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Sunday, March 1, 2015

Great review of Eleanor's seafaring story



Most Helpful Customer Reviews
Format:Paperback
Popular historical fiction features female protagonists in exotic settings. Eleanor’s Odyssey delivers both these elements in a real life narrative. In 1799 young and newly married Eleanor Reid sets sail with her merchant captain husband, who is transporting a ship’s hold full of Irish convicts to a penal colony in New South Wales (Australia). Author and maritime historian Joan Druett rescued Eleanor Reid’s narrative, first published in serial format in a nineteenth century journal, and presents each fascinating leg of the journey, giving historical, political, and socio-economic background on the places Eleanor and the ship Friendship called upon.

Part primary source travelogue, part narrative non-fiction, Eleanor’s Odyssey presents a deeply researched panorama of culture and maritime commerce during the time of Napoleon. This is a fascinating book on many levels, including over one hundred illustrations - from ladies’ fashion to maps to natural history - and many original drawings by Ron Druett. Eleanor’s Odyssey is a great value.

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