Call number
Publication
New York : Carroll & Graf Publishers, c1998.
Pages
267
Description
The Spice Islands voyage is a trip among the Spice Islands of Indonesia on a traditional native sailing vessel and a quest to rediscover a remarkable Englishman who changed the way we see the natural world. Alfred Russel Wallace was the joint author of the theory of evolution by natural selection, yet his name has been overshadowed by that of Darwin. An intrepid naturalist, he wrote The Malay Archipelago, one of the first travel books. Tim Severin used the book as a guide, when in 1996 he retraced Wallace's path through the Spice Islands, travelling through uncharted waters, observing unusual flora and fauna, and ancient systems of tribal rule. His own account of this journey is offered here.
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
1997
Physical description
267 p.; 9.45 inches
ISBN
0786707216 / 9780786707218
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User reviews
LibraryThing member nandadevi
There's no doubt that this is a worthy book. Alfred Wallace's journeys in what we now know as the Indonesian Archipelago deserve commemoration. Furthermore this is a telling account of the condition of the environment in those regions now, and a call to preserve the best parts of it for the future.
But in the end it took me nearly six months to finish this book, and even then I only managed that with difficulty. It's not that it is badly written, it just that it's, well, frankly, dull. All of the excitement of his previous sea-faring books is built around the notion that he is re-creating a voyage in a replica boat and there's every expectation that either he won't get where he's going, or sink (which amounts to the same thing). There was excitement, well at least interest, in how he came to have the boat constructed. But after that it was a processional journey around the islands of eastern Indonesia with numbing details of fauna and flora.
What he really had here was a film in the making, a beautiful documentary of sights and sounds, and this would have been the book to the film, and issued in quarto with many more pictures and drawings. If you had an interest in this part of the world this would be a 'must have' book, otherwise it is really one for the Severin fans, and even then something to be dipped into perhaps rather than read at a gallop.
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Once again, Severin's story is built around the re-creation of a ship, in this case a traditional Indonesion prau, such as Wallace might have used in his travels in the 19th Century.But in the end it took me nearly six months to finish this book, and even then I only managed that with difficulty. It's not that it is badly written, it just that it's, well, frankly, dull. All of the excitement of his previous sea-faring books is built around the notion that he is re-creating a voyage in a replica boat and there's every expectation that either he won't get where he's going, or sink (which amounts to the same thing). There was excitement, well at least interest, in how he came to have the boat constructed. But after that it was a processional journey around the islands of eastern Indonesia with numbing details of fauna and flora.
What he really had here was a film in the making, a beautiful documentary of sights and sounds, and this would have been the book to the film, and issued in quarto with many more pictures and drawings. If you had an interest in this part of the world this would be a 'must have' book, otherwise it is really one for the Severin fans, and even then something to be dipped into perhaps rather than read at a gallop.
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LibraryThing member mbmackay
Good tale of re-visiting Alfred Wallace's territory.
Read in Samoa June 2002
Read in Samoa June 2002
LibraryThing member untraveller
An excellent book! Severin does a wonderful job of molding and blending his voyage into a recapitulation of Wallace's time in Indonesia. There is also a chunk about Wallace that I never knew. Good stuff!
LibraryThing member Alhickey1
An engrossing, informative, and exciting blend of biography, ecology, history, and discovery, The Spice Islands Voyage takes readers on a travel adventure to a tropical wilderness to rediscover Alfred Russel Wallace, Charles Darwin's forgotten partner. Original line drawings. of color photos. Tim
He was born Timothy Severin in Assam, India in 1940. Severin attended Tonbridge School and studied geography and history at Keble College, Oxford.
Severin has also written historical fiction along with non fiction. The Viking Series, first published in 2005, concerns a young Viking adventurer who travels the world. In 2007 he published The Adventures of Hector Lynch series set in the late 17th century about a 17-year-old Corsair.
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Severin was a British explorer, historian and writer. Severin is noted for his work in retracing the legendary journeys of historical figures. Severin was awarded both the Gold Medal of the Royal Geographical Society and the Livingstone Medal of the Royal Scottish Geographical Society. He received the Thomas Cook Travel Book Award for his 1982 book The Sindbad Voyage.He was born Timothy Severin in Assam, India in 1940. Severin attended Tonbridge School and studied geography and history at Keble College, Oxford.
Severin has also written historical fiction along with non fiction. The Viking Series, first published in 2005, concerns a young Viking adventurer who travels the world. In 2007 he published The Adventures of Hector Lynch series set in the late 17th century about a 17-year-old Corsair.
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LibraryThing member David-Block
As ever Tim Severin brings to life historical sea journeys with his replica journeys. Indonesia is unknown to many but Tim's book provides a good glimpse of the countries, their people and the wildlife. An interesting outline of Alfred Wallace's life.