tell. The problem was going to be weaving the many threads of Magellan's voyage into a comprehensible story. In less comperenr hands, this dramatic story could easily become a tedious compendium of well-known facts larded with historical minutiae of interest only to rrain-sporrers nautical brethren. What were we to expect from a writer whose previous works included biographies of such nored navigators as Al Capone and Louis Armstrong? Whose sole work about exploration was a book abo ut NASA's missions to Mars? Eclectic? Certainly. Someone who could master and explain rhe intricacies of nor only rhe superpower rivalry between rhe Spanish and Portuguese and their relationship with rhe Papacy, bur of sixteenth century naurical technology and navigation techniques? Nor so likely. The facr is, Mr. Bergreen is a great storyteller, and he has used his skills to create a magnificent narrative. His book is a delight. In Over the Edge of the World, Bergreen manages to tell Magellan's story-rhar of a remarkable man and navigator- bur also puts his personality and achievement into a context rhar makes clear what a risky proposition his voyage was, both politically and physically. Bergreen shows thar the intrigues of rhe Spanish and Portuguese courts were every bir as dangerous to Magellan as rhe unknown seas he mastered. In rhe end, of co urse, Magellan died at rhe hands of men, not rhe elements. Bergreen's telling of his death is particularly compelling. For an author nor previously known as a maritime scholar, Bergreen's narrative draws heavily on primary sources, giving rhe story a freshness and immediacy nor always found in chronicles of rhe distant past. Trying to create a coherent, compellin g narrative, from the huge amount of material would rest rhe skills of rhe best of writers. To weave such disparate story lines together in such a way rhar the tension builds from one chapter to rhe next is a remarkable fear. Over the Edge ofthe World is a ripping yarn. With luck, Bergreen will find another topic nor too far afield for his next endeavor. RICHARD O'REGAN
New York City SEA HISTORY 108, AUTUMN 2004
The Cruise ofthe German Raider Atlantis, by Joseph P. Slavick (Naval Institute Press, Annapolis MD, 2003, 288pp, photos, notes, biblio, index, ISBN 1-55750537-3; $32.95hc) The German raider Atlantis ... rhe name evokes images of a disguised German warship preying upon unarmed Allied merchant ships during the Second World War. According to Slavick (Captain, US Air Force), rhis image is both inaccurate and unfounded. In rhis "modern srudy of rhe operations of a German warship that left port in 1940 and was sunk in 1941 afrer 622 days ar sea," Slavick writes a symparheric history of Atlantis and her captain, Bernhard Rogge, who tried ro maintain rhe traditions of chivalry in barrle. Yet, technology and a British policy of resistance ar sea worked against rhe maintenance of rhese traditions rhroughour his cruise. In addition to rhe official publications and the secondary literature, Slavick researched the ship's log, rhe national records of Australia, Great Britain and the United States, and available British intelligence reports and conducted interviews with surviving crewmen. Opening with a chapter on Captain Bernhard Rogge's biographical information, the book follows the cruise in excellent derail. The sinking of sixteen ships and capture of six others are described, as is rhe day-to-day struggle of a vessel and crew who remained underway for 622 consecutive days whi le eluding discovery by the Royal Navy. When Atlantis was eventually tracked down and fired upon by the heavy cruiser HMS Devonshire, the German crew scuttled Atlantis and spent weeks in lifeboats and U-Boats getring back to Germany. Slavick demonstrates Rogge's commitment to fighting in a lawful and proper manner in spire of a new age of warfare that made this more problematic with each passing day. The fact rhar only 33 deaths occurred during rhe sinking or capture of 22 merchant ships speaks of Captain Rogge's commitment to fighting a war ar sea with as much humanity as was possible. Highly Recommended! HAROLD
N.
BOYER
Folsom, Pennsylvania
New and Noted Bloodstained Sea: The US Coast Guard in the Battle of the Atlantic, 1941-1944, by Michael G . Walling (McGraw-Hill, New York, 2004, 256pp, illus, photos, index, ISBN 0-07- 142401-6; $24.95 hc) Hudson's Merchant and Whalers: The Rise and Fall of a River Port, 1783-1850, by Margaret B. Schram (Black Dome Press, Hensonville NY, 2004, 209pp, illus, photos, notes, biblio, index, appen, ISBN 1-07883789-39-7; $24.95pb) The Queen's Slave Trader: john Hawkins, Elizabeth l and the Trafficking in Human Soul.s, by Nick Hazlewood (William Morrow, an Imprint ofHarperCollins Publishers, New York, 2004, 432pp, illus, photos, index, ISBN 0-06-621089-5; $26.95 hc) Reign of Iron: The Story of the First Battling Ironclads, the Monitor and the Merrimack, by James L. Nelson (William Morrow, an Imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, New York, 2004, 432pp, illus, photos, index, ISBN 0-06-052403-0; $25.95hc) The Sail and Steam Navy List: All the Ships of the Royal Navy, 1815-1889, by David Lyon and Rif Winfield (Naval Insrirure Press, Annapolis MD, 2004, 352pp, illus, photos, gloss, notes, biblio, index, appen, ISBN 1-59114-484-1; $26.95hc) Shadow Divers: The True Adventure of Two Americans Who Risked Everything to Solve One of the Last Mysteries of World Ular fl by Robert Kurson (Random House, New York, 400pp, illus, index, ISBN 0-3755-0858-9; $26.95hc) Swift, Silent, and Deadly: Marine Amphibious Reconnaissance in the Paci.fie, 1942-1945, by Bruce F. Meyers (Naval lnsriture Press, Annapolis MD, 2004, 216pp, illus, photos, maps, gloss, notes, biblio, index, ISBN 1-59114-484-1; $26.95hc) Whaling Letters, formerly My Dear Husband, edited by Descendants of Whaling Masters (DWM, Inc. , New Bedford MA, l 30pp, photos, ISBN 0-97 42693-0-1; $16.95pb) j,
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