That’s Not in My Geography Book by Kate Kelly
c.2009, Taylor Trade
$14.95/$17.95 Canada
182 pages

Even though it’s a lousy economy, you’re going to get away this summer. Maybe not far, but a vacation is a vacation.
So you’re going to pack up the car and head … north. Definitely north. Is that way north? Could be, or maybe west. West, for sure. West-ish.

You’re going that-a-way, anyhow, and it’ll be an adventure.
You’ll obviously need a map, though. And while you’re picking up a good map, be sure to grab That’s Not in My Geography Book by Kate Kelly. That way, when you get lost, at least you’ll have something to read.

Hundreds of years ago, travel was popular mostly because it was a method of riches through plunder. But because there were no cushy RVs, early explorers had to travel by sea, on foot or astride a four-legged vehicle, and sleep in tents. Understandably, it wasn’t a trip for just anybody. Still, plenty of men (and a few women) ventured forth.

It’s a myth that Christopher Columbus believed the world was flat and a double myth that he was the first European on North American soil. Scientists believe that Leif Eriksson hit land in Labrador around the year 1000, but even before that, it’s believed that fellow Norseman Bjarni Herjolfsson got a peek at the continent from the sea.

In 1964, President Lyndon Johnson declared Oct. 9 Leif Eriksson Day. Herjolfsson got nothing for his trouble.

Columbus, by the way, landed in the islands of the Caribbean and not on the continent itself. He thought he’d discovered a new, quicker route from Europe to the East Indies. Despite the confusion, he got his own holiday, too.

Eventually, though, white Europeans settled in North America and began exploring. Thomas Jefferson bought a plot of land from France and sent Meriwether Lewis and William Clark out to map it. John Jacob Astor founded two expeditions after Lewis’ and Clark’s return. Trappers followed, as did soldiers, settlers and miners.
But life on Earth is still a trip. We know plenty about earthquakes and underwater land formations, but can do little about them. Scientists study mountains, frozen continents and big holes in the ground. And we still have lots to learn.

 That’s Not in My Geography Book is a surprise, both good and bad. First of all, having “geography” in the title is a bit of a stretch. This book is more a history of exploration, rather than one about geography. True, Columbus, Clark, Cook, Cabot and their contemporaries were inherently focused on geography in their explorations, but I wasn’t expecting that in this book.

Following the history of exploration, author Kate Kelly goes into a lengthy section on ecology and geology; again, relevant, but not expected. Still, this book is a traveler’s dream, filled with adventure and excitement, trivia and little-told stories of explorers who were driven to know what was “out there.”

On your vacation this summer, keep the map close and this book closer. For the traveler or the I-wish-I-was-traveling, That’s Not in My Geography Book is a whole world of fun.

Terri Schlichenmeyer has been reading since she was three years old and never goes anywhere without a book. She lives on a hill in Wisconsin with a dog and 11,000 books. Readers with questions or comments may write to her in care of this publication.