The Explorer's Eye

Without any obvious omissions, and also a lot of explorers I am not familiar with, this book offers a lot, despite only being relatively short.

Its format is suited to short reading periods - each explorer has a half page introduction, and then a few pages quoted from their writing (mostly - there are some quoted passages by others about the explorers). So all up over 50 explorers, each with unique tales spanning the world - a lot about the North and South Poles, exploration in South and North America, Africa, the Himalayas, and a few from Australia, Polynesia, central Asia and Arabia.

Perhaps a little more focussed on polar exploration, although this may just be an indication that the north and south of the world offer more discovery than other areas.

Favourites included Ranulph Fiennes, Wilfred Thesiger, Ed Hillary, Alexander von Humboldt, Richard Burton & Hiram Bingham.

These stories are accompanied by numerous pages of coloured photographs, all very good.

There was one obvious mistake however - Bertrand Piccard, first to complete a non-stop hot air balloon flight around the world, was quoted as being born in 1900, and completing his journey in 1998. He was in fact born in 1958.

Overall, one of the more successful anthology type books of exploration. 4 stars.