Book Description
Translated with an Introduction by Robin Buss
Customer Reviews:
A superb translation.......2007-09-22
I bought this edition after buying, by mistake, a beautiful hardbound abridged edition. This one was reputed to have the best translation. It's a dauntingly long novel, though, and at my snail's pace of reading 4-5 pages per night before I start falling asleep I'm about 3/4 the way through after 4 months! But if you're gonna read this story, I believe only the full length version will give you the scope of Dumas' writing. having a little knowledge of French is a help with this as there are many references in his vernacular. This translation comes with an excellent body of endnotes that further helps getting the fine points. Highly recommended!
The evolution from innocence to responsibility........2007-09-18
It seems odd to me that many people who enjoyed this book seem to feel apologetic, making claims that they enjoy The Count of Monte Cristo despite the fact that it is not great literature and lacks depth. They claim that it's main value is merely as a very well written adventure story. I beg to defer and believe that this great novel is packed with meaning and delves into the very heart of what a man must go through in his hearts if he is to leave his childhood innocence behind.
Edmund Dantes starts out as an honorable character and his manhood has already been established in certain ways: he's responsible, he's good, he's ambitious and readily handles unforeseen challenges. There is one area, however, where Edmund Dantes is severely lacking, someplace I believe many good men are lacking, he believes all men reflect his inherent goodness. He believes that despite some annoying quirks, that generally other men are not evil. In the words of Shakespeare Dantes' "...nature is so far from doing harms, that he suspects none..."
In the course of the story Dantes learns the hard way that fortune can quickly vanish by the deeds of evil men and he is forced to deal with the world not by being more nice but by going beyond those who conspire to destroy him and master the course of his own destiny regardless of other peoples plans.
The symbolism throughout the novel is impressive but I believe many people miss it simply because it is such a pleasure to read. I guess for something to be considered great literature it needs to be a bit more boring.
Anyway, I certainly don't want to bore you with a long winded review, so if you want to be entertained then I suggest you start reading The Count of Monte Cristo. One more thing, I've read various translations and this version by Robin Buss is probably the one I enjoyed the most. It's a smooth, natural style but doesn't try to over simplify. Just my two cents.
thirsty for revenge?.......2007-09-18
This is one of the best classics! It is a story about how jealous people can falsely accuse another of things, which eventually messes up that person's life forever (no turning back... he has to keep going forward and survive everyday). The book revolves around ideas of revenge and love.
Free SF Reader.......2007-09-03
Daring escapes and dashing swordplay. More fun than at least three
quarters of a barrel of monkeys. A monomaniacal revenge fantasy on one
level, and a swashbuckling story on another. Wrongly imprisoned, a man
eventually escapes and sets out to bring wrack and ruin upon those who
wronged him. This, of course, does not come without a price, in the
end. While I prefer my musketeers, this is pretty good.
Great Translation of a Great Book.......2007-08-31
This is a modern translation of Dumas' greatest book in my opinion. The translator gives good background on the translation, life of Dumas and great footnotes explaining both history of the period and cultural aspects not common knowledge today. This adds greatly to the enjoyment and understanding of the story.
I recommend that anyone interested in reading The Count of Monte Cristo not be scared away by the length of the book and purchase an abridged version. The amount deleted results in a disconnected and not nearly as interesting story. I read an abridged version mistakingly bought before purchasing this one and knowing the story from a previous reading was dismayed at the amount which was eliminated. Buy the unabridged and enjoy Dumas' tale of betrayal and vengeance in all its brilliance.
Average customer rating:
- Calculations are only as good as your numbers
- Pants on fire?
- Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed.
- Very Interesting
- History as Science Fiction
|
History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)
Anatoly Fomenko
Manufacturer: Mithec
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Similar Items:
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History: Fiction or Science? Chronology 2 (Chronology)
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They Cast No Shadows: A Collection of Essays on the Illuminati, Revisionist History, and Suppressed Technologies
ASIN: 2913621058 |
Book Description
Recorded history is a finely-woven magic fabric of intricate lies about events predating the sixteenth century. There is not a single piece of evidence that can be reliably and independently traced back earlier than the eleventh century. This book details events that are substantiated by hard facts and logic, and validated by new astronomical research and statistical analysis of ancient sources.
Customer Reviews:
Calculations are only as good as your numbers.......2007-08-03
Yes, we can all agree that mainstream history is nearly 100% BS due to politics, economics, ego, problems with dating techniques, and various conspiracies. Agreed. But, I've been researching the distinct possibility that human history (in terms of civilizations) are much more ancient than we've been told, so coming across this book was very interesting to me. I wondered how Fomenko could be wrong (if at all) because he is very persuasive in his presentations. Then it dawned on me. If at previous times in prehistory, due to the various catastrophies that are well documented (comets, asteroids, planetary disruptions, plasma discharge, pole reversals, etc) the Earth was in a different position in relation to the sun, different tilt on its axis, different orbit, different rotation (in terms of velocity and DIRECTION), and the continents were in different positions, then would this not cause the ancients to see the sky (constellations) differently? In other words, is Fomenko making erronious assumptions about the physics of the Earth in pre-history, which then corrupt his data with regards to dating the relevant astrology? The last event to seriously disrupt our planet occured roughly 3500 years ago, according to other good researchers, so is it possible Fomenko has been confused by this? The vastly different physics of our planet in the not so distant past may explain this confusion, which is not to say the "mainstream" version of history is correct; on the contrary. I am not an expert in these fields, but wanted to see if this idea could spark discussion.
Pants on fire?.......2007-07-19
Will people ever read before spamming? Yes, Jesuits could not rewrite world history alone, they had help. Anyway, Dr Prof Acad A.Fomenko does not point to jesuits as the driving force of world wide history manipulation in published volumes 1,2,3;, actually he barely mentions the poor devils. Check it with 'Search inside' feature, please. China is rarely mentioned either, in fact, Dr Fomenko is completely eurocentric. Right, his theory contradicts all mainstream schools of history, because in their actual state they are all built on blatantly erroneus chronology. You don't need a mysterious cabal (conspiracy) to falsify history, the falsification is its modus operandi. It is inherent to history(ians) to falsify (distort) events, as it is inherent to humans to boast as it is inherent to power (authority) to legimize itself by referrring to glorious past made to its own order. Dr Prof Fomenko and team have identified scores of instances of such manipulation in Russian, European, etc.. history, and delivered valid statistical proof thereof. His own 'reconstruction' is completely another story. Forget c14 as a valid method of dating. W.Libby has initially discovered a brilliant method of INDEPENDENT dating. Too bad, c14 method has become a joke after a forced marrige with dendrochronology with consensual chronological scale inbuilt. Radiocarbon method can't stand blind tests, but is so very productive as a rubberstamp.
Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed. .......2007-04-09
There is no doubt that history as most know it is a sham, & institution's version of History both University & Church is fradulent & inaccurate. Everything was established with an agenda, The real "Dark Ages" are now when we have access to incredible amounts of information past authorities & more important 'common folk' didn't have but our institutions & educators are slow to evolve because of what has ignorantly & arrogantly been taught for too long. This is on many subjects not just Chronology.
For anyone to question "Why would a Mathematician have anything credible to say of History?" The answer is from Dr. Fomenko's preface in the book: "It would be worthwhile to remind the reader that in the XVI-XVII century Chronology was considered to be a subdivision of Mathematics." These volumes could possibly be some of the most important works to date & should be read by everyone with an interest in History, especially professors & educators who have a duty to the public. I have read both books & must say that 'Chronology 1' has some very eye opening & revolutionary information. Even if these volumes are part true the implications are profound & opens the doors to further investigations & questions which must be done. I speak several different lanquages & must say the logic Dr. Fomenko uses with "inflection" of words & words being read from left to right in one region & right to left in another then written backwards, the removal of vowels & get down to basics of words, or different cities & locations having the same name etc. is correct. Vowel usage has always been optional & varied, actually complicating linquistics & study. The first thing one has to understand is that words never had a fixed spelling in history like we do now, the spelling of words was mutable & regional, as well as names & titles of people were vast, varied & changed, NOTHING WAS FIXED or understood linear. Matters of Life & Death as well as financial profiteering yesterday & today were & are made with ignorant, illogical & conspiratorial views of history & reality, it's time people get closer to the Truth & society collectively grow up.
Very Interesting.......2007-03-07
It is a good proposal and I believe it will mature into something even better in the future. I think it deserves to be read.
History as Science Fiction.......2007-01-10
Anatoly Fomenko has written a very intriguing book, full of pictures, charts, and computer 'proof' of his thesis: backwards of AD900 we don't really know what happened or when. Between AD900 and AD1600 there is more certainty, but there is still a lot of fuzzy ground, and things don't get reliable until we get past the 1600's where the printing press made it very difficult for the perpetrators of this timeline manipulation to change anything that had been committed to print. The Dark Ages did not happen. Books were burned for a reason. One organization has doubled the actual length of its existence by expanding the real chronology. Read why.
I had always wondered why Christ died about AD33 and yet men waited until the 11th century to form the Knights Templar, the Cathars, etc and go after the Holy Land by force. Why the 1000 year gap? Turns out there wasn't more than a 10-12 year gap and he proves it using astronomy. This also implies that the planet is not as old as we have been told, and current Christian and other creationist scientists are already championing that idea without being aware of Fomenko's book. The two groups, creationist scientists and the Russian mathematical analysts corroborate each other. Fascinating.
Of course, all this flies in the face of what we have been told traditionally is the 'proper' chronology of western civilization, and most readers will experience 'cognitive dissonance' in reading this book. It means that our history going backwards from AD1600 becomes progressively more incorrect and unreliable until it cannot be trusted at all... in the space of 700-800 years.
Naturally, the curious, open-minded reader will want to know WHO did this, WHY, and did any of the events we think of as really ancient ever happen?
Dr. Fomenko is a respected scientist/mathematician at Moscow State University who has already answered these questions to the satisfaction of his initially skeptical colleagues. Most of them are now believers, a few still refuse to believe (the usual diehards), and of course the western press has ignored Fomenko's work -- for obvious reasons when you read the book. The ones who perpetrated this chronology ruse have a lot to answer for. They are still with us. That's why this book is a well-kept secret.
I gave the book a 4-star rating because I was unable to check out some of his claims; those I checked were as he said. But if even 1/3 of his claims are true, this punches a big hole in what we think is our history, the meaning of western civilization, our educational process (for repeating the ruse as gospel), and the trustworthiness of the organization that perpetrated this ruse, well-intentioned or not.
This book relates to current research into a Young Earth paradigm, to John Keel's discoveries about our planet, and Fr Malachi Martin's insights (in his now out-of-print books). We are indeed sheep who are manipulated and kept ignorant -- for a reason. While knowing what these men have to say may be the "booby prize" (as in: 'what can you do with this knowledge?'), it will provide interesting reading. Didn't someone say: "...and the Truth will set you free."?? For you to judge if this book contains the truth.
Average customer rating:
- A Real Treasure
- Great Gift Idea
- Pirates
- Pirates by John Matthews.
- Pirates
|
Pirates
John Matthews
Manufacturer: Atheneum
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ASIN: 1416927344 |
Book Description
At last the ultimate book of pirates is here! Inside is the stuff of legend, where tales of adventure and intrigue are written in blood. Read about Blackbeard and Captain Kidd. Learn about walking the plank and buried treasure. Discover what was like aboard a pirate ship -- from a pirate's strict code of conduct to the punishments that awaited those that broke them.
All the intrigue, adventure, and grizzly details are brought to life in this lavish hardcover package jam packed with fact and fiction, pirate lore, and amazing memorabilia, including:
- a booklet of pirate slang
- a genuine advertisement to recruit pirates
- a booklet of pirate biographies
- a letter from William the III to Captain Kidd
- a pullout featuring pirate weapons
- a treasure map
- a wanted poster for Blackbeard
- sample playing cards
- as well as flaps and fold outs galore!
Customer Reviews:
A Real Treasure.......2007-08-29
I bought this for my 7 year old nephew who had a newfound fashion for all things Pirate. Being a book (at a birthday party) it didn't get his full attention until later on when he asked his parents to sit and read it to him.
Now it's a year later and I found out the book was a tremendous success from the get-go. He brought it into school to share with the class and every kid there wanted his own copy so phone calls were made and the hunt was on. A few parents were able to get a copy. My nephew and his friends dressed up as pirates and went together to see the latest Pirates... movie. Later my nephew was huddled with his special book, relishing all the details it provided. This book is interactive by design which makes the reading all the more personal and imaginative.
Great Gift Idea.......2007-07-18
I bought this as a birthday gift for my six year old son. He couldn't have been happier. Just to show you how interesting it is, I kept it in my office at work so he wouldn't find it before his birthday. I can't tell you the number of people who stopped to read the book and told me how interesting it was. I even had people who asked me for ordering information on the book so they could get it for their children. This book is inexpensive and a great read for all ages. All the little pockets, fold outs, letters and maps are a great touch.
Pirates.......2007-05-25
A treasure trove of information with exciting inserts of piratical lore and agreements. This is the best "traveling" book a character could have because it encompasses so much information in a creative format. Big, big fun!
Pirates by John Matthews........2007-03-20
A very attractive, informative, and nicely illustrated book. My grandson enjoyed this book at age 10. I recommend this for a gift.
Pirates.......2007-03-17
I bought this book as a gift for my son's birthday which is coming up in May. I am really thrilled and cannot wait to give it to him. He is really into the pirates thing right now--loves the Pirates of the Caribbean movies. I thought he might enjoy reading some of the real history of pirates. It does not appear that it will be overwhelming to him, and there are alot of little extra pockets throughout the book with real looking maps and pirate stuff. The cover alone is Awesome with a sunk in jewel for the eye and a gold tooth!
Book Description
In an attempt to stop the legendary Barbary Pirates of North Africa from hijacking American ships, William Eaton set out on a secret mission to overthrow the government of Tripoli. The operation was sanctioned by President Thomas Jefferson, who at the last moment grew wary of intermeddling in a foreign government and sent Eaton off without proper national support. Short on supplies, given very little money and only a few men, Eaton and his mission seemed doomed from the start. He triumphed against all odds, recruited a band of European mercenaries in Alexandria, and led them on a march across the Libyan Desert. Once in Tripoli, the ragtag army defeated the local troops and successfully captured Derne, laying the groundwork for the demise of the Barbary Pirates. Now, Richard Zacks brings this important story of Americas first overseas covert op to life.
Customer Reviews:
Pirate Coast .......2007-09-21
I Just finished a book titled "The Pirate Coast" by Robert Zacks. A very interesting historical account of how a handful of Marines along with General William Eaton embarked on America's first overseas covert op. They traipsed across the Sahara in an endeavor to free American soldiers that were captured and enslaved by Barbary pirates- Moslems. It's an interesting chronicle of how Moslems enslaved Christians, Americans & Europeans dating as far back as the 1700's.
Even back then we were the only nation with the cajones to stand up to these despicable pirates. It was during a time when many nations were intimidated into paying "tribute' to these Moslem nations in order not to be enslaved/ or unlawfully seized from the waters.
It was during these troubling times when a US Navy vessel(USS Philadelphia) ran aground in the harbor of Tripoli-(now Libya) and was captured along with over 270 American soldiers. The Bey or Pasha of Tripoli - Yusef Karamanli was a ruthless thug that murdered his brother, de-throned his father, & exiled his next older brother, Hamet, while keeping Hamet's wife & children hostage in the castle; as an incentive for him not to return and stake claim to his rightful throne. Yusef enjoyed the notoriety of the first foreign ruler ever to declare war on the U.S.A.
I think you would enjoy it.
From the halls of Montezuma to the shores of Tripoli....
The Pirate Coast; Thomas Jefferson, The First Marines, and the Secret mission of 1805.......2007-07-19
Courage, adventure, and political intrigue. Accurate historical account of early American foreign policy toward Muslim states. Many parallels to issues facing America today.
"Nother excellent book by Mr. Zacks.......2007-07-09
And "avoid a land war in asia" should be modified to include North Africa. medaling in the affairs of foreign governments has led us to no good outcomes for a very long time. Mr. Zacks makes is abundantly clear that the grounding of the ship Philadelphia was a minor problem compared with its premature abandonment. And that the secret mission of Pres. Thomas Jefferson and his agent Mr. Eaton led us to far more grief than if we had just arrived with the fleet and demanded an end of this open sea piracy.
A great read for all of those who love politics as theater and are interested in sea stories. Reads like a Patric O'Brien novel but has the full truth in it.
The Pirate Coast (Book Review).......2007-06-30
'Small Fonts'
My biggest issue w/ this book is that the font used is kinda tiny, about 8 or 9 pt. size. I noticed this when I started having headaches after reading it, which I didn't used to get when reading other books.
Comparing it to other Trade Paperback Books, the others normally use 10 pt., rather than the 8-9 pt. size used on this one.
Apparently, this is a rather long book, since even w/ the small font size, it is already almost 500 pages long. If they had used the normal 10 pt. font size, the book would've ballooned to 600-700 pages, adding to the costs & perhaps made the book unattractive.
The book could've likely used more careful editing, trimming it down to around 500 pages using the usual 10 pt. font size.
I sort of regretted buying this book, its kinda expensive, & am not sure if I will ever be able to finish it.
Great Telling of an Obscure Story.......2007-05-30
Richard Zacks' "Pirate Coast: Thomas Jefferson, the First Marines, and the Secret Mission of 1805" is an engrossing tale of one of the first US overseas "covert" missions. While also telling the story of the First Barbary War, Zack concentrates on the energetic and ambitious William Eaton, whose audacious plan was to march over 500 miles across the North African desert to attack Tripoli (one of the Barbary States) from land.
Eaton's successful attack on the town of Derna was a key element in the peace made to conclude the war. However, upon his return to the United States, Eaton fell into political conflict with President Thomas Jefferson and was never compensated for much of his personal expenses from the expedition - and he eventually died a broken alcoholic.
"Pirate Coast" is not a full telling of the First Barbary War, but Zacks gives enough background that the reader can follow the big picture while also focusing on Eaton's courageous and daring mission. Zacks also brings the many historical characters to life, showing how their personalities impacted the war, the mission, and the aftermath. This is an excellent book for anyone interesting in US history, military history, or who wants to learn more about this forgotten war.
Book Description
This book combines Elite 67: `Pirates 1660-1730', Elite 69: `Buccaneers 1620-1700' and Elite 74: `Privateers and Pirates 1730-1830'. Text by Angus Konstam, plates by Angus McBride. This book tells, in beautifully illustrated detail, the full story of piracy from its origins in the 16th century to the last great piratical wave in the early 19th century. It explores the lives of well-known buccaneers who carried out their raids under the protection of the English crown and the privateers that were relied on by the American Navy during the American Revolution to disrupt British shipping between England and the rebellious colonies. Other subjects covered include the ships, weaponry used, codes of behaviour and the lives of the colourful characters that roamed the high seas searching for plunder.
Customer Reviews:
Worth the Doubloons.......2006-01-22
This is a collection of three Osprey books, so you need to think in terms of an adult version of the Eyewitness picture books. You shouldn't expect an exhaustively comprehensive treatment of the subject matters, after all each book tends to be only 1/4 inch thick.
So, with expectations aligned, this collection includes Buccaneers 1620-1700, Pirates 1660-1730 and Privateers and Pirates 1730-1830. There are quite a few pictures to compliment the text, including maps, wood cuts and those provided by Angus McBride.
In Buccaneers the topics covered include their origins, attire, weapons, ships, havens and tactics. Konstam gives us some brief biographies of a few of the famous names like Morgan, Myngs, Nau, Grammont and de Graaf.
In Pirates the topics covered include their origins, dress, tactics, flags, ports and ships. Konstam gives us some brief biographies of a few of the famous names like Teach, Bonny, Reade, Rackam, Vane, Every, Bonnet, Kidd and the Dread Pirate Roberts.
In Privateers the topics covered include their origins, methods, ports and ships. Konstam gives us some brief biographies of a few of the famous names like Haraden, Talbot, Jones, Surcouf, Boyle, Laffite, de Soto and Gibert.
An excellent collection of overviews suitable for adolescents and adults, for more on piracy through the ages I suggest Konstam's The History of Pirates.
P-)
A great history about pirates!!!.......2003-02-09
This is so far the best book ive came across having to do with the subject of pirates. This book covers the many different aspects of piracy such as privateering, buccaneers, the golden age of piracy, and all the well known pirates such as Jack Rackam (Calico Jack), Bartholomew Roberts (Black Bart), Edward Teach (Black Beard), Charles Vane, Captain Kidd, and many others. This book also covers all of the weapons, types of clothing and ships used by pirates. It goes into detail about many of the famous activities carried out by pirates. The illustrations in the book are well down and are a joy to look at! I recommend this book to anyone interested in this subject. But if your already familiar with pirates, then you will want something bigger with more detail and more artwork!
Book Description
Journey through the Golden Age of Piracy (1690-1730) with one of the foremost pirate-artifact collectors and authorities. Inside this deluxe interactive adventure you'll find engaging authoritative text on all facets of pirate life and history, complemented by fantastic full-color art and over 30 fun and fascinating three-dimensional features. This one-of-a-kind book-plus includes a working period compass, a replica authentic jolly roger, a fold-out treasure map, pieces of eight, period playing cards, a flask of "gunpowder," a cat-o'-nine-tails, Henry Every's 1696 Wanted poster, and much more!
100 full-color illustrations and photographs
30 interactive 3-D features
Includes Authentic full-size removable Jolly Roger!
Customer Reviews:
Arrrrghhh!.......2007-10-13
This book is great! If you love pirates and the history of them, this is for you. There is a lot of real history and facts in this book. Plus the interactive items in it are worth it. It's not a pop-up, but it has several items you can pull out and read/play with. Definitely recommend this for pirate lovers of any age.
Pirate Popup Book.......2007-07-16
Great book for kids-preteens to learn about Pirates. Lots of "swag" to open up and look through, from official looking orders and rosters to currency and even your very own pirate flag.
Something neat to browse through and get some neat details and tidbits but certainly not an adult book
Great, fun book for young & old.......2007-02-20
Cool book, unique, worth every penny. Would love to see musuem.
Good Reference.......2007-02-03
I have seen in many reviews that people purchased this book for their children. This is probably due to the fact that there are removable items within the pages of this book. These are actually replicas of authentic 17th and 18th century documents, a really bad hand of period playing cards, and a replica of an authentic pirate flag. in regards to these documents they are somewhat difficult to read (due to the fact the printing in these times was not exactly "good"). Also the fact that this book covers pirate torture techniques and some of there deaths in gruesome detail makes me wonder if young children should be reading that. Anyway, if you want a fun book for the kids pick up "pirates" by john Matthews, if you want a good introductory to the "golden age of piracy" pick this book
Cool.......2007-01-24
What a neat book and it's by Croche...a philly guy. I just thought it was well put together, fun to look at, and there was a lot of cool info in there that made me want to go visit his museum in Key West so I could learn more.
Book Description
Experience Radio’s Swashbuckling Side!
Listening to pirate radio is perfectly legal—and frequently an ear-opening experience. This book makes it easier for you to locate and tune in pirate stations—and tells you all about the unlicensed broadcasters who play David to broadcasting conglomerates’ Goliath. Revealing the history of pirate radio from 1925 to today, author Andrew Yoder, pirate radio aficionado and long-time writer on radio, electronics, and audio subjects:
* Explains how to buy and use equipment to listen to pirate stations
* Shows you how to find pirate stations on your AM/FM, shortwave, and online radios
* Explains how pirates have "gone legit" on the Internet, with "how-to-listen" directions, and hard-to-find pirate URLs
* Showcases stations operating since at least 1995
* Provides details on political, local, holiday, and special-events pirates
* Tells you about offshore, European, and pirate stations around the world
* Takes you inside illegal stations, some of which have up to 75 volunteers
* Shows you how the FCC tracks pirates and often enforces its regulations harshly
* Gives you a CD with over 80 minutes of audio from dozens of underground stations
Customer Reviews:
Superb and riveting book on 'Pirate Radio'!.......2007-03-15
As an avid SWL (shortwave listener) and Ham Radio Operator, I could not put this book down! It is very well researched, with excellent illustrations and photos. It also comes with an audio CD with clips of many various 'pirate radio' transmissions. Popular frequencies where you can actually hear some of these stations are listed, and I was able to pull in a few the first night of listening! Highly recommended, and highly interesting!
Great for free radio lovers.......2003-01-06
I did buy the book and I have been reading it completely.
And I did learn my friends. I am a pirate radio operator for years but still nice things to find out about Pirating. I like it a lot and also nice to see how other stations are doing it and finding out about their history's.
Also the book to buy if you want to tune in to al kinds of pirate radio like TV,hf,vhf,internet,fm. You name it.
This is good, but the Net is better.......2002-09-30
This is a good review of SWLing and pirate radio, but the Internet is better.
Of particular notice is the typeface selected by the publisher. It is bizarre--meant as a display typeface, I'm sure. The effect is that this book is almost impossible to read and frankly, it hurts my eyes.
Book Description
He challenged the greatest empire on earth with a ragtag bunch of renegades—and brought it to its knees. Empire of Blue Water is the real story of the pirates of the Caribbean.
Henry Morgan, a twenty-year-old Welshman, crossed the Atlantic in 1655, hell-bent on making his fortune. Over the next three decades, his exploits in the Caribbean in the service of the English became legendary. His daring attacks on the mighty Spanish Empire on land and at sea determined the fates of kings and queens, and his victories helped shape the destiny of the New World.
Morgan gathered disaffected European sailors and soldiers, hard-bitten adventurers, runaway slaves, and vicious cutthroats, and turned them into the most feared army in the Western Hemisphere. Sailing out from the English stronghold of Port Royal, Jamaica, “the wickedest city in the New World,” Morgan and his men terrorized Spanish merchant ships and devastated the cities where great riches in silver, gold, and gems lay waiting. His last raid, a daring assault on the fabled city of Panama, helped break Spain’s hold on the Americas forever.
Awash with bloody battles, political intrigues, natural disaster, and a cast of characters more compelling, bizarre, and memorable than any found in a Hollywood swashbuckler—including the notorious pirate L’Ollonais, the soul-tortured King Philip IV of Spain, and Thomas Modyford, the crafty English governor of Jamaica—Empire of Blue Water brilliantly re-creates the passions and the violence of the age of exploration and empire.
Customer Reviews:
accesible and intriguing tale of the man that changed the Western Hemisphere.......2007-09-13
A wonderfully well-written (flows perfectly and keeps the interest of the reader with brilliant description and exciting prose), this is the story of Henry Morgan and his historic role in the threshold of New World history between the old, honor-bound, religiously dominated Nationalism of Spanish control and the cut-throat, money-ruled, trade-dominated, mercantile rule of England. Henry Morgan, a patriot and a ruthless privateer, was a bloody genius, a democrat, and he embodied all that the pirates stood for in the New World: freedom, power, and riches--all for the taking by anyone not fettered by ideas of nobility and birthright. Henry Morgan is compared and contrasted with the average pirate (who he increasingly distances himself from) and the Spanish and British nobility. Fascinating and accessible. Grade: A-
The facts behind the legends.......2007-08-13
I'm not a history buff, but I really enjoyed reading what some of the legends about pirates are based on. In particular, I didn't know about Henry Morgan, and found reading about his exploits so enthralling, the book was difficult to put down. It was a nice touch to convert the pirates' takes into todays dollar equivalents. These guys were major players! Very enjoyable book.
Disappointing Read.......2007-08-08
I expected an engaging read about Henry Morgan, but found this writer's style not to be my cup of tea. I found it boring and gave up after 75, or so, pages. I recently finished "Einstein" and expected a similar narrative, but came away disappointed.
Private or privateer? .......2007-08-03
I've never been much interested in pirates, but I found myself enthralled with Stephan Talty's Empire of Blue Water: Captain Morgan's Great Pirate Army, the Epic Battle for the Americas, and the Catastrophe That Ended the Outlaws' Bloody Reign.
Empire of Blue Water begins with the British trying to muscle in on Spain's hold in the New World by conquering Jamaica. At the time, Welshman Henry Morgan was a young sailor. But by the end of his life, he proved to be one of the most influential men in the Caribbean and helped to change the course of world history.
There was a thin line between being a private or a privateer, with Morgan being in the latter group. Privateering was actually invented by Henry VIII. This cash-strapped king offered commissions to sea captains to harass the French, attacking and capturing enemy ships. But unlike regular pirates, privateers gave a percentage of their "profits" to the crown. A romantic imagine exists today about pirates, but pirating was a very hard and dangerous life. But unlike most jobs, pirating was a "democratic institution." "The most important decisions were made from the bottom up." As for leadership, "the captain was only in charge when the crew was fighting, chasing a ship, or being chased."
Henry Morgan made a name (and a fortune) for himself by amassing large groups of pirates and staging four of the most daring raids of that period. They were against Granada, Portobello, Maracaibo and Panama. The Caribbean was akin to the Wild West in these days and Morgan proved to be a bold and brilliant leader. His cunning strategies allowed him to assess the weaknesses of the Spanish and to beat them at almost every turn. When England and Spain finally signed a peace treaty, pirating was outlawed. Morgan was one of the few who made a successful transition to private life, running his Jamaican plantation and becoming deputy governor.
There are fascinating tidbits of information in Blue Waters and I enjoyed how Henry Morgan and his exploits affected the world stage. Morgan had much to do with breaking the back of the Spanish Empire. "Without him, who knows what the map of the Caribbean and even the United States might look like." After 1713, Spain ceased to be a world power. Also, an earthquake in Port Royal four years after Morgan's death destroyed this Jamaican trade capital. Trade with Port Royal was then diverted through the American Colonies, never to return.
So, was Captain Morgan a bold, brilliant privateer or a "rampaging, torturing, thieving pirate?" Read Stephan Talty and decide for yourself!
Hooked from first page!.......2007-07-27
A very enjoyable, informative read. As someone who enjoys reading about this time period, I found this book to be extremely well researched and well written. The author captures the complexity of the time period and conveys it in a very engaging manner! I highly recommend "Empire of Blue Water"
Book Description
Two Frenchmen, an idea, and a blank piece of paper. That's how it started. Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schonberg are the creators of the multi-award-winning and much-loved musicals Les Miserables, Miss Saigon, Martin Guerre and now an exciting new work The Pirate Queen. Les Miserables alone has been seen by over 53 million people.
The Musical World of Boublil and Schonberg is the first book to offer a comprehensive look behind the closed doors of these intensely private musical theatre giants. Boublil and Schonberg take center stage and talk openly about their methods and the creative processes involved in writing the book, the music, and the lyrics. Additional interviews from collaborators such as their co-writers Herbert Kretzmer, Richard Maltby, Stephen Clark, and John Dempsey; their directors Trevor Nunn, John Caird, Nicholas Hytner, Conall Morrison, and Frank Galati; the choreographer of The Pirate Queen, Mark Dendy; and their long-time producer Cameron Mackintosh gives the reader a full view into their successful process.
Full-color production photographs tell the story of each musical.
Customer Reviews:
Very insightful.......2007-04-11
This book is a wonderfully insightful book to some of my favorite musicals! I really enjoyed the background information as to how some of the musicals came to be, the processes that were followed...everything! I highly recommend this book!
Amazon.com
Though literature, films, and folklore have romanticized pirates as gallant seaman who hunted for treasure in exotic locales, David Cordingly, a former curator at the National Maritime Museum in England, reveals the facts behind the legends of such outlaws as Captain Kidd, Blackbeard, and Calico Jack. Even stories about buried treasure are fictitious, he says, yet still the myth remains. Though pirate captains were often sadistic villains and crews endured barbarous tortures, were constantly threatened with the possibility of death by hanging, drowning in a storm, or surviving a shipwreck on a hostile coast, pirates are still idealized. Cordingly examines why the myth of the romance of piratehood endures and why so few lived out their days in luxury on the riches they had plundered.
Book Description
"This is the most authoritative and highly literate account of these pernicious people that I have ever read." -- Patrick O'Brian
Pirates are so much a part of legend that it is easy to forget they actually existed. UNDER THE BLACK FLAG tells their story in a rollicking account of the golden age of piracy that is packed with history, anecdote, and above all adventure. Here are the true stories of such bloodthirsty legends as Blackbeard and Captain Kidd, Anne Bonny, and the fearsome Mary Read. And here are rousing descriptions of what ships pirates sailed, what punishments they exacted, what they really wore, and how they flourished--or perished. From the smoky havoc of shipboard battle to the loneliness of a fugitive's life at sea, this spellbinding narrative vividly brings the brutal world of pirates to life.
Customer Reviews:
Data overload.......2007-09-18
Pirates! Everyone loves pirates, or the romanticizing image of them presented in fiction and films. Cordingly sets out to separate the facts from fiction in this book about the reality of pirates. He starts strong talking about fictional works from Dafoe, Stevenson, and Barrie then hashes on some film versions. The beginning of "Under a Black Flag" is promising but thereafter, it really begins to fall apart.
What's great about this book is, for a casual beginner student of pirate history, there's a mountain of facts and data regarding a great variety of pirates, not just the top names. Keep in mind that's just what it is, straight facts based on his research, a bit like high school history textbooks - this happened on this date, this happened here,... Etc. It gets pretty dry but there's a lot of info. Cordingly covers everything from ships, weaponry, women, trials, punishments, assaults, and areas of the map that was infested with piracy. However, the undoing of this book is that there is SO MUCH data and unfortunately a complete absence of organization of that data. There's no real cataloging or separation of topics whether it be event, people, location, or time based. Cordingly jumps back and forth through the piracy age that you really have no idea of which sea rovers were alive when or if they overlapped other well known buccaneers/privateers without creating your own timeline.
Like many other books covering this topic, you'd think Cordingly would have given the likes of Blackbeard, Kidd, Calico Jack, Henry Avery, Drake, and Morgan their own chapters in which the relevant facts are presented. He does so with a few of the above mentioned but he doesn't give the entire history of those ones within that chapter. Instead, it's spread out almost haphazardly and the author ends up continuously repeating himself. There also could have been a division of locales covering the Carribean, African coast/Indian Ocean, and China Sea piracy.
It's a real shame because based on the information factor, this book would get 5 stars, but the repetitiveness, choppy sentences, and lack of organization hamper the book so much it drops it down to only 2 stars. I still recommend the book, but be prepared to take notes and make your own timeline as you are going through it. The Appendixes are good, the locale maps are splendid, seafaring terminology helps out, but where are the pictures of the great variety of pirate flags at? So much potential but organization is the downfall of this otherwise high information text.
I want to be a pirate..........2007-07-06
..noo, I am just "Kidding". I must agree with the opinion that book is a bit "dry". However it covers probably all "big" pirate/privateer names and related stories of plundering, chasing, battles and punishments. So this work is like a small compendium of the piracy, great starter for further learning; well written and read with pleasure and interest. Inquisitive reader may go from here into more narrative and colorful books devoted to specific chosen characters like Kidd, Dumpiere, Blackbeard, Drake etc.
"Under the Black Flag" will definitely intensify your zest for extra "sailing" across plethora of other publishings.
Readable But Dry and Disorganized.......2007-06-21
I had hoped to find an interesting and thorough book on the history of piracy that is accessible to a layperson with limited knowledge of nautical history, but that doesn't simply repeat inaccurate cliches and stereotypes. I somehow doubt that this one would have even caught my attention had it not been so heavily promoted at various bookstores to cash in on the third "Pirates of the Caribbean" movie. I'm disappointed that a book about such a lively subject is so surprisingly lifeless. Cordingly essentially presents a bunch of facts (names, dates, places and figures) without providing much detail or historical context. I realize that much information about pirates is sketchy at best, but simply providing me with the names of a pirate captain and his ship and the dates and places on which island an incident occurred does not make for interesting reading. Cordingly also seems to wander from subject to subject and often repeats himself. This makes me wonder if this book was actually a collection of essays or articles about piracy compiled into one volume. His main points seem to be that pirates are glamorized in fiction but in reality were cruel, sociopathic former Navy or merchant sailors who organized themselves into a democratic society. I appreciate his research and the points that he does make, but overall I found this to be a slow read and not terribly informative or entertaining.
They Plundered The Seas, Now They Plunder The Page.......2007-06-15
David Cordingly has compiled a wonderful stash of pirate fact and fiction with "Under The Black Flag: The Romance and the Reality of Life Among the Pirates." He covers the day-to-day comings and goings of pirates and those who loved and hated them. He fleshes out a number of the most famous pirates such as Henry Morgan, William Kidd, Bartholomew (Black Bart) Roberts and Edward (Blackbeard) Teach, giving some of them there own chapters. Specific campaigns created to wipe pirates from the seas are also given excellently documented attention. Cordingly also gives an editorial on the potential reasoning behind mankind's fascination with such vile and cruel men (and women) who called themselves "pyrate."
Cordingly backs up all of his findings with an extensive bibliography, five appendices, notes, and a very helpful glossary of sea terms. His writing style, while full of wonderful information and historical facts, never grows boring or drawn out. In fact, you could argue that "Under the Black Flag" reads a lot like a fictional novel. It's both educational and fun.
Fans of pirate history or those with just a passing fancy for the swashbuckler will want to read this book. I also recommend "The Pirate Hunter" by Richard Zacks. It covers with great detail the life and politically tainted execution of William Kidd. It's all delivered with a writing style that is easy to digest but still full of information.
From ship to shore, "Under the Black Flag" is worth a read.
The Best Book on Pirates.......2007-05-29
This is a really great book and one of my all-time favorites--unless you're looking for artwork. If it's illustrations you want, try Pirates: Predators of the Sea. If you read this and love it and want another great read, try If a Pirate I Must Be by Richard Saunders. It's terrific, though also no illustrations.
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