| Title | : | The Wide Wide Sea: Imperial Ambition, First Contact and the Fateful Final Voyage of Captain James Cook |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 0385544766 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9780385544764 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Hardcover |
| Number of Pages | : | 432 |
| Publication | : | First published April 9, 2024 |
On July 12th, 1776, Captain James Cook, already lionized as the greatest explorer in British history, set off on his third voyage in his ship the HMS Resolution . Two-and-a-half years later, on a beach on the island of Hawaii, Cook was killed in a conflict with native Hawaiians. How did Cook, who was unique among captains for his respect for Indigenous peoples and cultures, come to that fatal moment?
Hampton Sides’ bravura account of Cook’s last journey both wrestles with Cook’s legacy and provides a thrilling narrative of the titanic efforts and continual danger that characterized exploration in the 1700s. Cook was renowned for his peerless seamanship, his humane leadership, and his dedication to science-–the famed naturalist Joseph Banks accompanied him on his first voyage, and Cook has been called one of the most important figures of the Age of Enlightenment. He was also deeply interested in the native people he encountered. In fact, his stated mission was to return a Tahitian man, Mai, who had become the toast of London, to his home islands. On previous expeditions, Cook mapped huge swaths of the Pacific, including the east coast of Australia, and initiated first European contact with numerous peoples. He treated his crew well, and endeavored to learn about the societies he encountered with curiosity and without judgment.
Yet something was different on this last voyage. Cook became mercurial, resorting to the lash to enforce discipline, and led his two vessels into danger time and again. Uncharacteristically, he ordered violent retaliation for perceived theft on the part of native peoples. This may have had something to do with his secret orders, which were to chart and claim lands before Britain’s imperial rivals could, and to discover the fabled Northwest Passage. Whatever Cook’s intentions, his scientific efforts were the sharp edge of the colonial sword, and the ultimate effects of first contact were catastrophic for Indigenous people around the world. The tensions between Cook’s overt and covert missions came to a head on the shores of Hawaii. His first landing there was harmonious, but when Cook returned after mapping the coast of the Pacific Northwest and Alaska, his exploitative treatment of the Hawaiians led to the fatal encounter.
At once a ferociously-paced story of adventure on the high seas and a searching examination of the complexities and consequences of the Age of Exploration, THE WIDE WIDE SEA is a major work from one of our finest narrative nonfiction writers.
The Wide Wide Sea: Imperial Ambition, First Contact and the Fateful Final Voyage of Captain James Cook Reviews
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My thanks to Doubleday books, Hampton Sides and Netgalley.
I love this author when it involves the sea. I don't want to read anything about landlocked anything. For me? It's Mr. Sides and the sea!
And boy howdy, does he know how to make a reader wish for a front row seat! Hampton puts a reader right smack dab in the middle! I love his writing and research.
So. Captain Cook. I can't hate in the man. He did what most any one of us would have at that time. He just freaking explored. Give me a ship and some funds? Hell yes, I'd have been exploring.
Yes, I know it was so much more than that to others, but let's be real.
I'm not going to get into the past or current politics of this. Rest assured, that I think it's all idiotic. That was the past.
Australia was the main country that I'd always wanted to visit, then I heard that it was a 20 hour flight. W.T.F? No. Nope. Hell to the cuss word, and more cuss words and yes, a few more! Whew! I feel better now! So, maybe a ship? Actually, I would love to be in a few weeks voyage to see Australia. Could you imagine? I'd love to swim, and scuba off the western coast. Yes, I know..sharks and crocs. It's a choice I suppose. I'll choose that. That's funny! I'll take the sharks and crocs over a 20 hour flight? Hmm. 😒 Sounds about right!
It's Hampton Sides for fish sakes. Read it!
All the stars!😜 -
As I look back to the two other books I've read from Sides, I notice they were both 5 star reads from me. He has this penchant for knowing the narrative style his readers want and crave. He's one of the best out there, so it's interesting to see what topic he's writing about.
His recent foray into exploration writing brings him to the third and final voyage of Captain James Cook. Sides tells you at the beginning that he's not being biased by any means. He is taking written accounts from the western world and combining them with the written histories from local Hawaiian historians and oral histories from the Natives in an attempt to tell the story in the most effective and truthful way possible.
As I remember with
In the Kingdom of Ice: The Grand and Terrible Polar Voyage of the USS Jeannette, Sides treats his true characters like a novel -- not only does the main characters have his or her say, but some of the others are outspoken and described very thoroughly. Sides knows how to tell a story and leaves no stone unturned.
Sides's conclusion brings in hypotheses from historians over the years, but I am left satisfied what he determines as I agree with why Cook was murdered, but will leave the reader of this review to determine it themselves.
Recommended for his on-going fans and new ones alike. -
The chances of me not loving The Wide Wide Sea by Hampton Sides were admittedly nil. I rank Sides as one of the best best non-fiction writers today. You also add in the fact he is writing about my favorite explorer of all time in Captain James Cook. Sides looks specifically at Cook's final journey around the world which, if you know nothing about it, is epic. Last year, in 2023, a lot of people who don't usually read non-fiction took a chance on David Grann's The Wager and loved it. Well, it is not an insult to either book to say that The Wide Wide Sea is this year's The Wager. It's only February but this book will be in my Top 5 of the year when it is all said and done without question.
Sides has a gift for taking big stories and making them feel small and intimate. I also already knew he can write an exceptional book about ocean voyages (if you haven't read In the Kingdom of Ice yet, you should rectify that as soon as possible). He added another wrinkle with this book. Before it begins, Sides states that he is going to look at this story with recognition of how some of these actions look to us today. Before you write this book off, this doesn't mean Sides took today's politics and painted everyone as an evil imperialist. Instead, what he provides is context. Sure, a lot of things you will read about would be abhorrent to most people today, but Sides places them in their time and calls out double standards when he sees them.
What I didn't expect was that Sides willingness to look back at Captain Cook with a contemporary lens makes him even more interesting. Cook was (for his time, let's not overstate this) a more compassionate explorer than most. If you put Hernán Cortés on the inhumane side of the scale, Cook is on the other end. That is, until this final voyage. Cook's third voyage shows cracks in his armor and it leads to ruin. I knew how it ended and I was still riveted because Sides is just that good. Make sure you read this book.
(This book was provided as an advance copy by Netgalley and Doubleday Books.) -
I'm not really a history buff so when an author can engage me in a historical tale, I tip my hat. Hampton Sides does just that in this narrative of James Cook last sea voyage. I really didn't know anything about Cook going into this read, but his character is slowly revealed as we follow his attempt to find a northwest passage around the American continent. The crux of the book focuses on Cook's interactions with various indigenous peoples he meets on the lands he explores. Let's just say, some of these interactions went a lot better than others. Sides does a good job of giving the reader of how hard these voyages really were and how Cook needed to be a leader, a diplomat, a problem solver, - all while remaining calm, cool, and collected. This book was my second that I've tried from this author, and it definitely won't be my last.
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I had recently read Hampton Sides’ book Blood and Thunder and enjoyed it, so I was happy to receive an ARC for this new book on Captain James Cook. The travel tale includes Cape Horn and the Pacific Islands as well as the Alaskan coastline as Cook tries to find a Northwest Passage. His mark on history was navigation skills and cartography as he drew new maps of these areas that only sketchily been filled in before. The downside was the negative influence on indigenous people culturally by trying to convert them to gardening and raising livestock, as well as his promiscuous seaman spreading venereal disease. He was eventually killed by some Hawaiian natives after a conflict quickly escalated resulting in a frenzy attack. The writing is compelling and interesting but a little to detailed at times, ie the sexual behavior was a bit too much information.
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This is a six star book by Hampton Sides about the incomparable Captain James Cook, an exceptional man of the Enlightenment age.
His third and final sea voyage extends so far on the globe from south to north that he held the record for coverage of territory at the time.
Highly recommended! -
What a book. It's kind of weighty, full of names, places, dates, etc., but I read it in just a few days. Could not put it down. Read it on the couch, in bed, on the deck in the windy sunshine. Lost track of some of the historical features but wow, what a book.
The story of Captain James Hook with emphasis on his last voyage. Sent by the Admiralty of England to find the Northwest Passage by going from the Pacific Northwest (North America) over and above Canada, through the Arctic Ocean, and then home to England. This was a reverse order voyage - those are my words - because at this time, and later, most voyagers searching for the passage went from east to west; Cook tried to go west from east.
Spoiler alert - he couldn't find one because it didn't exist.
But the story itself is so much bigger than all of that. In today's world - and thinking - the early European explorers didn't discover much of anything. Nope, not Australia or Tasmania, the islands of Polynesia, Hawai'i, none of it, nothing. But what many of them did do was explore, or make first contact with many, many cultures across these wide areas. This author, Mr. Sides, is very careful to acknowledge that how we viewed what these explorers of the 1600's - up and through the early 1900's - did was not 'find' or discover these cultures, these people, but simply made contact with them. Were the results often disastrous? Yes, and he documents episodes where the worst one can imagine did occur, however...
He also gives Cook a fair view as a man, a sailor, and leader of his time - and that Cook did try to limit the contact his officers and crew had with any new group, tribe or culture they encountered. Many of these contacts were peaceful - some were not. I find the author to be very balanced in how he treats the entire subject - which can currently be so controversial.
What I did find interesting were the reports of these cultures - the Tasmanians, for example -written by the naturalists, the doctor, and some of the 'ordinary' seamen aboard the two ships involved. They were fascinated! Often respectful. Learned the native languages and shared aspects of their own culture with these people. In one case Cook kept his men in the two boats of the expedition, refusing to let them 'consort' with the native women for fear of spreading disease to them. Unfortunately, that did not last long...
At the same time, Cook made the first good maps of many areas across the Pacific, and of the western coast of North America all the way up to and past Alaska. There's much to like about this book, as well as much to lament. I found it a richly fascinating read, eye-opening, and like I said, fair and balanced. Cook came to a sad end, for those who know, due to a series of weird misunderstandings. But I also found it remarkable that his name - and those of some of his officers - still exist on geographical features all over Alaska and into Canada. (I didn't know how many there were!)
Five stars -
One of the best books I've ever read! I was absolutely spellbound reading about Captain Cook and his final voyage. I'll admit I knew pretty much next to nothing about him but what a man he was. The author painstakingly did their research in putting this book together. Typically stories like these can be dry and difficult to get through unless you are really into the subject matter but not this one. You will find yourself making excuses to get back to reading it. I can't say enough about it but just read it! You will learn so much and be fascinated at the same time. Thank you to Netgalley, the author and publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion.
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This fascinating and engaging history of James Cook’s last voyage presents a complicated man. He had extraordinary skills and abilities that had brought great fame and success, and yet fatal errors in judgement toppled the great man to his death.
After two voyages into uncharted waters, surveying and mapping unknown lands and making first contact with human societies across the Pacific, Cook was preparing for a comfortable retirement. But his king had another task for him: a third voyage with the mission of seeking a Northwest Passage. First, he was to return a man to his native homeland in the South Seas. In England, Mai became a celebrity and a dandy, and Cook resettled him with his numerous gifts, including livestock and plants from the king who wanted to display British civilization and superiority.
The voyage was filled with challenges. The Resolution’s subpar repairs resulted in leaks. There was the vagaries of the sea and weather to contend with. They met unfamiliar human societies both friendly and hostile. Life was complicated by Cook’s sometimes aberrant behavior and bad judgement.
Making first contact with Hawaii altered Cook’s luck. He arrived as the islanders were celebrating the god Lono, perfectly timed to for Cook to be considered the return of the god, and he was worshipped as Lono. The Resolution required extensive repairs resulting in the men overstayed their welcome, draining the island paradise’s resources. Meantime, the islanders were mad for anything made of iron, resorting to stealing it in their greed.
Cook sailed further than any man before, rounding the coast of Alaska and crossing the Arctic Circle. But he encountered ice instead of a northern shortcut and quickly turned back before the ships became encased in the ice. He returned to Hawaii for repairs and provisioning, but became embroiled in the conflict that ended his life. This visit, the islanders discovered that Cook was no god.
The book presents Cook, the good and the bad, and his legacy, the good and the bad. Cook had a scientific attitude, observing and recording the cultures and people he encountered without judgement. He was careful to protect the islanders from sexual disease, but he also left a ship load of rats behind. Cook’s emphasis on fresh foods resulted in no losses of crew to scurvy, while he was more diligent and brutal in his punishments. His discoveries of new lands gave his country impetitus for colonization to claim the natural resources, while missionaries arrived to enforce Christian beliefs and morality.
It was so interesting to learn about the many cultures Cook encountered, from New Zealand to the Inuit of Alaska.
Thanks to the publisher for a free book. -
Thanks to Doubleday for the gifted copy. All opinions below are my own.
This is not my first book on James Cook, however, I think it is my first one since pulling back the veil of colonization has become the norm. I feel like this was a more fair assessment of the impact of the explorer age on the world. I told us how Cook was mostly an exception to the rule with his Quaker sentiments.
He was known for being quite fair and had more of a fascination with the science and anthropology of interacting with new cultures. While there are many things around the world named for the English he personally used indigenous names trying to honor the autonomy of the peoples he encountered. He did not convert and did not engage with violence, with only one killing attributed to him in his whole life… And that was in the final minutes. He kept detailed records, so a lot of what we know came from him.
He had a bit of an understanding about disease and curiously found the cure for scurvy without really knowing it. And he was always trying to restrict his men who had venereal diseases from interacting with the natives, albeit not successfully. He had a mostly humble way with a human first approach… Until the very end when the Hawaiians mistook him for a god and things went awry…
This book has a little something for everyone: adventure and discovery, history, science, anthropology and of course violence.
Read this one if you liked The Wager. -
I had only ever heard good stories/history about Captain James Cook and honestly do not remember ever hearing about his third [and last] voyage or his death during that voyage so I was excited to read this.
Yeah.
Imagine learning that someone you admired did an about face and became someone that even his shipmates didn't recognize and then finding out they died [in a brutal and ugly way] because of said behavior; THAT is what happens with this book, and I was left just wondering if I should still admire all the good that Captain Cook did, or will I ever be disillusioned by what I just learned? The jury is still heavily out on that.
This telling, by the respected author and historian Hampton Sides, is nothing short of brilliant. I cannot even imagine all the time and research that went into an endeavor such as this. There was just so much detail and I learned SO MUCH about the sailing ships of that time and how they ran and what happened while they were on the voyage [there was never a case of scurvy on Captain Cook's ships, but who needs that when you have a plethora of venereal disease??] - I was completely enthralled for most of the book [something that blew me away was, that they left England on September 12, 1776 and only learned bits and pieces about the War for Independence whilst on their trip - crazy to think about] and some of what I learned reminded me of the movie "Master and Commander" in how they dealt with "bad people" on board and how they rationed food etc.
While I was saddened to read such an account of someone who I respected [along with a lot of other people], I find I am not particularly surprised. Given his age and frame of mind when he left, it is no wonder that he went a little off the rails. Makes one wonder, now with modern medicine, if something like Alzheimer's or a brain tumor was at work here as well [given just how dramatically different he was on this voyage from his previous ones]; of course, we will never know [especially because of how he was murdered - EEK!! That was a section that was particularly gruesome]; it is just more food for thought than anything else at this point.
If you love history, if you are a fan of Captain Cook, if you love anything to do with the sea and sailing and discover, this book is for you. It is just filled with so much that will amaze you and also fill you with both anger and deep sadness, it would be a shame to skip it. It is one of the best reads for me so far this year!!
Thank you to NetGalley, Hampton Sides, and Doubleday Books for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review. -
This is an excellent, readable recounting of Captain Cook's fatal final voyage. Begun in 1776, at the beginning of the war to free the American colonies from British hegemony, the voyage was an English attempt to discover a Northwest Passage, connecting the Atlantic and Pacific, from the Pacific side. Cook's Resolution, and a companion ship, sailed down the coast of Africa, around Cape of Good Hope and Australia, and up through the Pacific to Alaska and the Bering Straits. Along the way, Cook was charged with returning Mai, a personable Tahitian man who had been observed, coddled and feted in England as an exotic curiosity, to his homeland, along with a retinue of domestic animals intended to give Mai a good local start. Cook also stopped at a few islands on the way, and the accounts of the encounters between natives and the strange white visitors is interesting indeed. Cook also was the first European to document the existence of the Hawaiian Islands, an important discovery in the middle of the Pacific. It also proved to be his final resting place. Sides makes ample use of the journals of several individuals who recorded their experiences and impressions on the long voyage. Cook didn't find the passage he was looking for. But the story of his attempt, as told by Sides, is an interesting tale indeed.
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The subtitle of the book describes the contents. It is about the final voyage of James Cook covering both himself, the crews of the two ships and the indigenous people that they encountered on their voyage. The final voyage was a search for a passage in the north from the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic. Also, it was a voyage that did document some discoveries, but not to the level of his first two voyages. Cook also was much moodier on this voyage than the first two. Overall, a well written and researched book.
I received a free Kindle copy of this book courtesy of Net Galley and the publisher with the understanding that I would post a review on Net Galley, Goodreads, Amazon and my nonfiction book review blog. I also posted it to my Facebook page. -
Well-written and researched, detailed and fascinating. Hampton Sides has written a excellent and engaging history of the last voyage of Captain Cook. It reads like an adventure novel and was very hard to put down.
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Thank you to #DoubledayBooks and #NetGalley for the digital ARC of #TheWideWideSea. The opinions expressed here are entirely my own.
I've been a fan of Hampton Sides since I read "Hellhound on His Trail" several years ago. He writes compulsively-readable narrative non-fiction about historically important people and events.
The Wide, Wide Sea follows the final voyage of Captain James Cook in the 1770s. Considered the greatest explorer during the "age of exploration" and "first contact, Cook was known for his respectful treatment of indigenous people. For his 3rd voyage, he was tasked with finding the rumored Northwest Passage. But this expedition was plagued with problems from the beginning, turning this into Cook's final voyage. Cook is a complex character and today's views on imperialism and its impact on indigenous people make this a really interesting story.
Highly recommend. -
Thank you to NetGalley and Double Day Books for allowing me to preview Hampton Sides’s The Wide Wide Sea. I previously read Sides’s excellent book In the Kingdom of Ice, which I found to be an incredible adventure story. Not knowing much about arctic exploration, it was fascinating to learn about a world where certain regions were unknown and unexplored. The Wide Wide Sea follows a similar pattern in tracing the final journey of British explorer Captain Cook. I also did not know much about Cook, but having read David Grann’s The Wager recently as well, I was really interested in this period of naval exploration, especially as countries like Spain and England competed for the new land and sea routes. Sides opens the story discussing Cook and his legacy as an explorer (or negative discoverer) and how his views of indigenous groups were often more tolerant and inquisitive of other explorers of his time. I also appreciated Sides’s notes to begin about the changing views of Cook’s explorations and the idea of “discovery” and private property in many of the Polynesian lands that Cook explored. What was most important, though, was the nature of contact and how the limited narratives we have about sexual contact between the British and indigenous peoples they met. Sides indicates that our knowledge is primarily one-sided, but this was one of the more surprising elements of the book to learn how the men frequently spread disease through sexual contact, and how frequently Cook tried to stop this practice. Like In the Kingdom of Ice, Sides uses the journals and letters existing from the logs and diaries to give us insight into the different participants, and he does amazing work building relevant and engaging characters, as we learn about their motivations and thoughts about this journey. I also really appreciated that Sides brings in the indigenous beliefs and stories, especially when the men visit Hawaii, to learn more about the possible motivations for trade, contact, or even understanding how the indigenous people may have viewed Cook and his men.
One of the other fascinating parts of the book was the story of Mai or Omai, a young Polynesian man who was brought to England in the 1700s as almost a human pet. As horrible as that was, it was fascinating to learn about his experiences adapting to English culture, and how this cross-cultural experience affected him on his return to Polynesia/Ra’itea. I really enjoyed reading about his return to the islands and the challenges he had re-integrating into their society. Furthermore, his family was killed by people from Bora Bora, so much of his return was focused on revenge on the people who murdered his family and stole his land. It was really interesting, but also somewhat sad. It sounded like Cook really cared about Mai and that others also took more than a passing interest in him and his well being; yet, those who were educating him in England seemed to have different intentions. Nevertheless, Mai’s story plays an important part in the first 1/3-1/2 of the book. The other part of the book deals more with Cook’s arrival in Hawaii for the first time, travels to Alaska, attempts to
However, it was Sides’s ability to use the letters and journals of the participants to develop their characters and understand their motivations. In much the same way, Sides uses the logs and existing literature on the journey of Captain Cook’s travels to the Alaskan coast, attempts to navigate towards the arctic circle, and his return to Hawaii. I loved reading about these descriptions of the landscapes untouched by development and the traditions and beliefs of the indigenous people that Cook’s ships encountered. As Sides notes, Cook was not always tolerant and accepting of these other cultures, but more often than not, he was willing to learn more about them to understand their motivations, and most likely access their resources like water and timber for their ship. This was another thrilling adventure with some sad consequences. Nevertheless, it was interesting to learn about all of the areas that Cook explored that were previously unknown to European explorers. Highly recommended book. -
(Disclaimer: I received this book through a Goodreads Giveaway for the purpose of writing this review. No other compensation was offered or received.)
Captain James Cook of the British Royal Navy led three exploratory missions, the last of which launched in 1776 and returned in 1780. His primary mission was to explore the upper regions of the northeast Pacific and the edges of the North American continent in order to find the Northwest Passage from the theoretical western end. But along the way the ships encountered many things new to Europeans, including locating the Hawaiian islands. Where Captain Cook died.
This history book is a mostly chronological retelling of that voyage of exploration. It briefly recaps Captain Cook’s life up to that point, which had some remarkable achievements already. Including not losing his men to scurvy, an endemic problem of long sea voyages in this time period. There’s some background on the politics involved in planning the trip and its objectives, and mention of important crew members. For example, ship’s master William Bligh, who would go on to infamy as Captain Bligh of the Bounty.
Also on board was a Polynesian named Mai who’d been brought to England by a previous voyage, enjoyed a life of celebrity for a while, but needed to return home to free his homeland from invaders. By which he meant the Bora Borans. There’s as much about him in this book as the author could find. Mr. Sides is at pains to try to present the native peoples’ point of view whenever possible, but since most of the peoples Cook encountered had only oral traditions until quite a bit later, the source materials are scanty.
Of note is that Captain Cook had his own doubts about the effects his expedition had on the people they were “discovering.” Introducing the concept of firearms, disrupting the local economies, spreading venereal disease…not a good look, to be honest. But even he could not have dreamed of the colonial era to come.
Still, the expedition did produce many impressive achievements, with advances in cartography making it possible to correctly understand more of the Pacific’s geography, and locating new places to land in the vast ocean.
The book also discusses the apparent breakdown of Cook’s personality, becoming more temperamental and tyrannical, harshly punishing his own men and committing atrocities in retaliation for natives walking off with Navy property. In the end, this is what got him killed. Due to one of his ships being damaged, he returned to Hawaii after the expedition already wore out their welcome there. One of their important smaller boats was stolen (presumably for its iron fittings) and Captain Cook decided to kidnap the king as hostage to get it back. The Hawaiians violently objected, as well they might, and Cook wound up dead.
The expedition still went on afterwards, but accomplished little more than verifying previous findings before losing the other captain, Captain Clerke, to tuberculosis; and then was the long trudge home. There’s a little discussion of what happened to some of the expedition members.
The book comes with illustration pages in color, endpaper maps, acknowledgements, footnotes, extensive bibliography, and index.
Captain Cook’s legacy is mixed; he was a great explorer, but made some blunders that foreshadowed the coming disaster of colonialism. Note that this is not a complete biography of James Cook, and the student of history may also want to get one of those to compare.
The tragic ending of Cook’s life makes this book a bit of a depressing read, but it’s well-researched and reasonably even-handed. It’s written for adults but bright high school students should be able to handle it. Recommended for nautical history fans, and those interested in the Age of Exploration. -
I want to thank NetGalley, the publisher (Doubleday), and author Hampton Sides for the opportunity to review an ARC of this new book. I attest this review is my own objective/unbiased work.
Hampton Sides is a very polished author, and I've read many of his books and had the pleasure of meeting the author several years ago at a conference where his book Ghost Soldiers had just been published. If you have not heard him in person he is an excellent and engaging speaker.
This new work looks at the final voyage of Captain James Cook--a voyage that lasted nearly five years although Cook did not live to see the end of the mission. In the late 1700s the British Admiralty directed Cook to go on an expedition to try to find what was believed to be the Northwest Passage, a waterway that it was hoped existed to make travel from Europe to Asia easier by sailing up and over the top of the world (what we know as the polar ice cap). There had been some other efforts to try and find the passage prior to Cook's journey, but none had been successful.
If your geography is decent imagine leaving London in one of two boats powered only by wind on the sails and proceeding out in to the Atlantic Ocean, down along the west coast of Africa, sailing around the Cape of Good Horn, moving eastward through the Indian Ocean and then turning northwest in to the Pacific, encountering many new islands yet known or discovered to man. And from there continuing north to the western Canadian/Alaska landscape, going up and around the entire state of Alaska in search of the Northwest Passage. All Cook and his men found after rounding the north part of Alaska was an ice field with no passage to the North Sea.
Sides takes the reader on the voyage using Cook's own journals and a variety of supporting sources that have survived. Some of course were lost to history. You feel like you are on these ships, and facing the many hardships and challenges the Captain and his crew faced centuries ago. The rough seas, the wide variety of weather/climate issues, encounters with many native tribes, and the search for fresh water and materials to keep the ships in repair.
Cook's final voyage increased knowledge of the seas, and founded many island groups (Society, Sandwich and Hawaiian) that before was unknown to European explorers. He is credited with many discoveries, and is a very interesting subject that many people probably know little to nothing about.
At the risk of providing spoilers, Cook had a final, fatal encounter with natives from the big island of Hawaii, who first mistook Cook for the reincarnation of one of their gods, but later turned on him and his men. It was a sad and violent ending to a life of just 50 years. Cook didn't know it but his voyages would change what we knew of the world.
The opening chapters take some time to get going, as there is a lot of detail about the pre-voyage plans and some political challenges. This is why I rated the book approximately 4.25 stars, rounded down to 4.0.
If you like reading about explores and sea voyages you will enjoy the Wide Wide Sea. If you have never read a book by Hampton Sides pick up this one or another, you won't be disappointed. -
Thank you to Netgalley for the pre-release copy
Hampton Sides is among my all-time favorite nonfiction authors. This book is a marvelous, thoroughly-researched tribute to Captain Cook and his final journey to locate the Northwest Passage, which ultimately ended fatally for the celebrated explorer.
Sides’ analysis of Cook’s life, persona, and achievements is fair and unbiased. He points out Cook’s accomplishments and stupendous talents for exploration and navigation. Cook circumnavigated the known world three times, braved perilous conditions, and initiated the first European contact with the Hawaiian people. By all accounts he was a fair and just leader, earning the love and loyalty of his men, many of whom would follow him on his final voyage. His natural curiosity and anthropological mindset set him apart from other explorers of his day who endeavored to spread “the light of Christianity” to native peoples. On the contrary, Cook’s method (at least until his final confrontation with the Hawaiians) was to observe without judgement the cultures and beliefs he encountered on his voyages. Notably, he refused to avenge the slaughter of some of his countrymen, even when urged to do so. Also notable were his numerous attempts to curb the spread of venereal disease among the islanders, often through severe floggings of his sailors.
Sides notes the shift in Cook’s personality – his growing brutality in doling out punishment, his increasingly fiery temper, even his perceived recklessness in greeting suspicious natives alone and unarmed. Was it chronic pain or illness that caused such a radical change in the usually mild-mannered captain? Surely a life of cramped quarters in harsh environments would have a marked impact. Whatever the cause, Cook’s lapse of judgement and proclivity to fury would doom him to a brutal fate.
One of my favorite aspects of the book was the story of Mai, the young Tahitian man who spent several years in England, serving as a kind of novel attraction for the leisurely rich. Though his story is bittersweet – Mai’s ultimate wish was to gain enough European weaponry to avenge the deaths of his family back on Tahiti – it serves as a fascinating clash of cultures, revealing the disruptive influence of luxurious commodities, vanity, and greed. Mai’s experiences caused him to become unmoored from his own people, who never fully accepted his new quasi-European identity.
Ultimately, much can be gained from the study of Cook’s final journey. I came away with a sense of how fascinating yet tenuous first encounters between cultures could be, how much people could simultaneously learn from and harm one another. Though Cook seemed to approach his explorations with an open, diplomatic mind, his fate shows how easy it was for miscommunication to erupt into anger, violence, and all-out slaughter. Perhaps because of this – despite his flaws – Cook should be remembered for his bravery, talents, and inquisitive spirit in the age of discovery. -
Sides narrates the history of the third and fatal voyage of James Cook-maritime captain and explorer extraordinaire. After his first two voyages across the ocean, Cook is given a secret task by King George III-find the Northwest Passage rumored to be past the Alaskan territories through the Arctic Ocean. He was famous and already 46, and a cushy life awaited him in a retirement post in Greenwich with his wife and children. But he would never shrink from a challenge and this would be the trip of a lifetime. He fortified his ship, the Resolution, that carried supplies, fresh water, an assortment of farm animals, and things to trade, but he was also carrying the Polynesian Mai back to his homeland after four years of living in England. We meet his crew among whom included Clerke, captain of the pilot ship Discovery, his trusted friend and co-captain, the famous Bligh of the Mutiny fame, and navigator George Vancouver who is remembered in the naming of the Canadian city and island. Cook's ships carried botanists, naturalists, astronomers and artists along with blacksmiths and carpenters- Cook himself was a skilled cartographer. The captain was also known as the consummate seaman who could keep his head in emergencies and guide his ship and crew out of certain danger, but on this voyage he began to exhibit almost violent behaviors that surprised those who were serving under him. As we sail with Cook and his crew, we revisit places that were known and explored, but they indeed sailed a wide wide sea and came across lands that no European had seen or even knew existed. The subtitle of the book, "Imperial Ambition, First Contact and the Fateful Final Voyage of Captain James Cook," foreshadows one of the last chapters. We learn of Cook's demise at the hands of Hawaiian warriors and of the circumstances that led up to it. All sides, opinions, historical documents, and native lore are presented to help make sense of the killing.
This book was enjoyable in so many ways. It was an exciting narration of an epic sea voyage with an amazing personality as its main character. In fact, Sides brought up the fact that many people thought that Captain James Cook was the inspiration for Captain James Kirk and the whole idea of the Federation. It was a book of science that explained concepts that we take for granted like the idea of latitude and Greenwich mean time. It was a wonderful travelogue of the places and peoples that they encountered. And it was an interesting meditation on the whole idea of history-who gets to write it and what is the truth? I followed the action on two maps as I read the book-one was a current map and the other a map from the 18th century. I recommend that you do the same. -
On July 12th, 1776, Captain James Cook, already lionized as the greatest explorer in British history, set off on his third voyage in his ship the HMS Resolution . Two-and-a-half years later, on a beach on the island of Hawaii, Cook was killed in a conflict with native Hawaiians. How did Cook, who was unique among captains for his respect for Indigenous peoples and cultures, come to that fatal moment?
Hampton Sides’ bravura account of Cook’s last journey both wrestles with Cook’s legacy and provides a thrilling narrative of the titanic efforts and continual danger that characterized exploration in the 1700s. Cook was renowned for his peerless seamanship, his humane leadership, and his dedication to science-–the famed naturalist Joseph Banks accompanied him on his first voyage, and Cook has been called one of the most important figures of the Age of Enlightenment. He was also deeply interested in the native people he encountered. In fact, his stated mission was to return a Tahitian man, Mai, who had become the toast of London, to his home islands. On previous expeditions, Cook mapped huge swaths of the Pacific, including the east coast of Australia, and initiated first European contact with numerous peoples. He treated his crew well, and endeavored to learn about the societies he encountered with curiosity and without judgment.
Yet something was different on this last voyage. Cook became mercurial, resorting to the lash to enforce discipline, and led his two vessels into danger time and again. Uncharacteristically, he ordered violent retaliation for perceived theft on the part of native peoples. This may have had something to do with his secret orders, which were to chart and claim lands before Britain’s imperial rivals could, and to discover the fabled Northwest Passage. Whatever Cook’s intentions, his scientific efforts were the sharp edge of the colonial sword, and the ultimate effects of first contact were catastrophic for Indigenous people around the world. The tensions between Cook’s overt and covert missions came to a head on the shores of Hawaii. His first landing there was harmonious, but when Cook returned after mapping the coast of the Pacific Northwest and Alaska, his exploitative treatment of the Hawaiians led to the fatal encounter. (GoodReads synopsis)
I will be adding Hampton Sides to the same rank of Erik Larson and David Grann. I am always interested in historical novels that are told like stories. “In the end, we are all stories,” according to the Doctor (Doctor Who). I fully believe that people forget so many things because they are not told, or because they do not read. In this case, there are many things that Captain James Cook did well. And yet on the other hand, there are many things that he did that were tragic. That can be said about a great many “heroes” from anyone’s standpoint.
The writing is compelling and interesting. It is completely obvious that Sides does not put in his own opinion, but instead bases the novel on the known facts. There are many instances were Sides states, “it is unknown, but it is implied”, or “rumored”, etc., indicating to the reader when there was not a definite answer.
Overall, I rate this novel 5 out of 5 stars. -
"The Wide Wide Sea" by Hampton Sides is an essential addition to the library of any maritime history enthusiast. Having previously delved into an account of Cook's voyage, I believed I had a comprehensive grasp of the subject. However, Sides' impeccably researched work surpassed all expectations, enriching the historical record of Cook's expedition tenfold. I was truly astonished by the depth of insight it offered, to the point that my reading pace deliberately slowed to ensure I absorbed every detail. A mere glance at the acknowledgments section underscores the immense effort invested by Sides in presenting this voyage to readers, reflecting his dedication and commitment.
In contrast to a prior reading experience that heavily emphasized the Earl of Sandwich and English politics, leading to some confusion when recalling various aspects of another famous Captain's history, that of Captain Kidd, I was relieved that Sides' book arrived when it did. While the book briefly touches on Sandwich's role, it does not overshadow Cook's central narrative.
However, this is not to diminish the significance of the supporting cast in Sides' account. Notably, Sides grants considerable attention to figures like Mai, delving deeply into their characters and circumstances. The crew members, such as Anderson, Clerke, Bligh, and King, are also meticulously portrayed, going beyond the typical portrayal of a shadow crew serving a formidable captain that one often encounters in historical accounts. This added dimension enhances the authenticity of the narrative.
Remarkably, I had not fully appreciated the perilous situations faced by Anderson and Clerke in my previous readings about Cook. The emotional impact of Cook's tragic demise still resonates, even though it's well-known historical fact. Sides successfully conveys the poignancy of Cook's fate, making readers feel as though they, too, have lost a beloved captain. Additionally, Sides presents contrasting viewpoints regarding how the islanders initially perceived Cook and his crew, leaving readers to ponder whether Cook was regarded as the god Lano's return or as a mortal man celebrated for other reasons.
Throughout the book, Sides underscores the ongoing debates surrounding Cook and his voyage. He presents differing perspectives clearly and impartially, avoiding a presumption of a definitive verdict. As a result, the book expanded my understanding of Cook's final expedition significantly. Hampton Sides has undoubtedly established himself as an author to anticipate eagerly. I look forward to engaging in discussions about this book at my local library and sharing the wealth of knowledge it provides. -
Sides recounts Cook’s third global expedition that was inextricably bound up in colonialism. During Cook’s second expedition, a young Polynesian man named Mai had persuaded the captain of one of Cook’s ships to bring him to London. A few years later, George III commissioned Cook to return Mai to Polynesia on the way to searching for an Arctic passage to connect the Pacific and Atlantic oceans from the west. Along the way, Cook ‘discovered’ a number of islands—including the Hawaiian islands.
Cook’s influence on the groups of indigenous peoples he encountered was not universally positive. His sailors introduced sexually transmitted diseases to the populace. Plus, he introduced black rats that were disastrous for native animal species.
Cook “saw himself as an explorer-scientist,” who “tried to follow an ethic of impartial observation born of the Enlightenment and the Scientific Revolution” and whose “descriptions of Indigenous peoples were tolerant and often quite sympathetic “ by “the standards of his time.” But Cook’s actions on his final journey suggested that Cook was suffering some sort of mental challenge as his actions were startling at odds with his previous voyages. For instance, a theft of a single goat caused him to send his sailors on a multiday rampage to burn whole villages to force its return. He also became much more prone to using the disciplinary whip on his crew.
When James Cook first sailed into the volcanic bay on Hawaii’s big island in January 1779, he was beheld as a God. However, when he had to return later to repair a mast, he offended the people and he and his crew were attacked. Cook was murdered in dramatic fashion. A white obelisk was built to honor him on the island and, interestingly, it remains a U.K. possession to this day.
This is an excellently written account of Cook’s third voyage from renowned historian Sides. Fascinating! -
Well-written and -researched account of Captain James Cook's final voyage of discovery.
This look at Cook's third voyage serves as both history and a mini biography. The focus is on Cook's choices and behavior, onboard ship as well his explorations of uncharted territories and his interactions with the various peoples he meets along the way.
While the book doesn't really solve the mystery of what Cook was thinking the day he died at the hands of Hawaiians, it does show Cook as a complex man who generally respected local traditions and routinely encouraged friendly relationships with all the communities he encountered.
Cook's reputation as a man who usually did the right thing and who was loved by his crew was called into question during his final voyage. Throughout the journey, he could be uncharacteristically severe for relatively minor offenses one day and puzzlingly lenient to more serious crimes the next. He even made a couple of iffy navigational decisions. Why was Cook off his game? One theory says he was in a lot of physical pain from sciatica and that may have made him short tempered. In any case, we still don't know why Cook's personality changed and why he didn't try to save himself from being killed.
The book is full of fascinating descriptions of the places where Cook landed and of his and his crew's interactions with local peoples. Cook's men were often the first Europeans indigenous groups had ever seen. The vast range of Cook's third voyage is somewhat staggering: England to Cape Town, New Zealand, Tahiti, Hawaii, the west coast of American, Russia, Alaska and many places in between. From warm bright days on verdant islands to the misty stark cold of Arctic waters, Cook led his men through it all.
Peter Noble narrated the audiobook. His style was engaging and kept my attention throughout.
Thanks to the publishers for review copies in various formats. -
I'll start by letting Hampton Sides give his mission statement for his account of Captain James Cook's third and final voyage:
I've tried to present the captain, and the goals and assumptions behind his third voyage, in all their flawed complexity. I neither lionize, demonize, nor defend him. I've simply tried to describe what happened during his consequential, ambitious, and ultimately tragic final voyage.
The author has largely succeeded, with the caveat that the English perspective still dominates as they are the ones who wrote everything down. Nevertheless, there is an admirable striving to keep in mind how Cook and his crew must have been perceived by the native civilizations with which he made contact (it would be too simplistic but not entirely inaccurate to describe the natives as victims).
I was particularly struck by how Cook could seem enlightened (his respect for native rituals, disinterest in Christianizing the natives) at some moments, and exceptionally cruel at others both with the peoples he encountered and with his own crew. Most readers will emerge with respect for the daring and resourcefulness of the British expeditions, but with considerable regret for many of their consequences.
Of particular note is the story of Mai, a Tahitian native who was taken back to Britain on Cook's second voyage and returned on this voyage. The way in which he straddled both worlds is a fantastic story in itself (and was previously published as a short ebook).
If you didn't get enough of sea voyages after reading The Wager (didn't everybody read this?), I think you'll enjoy this. The Wide Wide Sea doesn't have quite the narrative drive of The Wager, but it probably will give you quite a bit more to think about. -
(Audiobook) (4.5 stars) Been a long time since I last read about James Cook (would have to go all the way back to a 3rd grade book report project). So, when I came across the book, there was a bit of nostalgia on this one. However, in reading it, it was clear that I hadn't even come close to learning or remembering much about this man. The book did highlight that Cook managed (mainly by accident) to find a way to counter scurvy by loading up his ships with fruits and vegetables. However, that and Cook's death were about all that I specifically remembered. His 3rd voyage was so much more. He sailed the Atlantic to get to the Pacific, and then not only sailed by Hawaii, Tahiti and the tropics, but his voyage took him to the Arctic and Alaska.
Sides' view of the man varied. This was not a heroic-type tale, but one that tried to call it straight. Good that Sides did include perspectives from the islanders that he came across, for better or worse. Is Cook worthy of being the villain of the modern tales of spurring colonialism and the subjugation of the natives? Maybe, not like others. He was an explorer, but on this voyage, his past trend of magnanimity was starting to fade. Did the fame and years catch up to Cook? Hard to say. Still, this was a fascinating tale about voyaging, international relations, shipboard life, and the price men would pay for sailing the oceans in the dangerous 18th century.
The rating would be the same regardless of format. Worth a read, especially if you enjoy tales of the sea and history.
