Reviews tagging 'Body horror'

The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder by David Grann

28 reviews

knkoch's review against another edition

adventurous dark informative medium-paced

3.75

I found this worthwhile and informative, if bleak in its reminders of the way naval stories like this are shaped by the huge and destructive forces of imperialism and ruthless extraction of resources. All the human folly that went into conscripting hundreds of deathly ill men to run ships that take thousands of century-old trees to build just to attempt needlessly difficult cape passages, only to shipwreck in an extremely challenging climate and

waste the lives of hundreds of people from disease and starvation!

I really liked that David Grann gave great context into the Indigenous tribes the men from this ship interacted with and the impact that naval expeditions had on them and all others in South and North America in the eighteenth century especially. It felt like he was resetting the image of journeys like these, moving away from glory and adventure into the grinding hardship, weaknesses of leadership, imperial greed, racist assumptions of superiority/inferiority, and endless jockeying between major European empires like Spain and England. Grann developed the historical characters well, and clearly established how naval honor codes, class, and rank influenced the events at sea and land. Shocked to learn that

the value of the seized Spanish galleon, then the greatest single event war bounty seized, was dwarfed by the full millions-of-pounds cost of the entire expedition to seize it.

And yet, we can't forget that history can be so easily spun into self-congratulatory stories that flatter rather than invite critical examination. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Eating disorder, Terminal illness, Medical content, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Gun violence, Racism, Xenophobia, Alcohol, and Colonisation

Minor: Cannibalism

Eating disorder: Much discussion of starvation, but not sure what TW may fit better.

jfaw89's review against another edition

adventurous dark informative mysterious tense medium-paced

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Chronic illness, Death, Violence, Cannibalism, Murder, War, and Injury/Injury detail

ahoyitsjoy's review against another edition

adventurous dark informative tense medium-paced

3.0

This book was clearly meticulously researched and features many quotes from firsthand accounts. The events are delivered in a clear and unbiased manner. 

However... I just don't think this was my kind of book. I've seen a lot of people recommend this book to those who loved Endurance, as I did, but The Wager is significantly more grim in a way that didn't make me want to read more.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Death, Violence, Blood, and Murder

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Body horror, Racism, Torture, and Colonisation

Minor: Slavery

tigertheory's review against another edition

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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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Confinement, Death, Gun violence, Torture, Violence, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Murder, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Child death, Suicidal thoughts, Xenophobia, Excrement, Cannibalism, and Alcohol

Minor: Slavery, Vomit, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Abandonment

ifeanart's review against another edition

adventurous informative reflective tense medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child death, Death, Racism, Slavery, Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Vomit, Cannibalism, Murder, Colonisation, War, and Injury/Injury detail

mariberries's review against another edition

adventurous dark informative tense medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror

maryclaire92's review against another edition

adventurous informative tense fast-paced

4.25

A harrowing account of the misadventures of the HMS Wager and its unlucky crew. This book kept my attention and I tore through the back half of it. Grann compiles the subject matter into a gripping narrative that seems genuine and representative of the historical documents available on the subject. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Body horror, Death, Physical abuse, Racism, Slavery, Violence, Cannibalism, Murder, Colonisation, and War

cait's review against another edition

adventurous informative mysterious sad slow-paced

3.5

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Content Warnings

Minor: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Cannibalism, Medical trauma, Murder, Abandonment, Alcohol, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, and Pandemic/Epidemic

abicaro17's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark informative inspiring mysterious slow-paced

4.0

This starts out incredibly slow but after chapter 5 grows into a story of mutiny, murder, and survival. You become involved in this insane story of how a British ship and its sailors fight off scurvy, the rough seas, and other crewman to eventually end up back in England depleted and desolate anywhere from a year to five years later. I'm traditionally cautious of non fiction historical books because I find them tedious and boring but, with The Wager, once the initial accounts of send off and troubles at sea are finished, you're immersed into a tumultuous account of the shipwreck. It was interesting and full bodied. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Cannibalism, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, Deportation, and Pandemic/Epidemic

pumpkincore's review against another edition

adventurous dark informative sad tense fast-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Death, Violence, Cannibalism, Murder, and Alcohol