Jason Roberts (1)
Autor von A Sense of the World: How a Blind Man Became History's Greatest Traveler
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Wissenswertes
- Geschlecht
- male
- Nationalität
- USA
- Land (für Karte)
- USA
- Geburtsort
- Southern California, USA
- Wohnorte
- USA
- Ausbildung
- University of California, Santa Cruz
- Berufe
- journalist
author - Organisationen
- San Francisco Writers' Grotto
- Agent
- Michael Carlisle (InkWell Management)
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Statistikseite
- Werke
- 11
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- 615
- Beliebtheit
- #40,876
- Bewertung
- 3.7
- Rezensionen
- 19
- ISBNs
- 34
- Sprachen
- 4
A son of Exeter, England, and without pedigree to speak of, Holman cunningly wrested a destiny for himself in the British Navy at the close of the 18th century, just before the age of steam. A decade into his naval career, having served off the coast of the Americas, his sight failed after an unknown illness. Holman sought and found fraternity with a group of military veterans known as the Knights of Windsor, who were given lifetime room and board at Windsor Castle in exchange for ceremonial duties for the Crown and a life of quiet (read: boring) worship. Holman would not suffer this fate.
Refusing to be defined by his blindness, Holman discovered an appetite for travel while journeying to the south of France to convalesce from his illness. He embraced his wanderlust with gusto while learning to navigate the world using his other senses. He made fast friends wherever he wandered, and found delight in the company of an endless variety of fellow travelers and local characters, often astonishing them with his capacity to move about as if he were fully-sighted.
The book itself is a slow burn, and took me a few cracks to get through, not because the subject was not interesting, but because I found it somewhat difficult to connect Holman's travels to the broader context of what was happening in the world around him. Roberts makes up for it in the last 50 pages by offering some interpretation of Holman's place in the annals of pre-industrial globetrotting. I wish he had done this throughout the book. It would have made Holman's exploits more relatable sooner, and kept my attention better. Notwithstanding, Roberts' interpretation of Holman's story was rewarding enough.
Holman was a good soul. Learning about his influence for good on others, his indomitable spirit, his gratitude for life, his intrepid wanderlust, and his ability to connect with all walks of life was enjoyable. I found his reputation for kindness and curiosity about others most inspiring.
This book is for those who love reading about explorers, personal courage, intrepid souls, and the history of discovery. I found it in a book shop in Orange, California during the summer of 2019. I'm glad I did.
A few favorite quotes and passages:
The beauties of the beautiful
Are veiled before the blind
Not so the graces and the bloom
That blossom in the mind.
The beauties of the finest form
Are sentenced to decay;
Not so the beauties of the mind,
They never fade away.
-James Holman
"Nowhere was Holman greeted with more effusive attention than in the former New Holland, now loosely known as the "australian" colonies of the crown. In Hobart Town, capital of Van Diemen's Land (present-day Tasmania), he was feted, followed, and even imitated..." (… (mehr)