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Reviews
The Loss of the Ship Essex, Sunk by a Whale: First-Person Accounts by Thomas Nickerson, Owen Chase
firerosearien's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cannibalism
msand3's review against another edition
3.0
After seeing the movie In the Heart of the Sea, I was curious to read these first-hand accounts of the Essex disaster and was lucky enough to win this book (as well as Nathaniel Philbrick's book) in a contest from Penguin. The two primary versions of events--from Chase and Nickerson--were fairly accurately portrayed in the film, although much of the backstory and personal conflicts appear exaggerations or entirely fictional. (I haven't read Philbrick's book yet, so I'm not sure if he sheds more light on these issues that are not dealt with in these primary documents). Nickerson's version gives us many more details about the events leading up to the wreck, but doesn't add too much to Chase's account of the two months drifting at sea, besides letting us know exactly how the three sailors left on the island were rescued, which Chase didn't detail. A third brief account provides even more information on these men. It was interesting to note that Nickerson never admitted to cannibalism, despite Chase's narrative already making that point clear, which was such a dramatic revelation in the film. If anything, this book has whet my appetite (perhaps not the best expression to use in this context?) for Philbrick's book, which appears to be full of well-researched details beyond these documents.
athst's review against another edition
3.0
This book makes for a nice supplement for Philbrick’s “In the Heart of the Sea” if you are especially interested. It’s nice to read about the story of the Essex disaster from two of the survivors in their own voices, but I’d say that “In the Heart of the Sea” tells the story best, and should be sufficient for most.
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