• The River of Doubt

  • Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey
  • By: Candice Millard
  • Narrated by: Paul Michael
  • Length: 12 hrs and 17 mins
  • 4.6 out of 5 stars (8,601 ratings)

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The River of Doubt  By  cover art

The River of Doubt

By: Candice Millard
Narrated by: Paul Michael
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Publisher's summary

At once an incredible adventure narrative and a penetrating biographical portrait, The River of Doubt is the true story of Theodore Roosevelt's harrowing exploration of one of the most dangerous rivers on earth.

The River of Doubt; it is a black, uncharted tributary of the Amazon that snakes through one of the most treacherous jungles in the world. Indians armed with poison-tipped arrows haunt its shadows; piranhas glide through its waters; boulder-strewn rapids turn the river into a roiling cauldron.

After his humiliating election defeat in 1912, Roosevelt set his sights on the most punishing physical challenge he could find, the first descent of an unmapped, rapids-choked tributary of the Amazon. Together with his son Kermit and Brazil's most famous explorer, Candido Mariano da Silva Rondon, Roosevelt accomplished a feat so great that many at the time refused to believe it. In the process, he changed the map of the western hemisphere forever.

Along the way, Roosevelt and his men faced an unbelievable series of hardships, losing their canoes and supplies to punishing whitewater rapids, and enduring starvation, Indian attack, disease, drowning, and a murder within their own ranks. Three men died, and Roosevelt was brought to the brink of suicide. The River of Doubt brings alive these extraordinary events in a powerful nonfiction narrative thriller that happens to feature one of the most famous Americans who ever lived.

From the soaring beauty of the Amazon rain forest to the darkest night of Theodore Roosevelt's life, here is Candice Millard's dazzling debut.

©2005 Candice Miller (P)2005 Books on Tape

Critic reviews

"Millard...nails the suspense element of this story perfectly, but equally important to her success is the marvelous amount of detail she provides on the wildlife that Roosevelt and his fellow explorers encountered on their journey, as well as the cannibalistic indigenous tribe that stalked them much of the way." (Publishers Weekly)

What listeners say about The River of Doubt

Average customer ratings
Overall
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Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

This audiobook deserves 6 stars

Once in a great while, I come across a book on Audible that deserves a very wide readership (if that is the right term for what we do). This is just one of those cases. Candice Millard has done a superb job in writing a very approachable book, in a breezy and informative fashion. The narrator is outstanding as well.

This is one of those books that combines biography, history, natural sciences, anthropology/ethnography with an adventure story. Millard does a great job in just a few passages characterizing TR -- part historian, part renaissance man, part hero, along with his less endearing attributes of being a blabbermouth, bits of excessive pride, mixed with not alittle hyperactivity disorder and alittle foolishness. She also provides good biographical information on TR's Brazilian co-leader of the expedition & TR's son Kermit, who came along on the trip a bit under duress, to take care of a father who was already visibly ailing.

In today's world, a world in which such exploration stories are rare, you can imagine TR going bungee jumping in his 50s, while on an exploration tour of the North Slope of Alaska in mid-winter. Or perhaps traveling out to the international space station (on someone else's dollar) and spending much time talking to us back on earth via a TV circuit.

Truth is better than fiction. This book deserves a wide readership.

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77 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Excellent Writing, Story and Narration

River of Doubt is a must read for enthusiasts of Teddy Roosevelt, but the story would work even without him. Candice Millard has written a book not only about an interesting phase in Roosevelt's extraordinary life, but also about an extraordinary part of the world: the Amazon. It is a compelling story told well and read extremely well by Paul Michael, who has narrated such other excellent books as Mountains Beyond Mountains. I highly recommend this book.

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72 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

River of Doubt

This work is a must listen for anyone interested in TR, Amazonia, tropical diseases, eqauatorial rainforests and the living things in them. In retrospect, this beautifully read work is brilliant because of its sheer depth and breadth. Every wound, sliver, bird, native and whitewater rumble is there for the listener to imbibe. Nearly every unique personality of the expedition party is woven into the this tale of naive and brash exploration. If you listen carefully you can be with them in the jungle without risk.

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57 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Brilliant book

This is a spectacular book. The author did a fantastic job in bringing together adventure, history and a little bit of science, with a very good narrative and great character development. In fact, it would make a terrific "Indiana Jones-style" movie.

As a Brazilian, I have always admired Candido Rondon as a true hero, and this book only confirmed my admiration. Even in Brazil very few people know much about the Rondon-Roosevelt expedition. Contrary to my initial assumptions, I learned that Roosevelt's trip to Brazil was not a mere "celebrity safari", but a real scientific expedition with scientific added value. The "River of Doubt" (now called River Roosevelt) in the Amazon basin was uncharted until 1914 and it is as big as the Rhine.

The narrator also did a great job - he clearly made the effort of researching the correct prounciation of the names in Portuguese.

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25 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Fascinating Story Well Read

This history reads like a novel. It will keep you sitting in the driveway with the motor running, or riding past your exit on the subway, just to keep listening. I had not heard of this Roosevelt expedition before - great investigative and storytelling work by a first time author. NYT and Washington Post just named this book among the top nonfiction books for 2005! P.S. I have NOT been paid for this indorsement - I'm a fan a great history told well, and this book is GREAT!

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21 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Outstanding

The story of Theodore Roosevelt's dark 1914 journey down the Amazon tributary, the River of Doubt is incredible. While I am tempted to compare this to Ernest Shackleton's Endurance odyssey, the latter's expedition took place around the same time in history, it was in fact a much more protracted one that lasted years and not just months. This is a book that combines biography, social and natural sciences, anthropology and exploration rolled into an exciting adventure story. We learn a great deal about TR the renaissance man, hero, and not always so admirable father. We also come to learn about another rather remarkable co-leader of the expedition, the Brazilian, Candido Rondon. He for me was one to be even more admired and respected particularly with regard to his leadership and relationship with the indigenous people of the the Amazon.

The book is beautifully written and narrated. It is a book that I hope is destined to become a classic. It deserves that much praise.

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18 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Good book overall, but a bit disappointing

The story sounded promising, but like another reviewer, I was hoping for more narrative and story, and a little less science. This felt less like a story or documentary, and more like a scientific paper. Still a good read, but goes into overly detailed analysis of flora and fauna - some of which is obviously not specifically from the Roosevelt expedition and from our more modern general knowledge of the rain forest. It felt like: journal entry - textbook excerpt - journal entry - textbook excerpt - stop - start - etc. I would have to say the story telling felt choppy and could have woven into the rainforest background better. More detail about the actual expedition and the struggles they faced would have been nice. To the author's credit, in a day without cell phones, telephones, aircraft, vehicles of any kind, or cameras, I'm sure the material to draw on was extremely limited, having to rely solely on written accounts in a place and time where illiteracy must have been rampant. Get the book - just don't have the expectation you will be spellbound by Roosevelt's adventure.

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16 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

A must

Enough has already been said eloquently by the other reviewers so I'll just say you will miss a truly great book if you dont catch this one. I work in a bookstore and recommend it to my customers. None have been disappointed.

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16 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

No Doubt - Engaging

When I first read the subject matter of this book, my interest was piqued. I didn't know much about Teddy Roosevelt, much less that after his presidency he travelled on a dangerous expedition down an uncharted tributary of the Amazon River.
This book lived up to my expectations. Very well researched and written, it brought back to life a real adventure story, complete with all the trials of a fictional novel with as many twists as the actual River of Doubt.
As a bonus, I found the discussions regarding the ecosystems of the rain forest fascinating. After all, the purpose of this expedition was scientific in nature.
Excellent listen, very entertaining and informative.

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15 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Wanted and Expected to Love This

I'm a big fan of the survival/exploration/overcoming adversity type of non-fiction books and of Mr. Roosevelt, so after reading the glowing reviews here I was very excited to listen to this and learn something new about TR.

After finishing the story I'd have to say I was disappointed. I found my mind wandering and was disinterested at times when the author goes on long tangents about vegetation, reptiles, natives and insects. I realize that's necessary to establish the environment and the dangers these people were facing, but most of it felt like it was filler because they didn't have enough content to fill the book as it related to TR and the traveling party. Most of what was mentioned was never actually encountered by the traveling party. I never felt any momentum or tension building-up.

Seeing all these other reviews puzzles me, maybe I expected too much but I never felt I was at the "edge of my seat" or felt I couldn't go to bed until I heard what happened next. I still admire the men for what they accomplished and endured but I'd recommend other books in this genre to friends before this one (Undaunted Courage, Into Africa, Down the Great Unknown etc.). I guess I'll give 3 stars because it clued me into something else in TR's amazing life.

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13 people found this helpful