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Though literature, films, and folklore have romanticized pirates as gallant seaman who hunted for treasure in exotic locales, David Cordingly, a former curator at the National Maritime Museum in England, reveals the facts behind the legends of such outlaws as Captain Kidd, Blackbeard, and Calico Jack. Even stories about buried treasure are fictitious, he says, yet still the myth remains. Though pirate captains were often sadistic villains and crews endured barbarous tortures, were constantly threatened with the possibility of death by hanging, drowning in a storm, or surviving a shipwreck on a hostile coast, pirates are still idealized. Cordingly examines why the myth of the romance of piratehood endures and why so few lived out their days in luxury on the riches they had plundered.
Book Description
"This is the most authoritative and highly literate account of these pernicious people that I have ever read." -- Patrick O'Brian
Pirates are so much a part of legend that it is easy to forget they actually existed. UNDER THE BLACK FLAG tells their story in a rollicking account of the golden age of piracy that is packed with history, anecdote, and above all adventure. Here are the true stories of such bloodthirsty legends as Blackbeard and Captain Kidd, Anne Bonny, and the fearsome Mary Read. And here are rousing descriptions of what ships pirates sailed, what punishments they exacted, what they really wore, and how they flourished--or perished. From the smoky havoc of shipboard battle to the loneliness of a fugitive's life at sea, this spellbinding narrative vividly brings the brutal world of pirates to life.
Customer Reviews:
Data overload.......2007-09-18
Pirates! Everyone loves pirates, or the romanticizing image of them presented in fiction and films. Cordingly sets out to separate the facts from fiction in this book about the reality of pirates. He starts strong talking about fictional works from Dafoe, Stevenson, and Barrie then hashes on some film versions. The beginning of "Under a Black Flag" is promising but thereafter, it really begins to fall apart.
What's great about this book is, for a casual beginner student of pirate history, there's a mountain of facts and data regarding a great variety of pirates, not just the top names. Keep in mind that's just what it is, straight facts based on his research, a bit like high school history textbooks - this happened on this date, this happened here,... Etc. It gets pretty dry but there's a lot of info. Cordingly covers everything from ships, weaponry, women, trials, punishments, assaults, and areas of the map that was infested with piracy. However, the undoing of this book is that there is SO MUCH data and unfortunately a complete absence of organization of that data. There's no real cataloging or separation of topics whether it be event, people, location, or time based. Cordingly jumps back and forth through the piracy age that you really have no idea of which sea rovers were alive when or if they overlapped other well known buccaneers/privateers without creating your own timeline.
Like many other books covering this topic, you'd think Cordingly would have given the likes of Blackbeard, Kidd, Calico Jack, Henry Avery, Drake, and Morgan their own chapters in which the relevant facts are presented. He does so with a few of the above mentioned but he doesn't give the entire history of those ones within that chapter. Instead, it's spread out almost haphazardly and the author ends up continuously repeating himself. There also could have been a division of locales covering the Carribean, African coast/Indian Ocean, and China Sea piracy.
It's a real shame because based on the information factor, this book would get 5 stars, but the repetitiveness, choppy sentences, and lack of organization hamper the book so much it drops it down to only 2 stars. I still recommend the book, but be prepared to take notes and make your own timeline as you are going through it. The Appendixes are good, the locale maps are splendid, seafaring terminology helps out, but where are the pictures of the great variety of pirate flags at? So much potential but organization is the downfall of this otherwise high information text.
I want to be a pirate..........2007-07-06
..noo, I am just "Kidding". I must agree with the opinion that book is a bit "dry". However it covers probably all "big" pirate/privateer names and related stories of plundering, chasing, battles and punishments. So this work is like a small compendium of the piracy, great starter for further learning; well written and read with pleasure and interest. Inquisitive reader may go from here into more narrative and colorful books devoted to specific chosen characters like Kidd, Dumpiere, Blackbeard, Drake etc.
"Under the Black Flag" will definitely intensify your zest for extra "sailing" across plethora of other publishings.
Readable But Dry and Disorganized.......2007-06-21
I had hoped to find an interesting and thorough book on the history of piracy that is accessible to a layperson with limited knowledge of nautical history, but that doesn't simply repeat inaccurate cliches and stereotypes. I somehow doubt that this one would have even caught my attention had it not been so heavily promoted at various bookstores to cash in on the third "Pirates of the Caribbean" movie. I'm disappointed that a book about such a lively subject is so surprisingly lifeless. Cordingly essentially presents a bunch of facts (names, dates, places and figures) without providing much detail or historical context. I realize that much information about pirates is sketchy at best, but simply providing me with the names of a pirate captain and his ship and the dates and places on which island an incident occurred does not make for interesting reading. Cordingly also seems to wander from subject to subject and often repeats himself. This makes me wonder if this book was actually a collection of essays or articles about piracy compiled into one volume. His main points seem to be that pirates are glamorized in fiction but in reality were cruel, sociopathic former Navy or merchant sailors who organized themselves into a democratic society. I appreciate his research and the points that he does make, but overall I found this to be a slow read and not terribly informative or entertaining.
They Plundered The Seas, Now They Plunder The Page.......2007-06-15
David Cordingly has compiled a wonderful stash of pirate fact and fiction with "Under The Black Flag: The Romance and the Reality of Life Among the Pirates." He covers the day-to-day comings and goings of pirates and those who loved and hated them. He fleshes out a number of the most famous pirates such as Henry Morgan, William Kidd, Bartholomew (Black Bart) Roberts and Edward (Blackbeard) Teach, giving some of them there own chapters. Specific campaigns created to wipe pirates from the seas are also given excellently documented attention. Cordingly also gives an editorial on the potential reasoning behind mankind's fascination with such vile and cruel men (and women) who called themselves "pyrate."
Cordingly backs up all of his findings with an extensive bibliography, five appendices, notes, and a very helpful glossary of sea terms. His writing style, while full of wonderful information and historical facts, never grows boring or drawn out. In fact, you could argue that "Under the Black Flag" reads a lot like a fictional novel. It's both educational and fun.
Fans of pirate history or those with just a passing fancy for the swashbuckler will want to read this book. I also recommend "The Pirate Hunter" by Richard Zacks. It covers with great detail the life and politically tainted execution of William Kidd. It's all delivered with a writing style that is easy to digest but still full of information.
From ship to shore, "Under the Black Flag" is worth a read.
The Best Book on Pirates.......2007-05-29
This is a really great book and one of my all-time favorites--unless you're looking for artwork. If it's illustrations you want, try Pirates: Predators of the Sea. If you read this and love it and want another great read, try If a Pirate I Must Be by Richard Saunders. It's terrific, though also no illustrations.
Book Description
Grim Awakening
Shockwaves of atomic destruction turned 22nd-century America into a hellzone, but in the ruins the human spirit remains unconquerable. Daily survival depends on raw courage and a deadly aim, and with his warrior band Ryan Cawdor roams the forbidding new frontier known as Deathlands, determined to unlock its secrets. . .
Relentless Grip
Emerging from a gateway in the midwest, Ryan senses trouble within the well-fortified ville of a local baron, whose understanding of pre-Dark medicine may be their one chance to save a wounded Jak. But while his whitecoats can make the drugs that heal, the baron knows the real power and money is in the hardcore Deathlands jolt. And where drugs and riches go, death shadows every step, no matter which side of a firefight you stand on. . .
In the Deathlands, tomorrow is never just another day.
Customer Reviews:
Mediocre, at best.......2005-11-12
This probably would have been a better Deathlands back in the day.
But now, with better writers penning this series, the bar has been raised a bit. And could do with more!
I just wished that either Victor Milan or Nick Polatta would take over this series, altogether. Even this Alan Philipson, fellow. Any of these writers can - and do! - a much better job than this guy, or Andy Boot, the worst of the lot by far!
The muties here were terrible. Man, ya gotta have cool ass muties!
The overall story is typical.
This one didn't reap the full harvest.......2005-03-12
In this latest edition of Deathlands, Edo Van Belkom returns for his 2nd foray into the series.
In short, it was a little better than his first try, Skydark Spawn, but Edo needs to ante up and step up to the proverbial plate - big time!
Though not as lame as Andy Boot's tales, Black Harvest actually had some good ideas, along with a well overdone formula storyline, that was at least readable enough to finish.
Essentially, this is a standard fare Deathlands of old, though a very slight trend upwards from Boot's last one, but not as good as the last issue, SHAKING EARTH.
The good points to this latest DL? They are few, unfortunately.
1: Jak gets wounded, and gets hooked on a strong drug.
2: Doc falls in love.
3: Characters are not too bastardsized.
4: The black market of DL drugs, (which hasn't ever been done to this level), made for a decent background story here.
The bad points? Wow, where to start.
1: Lame as hell muties. Edo, you really need to brush up on what constitutes a mutie here! A group of people with simple sores doth not make a mutie. Good God in heaven, that was it!?
Weak man, just bloody weak. You mean to tell me that in this day and age of so many talented writers, that this one couldn't simply come up with a colorful new mutie? Hell, even using a tried and true one that Laurence James created would've been better than this lame excuse of one!
That, in itself, could have made this story a bit better. But alas, it wasn't to be...
2: No colorful post-holocaust scene setting and/or weather patterns here?! Why has this been seemingly utterly forgotten by the new writers? Nick Polatta did a good job of at least utilizing this back in BLOODFIRE. And it set a solid good old standard much needed here.
Where's the freezing cold or the nuke-blasted heat? Or ever-changing weird weather patterns to set an interesting stage? Not once did Edo write in whether this mid-west area was either. It was simply there. DING, DING! Wake up writers! Laurence James was awesome at scene setting in this DL world. Lordy, I miss that guy. He could paint you a bleak as hell picture, actually taking the reader right there. And also paint a beautiful picture when the group ran across them.
3: Way too many 'easy ways out' here. From firefights to reloading ammo, there were way too many timing problems here that were easily taken care of. One is more than enough in any given story. But here there were too many permeating this single story.
C'mon, GE! Grow a set, and let these writers - or someone! - get somewhat back to some tried and true formulas that worked in the past, which made this series great and quite unique.
And that's letting some of the older characters to either die and/or move on. Gain some new blood, for crying out loud! Laurence kept it fresh for a while doing that.
And also gain some new weaponry! Why must they keep the same old crap? What, for continuity sake? Oh, please!! That has already gone out the window.
I truly hope that in the near future, these group of writers, (namely I'm talking to Andy Boot and Edo here!), seriously consider the bold new avenue that Mr. Alan Philipson has tried taking this series. With both SHADOW WORLD and BREAKTHROUGH, he has taken the DL to some new heights. I love this kinda new breath of fresh air adventure writing.
C'mon, don't be such fools. Take more risks. Take us readers to new heights in action/adventure reading by utilizing everything that Jack Adrian and Laurence James started, and at times, only touched upon!
Such as time trawling or chron jumping. Why not build a kick-ass story on those cool ideas? That's almost totally unused new and dark territory writers! Take it and run with it.
In short, Black Harvest is nothing really new. If you like a quick and breezy action/adventure read, I suppose it is passable. But some of the action was laughable. But it is Ok.
At least I didn't throw it in the trash or send it back to GE, like I've done in the past starting with SALVATION ROAD.
In all truth, it is really a rad-blasted shame that these two writers are taking this great series that started this sci-fi/fantasy type phenomenal universe - and are trying to turn it completely to weak, utter trash.
C'mon, you guys! You writers are geting paid here. And we hard-liners are slamming you two. Step it up a few notches, will you? I know you can...if you just try a tad bit harder.
Average customer rating:
- A poetic journey with Alice Walker
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Once (Harvest Book ; Hb 337)
Alice Walker
Manufacturer: Harvest Books
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Revolutionary Petunias
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ASIN: 0156687453 |
Book Description
This first volume of poetry established Walker as a poet of unusual sensitivity and power. All of the poems in this collection were written either in East Africa, where Walker spent the summer of 1965, or during her senior year at Sarah Lawrence College. “Brief slashing poems-young and in the sun” (Muriel Rukeyser).
Customer Reviews:
A poetic journey with Alice Walker.......2003-06-03
The back cover of "Once" notes that this was Alice Walker's first volume of poetry; the text has a copyright date of 1968. This volume contains poems about the Civil Rights movement in the United States, love, despair, and other topics. Particularly interesting is a sequence of poems describing Africa as seen through the eyes of an African-American.
Walker's poems are written in a clear, smooth, often striking language. Some standout pieces are as follows. "African Images": a sequence of 45 haiku-like stanzas. "Karamojans": an ironic and tragic portrait of the "proud people" of the title. The title poem: illuminates the ugliness of American racism and the beauty of those who stand against it. "Compulsory Chapel": shows a welcome touch of dry humor. "Mornings / of an impossible love": a sequence of prose poems. "Johann": a striking, visually evocative poem that explores the possibility of interracial love.
I have great admiration for Walker's skill as a novelist and essayist. "Once" shows her to also be a poet of sensitivity and grace.
Book Description
Lincoln Agrippa Daily, known on the 1920s Marseilles waterfront as “Banjo,” prowls the rough waterfront bistros with his drifter friends, drinking, looking for women, playing music, fighting, loving, and talking - about their homes in Africa, the West Indies, or the american South and about being black.
Customer Reviews:
tranquility.......2005-09-02
I named this tranquility because I ordered "Banjo" by McKay I got it in a few days and it was in perfect condition. Therefore I didnt have to worry a second thankyou peppiep@centurytel.net
Book Description
The unabridged version of a haunting story of a man in prison. His wife, brother, and mistress recognize him and call him by his name, Anatol Ludwig Stiller. But he rejects them, repeatedly insisting that he’s not Stiller. Could he possibly be right-or is he deliberately trying to shake off his old identity and assume a new one? Translated by Michael Bullock. A Helen and Kurt Wolff Book
Book Description
Thomas Mann's bold and disturbing novella, written in 1952, is the feminine counterpart of his masterpiece Death in Venice. Written from the point of view of a woman in what we might now call mid-life crisis, The Black Swan evinces Mann's mastery of psychological analysis and his compelling interest in the intersection of the physical and the spiritual in human behavior. It is startlingly relevant to current discussions of the politics of the body, male inscriptions of the feminine, and discourse about and of women. The new introduction places this dramatic novella in the context of contemporary feminist and literary concerns, bringing it to the attention of a new generation of readers.
Customer Reviews:
Search for Love.......2004-03-07
It is Mann's final novella. It is a twist on the matter of deceitfulness. The greatest deceit is self-deceit. The story was inspired by an anecdote given to Mann by his wife Katia according to the forward by Carlos Baker.
The setting of the story is the 1920's. Rosalie is a widow and a Rhinelander. Her daughter Anna, nearly age 30, is her dearest companion. Her son Eduard, considerably younger than Anna, wants his mother to hire Ken Keaton, a young American, as his English teacher. His mother accedes to his wish. Rosalie is vivacious in Mr. Keaton's presence. She is beginning to lose her heart to him. Rosalie possesses self-knowledge, she is ashamed. Rosalie comes to rejoice in her torment. Her son and daughter see the situation and her son says to her he has learned a sufficient amount of English and the services of Mr. Keaton are no longer required.
During the social season Ken Keaton is seen in other people's houses. Rosalie confesses to Anna that she loves Ken Keaton. Anna points out he has little to inspire such passion and suffering. She characterizes her mother's enchantment as absurd. Rosalie is led to use restraint so that under no circumstances would young Eduard feel compelled to defend her honor.
She misreads her own physiological state. She has come to believe that her love has wrought a change in her middle-aged condition. Her death is swift. During the last hospitalization she remembers the black swan.
The formality of the language employed is notable. The descriptions of Rosalie's malady may be held to be excessively clinical.
Another Beautifully Done Mann Masterpiece & Accessible TOO!.......2002-12-05
Perhap's the Master's shortest and most unusual novella, here we see yet another side to this early 20th Century Genius. A study of a middle aged woman slightly deluded about her aging charms with a daughter who seems to sympathize, but really knows better. As usual, some great descriptions of nature, medieval castles, and philosophical discussions between the two. Mann's seeming obsession with the hidden decay of the body, and perhaps German culture and society, are crystal clear. The writing, even in English, is among his most mesmorizing. Really is there any doubt he is the GREATEST 20th Century Writer?!
A work of amazing insight and observation.......2002-08-19
Is this one of Mann's best novels? No, it is not. But it is worth reading anyway. Thomas Mann is best known for novels that delve into an almost omphaloskeptic contemplation of Life, Humanity, Evil and Sin painted on the backdrop of the glorious lost Europe of the Nineteenth Century. As charming as Europe is today, what we see is a faint ghost of a graceful time that tried to hold all things, including class structure of society, under a crystal dome. Of course, this failed, and bloodily so, as is the case throughout history. But Mann tried to capture this sense of youth and grace lost in his novels from Buddenbrooks to The Magic Mountain.
In "The Black Swan" Mann uses a woman "of a certain age" as the symbol of lost youth and innocence. The main character struggles with menopause, the hormonal betrayal of women, and she reacts to the physical changes by falling in love with a younger man. This is a well-observed sketch of denial. With astounding insight, Mann has his character finally delude herself into believing she is pregnant--but the bloating is but the symptom of an inner decay. She is dying of ovarian cancer.
The perceptiveness of Mann about women, who suffer a loss of womanhood and fertility as a result of menopause is astounding. The worth of women to young men is for their beauty and fertility. What does a woman who cannot bear a family and who is aging and becoming ugly have to offer a youth? But this is not the only meaning in "The Black Swan." No, it is again a metaphor for the grace, innocence and beauty of old Europe. In the years following both World Wars, the once-graceful continent undergoes a sort of menopause after the violence of the changes brought by the vicious conflict. Europe is older, uglier and sadly, not much wiser.
Is there a doctor in the house?.......2001-09-17
Although Thomas Mann is probably best known for writing about the conflict between the artist and the non-artist and death versus life in all of us, he is also fascinated by the concept of diesease and the way it treats the human psyche. When, at the end of this (very short) novel, the doctor cuts the protagonist open and sees she is dying of cancer, the "tea leaves" he looks at frightenly trace her roller coaster emotional life for the past six months. HOWEVER, the doctor also has some theories, about menopause, estrogen and cancer, which--largely because of the addition of two Latin words, I was UNABLE TO FOLLOW. In short, I only understand PART of the end of this book! At the end of his life, Mann has defeated me in both English and German.
Not Mann's best but still excellent.......2000-08-04
The storyline of The Black Swan is simple: the widow Frau Rosalie von Tummler does not take well to menopause, seeing it as the loss of her womanhood. She hires a young American to tutor her son in English, falls in love (or at least lust) with the tutor, ...
The root of the story, however, is conflict with nature - Rosalie is enlivened with a love of nature, a nature that betrays her in her daughter with a club foot, in menopause, in uterine cancer ...
An excellent study of a subject that was somewhat taboo when this book was initially published.
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A Plentiful Harvest: Creating Balance and Harmony Through the Seven Living Virtues
Terrie Williams
Manufacturer: Grand Central Publishing
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The Personal Touch: What You Really Need to Succeed in Today's Fast Paced Business World
ASIN: 0446691208 |
Book Description
Simple Abundance meets One Day My Soul Just Opened Up in Terrie Williams' inspirational guide for African American women seeking more from their lives. If Iyanla Vanzant is the high priestess of inner healing, then Terrie Williams is the goddess who brings comfort to busy women everywhere. Written by a woman who understands what it means to have a hectic schedule, Terrie Williams, a high-powered public relations executive who owns her own firm, has found an empowering life philosophy in one of black culture's enduring spiritual rituals: Kwanzaa. In A PLENTIFUL HARVEST, Williams uses the Seven Living Virtues of Community,Indepen- dence, Responsibility, Thrift, Love, Creativity, and Spirituality to help women achieve balance in their daily lives, reconnecting them to the truths of their heritage and the true needs of their soul.
Customer Reviews:
Reveal your true calling.......2007-05-08
I haven't finished reading this book yet. There is a chapter a week, and it takes you through 52 weeks of growth. In the first few weeks, you do simple exercises to reveal your true calling and purpose. This book has been so powerful for me in my life, as it has helped me to reveal my true calling. I recommend this to ALL women! Especially if you want inspiration in your life.
Each week there are journalling exercises, so make sure you buy a fresh journal too!
Product Description
Multiple books shipped as one item for your convenience. Save on Shipping/Handling charges.
Books:
- Vanishing Acts: A Novel
- Whitethorn Woods
- Win Your Child Custody War: Child Custody Help Source Book--A How-To System for People Serious About the Welfare of Their Child (11th Edition)
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- A Certain Slant of Light
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- America: A Narrative History, Full Sixth Edition, Volume Two
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Books Index
Books Home
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The History of Pirates
PIRATE HUNTER, THE: THE TRUE STORY OF CAPTAIN KIDD
The Pirate Dictionary
The Pirates Own Book: Authentic Narratives of the Most Celebrated Sea Robbers
A General History of the Pyrates
