W. Deming on Sitting Bull's mysterious death It's some of the finest writing on some of the most hair-raising journeys ever made, all selected by the late George Plimpton, himself a member of The Explorers Club.