The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey

The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt’s Darkest Journey (2005) is a work of nonfiction by Candice Millard, a former writer and editor for National Geographic. The book describes Roosevelt’s 1914 expedition down an unexplored river in the Amazon rainforest, which nearly cost him his life. Despite poor preparation for the trip, Roosevelt and the group managed to overcome the Amazon’s physical and psychological challenges and placed a 1,000-mile river on the map in a historic accomplishment. The book became a New York Times Best Seller and was a finalist for the Quill Award.

This study guide uses the 2006 Anchor paperback edition.

Note: Millard uses the term “Indians” to refer to the Indigenous peoples of South America. Apart from direct quotations from the text, this guide uses the term Indigenous.

Content Warning: The source text contains discussions of death by suicide.

Summary

After Theodore Roosevelt ran for US president on a third-party ticket in 1912, his Republican friends blamed him for their party’s loss to the Democrat, Woodrow Wilson. Roosevelt, who had the habit of taking on physical challenges and dangers after setbacks, traveled to South America as a guest lecturer and decided to go on an expedition there following his speaking tour.