Reviews
"Joan Druett makes a name for herself as a sort of distaff Patrick (The Yellow Admiral) O'Brian."
In early 1864, heading back to Australia after a failed mining expedition, the crew of the Grafton encountered a violent storm and found themselves shipwrecked in the Auckland Islands, off the coast of New Zealand. Druett, a maritime historian (In the Wake of Madness), draws upon the journals of the ship's captain, Thomas Musgrave and prospector Francois Raynal to reveal how the crew pulled together and made the best of their circumstances for nearly two years. By contrast, when the Invercauld ran aground on the other side of the island months later—beyond an impassable mountain range, and hence unaware they were not alone—the surviving sailors quickly began eating their dead crewmates out of desperation. Soon, only three remained, the ineffectual captain and another officer being kept alive by a resourceful seaman. Druett tells the two stories in strict chronological order, allowing readers to become familiar with the Grafton party before weaving the Invercauld survivors into the narrative. She zeroes in on the salient details of their ordeals, identifying the plants that kept the castaways from contracting scurvy or sketching out an improvised recipe for soap with equal aplomb. This is a fine addition to the genre of survival tales like Endurance or In the Heart of the Sea.
"The amount of detail the author has amassed is truly impressive, resulting in an invaluable account of survival."
"Swashbuckling maritime history...Stormy seas become epic events."
"A riveting study of the extremes of human nature and the effects of good (and bad) leadership. . . . If the southern part of Auckland Island is all Robinson Crusoe, the northern part is more Lord of the Flies. . . . Druett is an able and thorough guide to the minutiae of castaway life . . . [She] shows that real leadership is rare and powerful." --The New York Times Book Review
"This story goes reality TV a few steps better. . . . A clear morality tale about the pitfalls of rigidity and the benefits of adaptability and cooperation. . . . Druett, who has written other works of nautical history and a maritime mystery series, wisely lets the details make the point, resisting the temptation to oversell. Her writing style is clear and detached, her touch just right. . . . The power of the crews' divergent stories... propels the narrative like a trade wind."--L.A. Times
"One of the finest survival stories I've read. . . . [Druett's] tale is backed up by a solid knowledge of sailing ships and of the flora, fauna and weather of Auckland Island, an inhospitable terrain that has defied attempts at human settlement and is now a wildlife preserve."--Seattle Times
An "amazing saga . . . Rarely are the two opposing sides of human nature captured in such stark and illuminating relief."--Seattle Post-Intelligencer
"Fascinating . . . a surprisingly gripping tale that will leave readers amazed. Grade: A."--Rocky Mountain News
"A compelling fact-upon-fact style that lets the men's incremental accomplishments and unlikely survival supply the drama."--News & Observer
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