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Title: The History of Pirates by Angus Konstam ISBN: 1-58574-516-2 Publisher: The Lyons Press Pub. Date: 01 August, 2002 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $19.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.43 (7 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: A Great Resource
Comment: The scope of this book is very wide. It covers the history of piracy from the ancient world until the modern age. The bulk of the material, however, covers the golden age of piracy in the Carribean Sea and the Indian Ocean. The format of the book is very large with full color pictures on every page. Basically it's a coffee table book. The color pictures definitely stir the imagination. Fan of pirate lore and fans of the recent movie "Pirates of the Carribean" will be pleased to read this.
My only complaint is that the text is a little light. Even famous pirates such as Blackbeard and Captain Morgan only get two pages each. I realize that some text space had to be sacrificed for all the color pictures, but I was hoping for a little more information. If you're interested in pictures or if you aren't such a heavy reader, this will be a great book for you. If you would like something a little meatier, perhaps another book is for you. I do think this is an excellent source for pictures of pirates though.
Rating: 5
Summary: A great study of the politics of piracy
Comment: This book, although not perfect, should be included in every pirate scholar's library. Rather than just focusing on the "Golden Age" pirates of the early 18th century, THE HISTORY OF PIRATES examines piracy from the moment man started to travel by water to modern day piracy. It's well-written, well-researched, and well-designed. Read about ancient pirates who terrorized Greece and Rome, Vikings who led a rampage throughout Dark Age Europe, Barbary corsairs who virtually ruled the Medditerrain Sea until the Knights of Malta provided formidable counterparts, the buccaneers who mercilessly plundered the territory of the hated Spanish and gave birth to the succeeding "Golden Age" generation. Also, you'll see how governments have used legalized pirates (privateers) since ancient times. Before there were mean streets, there were mean seas. Life at sea was brutal and unforgiving. These were not glamorous "swashbucklers," but ruthless men who came from a world where life was cheap and one man's freedom was gained by violating the rights of others. In my opinion, the most interesting of these characters were: Henry Morgan, the buccaneer who was officially known as a privateer because of his British sympathies but whose illegal, corrupt campaigns can be classified as regular piracy. And also Bartholemew Roberts, who was the most brutal and prolific of the "Golden Age" pirates. I wish Konstam would go into more detail about the situations of disgruntled merchants & slavers (like Bartholemew Roberts) and escaped slaves who joined pirate crews for a better life, to shed a more human light on them, but I guess that's just a personal interest of mine. I also object to the inclusion of the overrated David Cordingly, but he's just in the inroduction, and doesn't ruin the book at all. That, and didn't Blackbeard carry six pistols rather than three? Oh well, these are just minor complaints. Just about everything you wanted to know about piratacy is in here. I'd also recommend the accounts by Alexander Exquemlin (a former buccaneer who tells his story), Captain Johnson (to know all about Golden Age pirates, but don't get the Cordingly-edited version), and Eyewitness books (designed for younger readers, but surprisingly more informative than most pirate books). Along with those books, this is a mandatory study of plunder on the high seas.
Rating: 5
Summary: Part of My Pirate Library
Comment: This is probably my second favorite book on pirates (Under the Black Flag is first). However, this is a high quality overview of the history of pirates from earliest recorded times onward. Konstam breaks it down by era, from the ancient world on, with discussion of the periods, famous names and regions. The graphic content is probably even more impressive than the text. The inclusion of maps and period images make this an entertaining as well as informative read. P-)
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Title: Under the Black Flag: The Romance and the Reality of Life among the Pirates by David Cordingly ISBN: 0156005492 Publisher: Harvest Books Pub. Date: September, 1997 List Price(USD): $14.00 |
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Title: The Buccaneers of America by Alexander O. Exquemelin ISBN: 048640966X Publisher: Dover Pubns Pub. Date: 26 February, 2000 List Price(USD): $10.95 |
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Title: A General History of the Pyrates by Daniel Defoe ISBN: 0486404889 Publisher: Dover Pubns Pub. Date: 17 March, 1999 List Price(USD): $19.95 |
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Title: The Pirates Own Book : Authentic Narratives of the Most Celebrated Sea Robbers by Marine Research Society ISBN: 0486276074 Publisher: Dover Pubns Pub. Date: 24 May, 1993 List Price(USD): $12.95 |
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Title: Pirate Hunter, The: The True Story of Captain Kidd by Richard Zacks ISBN: 0786884517 Publisher: Hyperion Pub. Date: 18 June, 2003 List Price(USD): $15.95 |
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