Rating: 
Summary: A Wonderful Experience!
Review: I'm a Michener fan, but this is the best of the best in my humble opinion.As I write this, I'm waiting for a confirmation of my reservation to spend a long weekend in Cambridge MD and take a couple of days exploring the Choptank and surrounding area. We vacation several times a year on Maryland's Eastern Shore, Baltimore, Annapolis, St. Michael's, Havre de Grace and the general Chesapeake area, so I'm somehwat familiar with the area. As a young adult, I first read the book when it was first introduced in the 70's. Now I'm retired, I just read it again to re-discover the fascinating stories and appreciation for the history behind them. As a northern Pennsylvanian, I loved the chapter about the character who follows the Susquehanna River to its point of origin in upper New York state. That chapter touched very close to my home. As others have said, don't let the size intimidate you. I've completely immersed myself in this wonderful combination of fiction and fact, including reading the book with two maps beside me and frequent visits online to gather even more details of significant events. Now I can't wait 'til Spring thaw to take my trip back into time... I want to know more... I need to know more!
Rating:
Summary: I LOVE THE BAY
Review: I've lived in Virginia Beach for 5 years and love the area for it's diversity. However, I've only just begun to truly appreciate this area by reading James Michener's Chesapeake. What an intense collection of facts, figures and little bits of lost information about the Bay. I've discovered a fond new love for the bay's water, it's people, it's ways and it's surrounding area. A great novel for history buffs or for anyone who just loves the Bay area!
Rating:
Summary: Definitely on my "10 BEST" list!
Review: I've read JOURNEY, ALASKA, CARIBBEAN, and HAWAII. Though all of them were good, CHESAPEAK is easily the best - 5 stars plus! I found myself staying up much later than I'd planned on many nights - I just didn't want to put it down! I was very pleasantly surprised because I really didn't have any great interest in the Chesapeak Bay area before I read this book. The other Michener novels I'd read were selected primarily because I was interested in the subject area. I never really enjoyed history, so I've learned much more from Michener than I would have normally. Perhaps if I were an historian or a literary critic I'd knock it down a star or two, but I am blissfully ingnorant of any faults :-) For reference purposes, from the list above I rate CARIBBEAN at 5 stars and ALASKA at 4.5
Rating:
Summary: Totally Awe-Inspiring
Review: If I could give this one 10 STARS I would. It's better than 5. I have read most of Michener's long historical books. Of all that I have read this is the absolute best! It's definitely my favourite. When I was reading I couldn't believe how much it felt that I was there with the characters. He ties all the genrations of the three families so tightly together that it kept me avidly turning pages. In fact reading this book reawakened my interest in Michener. I had read some of his books years ago, but after this one I've been working my way through the rest. Those have been good, but not of the calibre of this one.
Rating:
Summary: Totally Awe Inspiring!!
Review: If I could give this one 10 STARS I would. It's better than 5. I have read most of Michener's long historical books. Of all that I have read this is the absolute best!! It's definitely my favourite. When I was reading I couldn't believe how much it felt that I was there with the characters. He ties all the genrations of the three families so tightly together that it kept me avidly turning pages. In fact reading this book reawakened my interest in Michener. I had read some of his books years ago, but after this one I've been working my way through the rest. Those have been good, but not of the calibre of this one.
Rating:
Summary: WONDERFUL!!!!
Review: If you have ever seen the shores of the Chesapeke, even just passing through, this book will take you back there. It is so easy to imagine the scenery and beauty he describes. Try it, you'll love it!
Rating: 
Summary: Chesapeake
Review: It has a storyline rich in details of Chesapeake life. The true main characters are the bay itself, the Choptank River, and the fictional Devon island. Ironies abound throughout the book. The poor Turlocks achieve respectability after nearly 350 years of swamp life and inbreeding (though Michener never really develops this transition). The proud Paxmores ultimately disgrace themselves, and the Steeds lose their mansion to the bay. My favorite irony involves the Indian Pentaquod and Devon Island. Devon was Pentaquod's first refuge, and at face value it provided all he needed. However, after one storm he witnessed irreversible erosion and quit the island. The Steeds later experience the same sense of fulfillment and remain. Eventually the bay reclaims the island. Unfortunately, Michener's historical narrative misses many key events. The "starving time" of Jamestown is neglected, as are the Indian raids of 1622 and 1644. In 1718, Maryland disenfranchised Catholics, this is never mentioned. Perhaps due to Michener's Quakerism, all major wars are either minimally discussed or neglected altogether. But these are relatively minor disturbances. As a history major, I choose not to learn my history from fiction; fiction is "light reading." Michener uses this book to debate past and (1978) present issues, offering the reader an insight to his political viewpoints from slavery to Watergate. Finally, the last paragraph in the book tied the entire work together in that the reader feels a sense of loss similar to what the characters must have felt..
Rating:
Summary: This is Michener's best novel!
Review: It is unfortunate that many new readers are introduced to Michener through his last few books and never get to find out how great he was at his peak. If you tried "Alaska" or Caribbean" and think this writer is a bore, then read "The Source" or "Hawaii" or, most importantly, "Chesapeake." This novel follows several families through centuries of life on the Maryland eastern shore. It's an historical masterpiece, and a mesmrizing page-turner. A+
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful!!!!
Review: James Michener has set a high standard for other novelists to aspire to with such magnificent novels as Chesapeake. Of recent novels, only The Triumph and the Glory, London, Sarum, and a handful of others are carrying on the tradition of fine historical fiction, but most recent efforts have fallen short of the mark. I love James Michener, I hope he can give us one or two more books.
Rating:
Summary: If you've never read Michener, This is where you start.
Review: James Michener was a humanitarian. An orphan from birth, he had given almost all of his estate- 61 million dollars to charity before his death in 1997. His historical fiction is the best of our times. Chesapeake is an engrossing story of three families and their lives in a beautiful environment rich with history. Chesapeake and Centennial are my favorite books by Michener, although I have yet to read anything of his that I did not enjoy. I hope you enjoy this story as much as I did.
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