This story is mind-boggling. It has every over-the-top action trope you might expect were this a work of fiction. The only thing missing is a scene where the team calmly doesn't look at an explosion, and frankly, it wouldn't have been out of place. I'm convinced the events of this book couldn't have happened to anyone but Roosevelt. It's as if the man distorted the reality around into a Seagal film.

Interspersed throughout all the insane hardships, there are fascinating detours into the ecology, history, and anthropology of the Amazon jungle. All of these feel more like teasers toward a broader picture than extraneous details. In fact, I was intrigued enough to dig around for more; what I discovered is that several of expedition's member's accounts of the trip are in the public domain, and available online. Score!