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A review by sherlocktomes
The Wager by David Grann
adventurous
dark
informative
reflective
tense
medium-paced
5.0
David Grann back with another excellent blend of informative, entertaining and somewhat reflective writing.
Highly researched, approachable and balanced, this account details the birth and death of The Wager, a ship in 1700’s Britain tasked with colonising and plundering native and non native peoples to increase the British empires hold over the worlds land and resources.
Grann helps paint a vision of the sheer unrelenting and unpredictable nature of the sea, at times you wonder how much more these sailors can endure, and yet the story carries on.
As with KOTFM, I felt I would have liked more commitment from the author towards documenting the extent of the genocidal and colonial actions of so many western countries at this time, particularly their treatment of native peoples who, on the whole, were far more intelligent, resourceful and organised than the people who reduced them to a stereotype of “savages”. I do feel more of a background of the British empire as it stood at that time, and their use of the Navy to do so would have been beneficial for giving more context for the average reader.
Overall, a thorough and very enjoyable read (albeit grim and miserable). 5/5
Highly researched, approachable and balanced, this account details the birth and death of The Wager, a ship in 1700’s Britain tasked with colonising and plundering native and non native peoples to increase the British empires hold over the worlds land and resources.
Grann helps paint a vision of the sheer unrelenting and unpredictable nature of the sea, at times you wonder how much more these sailors can endure, and yet the story carries on.
As with KOTFM, I felt I would have liked more commitment from the author towards documenting the extent of the genocidal and colonial actions of so many western countries at this time, particularly their treatment of native peoples who, on the whole, were far more intelligent, resourceful and organised than the people who reduced them to a stereotype of “savages”. I do feel more of a background of the British empire as it stood at that time, and their use of the Navy to do so would have been beneficial for giving more context for the average reader.
Overall, a thorough and very enjoyable read (albeit grim and miserable). 5/5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Colonisation, Murder, Child death, Death, Confinement, and Suicide
Moderate: War, Racism, and Slavery