Blue Latitudes
Boldly Going Where Captain Cook Has Gone Before
Picador · Print & ebook · August 1, 2003
In an exhilarating tale of historic adventure, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Confederates in the Attic retraces the voyages of Captain James Cook, the Yorkshire farm boy who drew the map of the modern world Captain James Cook's three epic journeys in the 18th century were the last great voyages of discovery.
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- Who it’s for
- A travel-historical voyage with a breezy, informed pace and plenty of story.
- Genres
- Adventurers & Explorers, Exploration & Discovery, Aviation & Nautical Lives
- Published
- Picador, August 1, 2003
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Matched by what the books are about, then ordered by what their readers also loved.
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Confederates in the AtticTony Horwitz50% match
The BountyCaroline Alexander, Nicholas Boulton57% match
John Paul JonesEvan Thomas52% matchShares Aviation & Nautical Lives
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For younger readers: Stowaway, Shackleton's Journey 10th Anniversary Edition, Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World
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In an exhilarating tale of historic adventure, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Confederates in the Attic retraces the voyages of Captain James Cook, the Yorkshire farm boy who drew the map of the modern world Captain James Cook's three epic journeys in the 18th century were the last great voyages of discovery. His ships sailed 150,000 miles, from the Artic to the Antarctic, from Tasmania to Oregon, from Easter Island to Siberia.
Continue reading
When Cook set off for the Pacific in 1768, a third of the globe remained blank. By the time he died in Hawaii in 1779, the map of the world was substantially complete. Tony Horwitz vividly recounts Cook's voyages and the exotic scenes the captain encountered: tropical orgies, taboo rituals, cannibal feasts, human sacrifice. He also relives Cook's adventures by following in the captain's wake to places such as Tahiti, Savage Island, and the Great Barrier Reef to discover Cook's embattled legacy in the present day. Signing on as a working crewman aboard a replica of Cook's vessel, Horwitz experiences the thrill and terror of sailing a tall ship. He also explores Cook the man: an impoverished farmboy who broke through the barriers of his class and time to become the greatest navigator in British history. By turns harrowing and hilarious, insightful and entertaining, BLUE LATITUDES brings to life a man whose voyages helped create the 'global village' we know today.
Voyage Notes
A travel-historical voyage with a breezy, informed pace and plenty of story.
Come here for
- travel writing with a historian’s tilt
- adventure, history, and local color
Expect
- category-spanning digressions
- steady, readable momentum
Where it sits
| Adventurers & Explorers | 65% |
|---|---|
| Exploration & Discovery | 48% |
| Aviation & Nautical Lives | 42% |
Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.
Publisher categories
- Adventurers & Explorers
- Aviation & Nautical Lives
- Exploration & Discovery
- Authors
- Tony Horwitz
- Publisher
- Picador
- Published
- August 1, 2003
- Format
- Print & ebook
- Reading lane
- Adventurers & Explorers