Farther Than Any Man: The Rise and Fall of Captain James Cook
by Martin Dugard, Kindle edition, 2001, Pocket Books, a division of Simon & Schuster, Inc.
The book is interesting but it’s not a true biography as the author makes up scenarios that are likely but not necessarily valid. He surmises what Cook may have been thinking in a given circumstance and those thoughts are probably close to Cook’s, but, nevertheless, they are created by the author rather than actually related by Captain Cook. While this approach embellishes the story, it isn’t consistent with what I consider a true biography. Dugard doesn’t go so far as to create conversations as I have seen in some supposed biographies, but it does cross a line between fiction and non-fiction.
There is also a great deal of repetitiveness throughout the book. Cook’s various character traits are definitely worth mentioning, but not over and over again. Also, some of the book seems a bit rushed, particularly toward the end of the book when Cook seems to go off the rails on his last voyage.
I missed having maps of the voyages in this book. Maybe the printed copy has them, but my Kindle edition did not. I have a sense of where Cook travelled, but some maps would have been helpful.
I learned a great deal about Cook and his explorations from this book, but it seemed to be missing something.
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