Why read Travelers & Travel Liars 1660-1800?

Book cover of Travelers & Travel Liars 1660-1800

Book description

“This book focuses upon the hoaxes and lies perpetrated by travel writers during that “Age of Reason. ”

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Why read it?

1 author picked Travelers & Travel Liars 1660-1800 as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

Emily Thomas

Author

This entertaining book treats travellers who were also liars - people who went abroad, but ‘embellished’ their journeys on returning home. It includes the tale of John Byron “Foul-Weather Jack”, who circumnavigated the globe and reported meeting nine-foot giants in 1776 Argentina. In the 1690s, traveller Louis Hennepin’s lies dramatically altered the topography of New Mexico, introducing false rivers and land masses that appeared on maps for 250 years. In the 1560s, sailor David Ingram claimed to have trekked America—describing giant cities, ruby-adorned kings, and rivers flowing the wrong way. Adams thoughtfully reflects on why these travellers lied, and why…

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