Gratuit avec l'essai de 30 jours

  • River of the Gods

  • Genius, Courage, and Betrayal in the Search for the Source of the Nile
  • Auteur(s): Candice Millard
  • Narrateur(s): Paul Michael
  • Durée: 10 h et 2 min
  • 3,9 out of 5 stars (9 évaluations)

Choisissez 1 livre audio par mois dans notre incomparable catalogue.
Écoutez à volonté des milliers de livres audio, de livres originaux et de balados.
Accédez à des promotions et à des soldes exclusifs.
L'abonnement Premium Plus se renouvelle automatiquement au tarif de 14,95 $/mois + taxes applicables après 30 jours. Annulation possible à tout moment.
Page de couverture de River of the Gods

River of the Gods

Auteur(s): Candice Millard
Narrateur(s): Paul Michael
Essayer pour 0,00 $

14,95$ par mois après 30 jours. Annulable en tout temps.

Acheter pour 39,48$

Acheter pour 39,48$

Payer avec la carte finissant par
En confirmant votre achat, vous acceptez les conditions d'utilisation d'Audible et la déclaration de confidentialité d'Amazon. Des taxes peuvent s'appliquer.

Description

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The harrowing story of one of the great feats of exploration of all time and its complicated legacy—from the New York Times bestselling author of The River of Doubt and Destiny of the Republic

A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: THE WASHINGTON POST • GOODREADS

"A lean, fast-paced account of the almost absurdly dangerous quest by [Richard Burton and John Speke] to solve the geographic riddle of their era."—The New York Times Book Review

For millennia the location of the Nile River’s headwaters was shrouded in mystery. In the 19th century, there was a frenzy of interest in ancient Egypt. At the same time, European powers sent off waves of explorations intended to map the unknown corners of the globe–and extend their colonial empires. 

Richard Burton and John Hanning Speke were sent by the Royal Geographical Society to claim the prize for England. Burton spoke twenty-nine languages, and was a decorated soldier. He was also mercurial, subtle, and an iconoclastic atheist. Speke was a young aristocrat and Army officer determined to make his mark, passionate about hunting, Burton’s opposite in temperament and beliefs. 

From the start the two men clashed. They would endure tremendous hardships, illness, and constant setbacks. Two years in, deep in the African interior, Burton became too sick to press on, but Speke did, and claimed he found the source in a great lake that he christened Lake Victoria. When they returned to England, Speke rushed to take credit, disparaging Burton. Burton disputed his claim, and Speke launched another expedition to Africa to prove it. The two became venomous enemies, with the public siding with the more charismatic Burton, to Speke’s great envy. The day before they were to publicly debate, Speke shot himself.

Yet there was a third man on both expeditions, his name obscured by imperial annals, whose exploits were even more extraordinary. This was Sidi Mubarak Bombay, who was enslaved and shipped from his home village in East Africa to India. When the man who purchased him died, he made his way into the local Sultan’s army, and eventually traveled back to Africa, where he used his resourcefulness, linguistic prowess and raw courage to forge a living as a guide. Without Bombay and men like him, who led, carried, and protected the expedition, neither Englishman would have come close to the headwaters of the Nile, or perhaps even survived.

In River of the Gods Candice Millard has written another peerless story of courage and adventure, set against the backdrop of the race to exploit Africa by the colonial powers.

©2022 Candice Millard (P)2022 Random House Audio

Ce que les critiques en disent

New York Times Bestseller A Best Book of the Year: WASHINGTON POST, NPR, GOODREADS, BOOKPAGE, Audible • One of The Washington Post's 50 Notable Works of Nonfiction One of Smithsonian’s 10 best History Books of 2022

River of the Gods is a lean, fast-paced account of the almost absurdly dangerous quest by [Richard Burton and John Speke] to solve the geographic riddle of their era. . . Candice Millard has earned her legions of admirers. She is a graceful writer and a careful researcher, and she knows how to navigate a tangled tale.”—The New York Times Book Review

“Millard’s research and very readable storytelling are admirable. . . Ultimately, the identity of the person who first discovered the source of the White Nile may be a trivial matter. Ms. Millard conscientiously investigates the issue, of course, but River of the Gods is compelling because she does justice to the psyches and behavior of Burton and Speke—keenly flawed but enthralling, sometimes marvelous people.”Wall Street Journal

“Millard recounts all of these travails with a fluid grace that wears its learning lightly.”The Washington Post

Ce que les auditeurs disent de River of the Gods

Moyenne des évaluations de clients
Au global
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 étoiles
    2
  • 4 étoiles
    4
  • 3 étoiles
    3
  • 2 étoiles
    0
  • 1 étoile
    0
Performance
  • 3.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 étoiles
    2
  • 4 étoiles
    2
  • 3 étoiles
    1
  • 2 étoiles
    0
  • 1 étoile
    1
Histoire
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 étoiles
    2
  • 4 étoiles
    2
  • 3 étoiles
    2
  • 2 étoiles
    0
  • 1 étoile
    0

Évaluations – Cliquez sur les onglets pour changer la source des évaluations.

Classer par :
Filtrer
  • Au global
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Histoire
    3 out of 5 stars

Disappointing.

This is hardly the first book on the subject. And there have been so many excellent books, one wonders why Miller felt the need to revisit this very well trodden ground. The real problem here, however, is with the reader. Miller quotes Burton and others ALOT. The reader renders this all into embarrassingly bad English accents. His voicing of the women is atrocious. This makes the performance almost unlistenable.

Un problème est survenu. Veuillez réessayer dans quelques minutes.

Vous avez donné votre avis sur cette évaluation.

Vous avez donné votre avis sur cette évaluation.

  • Au global
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Histoire
    3 out of 5 stars

Not my Favourite

I’m a big fan of Candice Millard. This felt dry and unlike her other works. Enjoyed it but 2.5 out of 5 imo

Un problème est survenu. Veuillez réessayer dans quelques minutes.

Vous avez donné votre avis sur cette évaluation.

Vous avez donné votre avis sur cette évaluation.