The Wager by David Gran
I
never realized how interesting books about shipwrecks could be. I always
enjoyed Moby Dick—the weird characters and the odd obsession with
hunting the whale somehow always stuck with me. A few years ago, I read In
the Kingdom of Ice from Hampton Sides, and was fascinated. This led to some
other interest in shipwrecks like the Terror. Along similar lines, The Wager,
which takes place in the 1700s and near the Strait of Magellan, details men
exploring an inhospitable and rarely explored area of the world.
Although
the events took place in the 170ss, it was interesting to see how timely and
relevant this book was to some of today’s issues, especially around the ideas
of media and narratives, and how the rush to get to a story can really
influence the public perspective about what happened. Furthermore in the case
of the wreck of the Wager, some of the survivors’ lives depended on how the
public and the Royal Navy would interpret the events of the shipwreck.
Gran’s
ability to synthesize historical documents and create compelling characters and
a propulsive narrative are what truly drive this book and make it so amazing. I
could imagine that some books about shipwrecks might become so depressing or
doomed, yet I found myself continuing to read to find out what would happen
next—how the men survived with little to no food, and how they would manage to
wrest control from the restrictive and traditional structures of Naval command.
It was amazing to learn about how these men persisted in the face of such
limited circumstances, and how they continued to fight for their survival and
eventual return to England. While most of the men died, it was incredible to
read about the things they did to survive and the difficult decisions they made
to join factions and find the peer support they needed to come out alive.
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