The Four Voyages: Being His Own Log-Book, Letters and Dispatches with Connecting Narratives.. (Penguin Classics)

Customer Reviews:

No, the Third Voyage is the best!.......2006-03-16

This book contains primary sources ONLY. (How do I "rate" the letters of Christopher Columbus? :-) You can read about the life and times of an historical character by the very best historians for years, but until you read what that character actually wrote about his own experiences, you're groping in the dark. Nothing compares to getting it from the horse's mouth.

These letters, beautifully translated, free of anyone's opinions, are history's nuclear core. Any gut sense YOU get from these words may well be closer to the truth than what you've read by any scholar. Occasionally you might realize that your favorite historian didn't actually finish reading some of the letters they're basing an argument on! Then you are in a position of knowing more than he/she does.

I do wonder why Penguin doesn't fix the date of Columbus's death. The editor has him dying in 1509 (not a typo since it's repeated) which is a shame. Columbus died 500 years ago this spring, and a quincentenary only happens once. It's "Goodbye, Columbus" May 20th, 2006.

FAVORITE VOYAGE: NO. 3, when he blesses the continent of South America with his tears (red with blood from exposure and illness) and warns the Monarchs that this is the Earthly Paradise and no one may enter without God's leave.

great description of Columbus voyages.......2005-11-02

This book is a great description of the events related to the exploration of the new world made by Columbus. The first two voyages are the most interesting because of the discovery of the caribbean island and the natives inhabitants living there, the arawaks and the caribs. The latter were very particular on account of its cannibalism.

In the third voyage, Columbus finally reach mainland and the fourth voyage was the toughest of all due to huge storms that lasted several days and the attacks of indian while there were repairing. At the end of the book there is an account made by Diego Mendez, a truly survivor and loyal servant of the Admiral who saved the lives of all of them while they were waiting in Jamaica, for a year.

I my opinion Columbus was a great navigator and a brave man. It is sad how the life of the Admiral ends and the poor retribution from the kings of Spain.

Columbus Resurrected.......2004-03-12

J. M. Cohen's translation of various 1st-hand or near first-hand accounts, including that of Columbus' son, Hernando Colon's LIFE OF THE ADMIRAL brings the Columbus story to life.

The Introduction, coming from a translator of literature rather than a historian, is rather uninspiring; however, he does provide a rather thorough rebuttal of the argument, made by many supporters of Bartolome de Las Casas and referred to without explanation by Felipe Fernandez-Armesto in COLUMBUS, that Hernando Colon's work is a forgery. Indeed, since it appeared long before Las Casas' HISTORY was published, the issue of forgery may go in the other direction!

The book, through early Spanish sources, looks at the rumor that Columbus relied on the map of an ailing Portuguese sailor. It makes plain Columbus' error in thinking he was near Japan (Chipangu) and his belief that he would reach Cathay! We see his rather innocent introduction to the potent tobacco plant and how the natives fed his belief that gold, pearl and spices were nearby.

Columbus is shown to be of mixed character: on the one hand, he generally seems to respect the natives he meets and makes an alliance with one chieftain against the 'cannibal' Caribs. On the other, he takes several natives captive (to have them trained in Spanish so that they can serve as translators on future voyages), gives some Carib women to his men (who raped them as in the case of the vile Michele de Cuneo) and discusses conquest and enslavement of idolators [not particularly shocking considering the long history of conflicts and mutual enslavement between the muslim moors of Spain & Northern Africa and the Christians of Spain & Portugal].

Columbus' biggest problem appears to be his tendency to leave his men (39 on the first voyage) as colonies while he explores elsewhere. Whenver he returns, the natives have either killed the colonists or were at war with them - often due to the Spaniards' greed and licentiousness. Indeed, at one point, he leaves his brother in charge and the Spaniards, being forbidden to sleep with the native women revolt and found a rebel colony where the women were supposed to be more accomodating! Columbus ultimately is forced into an accomodation with these Spaniards and eventually conquers the natives. We also see the separate voyage of Ovando to Hispaniola and the beginnings of the gold mines. Columbus, not unlike a number of his successors, suffered arrest and trial and, after his last voyage, was deprive of power and authority.

Columbus' voyages, following in the footsteps of the Henrican discoveries, would likely have eventually been made by someone but Columbus seems especially driven to exploration. It was an unfortunate fact that he was also a very poor (and often absent) governor. His actions, sometimes courageous and thoughtful, sometimes harsh and reflexive probably represent the more civilized men of his time - when the Middle Ages was just ending, slavery and religious wars continued in Spain, Portugal, North Africa and Italy, and people were still being burned at the stake for heresy.

Amazing. An in debt look at Columbus and hislifeBuDdaHlOvAh.......1998-10-29

This book was excellent. It taught me so much more about Columbus and his journey's. Being a school teacher, this book sure will help me while teaching my students. I now have much more knolege on the subject.

Average customer rating:

A fun book for a sailor
indispensable for the student of the voyage....
Columbus Log

The Log of Christopher Columbus
Christopher Columbus
Manufacturer: Intl Marine Pub
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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The Four Voyages: Being His Own Log-Book, Letters and Dispatches with Connecting Narratives.. (Penguin Classics)

ASIN: 0877429510

Customer Reviews:

A fun book for a sailor.......2005-04-10

A lot of great adventurers came back to write a book--Marco Polo, Julius Caeser, William Bligh, Neil Armstrong (well, with the help of Life Magazine). People seem to be the same throughout history. They'll go off on a great adventure, come home, and write a book about it. While Columbus' book (his log) as well as his body, evidently, are currently lost, this book sure seems realistic. It was a lot of fun trying to duplicate his voyage with modern charts to see if I could figure out his first landfall and any sailor will have fun doing the same since Columbus discovered the sailing routes still used.
I thought Columbus portrayed himself as an adventurer out for the discovery of gold and working for the king and queen who hired him, but what's so surprising about that? He was trying to substantiate the worth of his first trip and to convince Ferdinand and Isabella to send him again wasn't he?

indispensable for the student of the voyage...........2002-04-11

....and very easy to read. The English translation is very clear and put together from sources other than Las Casas, whose facts weren't always straight. For some reason the paragraphs are all center-justified and taper out oddly. Various theories about Columbus's landfall are discussed.

The one flaw is the introductory pieces that whitewash the man himself. Made out to be a bold, great hero, he was in actuality a gold-obsessed sailor, a poor mariner, a perpetual whiner whose crew could barely stand him, an intolerant European who assumed every land he touched belong to his King back in Spain, and of course the initiator of the slavery system in Espanola. His men built the first fortress in the so-called New World, and they brought several Native captives back to Spain. Fortunately, some of these events are mentioned in the Log itself.

Columbus Log.......2000-08-09

Fuson translated (and reconstructed where necessary) the logs of Columbus. Loaded with pictures, maps and explanatory comments this work gives us a look at the famous explorer in his own words. I'd guess this is the best and closest one could get to a primary source for Columbus's journals. This would be a great resource for teachers and students who cover the Discovery. Too bad it's out of print

The Log of Christopher Columbus' First Voyage to America in the Year 1492

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The Log of Christopher Columbus' First Voyage to America in the Year 1492
Christopher Columbus , and Bartolome De Las Casas
Manufacturer: Linnet Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0208022473

First Voyage to America: From the Log of the "Santa Maria"

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Good secondary-level textbook.

First Voyage to America: From the Log of the "Santa Maria"
Christopher Columbus
Manufacturer: Dover Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0486268446

Book Description

Dramatic, revealing entries — including Columbus' own words — document epochal voyage, heavy seas, discouraged crew, first sighting of land, appearance of island natives, more. Translated into English, reset in large type. 44 illustrations, including a number from rare sources. Fascinating historical document. Publisher's note.

Customer Reviews:

Good secondary-level textbook........1996-12-12

This reprint of the 1938 illustrated edition of Columbus' journal covers the crossing of the Atlantic from August 3 to October 14, 1492. The (uncredited) translation is from Las Casas' abridgement of the journal in the HISTORIAS DE LAS INDIAS. The note at the beginning of the Dover edition explains the origin of the text. This book would be suitable for instruction with advanced middle school and high school students. It is unfortunate that the text is truncated upon arrival in Hispaniola since it omits many of the interesting passages concerning early contact with the islanders and Columbus' return voyage to Spain

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The Log of Christopher Columbus' First Voyage to America in the Year 1492
Christopher Columbus
Manufacturer: William A. Roy Jr. Christian Historian
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000EQ17PC

Product Description

Reprinted 500th anniversary edition of John Boyd Thatchewr's 1903 translation.

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Log of Chris Columbus
Steve Lowe
Manufacturer: Philomel
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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The Caribbean Columbus log A to Z
Shlomo Cohen
Manufacturer: Kingston
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

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Extracts from the Lost Log Book of Christopher Columbus

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Extracts from the Lost Log Book of Christopher Columbus
Gerry Murphy
Manufacturer: Dedalus Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Log Book: West Indies Cruise: a Happy Voyage in Quest of Ye New Found Lands Discoverd By Christopher Columbus--Admiral of Ye...

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Log Book: West Indies Cruise: a Happy Voyage in Quest of Ye New Found Lands Discoverd By Christopher Columbus--Admiral of Ye...

Manufacturer: Raymond & Whitcomb
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000FSSESC

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The Log of Christopher Columbus
Robert H. Fuson; Translator
Manufacturer: TAB BOOKS
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000WTCC5A

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TOTALLY AWESOME AND RAD BOOK!!!

Beautiful

History of Spix's Macaw's Plight, Complete with Political Agenda.

Tony Juniper, Spix's Macaw: The Race to Save the World's Rar

Very reasonable logic and a good read for the parrot owner

Spix's Macaw: The Race to Save the World's Rarest Bird
Tony Juniper
Manufacturer: Atria
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Elsewhere in the Land of Parrots

The Ghost with Trembling Wings: Science, Wishful Thinking and the Search for Lost Species

Parrots in the City: One Bird's Struggle for a Place on the Planet

Kingbird Highway: The Biggest Year in the Life of an Extreme Birder

Parrots of the World: An Identification Guide

ASIN: 0743475518

Book Description

The Spix's Macaw, if it survived and recovered, could inspire the world to see what was possiblethrough cooperation and determined efforts to save the earth's natural riches....

On June 3, 1817, Johann Baptist Ritter von Spix set sail for the New World on an expedition sponsored by the Bavarian Royal Academy of Sciences. What he found in Brazil's thorny caatinga woodlands would one day transform our understanding about evolution, survival, and -- in the case of the long-tailed blue parrot now known as "Spix's Macaw" -- extinction.

In this fascinating natural history, esteemed environmentalist Tony Juniper brings the caatinga bird beautifully to life. Not long after Spix's discovery, his parrot -- whose beauty, dexterity, and clear-eyed passion made it a favorite among scientists and bounty hunters alike -- had become more valuable than heroin, and worth thousands of dollars on the black market. By 1990, only one lone male was known to be living in the wild.

Spix's Macaw tells the tale of Juniper's race to save the species, from joining an international rescue operation in the caatinga to calling on private collectors to mate their illegal birds to waiting in vain for a hybrid nest of eggs to hatch. His story brings new meaning to Emily Dickinson's poem "Hope Is the Thing with Feathers."

A heart-stopping homage to the long, lonely flight of the last Spix's Macaw, this is a compassionate addition to the annals of nature literature and an environmental parable for our time.

Customer Reviews:

TOTALLY AWESOME AND RAD BOOK!!!.......2006-11-12

This book is about the the wondeful and beatiful Spix's Macaw. I goes to show how people are so selfish. in the book it amazed me that even when 1 spix macaw was left in the wild, noone cared except a handfulof people. The great thing about this book is that it's not only about Spix's Macaws but about other almost extinct animals ( and not just bird) Well yah, I don't wanna give out the sad parts, like the long and boring reviews that are written above or under me on this page, because the ending is so much not what you expected. Don't worry they don't become extinct! But this book isn't for everybody, if you have to do it for a book report ---don't! Only people who like birds and appreciate natur. For me it was easy , because I know a lot about bird, but if your just reading this book, I guarantee you won't understand it unless you rush too the internet or books, to figure out what they said.

Beautiful.......2006-05-12

This is a very beautiful book. About the years of struggle with trying to save a species from extinction while the greed of human animal "collectors" plunder these parrots from the wild and seal their fate.

This is a very emotional story of a species struggle for survival and it will open everyone's eyes on how we should be treating our planet earth with careful preservation so that no more of our living treasures are gone forever.

A very moving book with great successes and shocking surprises. You'll be cheering on the birds all the way through.

History of Spix's Macaw's Plight, Complete with Political Agenda........2005-08-16

Tony Juniper was a member of the 1990 expedition to Brazil that located the last Spix Macaw surviving in the wild, In "Spix's Macaw: The Race to Save the World's Rarest Bird", he tells the story of the species' history, its demise in the late 20th century, and efforts to preserve the Spix through captive breeding. The Spix's Macaw was always a rare bird, found only in the caraiba gallery woodlands of eastern Brazil. Named after Johann Baptist Ritter von Spix, a Bavarian naturalist who happened upon the bird in 1819 during a 4-year expedition to observe and catalog Brazil's fauna, the Spix Macaw was not observed in the wild again until 1903. But by then, captured Spix's Macaws were being exported to zoos and pet owners on several continents.

In exploring the scant history of its namesake, "Spix's Macaw" touches on the history of parrot-keeping and trading as well as the other blue Brazilian parrots: the Hyacinth, Glaucous, and Lear's macaws. The second half of the book addresses the efforts, politics, and progress in preserving the Spix's Macaw with the intention of restoring the species to the wild, including detailed accounts of how we got from having about 25 known living Spix's Macaws worldwide in the late 1980s to having over 60 by the year 2000. If that sounds promising, it is in the sense that it proves the birds can be bred with relative ease. But it's not if you consider the politics and posturing involved, which become obscenely obvious if you read this book.

Tony Juniper is a fluid writer who knows a lot about his subject and clearly cares about it, so "Spix's Macaw" is very readable. Unfortunately, the book's last two chapters are dedicated to demonizing the private owners of Spix's macaws, including those responsible for the breeding successes of the 1990s, and flogging the agenda of restoring the birds to Brazil and to their original habitat. Anyone who thinks that these initiatives are unreasonable or unproductive is apparently selfish, immoral, and actually criminal in the estimation of Tony Juniper. Juniper believes that forcibly removing the birds from their owners and handing them over to the entity that has had the least success in breeding them is the way to save the species. Brazil has had upwards of 35 years to organize breeding and conservation programs and has, instead, vacillated between indifference and incompetence. I wouldn't give Brazil a budgie. The international Recovery Committee didn't do much better, failing to ever produce a studbook and irresponsibly releasing a female Spix who was a known breeder back into her natural habitat -where she promptly died- while there were only 60 Spix's Macaws in existence! Only the death of the last wild Spix prevented them from releasing 4 more birds. Thank god for timely demises.

"Spix's Macaw" contains a lot of interesting information on the efforts to save this bird. Readers can decide for themselves if these efforts and Tony Juniper's agenda are misguided. But I was struck by the indifference to the birds themselves. For Brazil, which insists that all the world's Spix's Macaws -including those born elsewhere- are its "sovereign property", the macaws represent some sort of nationalism. Returning them to "the wild" is a battle cry for fanatic conservationists, who transform the birds plight into socio-political dogma. Private owners keep the birds for their own reasons. But no party in this book gives any indication of having an iota of respect for the creatures. The birds are eclipsed by every manner of agenda. Increasing the birds' numbers should be the primary goal, but it falls victim to Brazil's sweeping claims and self-righteous accusations. A pipe dream of reintroducing the Spix to its natural environment takes precedence over breeding. No one seems to know if the gallery forests could even support a flock of significant size, and, in any case, that habitat won't be there for long. It would indeed be ironic if a century from now parrot-lovers are thanking the private collectors and black marketeers of the 20th century for saving the Spix's Macaw from the fate that met its extinct cousin, the Glaucous macaw: Habitat Destruction. What the Spix's Macaw needs most is for the humans it depends on to swallow a heavy dose of realism.

Tony Juniper, Spix's Macaw: The Race to Save the World's Rar.......2005-05-25

In almost every way, this book is a wonderful read. It is ostensibly about Spix's Macaw, a bird fluttering on the edge of extinction (although no specific evidence is offered that it is "the World's Rarest Bird" (see p. [iii])). At the same time, the book deals with parrots in general, considers avian extinctions where relevant, and makes us think deeply about mankind's relationship with Nature.

The section on "parrots in history" is particularly good, although it is here that Juniper pulls the one major bona fide boner of his work. The Emperor Heliogabulus did not rule from 222 to 205 B. C. (see p. 37), but rather from 218 to 222 A. D. It is interesting to note that the bird shown in the portrait of William Brooke, Baron Cobham, appears to be an unknown variety of parrot (see p. 40) and to find that several Caribbean macaws have vanished since the early days of exploration (at pp. 119-20). Juniper doesn't miss a beat in pointing out that many of the parrots allegedly carried by pirates may have been worth more than the loot they stole (see p. 121)! We are shown the place of parrots in Christian theology- one supposedly learned to recite The Lord's Prayer (at p. 44) and are informed that parrot tongues were occasionally eaten to cure speech impediments (at id.). It is therefore strange to find no mention of the role of the "parrot spy" for plantation masters in Black American folklore (see Richard M. Dorson, American Negro Folktales 120-23 (1968)) and not to have Monty Python's Dead Parrot sketch mentioned until page 236.

Juniper is excellent in painting a portrait of the life of a Spix's Macaw, as well as providing information on parrot "hand-eye coordination" (see pp. 42-43), "dialects" (at pp. 44-45), and bonding with specific individuals (at p. 50; I remember one Brazilian friend telling me of a family parrot who loved him, but who was finally given away because of his hostile attitude towards the boy's mother). What make's Juniper's book special, however, is the information and vignettes it contains: Tony Silva, the renowned breeder, whose bird-smuggling activities brought him a prison term (at pp. 77-80), the wildlife market at Duque de Caxias (at p. 89), the raid on a Paraguayan wildlife dealer's house (at pp. 139-41), and the tragicomic dance between Brazilian authorities and breeders to save Spix's Macaw (see pp. 160 ff.). At the same time, Juniper does not (and perhaps legally cannot) name names to accompany all the rumors of foreign bird ownership (see pp. 153-54) and fails to comment on what seems to be an obvious parallel between the world's first endangered species studbook (for the European Bison- started in 1932- see p. 159) and the political events which led to World War II and the Holocaust. Those who wish to read more in the area will be hindered by the fact that the volume has no bibliography.

What Spix's Macaw does do, however, is to bring home the poignancy of this dwindling species and to make us view its travails in a larger context. Despite minor faults, this book is a wonderful addition to any environmental bookshelf, and no one who reads the volume will put it down unmoved.

Samuel Pyeatt Menefee

Very reasonable logic and a good read for the parrot owner.......2004-03-06

Personally, I see a lot of the behavior of many of the environmentalist groups to be simply ridiculous and I think that's an important point for me to make in offering a review of this book. I'm not necessarily sympathetic to many of the ideas and policies of Greenpeace, PETA, Earth First or the like. I do keep a captive-bred blue and gold macaw and in casual hobby reading, I became aware of the conservation efforts being made to save the Spix's macaw some time ago.

There are two strong features about this book that really stand out in my mind and make it worthy of a five star rating. Most importantly, it's a very reasonable, logical account of the problems leading to the bird's extinction in the wild which I believe can be appreciated by almost anyone. While a story like this one can't be dealt with completely devoid of emotion, the book isn't a ridiculous, simple-minded, political work designed to preach to the converted. I feel the author remained as neutral as practically possible in his assessment of the situation and that he offers a book that could easily be stomached by people who simply don't care one bit.

The second thing that really brought this book home for me is that I believe it's a good selection for anybody who keeps parrots - macaws in particular. I've read so much garbage about parrot psychology in CPW, all the parrots as pets books and the like that I figured I just wasn't going to completely get it. This book offers many very interesting insights into the ways parrots may think as well as into their social interactions in and out of their flocks.

If you're loosely considering reading this one and you, like me, are not sold on the environmental "cause", please check this one out - it's well worth the short time it'll take to read.

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Spix's Macaw: The Race to Save the World's Rarest Bird
Tony Juniper
Manufacturer: Atria
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000MC14KQ

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