To Westerners, the name "Timbuktu" long conjured a tantalizing paradise, and beginning in the 18th century, explorers tried repeatedly to reach the city. But as Charlie English relates here, one expedition after another went awry, succumbing to attack, the climate, and disease. The real Timbuktu was home to thousands of ancient manuscripts, and when al-Qaeda-linked jihadists surged across Mali in 2012, they threatened the existence of these precious documents. Also published as The Storied City, this history chronicles how a team of librarians and archivists joined forces to spirit the manuscripts into hiding, preserving Timbuktu's legacy.