The brothers Wilhelm von Humboldt (1767-1835) and Alexander von Humboldt (1769-1859) made history - the former as a philosopher, linguist, and Prussian statesman, and the latter as a naturalist, writer, and world traveler. Manfred Geier describes the work of the two brothers while also painting a picture of the brilliant era in which they lived. "The brilliant idea of a double biography has opened the door to a new consideration of this post-romantic generational fate." (Henning Ritter, "Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung") "An extraordinary book that one is reluctant to put down." (Wolfgang Betz, "Globus").