Banks : A riveting account of one of the world's most famous explorers - Grantlee Kieza

Banks

A riveting account of one of the world's most famous explorers

By: Grantlee Kieza

Paperback | 28 July 2021

At a Glance

Paperback


RRP $34.99

$31.75

or 4 interest-free payments of $7.94 with

 or 
In Stock and Aims to ship in 1-2 business days

Lust, science, adventure -- Joseph Banks and his voyages of discovery


Sir Joseph Banks was a man of passion whose influence spanned the globe. A fearless adventurer, his fascination with beautiful women was only trumped by his obsession with the natural world and his lust for scientific knowledge.

Fabulously wealthy, Banks was the driving force behind monumental voyages and scientific discoveries in Australia, New Zealand, the South Pacific, Europe, North America, South America, Asia, Africa and the Arctic. In 1768, as a galivanting young playboy, he joined Captain James Cook's Endeavour expedition to the South Pacific. Financing his own team of scientists and artists, Banks battled high seas, hailstorms, treacherous coral reefs and hostile locals to expand the world's knowledge of life on distant shores. He returned with thousands of specimens of plants and animals, generating enormous interest in Europe, while the racy accounts of his amorous adventures in Tahiti made him one of the most famous and notorious men in England.

As the longest-serving president of Britain's Royal Society, Banks was perhaps the most important man in the scientific world for more than half a century. It was Banks, one of the first Europeans to set foot on Australia's east coast, who advised Britain to establish a remote penal settlement and strategic base at Botany Bay, and he eventually became the foremost expert on everything Australian. Early governors in the colony answered to him as he set about unleashing Australia's vast potential in agriculture and minerals. For decades, major British voyages of exploration around the globe only sailed with his backing.

By award-winning bestselling writer Grantlee Kieza, Banks is a rich and rollicking biography of one of the most colourful and intriguing characters in the history of exploration.

PRAISE FOR GRANTLEE KIEZA OAM

'Engagingly written ... one of the most nuanced portraits to date' -- The Australian

'Vivid, detailed and well written' -- Daily Telegraph

'A staggering accomplishment that can't be missed by history buffs and story lovers alike' -- Betterreading.com.au

'A free-flowing biography of a great Australian figure' --- John Howard

'Clear and accessible ... well-crafted and extensively documented' -- Weekend Australian

'Kieza has added hugely to the depth of knowledge about our greatest military general in a book that is timely' Tim Fischer, Courier-Mail

'The author writes with the immediacy of a fine documentary ... an easy, informative read, bringing historic personalities to life' -- Ballarat Courier

More in History

Reagan : His Life and Legend - Max Boot

RRP $74.95

$50.40

33%
OFF
The Sunbird - Sara Haddad

Paperback

$19.99

65,000 Years : A Short History of Australian Art - Marcia Langton

RRP $79.99

$53.35

33%
OFF
Black Convicts : How slavery shaped Australia - Santilla Chingaipe
Half of a Yellow Sun - Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

RRP $22.99

$21.35

True Girt : Unauthorised History of Australia : Volume 2 - David Hunt
The Bush - Don Watson

Paperback

RRP $24.99

$23.75

Dark Emu : Aboriginal Australia and the Birth of Agriculture - Bruce Pascoe
The Catalpa Rescue - Peter FitzSimons

RRP $36.99

$33.25

10%
OFF
The Battle of Long Tan - Peter FitzSimons

RRP $49.99

$38.75

22%
OFF
Junior Atlas of Indigenous Australia - Macquarie Dictionary

RRP $39.99

$27.80

30%
OFF