Some of the best stories are ones that have actually taken place. When journalist Douglas Preston is invited to join Steve Elkins expedition to follow up on a lead of the lost city of the monkey God, he excitedly tags along. The one-in-a-lifetime adventure leaves Preston amazed and also hospitalized. Keep reading to find out why you should pick up this book as your next read!
The Lost City of the Monkey God Summary
Elkins uses lidar, a 3-D laser scanning device, to confirm the ruins of the legend of the White City. The legend of the White City blew up in the 1930’s by an expedition that made the headlines around that time. Preston does his own research and gives us his take on what actually happened.
Preston joins Elkins journey to a rainforest that has not seen human occupation for centuries. They are accompanied by a bunch of different experts in the joint-Honduran-American expedition. When they finally arrive to the location, they face the past and it is not friendly.
Commentary
Reading this adventures novel brought back the childhood feeling of wanting to discover ancient legends. Elkins and Preston do just that and it makes for an entertaining novel. From the legend of the lost city to the sensationalism of it in the media, it has it all.
While I was reading this novel, I could not help but admire Preston’s love and dedication to the lost city. He does a lot of research and fills us in with questions we may have. Preston piques our interest and delivers on an incredible adventure. It is a once in a lifetime adventure and the story lives up to the hype.
Conclusion
I don’t really read much non-fiction novels but I had to read this one. From the interesting title to the actual story, it captured my eyes and heart. And I was happy I gave this novel a chance. I learned about history I otherwise would not have. If you like novels about discovery, then this is for you. If you want the shortened version, Preston’s article about the expedition was published in the National Geographic.
Read some previous Preston non-fiction books and found him a very entertaining writer.
I’ll definitely check his other stuff out then!
Sorry, got him confused with Richard Preston, author of The Hot Zone which was going to be a movie with Robert Redford until the Dustin Hoffman Outbreak stole its thunder.