Synopsis
"Enjoyable and insightful work was written as a tribute to the scientific achievements of Richard Evans Schultes, an Amazonia explorer active during 1940s-50s. Also relates explorations of the author and of Timothy Plowman, both Schultes' students. Intended for a popular audience"--Handbook of Latin American Studies, v. 57.
Ethnobotanist Wade Davis has spent many years in the rainforest, helping in their preservation. This is the story of his own explorations in the 1970s and the earlier ones of his mentor, Harvard ethnobotanist Richard Evans Schultes. Their contrasting experiences, a generation apart, vividly portray the damage that has been done to the rainforest in a short time.
| Details | | Publication Date: | 1997-08-01 | | Edition Description: | Reprint |
| Size | | Height: | 9.5 in | | Width: | 6.0 in | | Thickness: | 1.2 in | | Weight: | 21.6 oz |
Publisher's Note
In the 1940s, biologist Richard Evans Schultes uncovered many of the secrets of the rain forest, relying not only on his own prodigious investigations, but on the wisdom passed down by local tribes. Thirty years later his student, Wade Davis, followed in his footsteps. Two interwoven tales of scientific adventure bring to life the riches of the Amazon basin and bear witness to the destruction of its indigenous culture and natural wonders over two generations. photos.
Industry Reviews
"He writes magnificently, with verve when describing his many adventurous field trips, accurately and efficiently when telling science or history, and with vivid fantasy when portraying hallucinogenic trances."
New York Times Book Review - John Hemming (09/01/1996)
"The elsewhere untold story of Richard Schultes in particular outdoes Steven Spielberg."
Washington Post Book World - Stephan Schwartzman (02/02/1997)
"There is an extraordinary density to these pages. Davis covers history, anecdote, exploration, mythology, botany, and religion."
Literary Review - Carlos Mavroleon
"A fascinating narrative of the exploits of Harvard ethnobotanist Richard Evans Schultes, interwoven with the much more benign adventure of his student, author and ethnobotanist Davis....[A]n exceptional tale of 20th-century scientific exploration and a rousing travelogue to places both real and illusory."
Stoltz
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