About book River Of Darkness: Francisco Orellana's Legendary Voyage Of Death And Discovery Down The Amazon (2011)
The Green Hell:The unknown has always beckoned to the human spirit. It's what compels us to seek out the most foreboding lands, the highest mountains and the darkest rivers. Whether it's for God, Country, King or Riches. There's no stoping us and the ends often justify the means. Anything or anyone who stands in our way does so at their own peril. It wasn't long, after Columbus first made land-fall in the Western Hemisphere, before the European maritime kingdoms saw the potential of unlimited riches and land that this "New World" presented. Certainly one of the most important nations of the 15th Century was Spain who sent out fleets of ships to explore, conquer and convert the "native" population to a proper religious belief. But they weren't doing all this exploring just for God, their main goals were to acquire land, to expand their kingdom beyond the horizon and to fill Spain's Royal coffers with Gold. So it was that Conquistadors Gonzalo Pizarro and Francisco Orellana found themselves on the north-west coast of South America (Ecuador) in search of fame and fortune, the spice cinnamon and the fabled "Gilded One"- El Dorado. But between the explorers and their dreams of glory stood a mighty fortress of rock, ice and snow: the Andes. And beyond the Andes; an impenetrable jungle of unknown dangers that stretched as far as the eye could see. If ever there was a "Hell on Earth", this was it! In "River of Darkness" author Buddy Levy traces Pizarro and Orellana's terrifying expedition into the Amazon Basin and their appointment with deprivation and death. There had been previous expeditions into the region but they never got far; short trips up the Amazon from the Atlantic Delta; brief missions from the Pacific side, over the Andes and into the rain-forest. But no one had ever made the connection between Quito on the Pacific side and Marajo Island on the Atlantic side. With Pizarro in command and Orellana as his 2nd the expedition set off into the unknown early in 1541 intending to find and conquer the fabled La Canela (the Land of Cinnamon) and plunder El Dorado for it's gold. For 9 months the party would fight its way over mountains and through jungles without ever coming any nearer to their goals than the day they started. Sick, exhausted and near starving the expedition stopped to review their options. The two commanders knew they could not continue without fresh supplies so it was decided to split the party. Orellana would take half of the men and proceed down the Napo River by boat, somehow find food and return to the main party. Pizarro's party would follow on foot and, hopefully, meet Orellana on his way back. "The best laid plans of mice and men often go awry" and so it was with the explorers. After days of fighting their way down river without rest or much food, Pizarro came to the realization that they would never see their compatriots again. Feeling betrayed, Pizarro decided to return to Quito, the Land of Christians. Orellana, meanwhile, found that the river's savage currents made it impossible for them to return to Pizarro, even after the had found food. Now each party would face their own private Hell. While Pizarro fought his way back "home", Orellana would discover the true nature of the world's mightiest river: the Amazon. Levy's well written book is by turn, spellbinding and horrifying, a real page turner that, once started, was hard to put down. His research was thorough, using journals and official documents to support his narrative. The lengths that men will go to in achieving their goals is incredible and the "River of Darkness" will expose the obsessions that drove these Conquistadors to edge of damnation and madness. Whatever your views are on the Conquistadores and their methods, you have to give them credit for unfailing courage and ambition. In the end Orellana would travel over 5,000 miles, face unimaginable dangers and make history as the first man to navigate "Rio de Orellana" from it's source in the Andes to the "Sweet Water Sea" and beyond.Last Ranger I love reading things that give me a new perspective and a new way of thinking about history, our world and the context in which events occurred that I've either missed or to which I've just never been exposed. This book provides a little bit of that context that is new to me, at least, although maybe not so much to you more hard core history readers. I wanted to really love this book, especially given the rave reviews. One of my favorite recent reads was River of Doubt, about Teddy Roosevelt's own journey down the Amazon; I expected to be drawn in with the same level of intensity and emotion, but just couldn't find my way to get that excited about River of Darkness.Before I go on, I'll say that I did enjoy it overall, and it's a great read for anyone (like me) who knows nothing more about the Conquistadors and Spanish explorations of the New World in the 100 years after Columbus' discoveries than I learned in middle school (and, at the time, couldn't have cared less about). This book is a great intro for a guy like me, and it does a good job of putting into context how, among Spanish (or, more accurately, Spanish individuals like the Pizzaro brothers) attempts to set up rule in the New World, events like Orellana's journey down the Amazon happened almost accidentally. My only hesitation in not rating it better is that I felt the best parts of the book are what happens before and after Orellana's journey. The political landscape and motivations of the Conquistadors are presented in a very readable and, at times, gripping fashion. Levy's account of the lead up to Gonzalo Pizzaro's expedition across "the Andes in search of the Land of Cinnamon and the fabled riches of El Dorado" really drew me in, and gave me a great background and historical context of what drove guys like Pizzaro to take such extraordinary (or even ridiculous) risks.What happens after Orellana's initial journey down the Amazon has GOT to be made into a big Hollywood movie someday or, if it's not already out there (and please tell me if it is!) written about as a stand alone book Without providing any spoilers, I'll give you hints. Think of a story that includes obsession, suffering, betrayal, sex (ok, well not really, but hints at it in a way that Hollywood can probably capitalize on) and, wait for it...psychopathic killers. It was great, and I will be seeking out books that get into the fallout of Orellana's journey to learn more.But here's the only problem I had...the actual journey down the Amazan I found to be kind of dry. I will take any guidance from any of you to point to me what, exactly, I overlooked, but it felt very repetitive. Think of watching a football game with the play-by-play, but no color commentary. Not sure if it exists, because I'm sure there's only one version of the journey (written by Orellana's record keeper, Friar Carvajal), but I'd hoped for a more multi-faceted account of the journey; perhaps more personal background on the travelers to get me more personally vested in their trials and adventures. This is probably not fair, as, again, there's only one reliable account of the journey, and, if Friar Carvajal wasn't interested in an entertaining narrative, then it's left to Buddy Levy to present it in a way that will keep a layman like me engaged. In that respect, I should absolutely give Buddy Levy kudos. But, the source material used to develop the core of the book is either just too sparse in detail to give a guy like me the thrills and chills I enjoyed in other parts of the book, or, and this is very possible, I just skimmed through too fast to catch the nuances and historical facts I needed to get more emotionally vested in Orellana and his crew (not to mention the natives they met along the way).If my review is coming across as apologetic, it's because I'm purposefully writing it that way in hopes that one of you can help me with what I missed during that part of the book; help me put it in a context that makes it more emotionally engaging for me.I will end with this: this book is well worth the read for what happens before and after Orellana's journey; I can say that unequivocally.
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A great historical account of an accidental trip down the amazon by an early Spanish conquistador.
—Jade
Thirty percent of the novel was comprised of footnotes, which I really disliked.
—Caroline
A great insight into TR, and a really great read.
—mercedes
Enjoyed this very much. Very readable.
—ingmarvazquez
