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barnesstorming's review against another edition
4.0
This was quite the antidote for the uber-heavy novels and biographies I read this summer. It's episodic in nature, with all the phantom lands, islands, seas, mountains, et al, organized alphabetically. I'm a sucker for old maps, and this book is a treasure trove of them, including several gorgeous gatefold or two-page spreads. I read the American edition (which was produced after the British one) and was very surprised to see one entry dead-stop at the bottom of a page, mid-sentence. I have no idea how much copy was left out — a word or two, or an entire page — but in the end, it's a small flaw.
If you enjoy either historic voyages of discovery or historic fraudulent claims of fame, this is the book you'll want to read.
If you enjoy either historic voyages of discovery or historic fraudulent claims of fame, this is the book you'll want to read.
lyleblosser's review against another edition
3.0
A fun and surprising collection of "myths, lies and blunders". Why surprising? Because there are so many and a number of them are fairly recent. Why fun? Because maps!
ellietonkin's review against another edition
informative
slow-paced
4.0
Perfect coffee table book. The illustrations are beautiful and it has a good, weighty/solid feel. I found this to be interesting as it’s like seeing the world through the eyes of past explorers and just how incredible the skill of cartography is, even if some of the lands are fantasy. The book could do with slightly more information in each section and more maps from outside of Europe. This is a fun read for someone who loves the PoTC films!
robinwalter's review against another edition
informative
lighthearted
relaxing
slow-paced
4.0
I agree with other reviewers that a thematic arrangement would have been more helpful and that more examples of 'phantom maps' from outside Erurope would have added greatly. That said. I enjoyed the book, and especially the information about real places that often turned up as a result of lookinbg for imaginary ones.