Atlantic : great sea battles, heroic discoveries, titanic storms, and a vast ocean of a million stories

The epic life story of the Atlantic Ocean from the bestselling author, Simon Winchester For thousands of years the Atlantic Ocean was viewed by mariners with a mixture of awe, terror and amazement -- an impassable barrier to the unknown. In recent times, as we fly high above it without so much as bothering to look down, this vast sea has been reduced to the status of a mere passageway between continents -- 'the pond'. It is easy to forget that the Atlantic has been the setting for some of the most important exchanges, ideas and challenges in the history of civilisation -- a fulcrum around which the power and influence of the modern world has long been distributed. In this narrative tour de force, Simon Winchester dramatises the life story of the Atlantic, from its birth in the farther recesses of geological time to its eventual extinction millions of years in the future. At the heart of the book is the story of humankind's evolving attitude to and relationship with the ocean. For millennia it has shaped the lives and cultures of those who have lived along its shores and have navigated its waters. Travelling around its edges and across its huge expanse, Winchester reports from the places that encapsulate the Atlantic's most fascinating stories -- the age of exploration and the colonisation of the Americas; the rise and fall of the slave trade, and the flourishing of transatlantic commerce; extraordinary tales of sea-borne emigration; and the great naval battles that have left an indelible imprint on Atlantic history. The result is an utterly enthralling mixture of history, science and reportage from a master of narrative non-fiction, and an exhilarating account of a magnificent body of water.

blending History And Anecdote, Geography And Reminiscence, Science And Exposition, The new York Times Bestselling Author Of krakatoa Tells The Breathtaking Saga Of The Magnificent Atlantic Ocean, Setting It Against The Backdrop Of Mankind's Intellectual Evolution

until A Thousand Years Ago, No Humans Ventured Into The Atlantic Or Imagined Traversing Its Vast Infinity. But Once The First Daring Mariners Successfully Navigated To Far Shores—whether It Was The Vikings, The Irish, The Chinese, Christopher Columbus In The North, Or The Portuguese And The Spanish In The South—the Atlantic Evolved In The World's Growing Consciousness Of Itself As An Enclosed Body Of Water Bounded By The Americas To The West, And By Europe And Africa To The East. atlantic Is A Biography Of This Immense Space, Of A Sea Which Has Defined And Determined So Much About The Lives Of The Millions Who Live Beside Or Near Its Tens Of Thousands Of Miles Of Coast.

the Atlantic Has Been Central To The Ambitions Of Explorers, Scientists And Warriors, And It Continues To Affect Our Character, Attitudes, And Dreams. Poets To Potentates, Seers To Sailors, Fishermen To Foresters—all Have A Relationship With This Great Body Of Blue-green Sea And Regard Her As Friend Or Foe, Adversary Or Ally, Depending On Circumstance Or Fortune. Simon Winchester Chronicles That Relationship, Making The Atlantic Come Vividly Alive. Spanning From The Earth's Geological Origins To The Age Of Exploration, World War Ii Battles To Modern Pollution, His Narrative Is Epic And Awe-inspiring.

The Barnes & Noble Review

In His New atlantic: Great Sea Battles, Heroic Discoveries, Titanic Storms, And A Vast Ocean Of A Million Stories, Winchester's Vigorous Biography Of The Body Of Water Known At Different Times As The Ethiopian Ocean, The mare Glaciale, And (oddly Enough) The Ocean Sea, Is Virtually Byronic In Its Length And Devotion. Mention The Names Of A String Of Middling Coastal Towns -- Esbjerg Or Vigo, Takoradi, Walvis Bay, Or Puerto Madryn, Wilmington Or Halifax -- And Where Most Would Hear The Very Definition Of Back-water Obscurity, For Winchester They're The Very Stuff Of Oceanic Poetry.

In a narrative tour de force, Simon Winchester dramatises the life of the Atlantic Ocean, from its birth in the farther recesses of geological time to its eventual extinction millions of years in the future. At the core of the book is the story of mankind's complex relationship with this immense sea, which stretches for 9,000 miles from pole to pole. The Atlantic has profoundly influenced the lives of those who have lived along its shores, from hardscrabble pioneers in windswept locations such as the Aran Islands and Newfoundland, to the inhabitants of the great port cities of Lisbon, Rio, London and New York. ATLANTIC brings to life key episodes in this compelling human drama - the age of exploration and the subsequent colonisation of the Americas; the flourishing of transatlantic commerce and the rise and fall of the slave trade; extraordinary tales of sea-borne emigration during the nineteenth century; and the great naval battles that have left an indelible imprint on Atlantic history. Travelling by small sailing craft, container ship and general cargo vessel, Simon Winchester will journey around the edges and across the vast expanse of the ocean to report from the places that encapsulate its most fascinating stories. It is an enthralling mixture of history, science and reportage from a master of narrative non-fiction, and the definitive account of this magnificent body of water. Until a thousand years ago, no humans ventured into the Atlantic or imagined traversing its vastness. But once the first daring mariners successfully navigated to far shores, whether it was the Vikings, the Irish, the Chinese, Christopher Columbus in the north, or the Portuguese and the Spanish in the south, the Atlantic evolved in the world's growing consciousness of itself as an enclosed body of water bounded by the Americas to the West, and by Europe and Africa to the East. This book is a biography of this immense space, of a sea which has defined and determined so much about the lives of the millions who live beside or near its tens of thousands of miles of coast. The Atlantic has been central to the ambitions of explorers, scientists and warriors, and it continues to affect our character, attitudes, and dreams. The author chronicles that relationship, making the Atlantic come vividly alive.--From publisher description. Preface: The leaving of Liverpool Prologue: The beginnings of its goings on From the purple isles of Mogador All the shoals and deeps within Oh! the beauty and the might of it Here the sea of pity lies They that occupy their business on great waters Change and decay all around the sea The storm surge carries all before Epilogue: Falls the shadow, fades the sea. Blends history and anecdote, geography and reminiscence, and science and exposition, to relate the saga of the Atlantic Ocean, setting it against the backdrop of mankind's intellectual evolution