Over the Edge of the World: Magellan's Terrifying Circumnavigation of the Globe

By Laurence Bergreen

Book Overview

"A first-rate historical page turner." --New York Times Book ReviewThe acclaimed and bestselling account of Ferdinand Magellan's historic 60,000-mile ocean voyage.Ferdinand Magellan's daring... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 006093638X
• ISBN13: 9780060936389
• Release Date: November 2004
• Publisher: William Morrow & Company
• Length: 512 Pages
• Weight: 0.96 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.3" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

Excellent.

Extensively researched, comprehensive bibliography, including a chapter by chapter of sources and methods. Frequently the author steps aside from describing an event, and provides a cultural, geographical, or political foundation that provides a more complete understanding of the circumstances or thinking that puts the event more soundly in the context of the times. Highly recommend.

Worth Buying

Great book, makes you feel like your there.

True to life sea adventure

Historical achievement is, of course, about people. So no matter when it occurs, achievement is driven by technology, greed, politics, ambition, mistakes, courage, religion, culture, sexuality, and even diet. Good History is as much as about explaining the context of achievement, as it is about detailing facts. This is good History -- and it's a great read.For most of us, the facts about Magellan have been boiled down to Spanish galleons, funny helmets, and the first circumnavigation of the globe. Bergreen recovers the context to tell a story of a religious man, driven by vision, ambition, and personal slight. Along the way he explains the strategic urgency of Magellan's quest and details the logistics of undertaking the voyage. He helps us understand why cloves, cinnamon, and nutmeg were matters of national security to sixteenth century Europeans. Bergreen leaves us with no doubt that Magellan was courageous. His Magellan is not evil, though the evils of the Age of Exploration are already evident in him and his men. As in other tellings, Magellan's death on the beach at Cebu is an obvious metaphor for the collision of East and West, but Bergreen leaves it to others to belabor the notion. He's much more interested in describing the local politics that set the scene for the tragedy. With such rich detail and engaging writing, the story of Magellan comes to life as a vivid adventure and an enlightening history.

great account of one of the legendary journeys

Laurence Bergreen provides a deep look at Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan's sixteenth century quest that led to the first known navigation of the world. This journey is a pivotal point in how Europeans viewed the world as people realized that not only will one not fall off the globe, but that Europe is not the epicenter of the orb. Mr. Bergreen followed the ill-fated journey through what is now the Straits of Magellan at the tip of South America and uses satellite images to further enhance the trek. Of interest to historical buffs is the daily journal that encompasses known research from around the globe. This includes sailor Albo's log and the comments of scholar sailor Pigafetta. The author debunks several modern day myths such as Magellan's mission was not go around the world, but to find a water route to the Spice Islands; and that the voyage was not glorious but brutal and filled with tragedy and misfortunes including the Captain having died in the Philippines. Magellan never made it. The trek took three years with only one ship with eighteen survivors making it back to Spain.This is a great account of one of the legendary journeys of history. Supplemented by maps, inserts, and first hand accounts, readers join on the harrowing trek that proved once and for all that the world is round. No one will feel over the edge with this great look at the "Terrifying Circumnavigation of the Globe" by Magellan and his crew.Harriet Klausner