The Adventures of Alexander von Humboldt

Meet Alexander von Humboldt: the great lost scientist, visionary, thinker and daring explorer; the man who first predicted climate change, who has more things named after him than anyone else (including a sea on the moon), and who has inspired generations of writers, thinkers and revolutionaries . . . In The Adventures of Alexander von Humboldt, 88-year-old Humboldt takes us on a fantastic voyage, back through his life, tracing his footsteps around the rainforests, mountains and crocodile-infested rivers of South America when he was a young man. Travel with him to Venezuela, to Lake Valencia, the Llanos and the Orinocco, and follow him during his time in Cuba, Cartagena, Bogota and his one-year trek across the Andes, as he climbs the volcano Chimborazo, explores Inca monuments, and visits Washington D.C. to meet Thomas Jefferson and campaign for the abolition of slavery. With encounters with indigenous peoples, missionaries, colonists and jaguars, and incorporating Humboldt's own sketches, drawings and manuscripts, this is a thrilling adventure story of history's most daring scientist.

Andrea Wulf (Author) Andrea Wulf was born in India, moved to Germany as a child, and now lives in London. She is the award-winning author of five books. Her previous book, The Invention of Nature, was an international bestseller and won more than 10 awards, including the Royal Society Science Book Award 2016, Costa Biography Award 2015, the Inaugural James Wright Award for Nature Writing 2016 (Kenyon Review in association with the Nature Conservancy) and the LA Times Book Prize 2016, as well as awards in Germany, China, France and Italy. It has been published in 26 countries. Andrea is an international fellow of the Explorers Club, a fellow of The Royal Society and a fellow of the Royal Geographical Society and a fellow of The Royal Society of Literature. For the past years, she has followed Humboldt's footsteps through Europe and South America -- from Chimborazo and the Mipures Rapids at the Orinoco to the archives in Berlin. Lillian Melcher (Illustrator) Lillian Melcher was born and raised just outside of Boston, Massachusetts. She attended Parsons School of Design in New York City. In 2016, she graduated with a degree in Illustration. She is the recipient of the SCBWI Student Illustrator Scholarship. This is her first book. While she hasn't been to Chimborazo or the Orinoco, diving into the dense universe of Humboldt's work over the past two years with Andrea Wulf as her guide has been a great adventure. She hopes you feel the same way.