Rounding the Horn: Being the Story of Williwaws and Windjammers, Drake, Darwin, Murdered Missionaries and Naked Natives, a Deck's Eye View of Cape Horn

Rating:
Summary: Rounding the Horn with Murder and Pleasure
Review: Great read! Dallas Murphy mixes history with excellent storytelling--incredibly rare. I totally agree with the rave review he got in the Sunday NY Times. You'll enjoy the ride...or should I say, SAIL!

Rating:
Summary: Learning more about an (in)famous place!!!
Review: I recently bought this book because it caught my eye in a bookstore. I have long been a fan of geography and I also love the sea lore surrounding Cape Horn. The Cape is the stuff legends are made of! I (like most people) have only been exposed to Cape Horn from history books and various movies such as "The Bounty" and "Master and Commander" but this book fills in all the gaps. This book is a fun and entertaining read. Mr. Murphy tells of trip he made to Cape Horn to explore the region with several companions but he also spends a great deal of time discussing the history of the area. He tells the reader about the famous explorations of Magellan, Drake, Darwin and many others who experienced the wrath of the Horn. This book would be great for anyone wanting a fun summer read - plus anyone wanting to know more about one of the neatest places on Earth - Cape Horn.

Rating:
Summary: Learning more about an (in)famous place!!!
Review: I recently bought this book because it caught my eye in a bookstore. I have long been a fan of geography and I also love the sea lore surrounding Cape Horn. The Cape is the stuff legends are made of! I (like most people) have only been exposed to Cape Horn from history books and various movies such as "The Bounty" and "Master and Commander" but this book fills in all the gaps. This book is a fun and entertaining read. Mr. Murphy tells of trip he made to Cape Horn to explore the region with several companions but he also spends a great deal of time discussing the history of the area. He tells the reader about the famous explorations of Magellan, Drake, Darwin and many others who experienced the wrath of the Horn. This book would be great for anyone wanting a fun summer read - plus anyone wanting to know more about one of the neatest places on Earth - Cape Horn.

Rating:
Summary: History and Contemporary Experience
Review: This is the account of the author's trip to Cape Horn and the surrounding archipelago. Murphy weaves in to this account the history of the Cape Horn region, including some of the experiences of the many sailing ships which rounded the Horn and the interactions between natives and Europeans in the region.

The historical segments of this book are quite good, although far more information on Magellan and Drake is given than is needed to tell the history of Cape Horn. But by and large, the historical parts of this book work quite well and are satisfying to the reader. Much less interesting is Murphy's account of his wanderings through the archipelago. His 21st century experience is dull and uninteresting when juxtaposed against the rich history of Cape Horn.

In spite of this shortcoming, the book is certainly worth a read by those who are interested in learning more about this intriguing part of the world.