Epic Sea Books, In the Heart of the Sea. Nathaniel Philbrick

"Like a giant bird of prey, the whaleship moved up the western coast of South America, zigging and zagging across a living sea of oil. For that was the Pacific Ocean in 1821, a living field of warm-blooded oil deposits known as sperm whales.

Harvesting sperm whales - the largest toothed whales in existence - was no easy matter. Six men would set out from the ship in a small boat, row up to their prey, harpoon it, then attempt to stab it to death with a lance. The sixty-ton creature could destroy the whaleboat with one flick of its tail, throwing the men into the cold ocean water, often miles from the ship.

Even though it is little remembered to-day, the sinking of the Nantucket-based whaleship, 'Essex' by an enraged sperm whale was one of the most well-known marine disasters of the ninteenth century. Nearly every child in America read about it in school. It was the event that inspired the climatic scene of Herman Melville's Moby Dick."

These extracts from the preface of Nathaniel Philbrick's powerful novel sets the scene for a story of immense human suffering and man's indomitability in the face of incredible forces of nature.

When the massive whale rammed and sunk their ship, twenty men in three small boats endured unimaginable suffering, most of them dying and the flesh of their emaciated bodies keeping their shipmates alive.

Philbrick doesn't cut corners. From beginning to end, the novel is saturated with fascinating descriptions of whaling, Nantucket history, survival at sea, the psycology of starvation, cannibalism and a scholarly study of the complexities of human behaviour.

With this true story of unspeakable horror, brilliantly researched and beautifully written, Nathaniel Philbrick has created a classic sea book of epic stature. One of the most horrifying stories in maritime history, a vivid and inspiring tale of an incredible struggle for survival in The Heart of the Sea.

THE AUTHOR

Nathaniel Philbrick was born in Boston Mass.

Having graduated with a BA in English and an MA in American literature, he married Malissa, an attorney in Nantucket. They have two children, Jennie and Ethan.

After graduate school, he worked for 'The Sailing World', was a freelancer for a number of years and wrote several sailing books. Having moved to Nantucket in 1986, he wrote a history of the island 'Away Offshore' Nantucket Island and its People.

He is the founding director of The Egan Institute of Maritime Studies and a research fellow of the Nantucket Historical Association.

In 2000, he wrote his masterpiece, 'In The Heart of The Sea'

His other works: The Passionate Sailor; Yachting: A Parody; Second Wind; Abram's Eyes; Sea of Glory; Mayflower: A Voyage to War; Revenge for the Whale.

'In the Heart of the Sea' won the National Book Award, 'Revenge for the Whale' won a Boston Globe Horn Book Award and 'Sea of Glory' won The Theodore Roosevelt Novel History Prize.

A champion sailboat racer, he continues to write about sailing, the great love of his life.

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Another epic sea book has just been published. 'THE CRYING SEA' tells the true story of a Maltese fishing boat that exploded and sank in 2008 resulting in six days and nights of unspeakable anguish for the crew and their families; shock, horror and grief for the whole island of Malta.

It is available online at: www.bridgepublishing.net