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Adventurous,
Informative,
Dramatic

3 reviews

The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder
by David Grann

Published: 2023-04-18T00:0
Hardcover : 352 pages
14 members reading this now
59 clubs reading this now
4 members have read this book
Recommended to book clubs by 3 of 3 members
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From the author of Killers of the Flower Moon, a page-turning story of shipwreck, survival, and savagery, culminating in a court martial that reveals a shocking truth. The powerful narrative reveals the deeper meaning of the events on The Wager, showing ...
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Introduction

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From the author of Killers of the Flower Moon, a page-turning story of shipwreck, survival, and savagery, culminating in a court martial that reveals a shocking truth. The powerful narrative reveals the deeper meaning of the events on The Wager, showing that it was not only the captain and crew who ended up on trial, but the very idea of empire.

A Best Book of the Year: The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The New Yorker, TIME, Smithsonian, NPR, Vulture, Kirkus Reviews

“Riveting...Reads like a thriller, tackling a multilayered history—and imperialism—with gusto.” —Time

"A tour de force of narrative nonfiction.” —The Wall Street Journal

On January 28, 1742, a ramshackle vessel of patched-together wood and cloth washed up on the coast of Brazil. Inside were thirty emaciated men, barely alive, and they had an extraordinary tale to tell. They were survivors of His Majesty’s Ship the Wager, a British vessel that had left England in 1740 on a secret mission during an imperial war with Spain. While the Wager had been chasing a Spanish treasure-filled galleon known as “the prize of all the oceans,” it had wrecked on a desolate island off the coast of Patagonia. The men, after being marooned for months and facing starvation, built the flimsy craft and sailed for more than a hundred days, traversing nearly 3,000 miles of storm-wracked seas. They were greeted as heroes.

But then ... six months later, another, even more decrepit craft landed on the coast of Chile. This boat contained just three castaways, and they told a very different story. The thirty sailors who landed in Brazil were not heroes – they were mutineers. The first group responded with countercharges of their own, of a tyrannical and murderous senior officer and his henchmen. It became clear that while stranded on the island the crew had fallen into anarchy, with warring factions fighting for dominion over the barren wilderness. As accusations of treachery and murder flew, the Admiralty convened a court martial to determine who was telling the truth. The stakes were life-and-death—for whomever the court found guilty could hang.

The Wager is a grand tale of human behavior at the extremes told by one of our greatest nonfiction writers. Grann’s recreation of the hidden world on a British warship rivals the work of Patrick O’Brian, his portrayal of the castaways’ desperate straits stands up to the classics of survival writing such as The Endurance, and his account of the court martial has the savvy of a Scott Turow thriller. As always with Grann’s work, the incredible twists of the narrative hold the reader spellbound.

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Excerpt

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Discussion Questions

1. Why did the Wager crash? Was the expedition of the Wager destined to fail? Why or why not?

2. Why would someone want to join the British navy in the 1700s? What are the advantages and disadvantages of a career in the navy during this time?

3. What are three ways that racism and colonialism impacted what happened with the Wager’s crew and how they perceived their experiences? How did colonialism and racism impact events surrounding the Wager and the accounts emerging from them?

4. What was the most memorable part of this book for you? Why did it make an impression?

5. Read your favorite passage from the book out loud and explain why you liked it or what it made you think about.

6. Was this non-fiction book fun to read, or was it a little dry? Did the author need to "spice it up" or "tone it down"? How could they have managed that?

7. What made this book different than other books on this subject? Do you think it is better or worse than other books on this subject matter?

Source: The Book Club Guide Blog (https://www.book-club-guide.com/book-club-questions.html)

Notes From the Author to the Bookclub

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Member Reviews

Overall rating:
 
 
  "Well researched book about little known event."by Gail R. (see profile) 07/13/24

The Wager, David Grann, author
The year is 1740. Once a year, the Spaniards sailed to the Philippines with silver from their colonies in South America, to buy goods, and then they transport
... (read more)

 
by Mindy R. (see profile) 06/13/24

 
by Tracey P. (see profile) 04/30/24

Shocking

 
  "a must read for HIstoric fiction lovers"by Deborah P. (see profile) 11/03/23

David Grann's research is apparent in this book as he takes the reader along for a perilous ride around the cape!

 
  "Great maritime drama"by Cindy B. (see profile) 04/17/23

England and Spain have never been best friends, to put it nicely. Occasionally they've broken out into actual war. This book centers around a time of such conflict, when in the 1740s England... (read more)

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