Surprising, beautiful and wholly unbelievable

 

⭑⭑⭑⭑⭑  The unbelievable story of penniless Charles Masson (private James Lewis, deserter of the East India Company) and his unending drive to locate Alexander the Great's city Alexandria Beneath the Mountain reads like nothing I have read before. An 1800s adventure story of such great scope it feels like it must be a tall tale... except for the fact it is so well researched.

Alexandria is an amazing story of resilience and perseverance for a man to live such a life of ups and downs only to see the brilliant sights of Afghanistan no Western man had ever seen before. Afghanistan in the 1830s sounds a miraculous place – a glorious far cry from the Afghanistan we all know so well from the evening news.

Masson is a character and one that I grew to like thanks to Edmund Richardson's well written book. I admit I knew nothing of Charles Masson prior to reading this book and feel glad I stumbled upon this book and the great discoveries held within its pages. It is a magical journey rich with history and culture not previously understood.