The Lost City of Z : : a Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon

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Call Number: Adult Book / Nonfiction / Biography / General / Fawcett, Percy
On Shelf At: Pittsfield Branch

Location & Checkout Length	Call Number	Checkout Length	Item Status
Pittsfield Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Nonfiction / Biography / General / Fawcett, Percy	4-week checkout	On Shelf
Traverwood Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Nonfiction / Biography / General / Fawcett, Percy	4-week checkout	In transit
Malletts Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Nonfiction / Biography / General / Fawcett, Percy	4-week checkout	Due 05-04-2024

Maps on endpapers.
We shall return -- The vanishing -- The search begins -- Buried treasure -- Blank spots on the map -- The disciple -- Freeze-dried ice cream and adrenaline socks -- Into the Amazon -- The secret papers -- The green hell -- Dead Horse Camp -- In the hands of the gods -- Ransom -- The case for Z -- El Dorado -- The locked box -- The whole world is mad -- A scientific obsession -- An unexpected clue -- Have no fear -- The last eyewitness -- Dead or alive -- The colonel's bones -- The other world -- Z.
After stumbling upon a hidden trove of diaries, New Yorker writer David Grann set out to solve "the greatest exploration mystery of the twentieth century": what happened to British explorer Percy Fawcett. In 1925 Fawcett ventured into the Amazon to find an ancient civilization. For centuries Europeans believed the world's largest jungle concealed the glittering El Dorado. Thousands had died looking for it, leaving many convinced that the Amazon was truly inimical to humankind. But Fawcett had spent years building his scientific case. Captivating the imagination of millions, he embarked with his 21-year-old son, determined to prove that this ancient civilization--which he dubbed "Z"--existed. Then he and his expedition vanished. Fawcett's fate--and the clues he left behind--became an obsession for hundreds who followed him. As Grann delved deeper into Fawcett's mystery, and the greater mystery of the Amazon, he found himself irresistibly drawn into the "green hell."--From publisher description.

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COMMUNITY REVIEWS

Modern Day Exploration submitted by Sara W on June 21, 2011, 10:02am Colonel Percy Harrison Fawcett was a classic Victorian gentleman explorer. He was built to explore the Amazon - proving immune to malaria and the various other tropical fevers the plague Westerners there. He takes small parties carrying limited equipment, he makes friends with the Indians and he can live off the land. He never says die. He's awesome.

He's also, well, a little nuts. Not so much in the beginning, but after WWI, he starts to feel his age a little more, it's harder to get funding and a millionaire rival begins exploring roughly the same region of the jungle as Fawcett. He becomes more reliant on spiritualism and more obsessed with the idea of proving his theory of Z, an El Dorado-like city deep in the Amazon.

His expeditions, his disappearance and the multitude of failed investigations and missions to find him make for great storytelling. Author Grann does a fine job of combing through his history, connecting with his relatives and parceling out the interesting details throughout the book. I found Grann's own trip into the Amazon a little unsatisfying - it also attempts to tie up the mystery of Z a little too neatly.

Neat and tidy as it may be, I do like the explanation of Z and the archeological evidence and expertise behind it. It means Fawcett wasn't going entirely mad when he pored over old legends of El Dorado, but I think it does mean that he never, never would have been able to identify what was left as what he was looking for, either.

Lots of great info, but didn't capture my attention submitted by Susan4Pax -prev. sueij- on July 2, 2015, 3:01pm 3.5 stars. I'm not entirely sure why this didn't capture my attention, because the tale was interesting, the writing well done, and the research thorough. I learned about it from a Science Friday (NPR) book club, and it really was worth the time and fascination, and yet... I had a hard time making myself pick it up.

I do think that the common current writing conceit of an author inserting themselves as part of the story is not particularly interesting to me. This is not particular to this book, but is about a common style these days. If David Grann is researching the story of Fawcett's search for Z, why do I care whether or not GRANN wants to find it? Just tell me Fawcett's story. You, the researcher/ journalist, are not the reason I'm reading the book.

The book probably deserves a higher rating than I'm giving it, but this was all that felt right to me at this moment in time.

Amazing and intriguing read submitted by mogul55 on July 7, 2018, 9:08pm I was first drawn to David Grann from his book Killers of the Flower Moon, which my college recommended. Lost City of Z hooked me in just as fast, and I could not put the book down for days until I finished it!

Interesting submitted by karenkay on July 19, 2018, 6:30pm I found this book from one of the badges in the summer game. I found it hard to put down. I found it fascinating how exploration in the Amazon occurred in the early 1900's.

I learned so much submitted by gkathleenb on June 23, 2023, 9:49pm I enjoyed learning about this time period so much and feel a greater appreciation for the Amazon and the people in it. I look forward to learning more.