Atlantic: Great Sea Battles, Heroic Discoveries, Titanic Storms,and a Vast Ocean of a Million Storie
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- Started reading:
- 16th January 2012
- Finished reading:
- 3rd February 2012
Review
Rating: Unrated
In Simon Winchester’s latest book he takes on quite a challenge. How to you tell the story of something vast and multifaceted as the Atlantic Ocean? It is a testimony to Winchester’s skill as a writer that he develops a novel approach and executes it for a very readable and engaging book, Atlantic.
Winchester first choose to view the ocean as a living thing, not too unusual as mariners regularly take this view. But then Winchester hits on the brilliant idea to frame the Atlantic ocean in the seven ages of man. These ages were described in a monologue by William Shakespeare’s character, Jacques, in As You Like It.
These ages are:
Infancy – first stirrings of human development on its shores
Childhood – crossings and full fledge explorations
Lover – the ocean beauty in art and literature
Soldier – centuries as a stage for warfare
Justice – basis of trade and international law
Old Age – crossings are routine and resources no longer inexhaustible
Mental dementia and death – climate change and humanity’s change
In each of these stages Winchester mixes the broad perspective with anecdotal stories to enliven the story and provide the reader with interesting facts.
In summary, Simon Winchester has succeeded in taking on the story of the Atlantic.