Sign-In
Cart
Explorers: A New History
Paperback
Series: A Norton Short
ExplorationGeneral World History
Publisher Price: $12.00
ISBN13: 9781324110316
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
Published: Aug 5 2025
Pages: 192
Weight: 0.35
Height: 0.50 Width: 5.40 Depth: 8.20
Language: English
Unfurling a tapestry of surprising and historically overlooked figures spanning forty centuries and six continents, historian Matthew Lockwood narrates lives filled with imagination and wonder, curiosity, connection, and exchange. Familiar icons of exploration like Pocahontas, Columbus, Sacagawea, and Captain Cook find new company in the untold stories of people usually denied the title explorers, including immigrants, indigenous interpreters, local guides, and fugitive slaves. He highlights female voyagers like Gudrid Far-Traveler and FreydÃs EirÃksdóttir, Viking women who sailed to North America in 1000 AD, and Mary Wortley Montagu, whose pioneering travels to Constantinople would lead to the development of the world's first smallpox vaccine. Figures like Ghulam Rassul Galwan, a guide for European travelers in the Himalayas, reveal the hidden labor, expertise, and local enthusiasm behind many grand stories of discovery. Other characters, like David Dorr, a man born into slavery in New Orleans who embarked on a Grand Tour of Europe and Egypt, embody discovery and wonder as universal parts of the human condition.
As Lockwood makes clear, people of every background imagine new worlds. Adventurers from every corner of the globe search for the unknown and try to understand it, remaking the world and themselves in the process. Exploration is for everyone who sets off into the unknown. It is the inheritance of all.
3 different editions
Also available
Also from
Lockwood, Matthew
Also in
Exploration
The Sea Captain's Wife: A True Story of Mutiny, Love, and Adventure at the Bottom of the World
Mazzeo, Tilar J.
Hardcover
The Everest Mystery: Sandy Irvine, George Mallory, and the Truth Still Buried on Everest
Summers, Julie
Hemmleb, Jochen
Hardcover
The Rush: California Gold, the Civil War, and the Making of the Modern World
Philbrick, Nathaniel
Hardcover
The Lost Cities of El Norte: Coronado's Quest, the Unconquered West, and the Birth of American Indian Resistance
Stark, Peter
Hardcover
Neptune's Fortune: The Billion-Dollar Shipwreck and the Ghosts of the Spanish Empire
Sancton, Julian
Hardcover
The Wide Wide Sea: Imperial Ambition, First Contact and the Fateful Final Voyage of Captain James Cook
Sides, Hampton
Paperback
Undaunted Courage: Meriwether Lewis, Thomas Jefferson, and the Opening of the American West
Ambrose, Stephen E.
Paperback
A Short, Strange Trip: An Untold Story of Magic Mushrooms, Madness, and a Search for the Meaning of Life in the Amazon
O'Connor, John
Hardcover
The Rush: California Gold, the Civil War, and the Making of the Modern World (Large Print Edition)
Philbrick, Nathaniel
Paperback
Neptune's Fortune: The Billion-Dollar Shipwreck and the Ghosts of the Spanish Empire (Large Print Edition)
Sancton, Julian
Paperback
The Birds That Audubon Missed: Discovery and Desire in the American Wilderness
Kaufman, Kenn
Paperback
Mountain Man: John Colter, the Lewis & Clark Expedition, and the Call of the American West
Marshall, David Weston
Paperback
The Beast in the Clouds: The Roosevelt Brothers' Deadly Quest to Find the Mythical Giant Panda
Holt, Nathalia
Hardcover
Personal Memoirs of U.S. Grant Volume 1/2: Large Print Edition (Large Print Edition)
Grant, Ulysses S.
Hardcover
River of the Gods: Genius, Courage, and Betrayal in the Search for the Source of the Nile
Millard, Candice
Paperback
In the Kingdom of Ice: The Grand and Terrible Polar Voyage of the USS Jeannette
Sides, Hampton
Paperback
The Beast in the Clouds: The Roosevelt Brothers' Deadly Quest to Find the Mythical Giant Panda
Holt, Nathalia
Paperback
Madhouse at the End of the Earth: The Belgica's Journey Into the Dark Antarctic Night
Sancton, Julian
Paperback
The Complete Journals of Lewis and Clark (Royal Collector's Edition) (Case Laminate Hardcover with Jacket)
Clark, William
Lewis, Meriwether
Hardcover
Personal Memoirs of U.S. Grant Volume 2/2: Large Print Edition (Large Print Edition)
Grant, Ulysses S.
Hardcover
Over the Edge of the World: Magellan's Terrifying Circumnavigation of the Globe
Bergreen, Laurence
Paperback
Into Unknown Skies: An Unlikely Team, a Daring Race, and the First Flight Around the World
Randall, David K.
Paperback
Into the Ice: The Northwest Passage, the Polar Sun, and a 175-Year-Old Mystery
Synnott, Mark
Hardcover
The Explorers Club Presents: Letters from the Edge: Stories of Curiosity, Bravery, and Discovery
The Explorers Club
Wilser, Jeff
Hardcover
The Quest for El Dorado: Sir Walter Ralegh and the Search for the City of Gold
Gibbins, David
Hardcover
Lewis and Clark Through Indian Eyes: Nine Indian Writers on the Legacy of the Expedition
Josephy, Alvin M.
Paperback
River of Darkness: Francisco Orellana and the Deadly First Voyage Through the Amazon
Levy, Buddy
Paperback
Titan Unfinished: An Untold Story of Exploration, Innovation, and the Oceangate Tragedy
Söhnlein, Guillermo A. M.
Hardcover
The Endurance Photographs: A Definitive Visual Record of Shackleton's Expedition
The Royal Geographical Society
Hardcover
Ether Day: The Strange Tale of America's Greatest Medical Discovery and the Haunted Men Who Made It
Fenster, J. M.
Paperback
The Secret Token: Myth, Obsession, and the Search for the Lost Colony of Roanoke
Lawler, Andrew
Paperback
Down the Great Unknown: John Wesley Powell's 1869 Journey of Discovery and Tragedy Through the Grand Canyon
Dolnick, Edward
Paperback
The Space Shuttle: A Mission-By-Mission Celebration of Nasa's Extraordinary Spaceflight Program
Miller, Roland
Hardcover
Beyond the Ocean: France and the Atlantic World from the Crusades to the Age of Revolutions
Hodson, Christopher
Rushforth, Brett
Hardcover
A World Lit Only by Fire: The Medieval Mind and the Renaissance: Portrait of an Age
Manchester, William
Paperback
Everest, Inc.: The Renegades and Rogues Who Built an Industry at the Top of the World
Cockrell, Will
Paperback
Erebus: One Ship, Two Epic Voyages, and the Greatest Naval Mystery of All Time
Palin, Michael
Paperback
Sea of Glory: America's Voyage of Discovery, the U.S. Exploring Expedition, 1838-1842
Philbrick, Nathaniel
Paperback
When Montezuma Met Cortés: The True Story of the Meeting That Changed History
Restall, Matthew
Paperback
River Master: John Wesley Powell's Legendary Exploration of the Colorado River and Grand Canyon
Kuhne, Cecil
Paperback
El Infinito En Un Junco / Papyrus: The Invention of Books in the Ancient World
Vallejo, Irene
Paperback
Where the Falcon Flies: A 3,400 Kilometre Odyssey from My Doorstep to the Arctic
Shoalts, Adam
Paperback
Who Discovered America?: The Untold History of the Peopling of the Americas
Hudson, Ian
Menzies, Gavin
Paperback
The Last Place on Earth: Scott and Amundsen's Race to the South Pole, Revised and Updated
Huntford, Roland
Paperback
Meet Me in Atlantis: Across Three Continents in Search of the Legendary Sunken City
Adams, Mark
Paperback
Leading at The Edge: Leadership Lessons from the Extraordinary Saga of Shackleton's Antarctic Expedition
Perkins, Dennis
Paperback
The Best Land Under Heaven: The Donner Party in the Age of Manifest Destiny
Wallis, Michael
Paperback
Pirate Hunters: Treasure, Obsession, and the Search for a Legendary Pirate Ship
Kurson, Robert
Paperback
Scenes of Visionary Enchantment: The Geology of the Lewis and Clark Expedition
Jengo, John W.
Paperback
A Brief History of Indonesia: Sultans, Spices, and Tsunamis: The Incredible Story of Southeast Asia's Largest Nation
Hannigan, Tim
Paperback
The Girl Explorers: The Untold Story of the Globetrotting Women Who Trekked, Flew, and Fought Their Way Around the World
Zanglein, Jayne
Paperback
To the Edges of the Earth: 1909, the Race for the Three Poles, and the Climax of the Age of Exploration
Larson, Edward J.
Paperback
Sextant: A Young Man's Daring Sea Voyage and the Men Who Mapped the World's Oceans
Barrie, David
Paperback
A Brief History of Thailand: Monarchy, War and Resilience: The Fascinating Story of the Gilded Kingdom at the Heart of Asia
Ruth, Richard A.
Paperback
Conquering the Pacific: An Unknown Mariner and the Final Great Voyage of the Age of Discovery
Reséndez, Andrés
Paperback
Pacific: Silicon Chips and Surfboards, Coral Reefs and Atom Bombs, Brutal Dictators and Fading Empires
Winchester, Simon
Paperback
The Promise of the Grand Canyon: John Wesley Powell's Perilous Journey and His Vision for the American West
Ross, John F.
Paperback
Frozen in Time: An Epic Story of Survival and a Modern Quest for Lost Heroes of World War II
Zuckoff, Mitchell
Paperback
The Lewis and Clark Journals: An American Epic of Discovery
Members of the Corps of Discovery
Lewis, Meriwether
Clark, William
Paperback
Gods of the Upper Air: How a Circle of Renegade Anthropologists Reinvented Race, Sex, and Gender in the Twentieth Century
King, Charles
Paperback
The Essential Henry David Thoreau Collection: 4 Books in 1 Walden Civil Disobedience A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers Walking
Thoreau, Henry David
Paperback
Remarkable Creatures: Epic Adventures in the Search for the Origins of Species
Carroll, Sean B.
Paperback
The Mapmaker's Wife: A True Tale of Love, Murder, and Survival in the Amazon
Whitaker, Robert
Paperback
Personal Memoirs of U.S. Grant Volume 1/2: Large Print Edition (Large Print Edition)
Grant, Ulysses S.
Paperback
The Nephilim Chronicles: A Travel Guide to the Ancient Ruins in the Ohio Valley
Zimmerman, Fritz
Paperback
El Infinito En Un Junco (Novela Gráfica) / Papyrus: The Invention of Books in T He Ancient World (Graphic Novel)
Vallejo, Irene
Hardcover
South: The Illustrated Story of Shackleton's Last Expedition 1914-1917
Shackleton, Ernest Henry, Sir
Paperback
Lewis and Clark Reframed: Examining Ties to Cook, Vancouver, and MacKenzie
Nicandri, David L.
Paperback
The True History of the Conquest of New Spain: The Memoirs of the Conquistador Bernal Diaz del Castillo, Unabridged Edition Vol.1-2
Diaz del Castillo, Bernal
Hardcover
Over the Edge of the World: Magellan's Terrifying Circumnavigation of the Globe
Bergreen, Laurence
Paperback
Island of the Blue Foxes: Disaster and Triumph on the World's Greatest Scientific Expedition
Bown, Stephen R.
Hardcover
Atlantic: Great Sea Battles, Heroic Discoveries, Titanic Storms, and a Vast Ocean of a Million Stories
Winchester, Simon
Paperback
Farthest North: The Incredible Three-Year Voyage to the Frozen Latitudes of the North
Nansen, Fridtjof
Paperback
The Journey and Ordeal of Cabeza de Vaca: His Account of the Disastrous First European Exploration of the American Southwest
Cabeza de Vaca, Alvar Núñez
Paperback
Empire's Crossroads: A History of the Caribbean from Columbus to the Present Day
Gibson, Carrie
Paperback
Scenes of Visionary Enchantment: The Geology of the Lewis and Clark Expedition
Jengo, John W.
Hardcover
The Evolution of Charles Darwin: The Epic Voyage of the Beagle That Forever Changed Our View of Life on Earth
Preston, Diana
Paperback