The Wager by David Grann

A big thank you to @doubledaybooks for my #gifted copy.

This is the incredible true story 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.”

When two separate groups of emaciated sailors turn up, months after the Wager was assumed to be lost at sea, they all have an extraordinary tale to tell. Each group accused the other of murder and treachery. The Admiralty convened a court marshal to determine the truth.

This story reveals how human behavior when pushed to its limits, can become unhinged. It was amazing to see how fast the rigid structure of command among the officers broke down under severe distress. How the men even survived under such dire conditions was fascinating to read.

Grann is one of the best nonfiction writers today. If you read his previous book, 𝘒𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘍𝘭𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳 𝘔𝘰𝘰𝘯, you know he writes in a captivating way that will have you turning the pages quickly until the very end.

I would highly recommend this one for a wide variety of readers. It was such an interesting look into the secret world of life on a British warship and eye-opening look into human nature. I eagerly look forward to David Grann’s next book.