Books...

[captweaver65]

I just picked up a lovely old book at a used bookstore;

'simplified navigation for the amateur'

by D.L.Montgomery

it is a first edition from 1932

it gives all the basics from the ground up,which is perfect for because I have not a lick of navigation knowledge.

can't wait to read about sextants as this has always been an interest of mine.

[the Royaliste]

:) RR, did I find a gem! A lon to me, 'Pirates of the Pacific,1575-1742' by Peter Gerhard...University of Nebraska Press, c. 1960 Just flippin' awesome!!!!

[Rosalinda]

I'm still in Pirating 101.

For my birthday, a couple of friends (who think I've gone over the deep end on this whole pirate thing) gave me a couple of books, which have already been mentioned:

The Pirate Hunter, The True Story of Captain Kidd

by Richard Zacks

Under The Black Flag

by David Cordingly

Now, the cover of Under The Black Flag has a Skull with a shiny gold tooth... hmmm...

[TalesOfTheSevenSeas]

Ben Franklin's Privateers is an AWESOME read! It is fascinating and exciting- not dry history, and written in an enjoyable and easy to read style. It is the story of the ships authorized for privateering against the British in order to procure British prisoners to use in a prisoner exchange for imprisoned Americans.

[doctor syn]

For those who havn't seen it yet..Angus Konstam's now written "The Pirate Ship 1660-1730" in the Osprey New Vanguard series....good value in the U.K.....presumably the same in the Colonies

[Jamaica Rose]

I've got tons of books on pirates and piracy (well, a couple hundred anyway) -- so I'll not mention them all.

But a few books not already mentioned that I've really enjoyed recently:

The Pirate Wars, by Peter Earle - 2003, UK (not yet available from a US publisher) -- I'll be reviewing this book in No Quarter Given -- a very organized look at each new development in piracy as Sea Dogs evolved into buccaneers, which evolved in the Red Sea men, Golden Age Pirates, and finally post-Napoleonic war pirates. With each new development there is a section on how the British government (mostly) and other governments responded to piracy and the steps they took to deal with it.

Lots of new material I've not encountered in other books on piracy.

Honor Amongst Thieves, by Jan Rogozinski, 2000 -- about piracy in the Indian Ocean. This is a good complement/supplement to "The Pirate Hunter" by Richard Zacks, mentioned in a previous post.

Bandits at Sea: A Pirates Reader, edited by CR Pennell -- collection of several essays on piracy by several known historians and scholars.

For those interested in Jean Laffite:

Jean Laffite, Prince of Pirates, by Jack C. Ramsay, 1996

Lafitte the Pirate, by Lyle Saxon, 1930

These two books should be read one after the other. The first one is more scholarly and gives the facts. But the second one is more poetic, and gives you the feeling of what it was to be in New Orleans and the Gulf at that time. It does include more legend and lore, so it's good to read the first one so you can be more descriminating as to what to believe in the second.

For those interested in Sir Henry Morgan,

The Buccaneer King, by Dudley Pope, 1977

The Sack of Panama, by Peter Earle, 1981

Both books are very good. The first is a good general biography of Morgan. The second concentrates on the Panama expedition.

Good reading to ya,

--Jamaica Rose

Whenever I feel blue, I start breathing again.

[Deacon Frye]

I didn't know Kenneth Bulmer wrote sea stories. I know him from his science fiction work of the 50s and 60s. Incidentally, I've contributed stories to several of the Mammoth anthologies Mike Ashley has edited, all in the historical mystery genre. I'll have to pester Mike for a copy of that book.

John, I haven't read it, but I understand that some of the selections are excerpts from novels. For instance, "The China Fleet" is from O'Brian's HMS Surprise and "Nantucket Sleigh Ride" is, as one might suspect, from Moby Dick.

[The WildHair'd Wench]

I've read so many books on pirates that I can't remember them all. I still have the little note cards I made all my notes on. I'm working on a novel set back in the Restoration period. Most of my research was done over in Europe, so anything with pirate on it I grabbed it from the library. I had one book that was completely fascinating, but I got very little out of it. It dealt with the economy from the period 1500-1700 and the book was written in English, Dutch and French. Of course, all the chapters I needed were written in Dutch and French. I have two books on Louis XIV, The Harem (a book about the Harem system in Turkey since part of it has to do with that), The Barbary Coast Pirates, rented a couple on Henry Morgan as he is featured in my book. I'm still having to read and research, so I'm not done.

I will be checking out some of the newer books coming out, because most of my research was done in 1991 and where I was, there weren't very many books on pirates that I came across in Switzerland, so.

[John Maddox Roberts]

I wandered into a little used bookstore today and found a treasure: John Masefield's "On the Spanish Main," a wonderful book about the Buccaneers. I'd only seen it as a library edition years ago. Strange that I've never seen it mentioned in this forum or on several extensive pirate reading lists. Maybe it's just rare. Masefield is the poet who wrote "Sea Fever." You know that one: "I must go down to the sea again---"

[Guest [BB] lkg]

i know the jean guy he was in the spanish and soem thing war in galveston island in texas he raded the spanish ships lol

["Broadside" Long]

Mates,

Just picked up the aforementioned book about Cap'n Kidd. The full title is The Pirate Hunter: The True Story of Captain Kidd by Richard Zacks. I only finished the Prologue so far, (I'm a pirate, not a bloody clerk!) but I'm hooked.

There's also a book comin' out Oct 21st called Return to Treasure Island and the Search for Captain Kidd by Barry Clifford.

However, I want to read Booty: Girl Pirates on the High Seas by Sara Lorimer and Susan Synarski.

ARRR! Sounds like a fine read!

Here's Luck,

Broadside

[Irish Pyrate]

Two books I have no seen listed yet. I recently procurred Exquemelin's "The Buccaneers of America" and long ago I read "Two Years Before the Mast".

Irish

[Zephyr]

I've read Under the Black Flag and Sherrys Rebels and Raiders...while I'm looking at the Young Sea Officers Sheet Anchor may as well get the free shipping ehhh?

What do ye noble literary pirates highly recommend?

(I did find the Cordinglys book a' we bit biased.......... not, to my memory, one word on press gangs.....he speculates that most pirates came from merchant ships because life in the navy were kinder :angry: .....rather than the fact that merchants were the common targets......)

anyway.....

I was looking at Pillaging the Empire (Kris E. Lane)

The Buccaneers of America (Exquemelin)

A general History of the Pyrates (by Defoe or Capt Johnson...???)

Ave ye read em? What do ye think?

[Jamaica Rose]

There's also a book comin' out Oct 21st called Return to Treasure Island and the Search for Captain Kidd by Barry Clifford.

I just finished reading this book a few days ago (advanced review copy), and am writing a review on it. Look for it in the Nov. issue of NQG

It's a good book, interesting juxtaposition of the history about Kidd (not much new there though if you've read Zack's "Pirate Hunter") and Barry Clifford's search for the Adventure Galley off St. Marie's Island in Madagascar. It was fascinating to read about and see photos of the harbor where so many pirates took refuge. And to read about Ilot Madame and Pirate Island (and the tunnels thereon), the two islands in the harbor.

There's some fascinating material about the "Fiery Dragon" and Christopher Condon (aka Condent, and several other variations). Clifford found this shipwreck as well.

It's a frustrating story, though with a good ending, finally. I recommend it to any interested in Kidd, underwater archeology, piracy in the Indian Ocean, and pirates in general.

Now, I've just started on Graham Harris's book on Kidd which came out last year. Look for an article by him in the September No Quarter Given, on Oak Island (which is being mailed out this Tuesday -- oh so very late).

Blackheartedly yrs,

--Jamaica Rose

"For my part, I am the innocentest person of them all, only I have been sworn against by perjured persons.

--Kidd, after hearing the jury proclaim him guilty

[Jamaica Rose]

I was looking at Pillaging the Empire (Kris E. Lane)

The Buccaneers of America (Exquemelin)

A general History of the Pyrates (by Defoe or Capt Johnson...???)

Ave ye read em? What do ye think?

All three of these are great books to have in yer library. I have the British version of "Pillaging the Empire" -- "Blood and Silver" -- bought while I was in Jamaica. I like the British title much better, more picturesque. It's a very good, concise history of piracy, with little sidebars at the end of each chapter on various related topics (coins of the era, shipwreck salvaging in the 17th c., what pirates ate and drink, etc.).

The other two books are BIBLEs of the pirate histories. You should read those two first before reading anything else. Everyone else quotes from them, so you should go right to the source first, and read it all in context.

The recent Schonhorn edition of General History of the Pirates, from Dover, is one of the best. It has extensive notes in it, and contains all the chapters from the various editions Johnson wrote.

Good reading to you,

--Jamaica Rose

"It's not the length of the quill, but yer penmanship that counts."

[Zephyr]

I was looking at Pillaging the Empire (Kris E. Lane)

The Buccaneers of America (Exquemelin)

A general History of the Pyrates (by Defoe or Capt Johnson...???)

Ave ye read em? What do ye think?

All three of these are great books to have in yer library. I have the British version of "Pillaging the Empire" -- "Blood and Silver" -- bought while I was in Jamaica. I like the British title much better, more picturesque. It's a very good, concise history of piracy, with little sidebars at the end of each chapter on various related topics (coins of the era, shipwreck salvaging in the 17th c., what pirates ate and drink, etc.).

The other two books are BIBLEs of the pirate histories. You should read those two first before reading anything else. Everyone else quotes from them, so you should go right to the source first, and read it all in context.

The recent Schonhorn edition of General History of the Pirates, from Dover, is one of the best. It has extensive notes in it, and contains all the chapters from the various editions Johnson wrote.

Good reading to you,

--Jamaica Rose

"It's not the length of the quill, but yer penmanship that counts."

Many thanks, I'll look for them. Found the Defoe book in the library, interesting how different some of the stories are. I love his style though, funny, in school his bias annoyed the heck out of me, now I enjoy it....

[Freighthag]

The first book I picked up was Under the Blak Flag. The next thing I did was order the complete set of No Quarter Given back issues. Not a book but I have found it to be a great resource, and a helluva lot of fun to read. I've since aquired The Pirate Hunter, Captain Johnson's General History of..., and Return to Treasure Island ..Search for Capt. Kidd. I'll be picking up Exqumelin next but with the list of books here I should be able to keep my self busy for quite a while. I was so glad to come across this topic!

[capnwilliam]

Jamaica, I read the two books about Lafitte that you mentioned, and in that order, and I agree with your assessment. The title "Prince of Pirates" turned me off at first - I thought it would be a silly book - but yes, it's well researched and written.

I confess that the main reason I bought it was for the listing of Baratarians who participated in the Battle of New Orleans, since I plan to do same and was looking to find a name to christen meself! Now I have to be sure no one else in the group has the same name!

[capnwilliam]

Broadside, I love yer hat! From where did ye pillage it, if I may be so bold?

Capt. William

[capnwilliam]

Irish, Two Years Before the Mast is indeed a terrific read. Heartily recommend! Not about pirates, but an excellent real-life look at the realities of being a seaman in the 1830's.

Capt. William

[Charlotte Doyle]

I'm still in Pirating 101.

For my birthday, a couple of friends (who think I've gone over the deep end on this whole pirate thing) gave me a couple of books, which have already been mentioned:

The Pirate Hunter, The True Story of Captain Kidd

by Richard Zacks

Under The Black Flag

by David Cordingly

Now, the cover of Under The Black Flag has a Skull with a shiny gold tooth... hmmm...

Funny you should say that, Rosalinda -- for I <i>do</i> believe my friends think I've gone a bit overboard (ha ha) on the pirate front as well. My friends usually just start cracking up when I mention anything pirate-related -- and for some odd reason my mother has taken to groaning every time she sees me doing something else pirate-ish. I heard her muttering something about, "We've finally lost ya," when she saw me working on a Pirates of the Caribbean music video I've been makin' in Windows Movie Maker (this is actually happening) -- couldn't imagine what she might o' been talkin' about.