First published 2021
James McBride's scrapbook is a window into the radical theories of John Symmes, a 19th-century crackpot who claimed the earth was hollow. Through clippings and notes, McBride pieces together Symmes' bizarre public lectures, where he detailed his belief in an "open polar sea" and civilizations living inside the planet. As McBride digs deeper, he becomes obsessed with unraveling the mystery - is Symmes right, or is he just a madman? McBride's quest leads him down a rabbit hole of eccentrics, amateur scientists, and maps of the unknown. In the end, he must decide whether to dismiss Symmes' theories or risk losing his grip on reality.
Genres: adventure, 19th-century, alternate-history, academic, history-of-science
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: obsession, rabbit-hole, unreliable-narrator
292 pages · Paperback · Legare Street Press