Book bits
A Q&A with Carl Bernstein, three books about pirates, an outdoor adventure reading list, and readers' picks.
from the July 3, 2007 edition
Page 2 of 3
Three books about pirates
Moviegoers eager to meet some real-life "Pirates of the Caribbean" can now pick up The Republic of Pirates by Colin Woodward. Journalist and author Woodward tells the fascinating story of pirate captains Edward "Blackbeard" Teach and "Black Sam" Bellamy who set up a form of pirates' cooperative in the Caribbean in the 1700s. "The Republic of the Pirates" is the ultimate in beach reading – breezy, colorful, and rich in history and action.
Empire of Blue Water: Captain Morgan's Great Pirate Army by Stephan Talty offers a vivid portrayal of legendary privateer Capt. Henry Morgan. Morgan was a Welshman who sailed into the New World in the 1600s and, in the name of the British Empire, led a ragtag band of thieving pirates against the Spanish. Full of plenty of swash and buckle, Morgan's daring, larcenous, and ultimately tragic life makes for fascinating reading.
For an encyclopedic grasp of the world of the pirates, try Pirates, Predators of the Seas: An Illustrated History by Angus Konstam and Roger Michael Kean. This lively text offers colorful maps to help relate the history of pirates around
the world, including the little-known story of two renowned female pirates.
– By Marjorie Kehe
Great Outdoor Reads
Looking for an excellent outdoor-adventure book for your summer reading? Ron Watters, editor of the anthology "The Outdoor Experience," lists some of his favorites, including:
Scrambles Among the Alps in the Years 1860-69 by Edward Whymper
Steep Trails by John Muir
To Build a Fire by Jack London
The Singing Wilderness by Sigurd F. Olson
Travels in West Africa by Mary H. Kingsley
A Sand County Almanac by Aldo Leopold
Desert Solitaire by Edward Abbey
Beyond the Hundredth Meridian: John Wesley Powells and the Second Opening of the West by Wallace Stegner
For more titles, see Watters' website at ronwatters.com.
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