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| A Sense of the World: How a Blind Man Became History's Greatest Traveler | 
| Author: Jason Roberts
Publisher: HarperCollins
Category: Book
List Price: $26.95
Buy New: $9.14
You Save: $17.81 (66%)
New (6) Collectible (1) from $9.14
Avg. Customer Rating:  41 reviews
Sales Rank: 659093
Format: Bargain Price
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 400
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.4
Dimensions (in): 9 x 6.1 x 1.5
Dewey Decimal Number: 910.92
ASIN: B000WABVF6
Publication Date: June 1, 2006
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
 A real-lfe adventure story October 1, 2007
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I have just finished reading A Sense of the World, which I found while aimlessly wandering around Borders one day. What an amazing book.
This book is a fascinating, real-life adventure story. It introduces the reader to James Holman, an inspirational man who ignored both physical & financial constraints to follow his dream of circumnavigating the world. It also brings to life early 19th century England, and the experience of travelling to Europe & way, way beyond.
On top of that, it is an extremely well-written biography, entertaining, informative, respectful & true to its subject. I hope to read more of Jason Roberts' books in future.
Truly one of the all time great adventurers September 26, 2007
Jason Roberts does an exquisite job of research on a man whose very own autobiography most likely was thrown away after being stored in a madhouse owned by Holman's friend for several decades. Hats off to Roberts for so thoroughly researching this amazing man, but now about Holman himself.
Roberts does an excellent job of portraying James Holman's early life as a lieutenant on a ship in the Americas, getting his first taste of the world and exploration. Holman lost his sight in his mid 20's from what we later learn is most likely idiopathic blindness, meaning there is really no explanation for exactly why he went blind.
Holman made several trips, first attempting to circumnavigate the world east through Siberia and Russia, only to be turned back after being suspected of being a spy. He would later begin his true circumnavigation of the world westward to confuse people because he was all too cognizant that there were many who would have held him back from doing so because of his condition. Yet deep down, he was not a man whose nature allowed him to stay in one place for very long. His circumnavigation was later published in a book entitled A Voyage Round the World.
The mere fact that he completed several trips encompassing a total of 250,000 miles, with one total circumnavigation of the globe is remarkable enough. But the fact that he did all of this in the early 19th Century as a blind man is what makes his story so astounding. And it is made even moreso by the fact that he liked to undertake his journeys alone, and without understanding the language of the countries in which he traveled, but rather picking it up as he went along. And he lived in a time when there were no special accommodations made for the blind. En total, remarkable does not begin to describe what he did.
James Holman put all of his thoughts to paper via a Noctograph, a device used to aid the transcription for the blind. He would carry this with him the world over, and detail every nuance, down to the paint on tribal peoples' faces, so detailed in fact that it was more thorough and descriptive than that of his contemporaries who also wrote travel essays. Charles Darwin even used his writings as a reference.
The one criticism one could make of A Sense of the World is the fact that it is exhaustively detailed in the early part of Holman's life but much less so in the later years. But again, this is probably due to the paucity of references Roberts had to work with in putting this work together, as I am sure he would have been more thorough if indeed he had been able to provide us with those details, as Roberts' respect and admiration for the man shows in his writing on every page.
James Holman was truly an exceptional man. You would be well advised to get to know this remarkable person, who almost went by the wayside of history.
One of the best biographies I have ever read.
One of the most sensitive, touching and profound biographies I've ever read!! September 3, 2007
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
The life of Holman, the blind traveler was profound and would have perished with the passage of time if it were not for Jason Roberts' brilliant biography which brings Holman magically alive to our generation. I think there are some lives so miraculous, so amazing that words are difficult to find to praise them enough. Holman lived one of those lives. Bless his memory and may his story be told time and again, for his wisdom speaks to us even today. Travelers will especially be moved by his fearless sense of wonder about the world and the diverse cultures that God has created on this planet. Truly one of the best biographies on the market! Wow!
10 stars August 5, 2007
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
This is a serious, densely researched, readable biography of one of the world's most interesting men. Even today, he would be revered and admired. Only in his own time could his magnificent achievements been denegrated in such a backhanded manner because of his blindness.
The only downfall of this book is the extreme extent of it's research. There are times when one wants to continue on with the main story, but you get the historical info. on someone who is part of the story. Of course, this is a very NICE problem to have in a biography.... too much information. A minor quibble.
Not only is this a marvelous story, it remains inspiring, and yet leveling to see that no matter how monumental the achievement, the lifespan of fame seems to time out at about 30 years no matter when it happens. Timeless and truly great - this book deserves ALL the great press it has gotten. I have given FOUR copies of this as presents. It is just that good.
 Experience the adventure of travel in 19th century May 12, 2007
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
When the subject of this book, James Holman was a child, it was the late 1700s and the world was still being discovered. He dreamed of travel even though there were no proper maps showing where land and water was located. He develops a lot of illnesses while in the British navy and eventually is retired due to his blindness. That does not stop him. He is fortunate enough to have a small pension and continues to travel and meet interesting persons of the time. He was the first to travel across Siberia where he had life threatening adventures. He was tracked down at the home of a beautiful widow in China and made to journey under primitive conditions all the way back to Moscow and was departed back to England. I think the neatest descriptions were of his travels with a man who was deaf. The two of them would link arms and face all kinds of obstacles in Europe. The greatest threat to his life was working for the British on the coast of Africa when they were trying to stop the slave trade. Two thirds of Europeans who were sent on this mission died, but not our hero. He was very popular in his time when he wrote about his adventures, but after his death, he was forgotten.
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