I '.i. 11
I :\ m
l'
r
1
c
(1
GALVESTON'S TI IE ELISSA Tl!E T\L I. Si Ill' (l f T !X .\ S by Kurt D. Voss All proceeds ji-om this pictorial hist01y benefit the ELISSA preservation fund.
Published by Arcad ia Publishing and Galveston Historical Foundation $21.99. 128 pages, 200 photographs Autographed cop ies available at (409) 763-1877, or online at:
www.tsm-elissa.org Anne T. Converse Photogra phy
Neit/1, 1996, Cover p h otogra ph
'Wood; 'Wina ana'Water A STORY OF THE
OPERA HousE Cur
R.ACE OF NANTUCKET
Photographs by Anne T. Converse Text by Carolyn M. Ford Live vicariously through the pictures and tales of Classic Wooden Yacht owners who lovingly restore and race these gems of the sea. 10"
x 12" Hardbound limited edition 132 pages, 85 full page color photographs
For more information contact: Anne T. Converse P: 508-748-0638 F: 508-355-0070
anne@annetconverse.com www.annetconverse.com 54
approaches are sought out and old theories are given more critical analyses. In his book, The Battle of Midway, historian Craig L. Symonds examines dozens of studies of the fight between Japanese and American naval forces in June 1942 that changed the course of World War II in the Pacific, and challenges some widely accepted conclusions. Perhaps the most familiar work is Gordon W Prange's Miracle at Midway, a tide that expresses a popular thesis: only a miracle can explain the US Navyvicroryover the superior forces of Japan's Imperial Navy at Midway in June 1942. H e disregards the easy-and imposs ible to defend-theories and builds a case based on a breakdown of tactics leadership on both sides. Symonds argues that there was no miracle at Midway but a battle tilted to favo r the US forces by Imperial Navy carelessness and careful and diligent employment of inferior resources and superior intelligence on the part of American naval commanders. Symonds draws on oral history interviews to supplement official reports and debriefings to paint a portrait of events with more derail and fewer blank spaces than previously available. H e sets out the state of affairs for both the Japanese and the Americans before presenting the events leading up to the barde and then the conflict itself. Along the way, from the Doolittle fl ight and Coral Sea and then the Barrie of Midway itself, Symonds provides sketches of the individuals in both navies who called the shots and those who delivered them. Symonds's Battle ofMidway is a worthy addition to a distinguished body of literature. Despite heavy competition from other studies, the book will command a place in the library of writings on one of the most important battles in world history. DR. DAVID 0. WHITTEN Auburn, Alabama
Measure of the Earth: The Enlightenment Expedition that Reshap ed Our World by Larrie D . Ferreira (Basic Books, New York, 2011, 35lpp, illus, notes, index, ISBN 9780-465-01723-2; $28hc) The world is flat! Well maybe not-even Columbus's contemporaries knew that, but if earth is not a perfect sphere, where is it flattened or distorted ? Rene D escartes believed that it bulged at the poles like an egg and Isaac Newton argued rhat it was
flattened at the poles like a curling stone. Who was right, the Cartesians or the Newtonians? Ir was the Age of Enlightenment, and in the eighteenth century, the French Academy of Sciences set our to see if the linear distance of one degree of latitude at the equato r was greater or smaller than one measured in Paris (48' N). In rhe 1730s, they put together an expedition to reso lve the debate about the earth's shape. Sponsored by leaders of France and Spain, the expedition would find the answer, they hoped, that wo uld lead to more accurate navigation and, in turn, gain advantages in maritime commerce and military power for their respective nations. Once the shape of the earth was defined, their ships' captains would be able to use mathematical rules based upon physics rather than antiquated rules of thumb for navigation . An expedition set out from France consisting of three extremely disparate scientific leaders. They repeatedly found themselves in desperate situations, mostly in the volcanic mountains and deep jungles of northwestern Peru (now Ecuador). Ir is not a well-known part of cartographic h istory, yet a captivating tale of personaliry conflicts, geopolitics, geographic dangers, luck (both good and bad), and a lot of sophisticated mathematic cartographic science frequently performed under abominable conditions. The story of this absorbing adventure and scientific discovery is told in scholarly detail, yet the author's elegant prose makes it an enjoyable read. Measu re ofthe Earth is a lucid acco unt of an arcane expedi tion, a journey filled with intrigues and rivalries while facing many unanticipated psychological and phys ical challenges. The expedition rewrote _our understanding of the shape of the planet and led to the emergence of South America as a m ajor continent that wo uld give birth to many Latin American narions. We now know that Newton's theory was correcr, of course, but Ferreira's meticulou sly researched book clearly shows that proving it was anything but simple. Measure of the Earth focuses on a crucial part of maritime history commonly overlooked or taken for granted. Any m aritime historian should benefit from read ing this erudite book.
Lams ARTHUR
NoRTON
West Simsbury, Connecticut
SEA HISTORY 137, WINTER20ll -1 2