Author: Robert T. Conn
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 3030262189
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 527
Book Description
Simón Bolívar is the preeminent symbol of Latin America and the subject of seemingly endless posthumous attention. Interpreted and reinterpreted in biographies, histories, political writings, speeches, and works of art and fiction, he has been a vehicle for public discourse for the past two centuries. Robert T. Conn follows the afterlives of Bolívar across the Americas, tracing his presence in a range of competing but interlocking national stories. How have historians, writers, statesmen, filmmakers, and institutions reworked his life and writings to make cultural and political claims? How has his legacy been interpreted in the countries whose territories he liberated, as well as in those where his importance is symbolic, such as the United States? In answering these questions, Conn illuminates the history of nation building and hemispheric globalism in the Americas.
Bolívar’s Afterlife in the Americas
Author: Robert T. Conn
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 3030262189
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 527
Book Description
Simón Bolívar is the preeminent symbol of Latin America and the subject of seemingly endless posthumous attention. Interpreted and reinterpreted in biographies, histories, political writings, speeches, and works of art and fiction, he has been a vehicle for public discourse for the past two centuries. Robert T. Conn follows the afterlives of Bolívar across the Americas, tracing his presence in a range of competing but interlocking national stories. How have historians, writers, statesmen, filmmakers, and institutions reworked his life and writings to make cultural and political claims? How has his legacy been interpreted in the countries whose territories he liberated, as well as in those where his importance is symbolic, such as the United States? In answering these questions, Conn illuminates the history of nation building and hemispheric globalism in the Americas.
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 3030262189
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 527
Book Description
Simón Bolívar is the preeminent symbol of Latin America and the subject of seemingly endless posthumous attention. Interpreted and reinterpreted in biographies, histories, political writings, speeches, and works of art and fiction, he has been a vehicle for public discourse for the past two centuries. Robert T. Conn follows the afterlives of Bolívar across the Americas, tracing his presence in a range of competing but interlocking national stories. How have historians, writers, statesmen, filmmakers, and institutions reworked his life and writings to make cultural and political claims? How has his legacy been interpreted in the countries whose territories he liberated, as well as in those where his importance is symbolic, such as the United States? In answering these questions, Conn illuminates the history of nation building and hemispheric globalism in the Americas.
For Glory and Bolívar
Author: Pamela S. Murray
Publisher: University of Texas Press
ISBN: 0292778716
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 239
Book Description
She was a friend, lover, and confidante of charismatic Spanish American independence hero Simón Bolívar and, after her death, a nationalist icon in her own right. Yet authors generally have chosen either to romanticize Manuela Sáenz or to discount her altogether. For Glory and Bolivar: The Remarkable of Life of Manuela Sáenz, by contrast, offers a comprehensive and clear-eyed biography of her. Based on unprecedented archival research, it paints a vivid portrait of the Quito-born "Libertadora," revealing both an exceptional figure and a flesh-and-blood person whose life broadly reflected the experiences of women during Spanish America's turbulent Age of Revolution. Already married at the time of her meeting with the famous Liberator, Sáenz abandoned her husband in order to become not only Bolívar's romantic companion, but also his official archivist, a member of his inner circle, and one of his most loyal followers. She played a central role in Spanish South America's independence drama and eventually in developments leading to the consolidation of new nations. Pamela Murray, for the first time, closely examines Sáenz's political trajectory including her vital, often-overlooked years in exile. She exposes the myths that still surround her. She offers, in short, a nuanced and much-needed historical perspective, one that balances recognition of Sáenz's uniqueness with awareness of the broader forces that shaped this dynamic nineteenth-century woman.
Publisher: University of Texas Press
ISBN: 0292778716
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 239
Book Description
She was a friend, lover, and confidante of charismatic Spanish American independence hero Simón Bolívar and, after her death, a nationalist icon in her own right. Yet authors generally have chosen either to romanticize Manuela Sáenz or to discount her altogether. For Glory and Bolivar: The Remarkable of Life of Manuela Sáenz, by contrast, offers a comprehensive and clear-eyed biography of her. Based on unprecedented archival research, it paints a vivid portrait of the Quito-born "Libertadora," revealing both an exceptional figure and a flesh-and-blood person whose life broadly reflected the experiences of women during Spanish America's turbulent Age of Revolution. Already married at the time of her meeting with the famous Liberator, Sáenz abandoned her husband in order to become not only Bolívar's romantic companion, but also his official archivist, a member of his inner circle, and one of his most loyal followers. She played a central role in Spanish South America's independence drama and eventually in developments leading to the consolidation of new nations. Pamela Murray, for the first time, closely examines Sáenz's political trajectory including her vital, often-overlooked years in exile. She exposes the myths that still surround her. She offers, in short, a nuanced and much-needed historical perspective, one that balances recognition of Sáenz's uniqueness with awareness of the broader forces that shaped this dynamic nineteenth-century woman.
Life and Death in the Andes
Author: Kim MacQuarrie
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 143916892X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 448
Book Description
“A thoughtfully observed travel memoir and history as richly detailed as it is deeply felt” (Kirkus Reviews) of South America, from Butch Cassidy to Che Guevara to cocaine king Pablo Escobar to Charles Darwin, all set in the Andes Mountains. The Andes Mountains are the world’s longest mountain chain, linking most of the countries in South America. Kim MacQuarrie takes us on a historical journey through this unique region, bringing fresh insight and contemporary connections to such fabled characters as Charles Darwin, Che Guevara, Pablo Escobar, Butch Cassidy, Thor Heyerdahl, and others. He describes living on the floating islands of Lake Titcaca. He introduces us to a Patagonian woman who is the last living speaker of her language. We meet the woman who cared for the wounded Che Guevara just before he died, the police officer who captured cocaine king Pablo Escobar, the dancer who hid Shining Path guerrilla Abimael Guzman, and a man whose grandfather witnessed the death of Butch Cassidy. Collectively these stories tell us something about the spirit of South America. What makes South America different from other continents—and what makes the cultures of the Andes different from other cultures found there? How did the capitalism introduced by the Spaniards change South America? Why did Shining Path leader Guzman nearly succeed in his revolutionary quest while Che Guevara in Bolivia was a complete failure in his? “MacQuarrie writes smartly and engagingly and with…enthusiasm about the variety of South America’s life and landscape” (The New York Times Book Review) in Life and Death in the Andes. Based on the author’s own deeply observed travels, “this is a well-written, immersive work that history aficionados, particularly those with an affinity for Latin America, will relish” (Library Journal).
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 143916892X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 448
Book Description
“A thoughtfully observed travel memoir and history as richly detailed as it is deeply felt” (Kirkus Reviews) of South America, from Butch Cassidy to Che Guevara to cocaine king Pablo Escobar to Charles Darwin, all set in the Andes Mountains. The Andes Mountains are the world’s longest mountain chain, linking most of the countries in South America. Kim MacQuarrie takes us on a historical journey through this unique region, bringing fresh insight and contemporary connections to such fabled characters as Charles Darwin, Che Guevara, Pablo Escobar, Butch Cassidy, Thor Heyerdahl, and others. He describes living on the floating islands of Lake Titcaca. He introduces us to a Patagonian woman who is the last living speaker of her language. We meet the woman who cared for the wounded Che Guevara just before he died, the police officer who captured cocaine king Pablo Escobar, the dancer who hid Shining Path guerrilla Abimael Guzman, and a man whose grandfather witnessed the death of Butch Cassidy. Collectively these stories tell us something about the spirit of South America. What makes South America different from other continents—and what makes the cultures of the Andes different from other cultures found there? How did the capitalism introduced by the Spaniards change South America? Why did Shining Path leader Guzman nearly succeed in his revolutionary quest while Che Guevara in Bolivia was a complete failure in his? “MacQuarrie writes smartly and engagingly and with…enthusiasm about the variety of South America’s life and landscape” (The New York Times Book Review) in Life and Death in the Andes. Based on the author’s own deeply observed travels, “this is a well-written, immersive work that history aficionados, particularly those with an affinity for Latin America, will relish” (Library Journal).
Seeds of Revolution
Author: Iam A. Freeman
Publisher: iUniverse
ISBN: 1440185301
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 741
Book Description
A Collection of Axioms, Passages & Proverbs From Che Guevara Bob Marley Mao Tse Tung George Jackson Noam Chomsky Patrice Lumumba Leonard Peltier Richard Pryor Bruce Lee H. Rap Brown Will Rogers Kwame Ture Plato Chief Seattle Maurice Bishop Anne Wilson Schaef Martin Luther King, Jr. Mahatma Gandhi Helen Keller Stevie Wonder Buddha Fidel Castro Ptah-Hotep Denzel Washington Socrates Karl Marx Arundhati Roy Paul Robeson Zhuge Liang Malcolm X Confucius Sekou Toure Marvin Gaye Mother Jones Hugo Chavez Kwame Nkrumah Ho Chi Minh Amilcar Cabral Eugene V. Debs Jose Mart James Loewen Marcus Garvey Augusto Sandino Aesops Fables Harriet Tubman Chief Joseph Frantz Fanon Mark Twain Simon Bolivar Thomas Sankara Lao Tzu Miriam Makeba Howard Zinn Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. Subcomandante Marcos Mumia Abu-Jamal Kim Il Sung Sitting Bull W.E.B. Du Bois Red Cloud Paramahansa Yogananda David Walker Assata Shakur Albert Camus Steve Biko KRS-One George Santayana Carter G. Woodson Black Hawk Muhammad Ali John Lennon Chuck D John H. Clarke I Ching Jean-Jacques Rousseau Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Victor Hugo Salvador Allende Dick Gregory Emiliano Zapata Oprah Winfrey Upton Sinclair Bill Cosby Cesar Chavez John Brown Various International Proverbs Jack London Henry David Thoreau Frederick Douglass Emma Goldman Michael Jordan George Orwell Rage Against The Machine Albert Einstein Kareem Abdul-Jabar Voltaire Thomas Carlyle Lauryn Hill Sojourner Truth Depak Chopra The Bible Prophet Muhammad Rumi V.I. Lenin Meister Eckhart Fred Hampton Michael Moore The Tao George Carlin Ralph Nader Rosa Parks Margaret Storm Jameson Louis Farrakhan Nina Simone Yuri Kochiyama Woody Guthrie Bertrand Russell Rosa Luxemburg Willie Nelson Joan Baez Bhagavad-Gita Gen. Smedley Butler Fyodor Dostoyevsky Duke Ellington Ralph Waldo Emerson Jawanza Kunjufu Erich Fromm Jimi Hendrix Big Elk Fannie Lou Hamer Immanuel Kant Ziggy Marley Poor Richards Almanac Public Enemy Bill Russell Kenneth Stampp Spock Peter Tosh Nat Turner Desmond Tutu Sun Tzu Booker T. Washington Saul Alinsky The Zulu Declaration Brother A Collection of Axioms, Passages & Proverbs On God Faith Endurance Agitate Organize Unity Commun-all-ism Comrades Enemies No (Know) Sellouts United Snakes of America The Rich & Greedy Warmongers The Slick, Selfish & Wicked The Humble, Righteous & Just Resistance Independence Criticism/Self-Criticism Time Tell-Lie-Vision Poverty/Class Struggle Poli-tricks The (In) Just-Us System Women Children Family Pride Death Culture History Slavery The African Holocaust The Question of Race Religion Money Work Education Knowledge & Wisdom Political Power Socialism Revolution Free the Land Afreeka God
Publisher: iUniverse
ISBN: 1440185301
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 741
Book Description
A Collection of Axioms, Passages & Proverbs From Che Guevara Bob Marley Mao Tse Tung George Jackson Noam Chomsky Patrice Lumumba Leonard Peltier Richard Pryor Bruce Lee H. Rap Brown Will Rogers Kwame Ture Plato Chief Seattle Maurice Bishop Anne Wilson Schaef Martin Luther King, Jr. Mahatma Gandhi Helen Keller Stevie Wonder Buddha Fidel Castro Ptah-Hotep Denzel Washington Socrates Karl Marx Arundhati Roy Paul Robeson Zhuge Liang Malcolm X Confucius Sekou Toure Marvin Gaye Mother Jones Hugo Chavez Kwame Nkrumah Ho Chi Minh Amilcar Cabral Eugene V. Debs Jose Mart James Loewen Marcus Garvey Augusto Sandino Aesops Fables Harriet Tubman Chief Joseph Frantz Fanon Mark Twain Simon Bolivar Thomas Sankara Lao Tzu Miriam Makeba Howard Zinn Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. Subcomandante Marcos Mumia Abu-Jamal Kim Il Sung Sitting Bull W.E.B. Du Bois Red Cloud Paramahansa Yogananda David Walker Assata Shakur Albert Camus Steve Biko KRS-One George Santayana Carter G. Woodson Black Hawk Muhammad Ali John Lennon Chuck D John H. Clarke I Ching Jean-Jacques Rousseau Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Victor Hugo Salvador Allende Dick Gregory Emiliano Zapata Oprah Winfrey Upton Sinclair Bill Cosby Cesar Chavez John Brown Various International Proverbs Jack London Henry David Thoreau Frederick Douglass Emma Goldman Michael Jordan George Orwell Rage Against The Machine Albert Einstein Kareem Abdul-Jabar Voltaire Thomas Carlyle Lauryn Hill Sojourner Truth Depak Chopra The Bible Prophet Muhammad Rumi V.I. Lenin Meister Eckhart Fred Hampton Michael Moore The Tao George Carlin Ralph Nader Rosa Parks Margaret Storm Jameson Louis Farrakhan Nina Simone Yuri Kochiyama Woody Guthrie Bertrand Russell Rosa Luxemburg Willie Nelson Joan Baez Bhagavad-Gita Gen. Smedley Butler Fyodor Dostoyevsky Duke Ellington Ralph Waldo Emerson Jawanza Kunjufu Erich Fromm Jimi Hendrix Big Elk Fannie Lou Hamer Immanuel Kant Ziggy Marley Poor Richards Almanac Public Enemy Bill Russell Kenneth Stampp Spock Peter Tosh Nat Turner Desmond Tutu Sun Tzu Booker T. Washington Saul Alinsky The Zulu Declaration Brother A Collection of Axioms, Passages & Proverbs On God Faith Endurance Agitate Organize Unity Commun-all-ism Comrades Enemies No (Know) Sellouts United Snakes of America The Rich & Greedy Warmongers The Slick, Selfish & Wicked The Humble, Righteous & Just Resistance Independence Criticism/Self-Criticism Time Tell-Lie-Vision Poverty/Class Struggle Poli-tricks The (In) Just-Us System Women Children Family Pride Death Culture History Slavery The African Holocaust The Question of Race Religion Money Work Education Knowledge & Wisdom Political Power Socialism Revolution Free the Land Afreeka God
Bolivar
Author: Marie Arana
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1439110204
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 624
Book Description
An authoritative portrait of the Latin-American warrior-statesman examines his life against a backdrop of the tensions of nineteenth-century South America, covering his achievements as a strategist, abolitionist, and diplomat.
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1439110204
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 624
Book Description
An authoritative portrait of the Latin-American warrior-statesman examines his life against a backdrop of the tensions of nineteenth-century South America, covering his achievements as a strategist, abolitionist, and diplomat.
Francisco de Miranda, a Transatlantic Life in the Age of Revolution
Author: Karen Racine
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 9780842029100
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 364
Book Description
Before there was Sim-n Bol'var, there was Francisco de Miranda. He was among the most infamous men of his generation, loved or hated by all who knew him. Venezuelan General Francisco Gabriel de Miranda (1750-1816) participated in the major political events of the Atlantic World for more than three decades. Before his tragic last days he would be Spanish soldier, friend of U.S. presidents, paramour of Catherine the Great, French Revolutionary general in the Belgian campaigns, perennial thorn in the side of British Prime Minister William Pitt, and fomenter of revolution in Spanish America. He used his personal relationships with leaders on both sides of the Atlantic to advance his dream of a liberated Spanish America. Author Karen Racine brings the man into focus in a careful, thorough analysis, showing how his savvy, firm political beliefs and courageous actions saved him from being the simple scoundrel that his dalliances suggested. Shedding light on one of history's most charismatic and cosmopolitan world citizens, Francisco de Miranda will appeal to all those interested in biography and Latin American history.
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 9780842029100
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 364
Book Description
Before there was Sim-n Bol'var, there was Francisco de Miranda. He was among the most infamous men of his generation, loved or hated by all who knew him. Venezuelan General Francisco Gabriel de Miranda (1750-1816) participated in the major political events of the Atlantic World for more than three decades. Before his tragic last days he would be Spanish soldier, friend of U.S. presidents, paramour of Catherine the Great, French Revolutionary general in the Belgian campaigns, perennial thorn in the side of British Prime Minister William Pitt, and fomenter of revolution in Spanish America. He used his personal relationships with leaders on both sides of the Atlantic to advance his dream of a liberated Spanish America. Author Karen Racine brings the man into focus in a careful, thorough analysis, showing how his savvy, firm political beliefs and courageous actions saved him from being the simple scoundrel that his dalliances suggested. Shedding light on one of history's most charismatic and cosmopolitan world citizens, Francisco de Miranda will appeal to all those interested in biography and Latin American history.
A Velvet Empire
Author: David Todd
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 0691205337
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 368
Book Description
How France's elites used soft power to pursue their imperial ambitions in the nineteenth century After Napoleon's downfall in 1815, France embraced a mostly informal style of empire, one that emphasized economic and cultural influence rather than military conquest. A Velvet Empire is a global history of French imperialism in the nineteenth century, providing new insights into the mechanisms of imperial collaboration that extended France's power from the Middle East to Latin America and ushered in the modern age of globalization. David Todd shows how French elites pursued a cunning strategy of imperial expansion in which conspicuous commodities such as champagne and silk textiles, together with loans to client states, contributed to a global campaign of seduction. French imperialism was no less brutal than that of the British. But while Britain widened its imperial reach through settler colonialism and the acquisition of far-flung territories, France built a "velvet" empire backed by frequent military interventions and a broadening extraterritorial jurisdiction. Todd demonstrates how France drew vast benefits from these asymmetric, imperial-like relations until a succession of setbacks around the world brought about their unravelling in the 1870s. A Velvet Empire sheds light on France's neglected contribution to the conservative reinvention of modernity and offers a new interpretation of the resurgence of French colonialism on a global scale after 1880. This panoramic book also highlights the crucial role of collaboration among European empires during this period—including archrivals Britain and France—and cooperation with indigenous elites in facilitating imperial expansion and the globalization of capitalism.
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 0691205337
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 368
Book Description
How France's elites used soft power to pursue their imperial ambitions in the nineteenth century After Napoleon's downfall in 1815, France embraced a mostly informal style of empire, one that emphasized economic and cultural influence rather than military conquest. A Velvet Empire is a global history of French imperialism in the nineteenth century, providing new insights into the mechanisms of imperial collaboration that extended France's power from the Middle East to Latin America and ushered in the modern age of globalization. David Todd shows how French elites pursued a cunning strategy of imperial expansion in which conspicuous commodities such as champagne and silk textiles, together with loans to client states, contributed to a global campaign of seduction. French imperialism was no less brutal than that of the British. But while Britain widened its imperial reach through settler colonialism and the acquisition of far-flung territories, France built a "velvet" empire backed by frequent military interventions and a broadening extraterritorial jurisdiction. Todd demonstrates how France drew vast benefits from these asymmetric, imperial-like relations until a succession of setbacks around the world brought about their unravelling in the 1870s. A Velvet Empire sheds light on France's neglected contribution to the conservative reinvention of modernity and offers a new interpretation of the resurgence of French colonialism on a global scale after 1880. This panoramic book also highlights the crucial role of collaboration among European empires during this period—including archrivals Britain and France—and cooperation with indigenous elites in facilitating imperial expansion and the globalization of capitalism.
Anarchism in Latin America
Author: Ángel J. Cappelletti
Publisher: AK Press
ISBN: 1849352836
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 232
Book Description
The available material in English discussing Latin American anarchism tends to be fragmentary, country-specific, or focused on single individuals. This new translation of Ángel Cappelletti's wide-ranging, country-by-country historical overview of anarchism's social and political achievements in fourteen Latin American nations is the first book-length regional history ever published in English. With a foreword by the translator. Ángel J. Cappelletti (1927–1995) was an Argentinian philosopher who taught at Simon Bolivar University in Venezuela. He is the author of over forty works primarily investigating philosophy and anarchism. Gabriel Palmer-Fernandez is Distinguished Professor of Philosophy and Religious Studies at Youngstown State University.
Publisher: AK Press
ISBN: 1849352836
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 232
Book Description
The available material in English discussing Latin American anarchism tends to be fragmentary, country-specific, or focused on single individuals. This new translation of Ángel Cappelletti's wide-ranging, country-by-country historical overview of anarchism's social and political achievements in fourteen Latin American nations is the first book-length regional history ever published in English. With a foreword by the translator. Ángel J. Cappelletti (1927–1995) was an Argentinian philosopher who taught at Simon Bolivar University in Venezuela. He is the author of over forty works primarily investigating philosophy and anarchism. Gabriel Palmer-Fernandez is Distinguished Professor of Philosophy and Religious Studies at Youngstown State University.
The Politics of Philology
Author: Robert T. Conn
Publisher: Bucknell University Press
ISBN: 9780838755044
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 230
Book Description
"The Politics of Philology will appeal to scholars of Latin American literature interested in questions of nation formation, and to scholars of Mexican history who have increasingly tended to work with cultural models of historical research."--BOOK JACKET.
Publisher: Bucknell University Press
ISBN: 9780838755044
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 230
Book Description
"The Politics of Philology will appeal to scholars of Latin American literature interested in questions of nation formation, and to scholars of Mexican history who have increasingly tended to work with cultural models of historical research."--BOOK JACKET.
The Invention of Nature
Author: Andrea Wulf
Publisher: Vintage
ISBN: 0345806298
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 586
Book Description
NATIONAL BESTSELLER • A biography of Alexander von Humboldt, the visionary German naturalist whose ideas changed the way we see the natural world—and in the process created modern environmentalism. • From the acclaimed author of Magnificent Rebels. "Vivid and exciting.... Wulf’s pulsating account brings this dazzling figure back into a dazzling, much-deserved focus.” —The Boston Globe Alexander von Humboldt (1769-1859) was the most famous scientist of his age, a visionary German naturalist and polymath whose discoveries forever changed the way we understand the natural world. Among his most revolutionary ideas was a radical conception of nature as a complex and interconnected global force that does not exist for the use of humankind alone. In North America, Humboldt’s name still graces towns, counties, parks, bays, lakes, mountains, and a river. And yet the man has been all but forgotten. In this illuminating biography, Andrea Wulf brings Humboldt’s extraordinary life back into focus: his prediction of human-induced climate change; his daring expeditions to the highest peaks of South America and to the anthrax-infected steppes of Siberia; his relationships with iconic figures, including Simón Bolívar and Thomas Jefferson; and the lasting influence of his writings on Darwin, Wordsworth, Goethe, Muir, Thoreau, and many others. Brilliantly researched and stunningly written, The Invention of Nature reveals the myriad ways in which Humboldt’s ideas form the foundation of modern environmentalism—and reminds us why they are as prescient and vital as ever.
Publisher: Vintage
ISBN: 0345806298
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 586
Book Description
NATIONAL BESTSELLER • A biography of Alexander von Humboldt, the visionary German naturalist whose ideas changed the way we see the natural world—and in the process created modern environmentalism. • From the acclaimed author of Magnificent Rebels. "Vivid and exciting.... Wulf’s pulsating account brings this dazzling figure back into a dazzling, much-deserved focus.” —The Boston Globe Alexander von Humboldt (1769-1859) was the most famous scientist of his age, a visionary German naturalist and polymath whose discoveries forever changed the way we understand the natural world. Among his most revolutionary ideas was a radical conception of nature as a complex and interconnected global force that does not exist for the use of humankind alone. In North America, Humboldt’s name still graces towns, counties, parks, bays, lakes, mountains, and a river. And yet the man has been all but forgotten. In this illuminating biography, Andrea Wulf brings Humboldt’s extraordinary life back into focus: his prediction of human-induced climate change; his daring expeditions to the highest peaks of South America and to the anthrax-infected steppes of Siberia; his relationships with iconic figures, including Simón Bolívar and Thomas Jefferson; and the lasting influence of his writings on Darwin, Wordsworth, Goethe, Muir, Thoreau, and many others. Brilliantly researched and stunningly written, The Invention of Nature reveals the myriad ways in which Humboldt’s ideas form the foundation of modern environmentalism—and reminds us why they are as prescient and vital as ever.