
The River of Doubt
Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey
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Narrated by:
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Richard Ferrone
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By:
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Candice Millard
About this listen
The River of Doubt; it is a black, uncharted tributary of the Amazon that snakes through one of the most treacherous jungles in the world. Indians armed with poison-tipped arrows haunt its shadows; piranhas glide through its waters; boulder-strewn rapids turn the river into a roiling cauldron.
After his humiliating election defeat in 1912, Roosevelt set his sights on the most punishing physical challenge he could find, the first descent of an unmapped, rapids-choked tributary of the Amazon. Together with his son Kermit and Brazil's most famous explorer, Candido Mariano da Silva Rondon, Roosevelt accomplished a feat so great that many at the time refused to believe it. In the process, he changed the map of the western hemisphere forever.
Along the way, Roosevelt and his men faced an unbelievable series of hardships, losing their canoes and supplies to punishing whitewater rapids, and enduring starvation, Indian attack, disease, drowning, and a murder within their own ranks. Three men died, and Roosevelt was brought to the brink of suicide. The River of Doubt brings alive these extraordinary events in a powerful nonfiction narrative thriller that happens to feature one of the most famous Americans who ever lived.
From the soaring beauty of the Amazon rain forest to the darkest night of Theodore Roosevelt's life, here is Candice Millard's dazzling debut.
©2005 Candice Miller (P)2005 Random House, Inc.Listeners also enjoyed...
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Performance
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Critic reviews
"Millard...nails the suspense element of this story perfectly, but equally important to her success is the marvelous amount of detail she provides on the wildlife that Roosevelt and his fellow explorers encountered on their journey, as well as the cannibalistic indigenous tribe that stalked them much of the way." (Publishers Weekly)
TR, Indy, and Lost City of Z
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In addition to enlightening the listener about the post-presidential activities of TR, this book is wonderful for two reasons. First, the narration is some of the best that Richard Ferrone has recorded. Second, I purhcased the Abridged version. I usually avoid abridgements because they read like "cut and paste." This abridgement made me wish I had rented the full version.
The final section of the book informs the reader of what happened to TR and his son after the South American exploration. That is quite touching and informative as well.
Hooray for Candic Millard. I hope that she authors much more to come.
Terrific Story
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Interesting true story
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Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?
Yes. It gave some interesting insight into Roosevelt and was a good story.What other book might you compare The River of Doubt to and why?
Nor sure.Have you listened to any of Richard Ferrone’s other performances before? How does this one compare?
No.Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
No..Any additional comments?
I liked the abridged version; I think the unabridged version would have been more detail than I would want to go through.An interesting story
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River of Doubt
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Interesting
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Excellent book
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I’ve read Millard’s most excellent Destiny of the Republic, a fascinating story with larger-than-life characters who were as real as T.R. but a heck of a lot more interesting. Listen to Destiny of the Republic — that’s my heartfelt recommendation.
Rainforest — 1, Great White Hunter — 0
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Couldn't put it down!
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Harrowing & Riveting- Quite Unbelievable
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