The Explorers: A New History of America in Ten Expeditions($18.99Value)

Description

A fascinating new work of narrative nonfiction, this history of America is told through the stories of a diverse cast of ten extraordinary―and often overlooked―adventurers, from Sacagawea to Matthew Henson to Sally Ride, who pushed the boundaries of discovery and determined our national destiny. "Brilliantly imaginative, beautifully written." ―David Blight, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Frederick Douglass: Prophet of Freedom "A considerable undertaking. … [Bellows's] keen sense of story and her appreciation of her individual subjects tell us much that is new, and vividly." ―Wall Street Journal The archetype of the American explorer, a rugged white man, has dominated our popular culture and the story of US history since the late eighteenth century, when Daniel Boone’s autobiography captivated readers with tales of treacherous journeys. But our commonly held ideas about the American frontier do not tell the whole story―far from it. The Explorers rediscovers a diverse group of Americans central to the story of westward expansion who went to the frontier and beyond, traversing the farthest reaches of the globe and even penetrating outer space in their endeavor to find the unknown. This compelling collection of historical biographies reveals how many escaped from lives circumscribed by racism, sexism, poverty, and discrimination as they took on great risk in unfamiliar territory. Born into slavery, James Beckwourth found freedom as a mountain man and became one of the great entrepreneurs of Gold Rush California. In a powerful story from Black history, Matthew Henson, the son of African American sharecroppers, left rural Maryland behind to seek the North Pole. Women like Harriet Chalmers Adams ascended Peruvian mountains to gain geographic knowledge while pioneering women explorers like Amelia Earhart and Sally Ride shattered glass ceilings by pushing the limits of flight. In The Explorers, readers will travel across the vast Great Plains and into the heights of the Sierra Nevada mountains; they will traverse the frozen Arctic Ocean and descend into the jungles of South America; they will journey by canoe and horseback, train and dogsled, airplane and space shuttle. Readers will experience the exhilarating history of American exploration alongside the men and women who shared a deep drive to discover the unknown. Across two centuries and many thousands of miles of terrain, Amanda Bellows offers an ode to our country’s most intrepid adventurers―and reveals the history of America in the process. This meticulously researched work of American history reframes our understanding of the nation’s story by revealing: Overlooked History: Go beyond Daniel Boone to uncover the forgotten contributions of the women, Black, and Indigenous explorers who shaped the nation. - In-Depth Historical Biographies: Follow the lives of ten remarkable individuals, including Sacagawea, the indispensable navigator for the Lewis and Clark expedition, and John Muir, the father of the conservation movement. - Pioneers and Trailblazers: Journey alongside adventurers like James Beckwourth, a mountain man born into slavery who found freedom on the frontier, and Sally Ride, the first American woman in space. - A New Look at US History: Travel from the Gold Rush and the settlement of the Great Plains to the race for the North Pole and the dawn of the Space Age, seeing America's destiny through a new lens. *A  NEXT BIG IDEA CLUB  MUST-READ BOOK FOR JUNE 2024* "This book traces an undertold history of America, that of explorers who shaped American lives and American prospects. Where other books narrow—or even penalize— The Explorers  opens and invites, blazing a trail to a better, more open, America." - AMITY SHLAES, New York Times bestselling author of The Forgotten Man “Detailing America’s past through the lives of a diverse group of men and women, The Explorers deepens our understanding of the American soul as well as the human need to explore. From a bird watcher who helped sow the seeds of today’s environmental consciousness to America's first female astronaut, Amanda Bellows highlights the struggles and achievements of people whom history has sometimes overlooked, but don’t deserve to be. Their spirit and our country’s history come alive in these pages. Selective yet wide in overall scope, The Explorers is a pleasant read and an important exploration of American history.” - JIM DEFELICE, author of West Like Lightning and #1 New York Times bestselling coauthor of American Sniper “Amanda Bellows takes us on a captivating journey of the unlikely and the overlooked, breathing new life into the story of American exploration – and the human experience – that we thought we already knew. And like the discoveries of the incredible men and women she writes about, that is no small feat.” - MARK LEE GARDNER, author of The Earth Is All That Lasts: Crazy Horse, Sitting Bull, and the Last Stand of the Great Sioux Nation "From Sacagawea and Laura