Includes bibliographical references (pages 140-142) and index.
Contents:
Lost at sea -- Vikings in America -- Marco Polo and Zheng-He: Eastern tales of discovery -- Columbus gets lucky -- Ferdinand Magellan-around the world in...three years? -- The "failure" of Giovanni da Verrazzano -- Cabeza de Vaca: castaway in Mexico -- The seven cities of gold -- Jamestown -- Captain Cook's last voyage -- Dr. Livingstone and the quest for the Nile.
Summary:
"Christopher Columbus is one of the most famous explorers of all time, but he was neither the first nor last adventurer to ever stumble upon a great discovery. From the Silk Road of Asia to the icy shores of Antarctica, our knowledge of the world today is in large part due to several intrepid pioneers, risking life and limb for the sake of exploration. After all, setting off into the dark unknown requires an enormous amount of bravery. But every explorer quickly learns that courage and curiosity aren't enough to save you if you can't read a map or trespass on somebody else's land! In this fourth installment of the Epic Fails series, authors Erik Slader and Ben Thompson introduces readers to an international cast of trailblazers and details every mutiny, wrong turn, and undiscovered city of gold behind the age of exploration."--Book jacket.
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.