Sea of Glory: America's Voyage of Discovery, the U.S. Exploring Expedition, 1838-1842 - Softcover

Philbrick, Nathaniel

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0142004839 ISBN 13: 9780142004838

Publisher: Penguin Books, 2004

Synopsis

"A treasure of a book."--David McCullough

The harrowing story of a pathbreaking naval expedition that set out to map the entire Pacific Ocean, dwarfing Lewis and Clark with its discoveries, from the New York Times bestselling author of Valiant Ambition and In the Hurricane's Eye.

A New York Times Notable Book

America'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

About this title

Review:

"Fascinating and meticulous . . . A wonderful retelling."
--The New York Times Book Review

"A breathtaking account of one of history's greatest adventures."
--Entertainment Weekly

"A worthy successor to In the Heart of the Sea."
--The Wall Street Journal

"Sea of Glory is a grand saga of scientific and nautical accomplishment."
--Newsweek

Synopsis:

America's first frontier was not the West; it was the sea. In 1838, an enormous expedition headed by the young, brash Lieutenant Charles Wilkes set out for the Pacific Ocean with six ships and hundreds of sailors on what would turn out to be a wide-reaching journey of adventure, discovery, and controversy. Literally broadening our horizons, the Exploring Expedition's ships covered the Pacific Ocean from top to bottom, discovered a new continent that Wilkes would name Antarctica, and brought America to the world's attention for its scientific endeavours as well as its bravado. Using diaries kept on board, historian Nathaniel Philbrick uncovers the dark saga that the official reports never told.

About this edition

• Publisher: Penguin Books
• Publication date: 2004
• ISBN 10: 0142004839
• ISBN 13: 9780142004838
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 512