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p_t_b's review against another edition
4.0
got my dadcore audiobook non-fiction on driving from CLE to alabama today. this was good. a little adult-contempo but really well-crafted narrative, good insights. it does not get a lot worse than promising your sister you'll take care of her son and then overseeing the execution-by-lottery and subsequent eating of son's entire body. also dying of dehydration sounds like a real drag. cross that off the list of stuff to try.
billy_iii's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
informative
sad
medium-paced
4.25
chris_dech's review against another edition
4.0
White whale! Holy Grail!
A harrowing story of survival, the skills and stomach needed for it, and even just a reminder of the capriciousness of the world around us.
Much like Moby-Dick that takes influence from the story of the Essex, the story of the crew of the Essex and their suffering reminds us that, in the face of terror, when all norms and mores are abandoned, the only thing that can keep us going is to cling to what we know, and to hope even harder.
Like his work on the Mayflower, Philbrick shows his capacity to present history as a story, as a narrative that exists in more than just the context of its events, but the story's preceding, contemporary, and future events as well.
A harrowing story of survival, the skills and stomach needed for it, and even just a reminder of the capriciousness of the world around us.
Much like Moby-Dick that takes influence from the story of the Essex, the story of the crew of the Essex and their suffering reminds us that, in the face of terror, when all norms and mores are abandoned, the only thing that can keep us going is to cling to what we know, and to hope even harder.
Like his work on the Mayflower, Philbrick shows his capacity to present history as a story, as a narrative that exists in more than just the context of its events, but the story's preceding, contemporary, and future events as well.
thotfitzgerald's review against another edition
5.0
This book made me like, and fall back in love with history. Reads like fiction and masterfully written.
konsgard's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
4.0
My only complaint about the audiobook is that the last 2 hours of it consists of footnotes. It was difficult to make use of these, since there had been no prior verbal indication that the footnotes existed. It was also impossible to determine when each footnote began and ended. I suppose it's still better than leaving them out entirely!
justregie's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
informative
sad
medium-paced
4.0
katiescho741's review
4.0
4.5 stars.
So much story and information packed into a fairly short book. Philbrick weaves the story of the Essex and her crew between snippets of the history of whaling, Nantucket, and exploration. I enjoyed the parts about the romanticizing of whaling compared to the backbreaking work and low pay of reality.
The story of the Essex is intense and grim - full of "what ifs..." missed chances, mixed luck, and personal choices. The maps in this book are great, and I like that they appear throughout the book depending on where we are in the story. The picture section is very good too, and I liked the mix of portraits and evidence from the Essex with images and maps of old Nantucket and, of course, the whales.
I've read a lot of misadventure books, and this one is interesting because the disaster comes not long after we read about the crew slaughtering and butchering poor whales. Part of me was thinking "they got what was coming to them", but part of me was horrified and thinking "no one deserves this".
An excellent book if you've got a strong stomach!
So much story and information packed into a fairly short book. Philbrick weaves the story of the Essex and her crew between snippets of the history of whaling, Nantucket, and exploration. I enjoyed the parts about the romanticizing of whaling compared to the backbreaking work and low pay of reality.
The story of the Essex is intense and grim - full of "what ifs..." missed chances, mixed luck, and personal choices. The maps in this book are great, and I like that they appear throughout the book depending on where we are in the story. The picture section is very good too, and I liked the mix of portraits and evidence from the Essex with images and maps of old Nantucket and, of course, the whales.
I've read a lot of misadventure books, and this one is interesting because the disaster comes not long after we read about the crew slaughtering and butchering poor whales. Part of me was thinking "they got what was coming to them", but part of me was horrified and thinking "no one deserves this".
An excellent book if you've got a strong stomach!