Sir Walter Ralegh and the Quest for El Dorado [Hardcover]

Marc Aronson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 17, 2000

In this extraordinarily well researched and insightful biography, Marc Aronson explores the amazing accomplishments and dismal failures of one of the most flamboyant figures of the Elizabethan age. Best remembered for laying his coat in a muddy puddle so that Queen Elizabeth I could walk across it, Sir Walter Ralegh committed himself to pleasing his monarch and obtaining power in her court. He heroically risked his life in battle time and again, chasing after glory to win her favor. His notoriously ill-fated quest for the mythological golden city of El Dorado was perhaps his grandest attempt, but it also was his undoing, and Ralegh ultimately paid for his mistakes with his life. Despite his shortcomings, he was not only charismatic and brave, he was brilliant as well, and his contributions to the New World and to western culture as a whole were vast and enduring. MAPS, ENDNOTES and BIBLIOGRAPHY, TIMELINE, INDEX.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Demonstrating the same keen passion for his subject as in his Art Attack, Aronson examines the life of a contradictory and complex Elizabethan figure, both poet and soldier. As in the best of biographies, the author expands his narrative beyond the details of a single life to draw a nuanced and compelling portrait of the times in which he lived. Aronson sets the stage with a preface describing the many, often conflicting symbolic meanings that the quest for El Dorado, the fabled South American city of gold, held for early modern Europeans. He deftly intersperses a chronological account of the often paradoxical details of Ralegh's life with the tumultuous changes taking place in early modern Europe. In this way Aronson provides a cultural context for a man who could write love sonnets to his queen and also mount bloody battles against the Irish. He makes no excuses for Ralegh, but vividly paints the rise of a gentleman farmer's son, with no real connections, to a court favorite. In another irony, because Ralegh was favored by the queen, she granted him a "patent" to stake claims in the New World yet he himself did not set sail: "Ralegh remained near money and power, while his men sailed off the edges of the map." Both fascinating and daunting, the account may be challenging for those with little prior knowledge of the period; however, the exceedingly well researched archival maps and prints, time line, "Cast of Characters" and extensive endnotes and bibliography will help budding historians get their bearings. Aronson's portrait of "the first modern man" is both provocative and tantalizing, revealing his subject as a person of canny wit and magnetism with all-too-human shortcomings. Age 11-up. (May)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Grade 7 Up-A welcome book on an important historical figure in European and North American history. Scholars now agree on the spelling of the man's name as "Ralegh," so beware of possible confusion. Sir Walter led an active, ambitious, and sometimes acrimonious life. From humble beginnings to the court of Elizabeth I (who appropriately is a primary figure in the book with much insight given to her as a person and as a ruler), Sir Walter played a role in the social, political, and cultural worlds of his time. Aronson begins with an impressive cast of characters that demonstrates the vast influence of his subject: royalty, New World chiefs, conquistadors, and famous writers, all of whom are blended together to tell this complex, interesting, well-written, and readable story. While it is doubtful that Ralegh actually threw his cape down to prevent Elizabeth from stepping in a puddle, he did introduce potatoes to Ireland. The many elements of the man's personality are explored in a well-rounded and fair manner, with several examples of his own writings-from poetry to a suicide note-interspersed throughout. The quest for El Dorado has a recurring role here, just as it did in Ralegh's life, but despite the title, it is not necessarily the main thrust of the book. Well illustrated with black-and-white prints and original maps, and including thorough endnotes and a great comparative time line, this book is exemplary nonfiction and pure gold for libraries.
Andrew Medlar, Chicago Public Library, IL
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 12 and up
  
• Hardcover: 240 pages
• Publisher: Clarion Books; 1St Edition edition (April 17, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 039584827X
• ISBN-13: 978-0395848272
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 7.8 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #627,640 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

All of my books start with questions, and I hope they prompt readers to ask questions of their own.

I find history history endlessly fascinating. It is the detective story that yields us as the answer.

I try to write each book with the same care I would put into a novel, but with the same respect for truth as a judge in a court of law.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding look at a fascinating individual, June 5, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Sir Walter Ralegh and the Quest for El Dorado (Hardcover)

Sir Walter Ralegh (the way he spelled it) was so much more than a promoter of tobacco--although he certainly did promote tobacco. He was so much more than a man who lay down his cloak so Queen Elizabeth I would not get her feet wet--a story which may or may not be true. He was a man from a poor background who rose almost as high as one could in Elizabethan England--and then fell about as low. Stunningly researched, brilliantly written, full of fascinating facts (did you know there were no maps of England that showed ROADS until the 1590s), this is young adult writing at its finest.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars an excellent introduction to the ugly but fascinating world of politics, May 18, 2007

By 

Irene A. Heitsch - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Sir Walter Ralegh and the Quest for El Dorado (Hardcover)

This book reads like an entertaining adventure novel but it is so much more. The court intrigues of Elizabethan England and not so different from the politics of today, both in government and corporations. The author has made a lifelong study of Sir Walter Ralegh and his passion shows. Ralegh's strengths, weaknesses and luck, both good and bad made him who he was and changed the world.The Mechanical Age: The Industrial Revolution in England (World History Library)Colonial Living.

2 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars not too bad..., June 6, 2007

By 

demanding reader (bethlehem pa United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sir Walter Ralegh and the Quest for El Dorado (Hardcover)

did not realize when i bought this book that is basically for children, probably up to the age of 12 or so. for this grade level, it was fine. but this is certainly not a book for adults. it's too simple.