Magellan--Over the Edge of the World

May 1, 2017
Bergreen ably adapts his book for adults Over the Edge of the World: Magellan's Terrifying Circumnavigation of the Globe (2003) into a gripping and harrowing true adventure story for young readers. Magellan is portrayed as a completely fearless, often reckless opportunist who had an uncanny ability to make powerful enemies and earn the enmity of his crew. Outsized ambitions led him to abandon his native Portugal for the chance to command an expedition for archrival Spain, which made him commander of the largest and best-equipped expedition of the time to find the fabled Spice Islands and claim the lands he found along the way for Spain and the Catholic Church. Surviving near-constant mutinies, treacherous sailing conditions, and frequent threats of starvation, Magellan brought his expedition as far as the Philippines, where he was killed in a confrontation with the inhabitants of Cebu. Though Magellan's armada went on to the Spice Islands without him, further tragedies reduced the fleet of five ships and 260 sailors to a single battered vessel with 18 survivors that returned to Spain. Bergreen recounts in vivid and grisly detail the wretched conditions the crews of the ships had to endure, skillfully explaining the complicated geopolitics of the era and the historical import of the expedition. An engrossing, dramatic account of courage and tragedy from the Age of Discovery. (maps, charts, source notes, bibliography) (Nonfiction. 10-14)

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April 1, 2017
Gr 7-10-The opening lines of the prologue set the grim tone for this harrowing story of ambition and adventure in the age of explorers. Bergreen begins by tracing the complex bureaucratic and diplomatic machinations, with first the Portuguese and then the Spanish king, necessary for Ferdinand Magellan to obtain backing for an armada of five ships and more than 250 sailors. Through his balance of brute force and sophisticated personal diplomacy, Magellan drove his crew through multiple insubordinations and attempts at mutiny, the ravages of scurvy, a shipwreck on the Argentine coast, and troubled and sometimes violent interactions with indigenous peoples to discover the passage through the straits that bear his name, a sea route to support the lucrative spice trade, and the Pacific trade winds. The narrative is broken up with useful digressions on related topics. One chapter details the incredible difficulty of life at sea; another focuses on the early history of Chinese and Arab trade with the islands now known as the Philippines. Visual materials include reproductions of contemporaneous maps, paintings, and drawings; relevant photographs, such as one depicting a modern replica of Magellan's ship Victoria; and illustrations from a journal kept by Magellan's assistant. The volume concludes with copious chapter-by-chapter source notes and an extensive bibliography. Though it occasionally strays into florid language (-The voyage would sustain them all, or it would destroy them all-) and Magellan's often problematic actions could be better contextualized, this is a richly researched and highly readable explication of a perennially favorite subject. VERDICT For large world history and biography collections.-Bob Hassett, Luther Jackson Middle School, Falls Church, VA

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May 15, 2017
Grades 8-12 Perhaps not as famous as Columbus or Lewis and Clark, Ferdinand Magellan remains a notable explorer for being the first to circumnavigate the world (well, almost). In this young reader's edition of his best-selling Over the Edge of the World (2003), Bergreen relies on numerous primary sources to shed light on Magellan's historic voyage. The author first sets the scene, describing the dangers of exploration in the 1500s and the political rifts between Portugal and Spain, which literally divided the world in half. He makes it clear that Magellan, a Portuguese captain sailing for Spain, was doomed from the start as his small armada set out to find the Spice Islands. The detailed narrative, accompanied by maps and artwork, depicts Magellan's ruthless behavior against natives and often mutinous sailors, which led to his controversial murder. Bergreen also pays homage to the overlooked crew, who were actually the first to sail the globe. Although condensed from the original, this version remains sophisticated and will appeal most to skilled teen readers and even adults.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)