The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey is one of the best books I've read this year. In 1913 former US president Theodore Roosevelt,54, accepted a speaking engagement in South America. While there he planned to visit with his son Kermit and travel throughout the continent. Known for his love of adventure, physical prowess, and knowledge of plants and animals, Roosevelt began delegating the arrangements for a trip to people supposedly familiar with the terrain. But when Roosevelt arrived, a Brazilian official suggested he scrap his planned tour. Roosevelt agreed to explore and chart an unknown river deep in the Amazon rain-forest known as Rio du Duvida, the River of … [Read more...]