This was Darwin’s first book after getting back from his 5-year odyssey around the world, in the 1830s and it was about another 6 years after he returned that he got around to writing “The Origin of the Species,” which I think was his sixth book. First, he put out his travelogue, and unless you’re a naturalist, a historian, or about to travel to places that Darwin traveled, you probably won’t consider reading this one. Still, his descriptive talents are undeniable and I can see why this book was so important in its era. I used it to compliment reading two other travel books as I prepared for my own travel to Chile, Argentina, and Brazil, and I’m currently sailing about 18 miles off the coast of Chile, between Valparaiso and Puerto Montt. The other travel books that I read, mostly cover-to-cover, were, “Travels in the Thin Country” by Sara Wheeler, and The Lonely Planet book on Chile. I have the Lonely Planet books on Argentina and Uruguay with me – not surprisingly, there is not one on Paraguay. Wheeler’s book was mostly readable, but it is not indispensable, even for traveling to Chile. I didn’t read Darwin all the way through, mostly just skipping through it, looking for his reports about the places that I’ll be visiting. It was a modern moment to sit listening to my IPod, reading Darwin, and using my laptop to look at the places he described on GoogleEarth, including some mountains he climbed along the Straits of Magellan and some of the volcanoes in Chile that I hope to see tomorrow. After 180 years, Darwin’s descriptions were right on. So, enough of the travel books – on to some good fiction.
West Coast Don
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