Arabia Felix: The Danish Expedition Of 1761-1767

"Look, I get it: The name doesn’t exactly scream page turner. I admit I was skeptical, too, before I cracked this one open. But don’t fall prey to the same misconception I did. This tale of an 18th century scientific expedition gone awry (first published in Danish in 1962 and back out in a new English edition) is a brutal, beautiful story of human ideals – and all the clever ways we manage to muck them up. Part history, part fiction, part travelogue, this book balances its central tragedy with some winks and smirks. And yes, it’s true: Before long, I found those pages practically turned themselves."