A treasure of a book.—David McCulloughThe harrowing story of a pathbreaking naval expedition that set out to map the entire Pacific Ocean; dwarfing Lewis and Clark with its discoveries.A New York Times Notable BookAmerica's first frontier was not the West; it was the sea; and no one writes more eloquently about that watery wilderness than Nathaniel Philbrick. In his bestselling In the Heart of the Sea Philbrick probed the nightmarish dangers of the vast Pacific. Now; in an epic sea adventure; he writes about one of the most ambitious voyages of discovery the Western world has ever seen—the U.S. Exploring Expedition of 1838–1842. On a scale that dwarfed the journey of Lewis and Clark; six magnificent sailing vessels and a crew of hundreds set out to map the entire Pacific Ocean and ended up naming the newly discovered continent of Antarctica; collecting what would become the basis of the Smithsonian Institution. Combining spellbinding human drama and meticulous research; Philbrick reconstructs the dark saga of the voyage to show why; instead of being celebrated and revered as that of Lewis and Clark; it has—until now—been relegated to a footnote in the national memory.Winner of the Theodore and Franklin D. Roosevelt Naval History Prize
#688955 in Books Hynes; Samuel 2003-02-04 2003-02-04Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 7.80 x .60 x 5.10l; .40 #File Name: 0142002909270 pages
Review
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. Lots of flight training; not much combatBy S. JensenWhile I have great respect for his service to our country; and he is a good writer; I have to say that I found the book rather dull. It's my own fault for not reading more of the posted reviews; but 3/4 of this book is about training to become a pilot. It's interesting for a while; but eventually gets repetitive. When he does finally head off to the war it's almost over; and most (but not all) of his missions are rather mundane. Not his fault; to be sure -- but it doesn't make for great reading. There are a few exciting and memorable passages; but much of the book is filled with exploits about drinking too much; singing bawdy songs; and (other) marines chasing women. It is a decent coming of age story; and his descriptions of his love of flying are memorable. But if you are hoping for some exciting combat stories; best to look elsewhere.2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. Another Florida connectionBy Horton DeakinsAs Mr. Gravely mentioned; I also noticed the DeLand connection. I wasn't necessarily looking for a book; rather I was searching the Web to see if I could find out more about the DeLand Naval Air Station where my father was stationed between 1943 and 1945; a CPO A.R.T. whose primary job was to install and repair radar equipment and antennas on Dauntless dive bombers (SBDs). When my search hit on Professor Hynes' book; I just had to buy it.I thought I would stop reading when I found the information I was looking for; but I found myself becoming engrossed in the story and had to finish it. I'm glad I did.I contacted Mr. Hynes on the hopes he had met my father (who passed away several years ago); since Dad had told me he rode in a number of the planes in order to get flight pay. Mr. Hynes was gracious enough to retrieve his flight log and look for my father's name; but it appears they did not cross paths. In his response; he alluded to his attitude at the time toward the enlisted men who kept the planes flying.I'll admit that my rating of this book might not have been as high had it not been for the personal connection; but it is what it is. I'll not repeat the details you can get from all the other reviews--they're pretty accurate; for the most part. But I will say that if we only record the actions of the best; the most efficienct; the most consciencious; and the bravest; then we haven't told the whole story.I think most of the men and women who served during that time were sick of everything to do with the war by the time it was over. On that note; I'll close with the last two lines of a poem my dad wrote back then: "And this is the sad story of a disgusted gob; I hope to hell I never get another antenna job."0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Enjoy it...not perfect but then neither are weBy James HallGreat writing; of course (see my review of "The Growing Seasons" by this author). Not quite as masterful a story; but I'm sure it reflects his life at the time. Maybe a bit light on substance but then Sam was in a kind of vacuum; as were many others on both sides. But; hey; I was in the air force too and I know that the peer-pressured goals were (are?) getting laid and getting drunk. I'll never get over being astonished that these young guys could go out and party and drink like fish until 2 or 3 AM and then get up before dawn and still and move those dangerous machines around with such alacrity. A mystery.
