danimacuk's review against another edition

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dark informative sad tense slow-paced

3.75


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prettiestwhistles's review against another edition

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adventurous informative medium-paced

4.0


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schausjk's review against another edition

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adventurous informative tense medium-paced

4.0


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laura_nel13's review against another edition

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adventurous dark informative tense medium-paced

5.0


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sarasreading's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark informative reflective tense fast-paced

4.5

This was pretty unputdownable. So much was happening all of the time it read much more like fiction than nonfiction, which I enjoy. It can get pretty gruesome, so know that going in. It can be harder to stomach since it's a true story. But I flew through this and will definitely read more from this author. 

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tigertheory's review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense medium-paced

3.5

Quite an interesting read not only about a tale of (mis)adventure but also about the importance seafaring had in shaping the world. 

On a side note; I recommend looking up Wager Island on Maps after reading for a bit of a laugh. 

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meritm's review against another edition

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adventurous dark informative medium-paced

5.0

very very cool and educative and never boring. Makes me miss sailing and being on the open ocean. Explains everything from the hierarchy on warships, the origins of popular British sayings as well as the imperial and colonialist mechanism used to oppress other civilizations. 

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madmaura's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional informative reflective tense medium-paced

4.0


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koboldmartian's review against another edition

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adventurous dark informative sad tense medium-paced

5.0

5/5. 

I do not really have any good experience reading non-fiction so forgive me if this review is not as eloquent, but this was the most gripping and fascinating non-fiction story I have ever read. David Grann's writing is so immersive and clear and painted such a vivid picture of the turmoil, and horrors that these men were put through. 

The book is structured beautifully, it flowed well, I was angry at people, I sympathized with people, I was disgusted by what they did or what they had to do, I was all the proper emotions needed to read this book. 

This book was so educating and the life that people had to live back then on the ocean is just absolutely terrible. The entire time, I felt pulled by both "parties" involved in this stories and I don't think you can really blame anyone of the decisions made in this situation; it really makes you think about what you would do put in these men's shoes. 

I will be picking up Grann's other works to read and this book has opened the floodgates for non-fiction for me. I hope to read more especially if they are this engaging. 

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jhbandcats's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional informative sad tense medium-paced

4.5

David Grann is one of the best nonfiction authors today. He writes on a multitude of subjects; this book is about a shipwreck and subsequent mutiny in the 1740s. 

He describes the plight of the officers, trying to outfit their ships with no money and few worthy crewmen, as well as that of the unwitting men press ganged (ie, kidnapped by the Royal Navy) onto ships they were ill-equipped to crew. No matter that some were sick, criminal, juvenile, or elderly, all were rounded up in a time of war and forced to serve. 

The ship split into factions rather than working as a whole so in a time of crisis, it was no surprise that any discontent would devolve into mutiny. Alcohol, disease, starvation, and fear exacerbated the stresses on everyone. Before the benefits of vitamins were known, scurvy could wipe out a crew both physically and mentally. On top of typhus and shipwrecks, sometimes less than 20% of a crew made it back home. 

Grann explains how this volatility affected the voyage of the Wager, and how the chain of command fell apart once the shipwrecked men were on shore. His copious research reveals that there were too many different versions of truth to know which was the most factual. The Admiralty wanted the embarrassment to just fade away so the court martial didn’t address any of the real issues. 

I didn’t feel as much a part of this book as with Killers of the Flower Moon. I was wracked with guilt as I read what the white people did to the Osage and I felt complicit. I didn’t have that closeness to The Wager. Considering how dire the circumstances, that’s likely a good thing. 

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