Candice Millard Books

Richard Francis Burton was the quintessential outsider. Fluent in dozens of languages and dialects, he moved through worlds others barely glimpsed. His earlier travels—to Mecca in disguise, to India as soldier and scholar—had made him both famous and suspect. To Victorian society his genius came wra...

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

John Hanning Speke embodied a different kind of courage, a quieter persistence born of restlessness and self-doubt. A veteran of Britain’s Indian wars, he longed for distinction beyond the battlefield. The Nile offered redemption, a chance to etch his own story in the annals of discovery. But Speke’...

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

After the bitter defeat of 1912, Theodore Roosevelt needed a challenge worthy of his restless soul. He accepted invitations to lecture in South America, but what truly ignited his imagination was the suggestion of an Amazonian expedition. The opportunity came through Brazil’s famed explorer and tele...

From The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey

In December 1913, the expedition set sail for Brazil. Roosevelt’s enthusiasm filled the air, his lectures drawing crowds and admiration throughout South America. But the heroic pageantry gave way to arduous reality as the party moved inland. After a series of riverboats and rail journeys, they reach...

From The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey