Two Years Before the Mast: A Personal Narrative of Life at Sea
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Prime members: New to Audible?Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Two Years Before the Mast: A Personal Narrative of Life at Sea
Buy for $31.49
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Hal Saunders
About this listen
Two Years Before the Mast is an 1840 memoir by the author Richard Henry Dana. A Harvard graduate, he spent the years 1834 to 1836 as a sailor on a merchant ship on a voyage from Boston to California. The journey took them past Cape Horn on the Tierra del Fuego archipelago where the Pacific and Atlantic oceans meet.
Dana provides detailed descriptions of ship life and the technical aspects of sailing. A chapter on California and its inhabitants offers valuable historical insights on the state which was then a foreign land.
Public Domain (P)2019 Museum AudiobooksListeners also enjoyed...
-
James Cook
- The Story Behind the Man Who Mapped the World
- By: Peter FitzSimons
- Narrated by: Michael Carman
- Length: 21 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 272
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 230
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 231
The name Captain James Cook is one of the most recognisable in Australian history - an almost mythic figure who is often discussed, celebrated, reviled and debated. But who was the real James Cook? This Yorkshire farm boy would go on to become the foremost mariner, scientist, navigator and cartographer of his era, and to personally map a third of the globe. His great voyages of discovery were incredible feats of seamanship and navigation.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Great. But...
- By Virgil Tracy on 05-01-21
By: Peter FitzSimons
-
Sailing to the Edge of Time
- The Promise, the Challenges, and the Freedom of Ocean Voyaging
- By: John Kretschmer
- Narrated by: Matthew Kevin Anderson
- Length: 9 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 280
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 247
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 248
John Kretschmer is sailing’s practical philosopher - as much a doer as a thinker. And that is the overarching theme of this chronicle of a sailing life. Often amusing, sometimes poignant, occasionally terrifying but always inspiring, his deeply personal account is a welcome reminder of the good life waiting at sea. With hundreds of thousands of nautical miles under his keel, John’s adventures have taken him several times around the world.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Disappointed
- By Worldoceans on 03-07-20
By: John Kretschmer
-
Mutiny on the Bounty
- By: Peter FitzSimons
- Narrated by: Michael Carman
- Length: 22 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 926
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 807
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 803
The mutiny on HMS Bounty, in the South Pacific on 28 April 1789, is one of history's truly great stories - a tale of human drama, intrigue and adventure of the highest order - and in the hands of Peter FitzSimons it comes to life as never before. Commissioned by the Royal Navy to collect breadfruit plants from Tahiti and take them to the West Indies, the Bounty's crew found themselves in a tropical paradise. Five months later, they did not want to leave.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
You don't know the whole story.
- By Justin Sluyter on 05-01-19
By: Peter FitzSimons
-
Sailing into Oblivion: The Solo Non-stop Voyage of the Mighty Sparrow
- By: Jerome Rand
- Narrated by: Jerome Rand
- Length: 5 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 125
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 111
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 109
The true account of the 2017-2018 solo nonstop circumnavigation by Jerome Rand aboard the Westsail 32 Mighty Sparrow. A testament to endurance and adventure, this memoir recounts what life is like aboard a small sailboat during a 271-day voyage around the globe, alone, and without stopping. One of the greatest challenges of both body and mind, the author will take you onboard during the good times and the bad. As one of only a handful of people to have ever succeed in such a small boat, this story is truly the adventure of a lifetime.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
What not to do!
- By j daly on 09-30-21
By: Jerome Rand
-
The Unknown Shore
- By: Patrick O'Brian
- Narrated by: Patrick Tull
- Length: 11 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 442
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 337
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 336
Inspired by the Wager disaster, The Unknown Shore is an immediate precursor to Patrick O'Brian's acclaimed Aubrey/Maturin series that displays all the splendid prose and attention to detail that delight O'Brian's millions of fans.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
As Good as the Series
- By Robert Goldston on 08-09-06
By: Patrick O'Brian
-
Philosophy of Sailing: Offshore in Search of the Universe
- By: Christian Williams
- Narrated by: Christian Williams
- Length: 10 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 452
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 400
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 399
Veteran sailor and writer Christian Williams invites us along once again on a 5,000-mile voyage of discovery around the North Pacific. Equipped with a new boat, a well-stocked toolbox, and the entire history of philosophic thought, he takes us as crew through squalls and calms deep into a laboratory of the universe that exists only out of sight of land. Funny, erudite, and at times deeply personal, Philosophy of Sailing explores who we are and how encounters with the unknown can be a path to revelation and joy.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
...AKA, an exercise in patience
- By dubbelOHnegative on 04-07-19
-
James Cook
- The Story Behind the Man Who Mapped the World
- By: Peter FitzSimons
- Narrated by: Michael Carman
- Length: 21 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 272
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 230
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 231
The name Captain James Cook is one of the most recognisable in Australian history - an almost mythic figure who is often discussed, celebrated, reviled and debated. But who was the real James Cook? This Yorkshire farm boy would go on to become the foremost mariner, scientist, navigator and cartographer of his era, and to personally map a third of the globe. His great voyages of discovery were incredible feats of seamanship and navigation.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Great. But...
- By Virgil Tracy on 05-01-21
By: Peter FitzSimons
-
Sailing to the Edge of Time
- The Promise, the Challenges, and the Freedom of Ocean Voyaging
- By: John Kretschmer
- Narrated by: Matthew Kevin Anderson
- Length: 9 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 280
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 247
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 248
John Kretschmer is sailing’s practical philosopher - as much a doer as a thinker. And that is the overarching theme of this chronicle of a sailing life. Often amusing, sometimes poignant, occasionally terrifying but always inspiring, his deeply personal account is a welcome reminder of the good life waiting at sea. With hundreds of thousands of nautical miles under his keel, John’s adventures have taken him several times around the world.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Disappointed
- By Worldoceans on 03-07-20
By: John Kretschmer
-
Mutiny on the Bounty
- By: Peter FitzSimons
- Narrated by: Michael Carman
- Length: 22 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 926
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 807
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 803
The mutiny on HMS Bounty, in the South Pacific on 28 April 1789, is one of history's truly great stories - a tale of human drama, intrigue and adventure of the highest order - and in the hands of Peter FitzSimons it comes to life as never before. Commissioned by the Royal Navy to collect breadfruit plants from Tahiti and take them to the West Indies, the Bounty's crew found themselves in a tropical paradise. Five months later, they did not want to leave.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
You don't know the whole story.
- By Justin Sluyter on 05-01-19
By: Peter FitzSimons
-
Sailing into Oblivion: The Solo Non-stop Voyage of the Mighty Sparrow
- By: Jerome Rand
- Narrated by: Jerome Rand
- Length: 5 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 125
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 111
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 109
The true account of the 2017-2018 solo nonstop circumnavigation by Jerome Rand aboard the Westsail 32 Mighty Sparrow. A testament to endurance and adventure, this memoir recounts what life is like aboard a small sailboat during a 271-day voyage around the globe, alone, and without stopping. One of the greatest challenges of both body and mind, the author will take you onboard during the good times and the bad. As one of only a handful of people to have ever succeed in such a small boat, this story is truly the adventure of a lifetime.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
What not to do!
- By j daly on 09-30-21
By: Jerome Rand
-
The Unknown Shore
- By: Patrick O'Brian
- Narrated by: Patrick Tull
- Length: 11 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 442
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 337
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 336
Inspired by the Wager disaster, The Unknown Shore is an immediate precursor to Patrick O'Brian's acclaimed Aubrey/Maturin series that displays all the splendid prose and attention to detail that delight O'Brian's millions of fans.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
As Good as the Series
- By Robert Goldston on 08-09-06
By: Patrick O'Brian
-
Philosophy of Sailing: Offshore in Search of the Universe
- By: Christian Williams
- Narrated by: Christian Williams
- Length: 10 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 452
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 400
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 399
Veteran sailor and writer Christian Williams invites us along once again on a 5,000-mile voyage of discovery around the North Pacific. Equipped with a new boat, a well-stocked toolbox, and the entire history of philosophic thought, he takes us as crew through squalls and calms deep into a laboratory of the universe that exists only out of sight of land. Funny, erudite, and at times deeply personal, Philosophy of Sailing explores who we are and how encounters with the unknown can be a path to revelation and joy.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
...AKA, an exercise in patience
- By dubbelOHnegative on 04-07-19
-
The Wager
- A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder
- By: David Grann
- Narrated by: Dion Graham, David Grann
- Length: 8 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 5,101
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 4,511
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 4,509
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.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Gasping for Air
- By Jean Engle on 04-19-23
By: David Grann
-
Alone Together
- Sailing Solo to Hawaii and Beyond
- By: Christian Williams
- Narrated by: Christian Williams
- Length: 11 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 740
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 676
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 679
What happens when a man of today's overconnected world sets off alone across the Pacific at the age of 71? Christian Williams, a veteran sailor and writer, planned a 6,000-mile voyage as a test of his own seamanship and endurance, and to fulfill a lifelong goal. But he found his focus quickly turning from the surrounding sea to all of us. Is anyone the same person when no one else is there? Do we dare to find out?
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
For Every Sailor and Those Dreaming of the Seas
- By Striker on 11-16-16
-
Two Years Before the Mast
- By: Richard Henry Dana
- Narrated by: David McCallion
- Length: 15 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 134
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 117
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 115
Two Years Before the Mast is an American classic published in 1840. This is the account of Richard Henry Dana’s two-year adventure as a sailor. Throughout his time sailing around Cape Horn on the brig Pilgrim, Dana kept a diary, and on his return to Massachusetts, he wrote this now-loved classic. While attending Harvard College, Dana was stricken with measles, which would ultimately have a detrimental effect on his eyesight.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Brilliant
- By scott m on 03-12-19
-
Across Islands and Oceans
- A Journey Alone Around the World By Sail and By Foot
- By: James Baldwin
- Narrated by: Spencer King
- Length: 13 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 201
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 183
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 182
Across Islands and Oceans is the memoir of 25 year-old James Baldwin and his epic two-year, solo circumnavigation in Atom, his trusty but aging 28-foot sailboat.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Amazing Adventures
- By Jon on 05-03-19
By: James Baldwin
-
Robinson Crusoe
- By: Daniel Defoe
- Narrated by: Simon Vance
- Length: 10 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 4,040
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 3,546
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 3,543
Widely regarded as the first English novel, Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe is one of the most popular and influential adventure stories of all time. This classic tale of shipwreck and survival on an uninhabited island was an instant success when first published in 1719, and it has inspired countless imitations.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Great story but with moments that made me cringe
- By Tad Davis on 10-25-12
By: Daniel Defoe
-
Batavia
- By: Peter FitzSimons
- Narrated by: Richard Aspel
- Length: 17 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 551
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 484
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 483
The story begins in 1629, when the pride of the Dutch East India Company, the Batavia, is on its maiden voyage en route from Amsterdam to the Dutch East Indies, laden down with the greatest treasure to leave Holland. The magnificent ship is already boiling over with a mutinous plot that is just about to break into the open when, just off the coast of Western Australia, it strikes an unseen reef in the middle of the night.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Disaster, Mutiny, Murder, Survival
- By Todd on 02-07-13
By: Peter FitzSimons
-
A Land So Strange
- The Epic Journey of Cabeza de Vaca
- By: Andres Resendez
- Narrated by: Jonathan Davis
- Length: 7 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 2,474
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 2,113
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 2,115
In 1528, a mission set out from Spain to colonize Florida. But the expedition went horribly wrong: Delayed by a hurricane, knocked off course by a colossal error of navigation, and ultimately doomed by a disastrous decision to separate the men from their ships, the mission quickly became a desperate journey of survival. Of the 300 men who had embarked on the journey, only four survived - three Spaniards and an African slave.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
A worthwhile listen
- By Blake on 07-10-13
By: Andres Resendez
-
Master and Commander
- Aubrey/Maturin Series, Book 1
- By: Patrick O'Brian
- Narrated by: Patrick Tull
- Length: 16 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 7,306
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 5,722
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 5,692
This, the first in the splendid series of Jack Aubrey novels, establishes the friendship between Captain Aubrey, Royal Navy, and Stephen Maturin, ship's surgeon and intelligence agent, against the thrilling backdrop of the Napoleonic wars. Details of life aboard a man-of-war in Nelson's navy are faultlessly rendered: the conversational idiom of the officers in the ward room and the men on the lower deck, the food, the floggings, the mysteries of the wind and the rigging, and the road of broadsides as the great ships close in battle.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Choice of Narrators
- By Frank R. Adams on 04-23-10
By: Patrick O'Brian
-
A Voyage for Madmen
- By: Peter Nichols
- Narrated by: Norman Dietz
- Length: 10 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 313
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 276
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 273
In 1968, nine sailors set off on the most daring race ever held: to single-handedly circumnavigate the globe nonstop. It was a feat that had never been accomplished and one that would forever change the face of sailing. Ten months later, only one of the nine men would cross the finish line and earn fame, wealth, and glory. For the others, the reward was madness, failure, and death. In this extraordinary book, Peter Nichols chronicles a contest of the individual against the sea, waged at a time before cell phones and electronic positioning systems.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Not Awesome
- By Shaun G. on 04-23-19
By: Peter Nichols
-
In the Heart of the Sea
- The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex
- By: Nathaniel Philbrick
- Narrated by: Scott Brick
- Length: 10 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 3,485
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 2,798
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 2,794
The ordeal of the whaleship Essex was an event as mythic in the nineteenth century as the sinking of the Titanic was in the twentieth. In 1819 the Essex left Nantucket for the South Pacific with 20 crew members aboard. In the middle of the South Pacific the ship was rammed and sunk by an angry sperm whale. The crew drifted for more than 90 days in three tiny whaleboats, succumbing to weather, hunger, and disease and ultimately turning to drastic measures in the fight for survival.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Audio must have been fixed
- By Amazon Customer on 02-11-18
-
The Next Port
- 40,000 Miles, 43 Countries, 87 Islands and Countless Adventures (Sailing Adventures, Book 1)
- By: Heyward Coleman
- Narrated by: Timothy G Little
- Length: 14 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 24
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 23
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 23
Come aboard with Heyward and Charlotte as they transform a worn-out hull into a first-class blue water cruiser. Then take off and cross oceans with them, feeling their desperation when equipment failures force ingenious workarounds in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Share the highs of navigating the crystal waters of French Polynesia and the lows of crossing pirate-infested waters in the Indian Ocean and Gulf of Aden. Travel ashore with them to places not covered in travel brochures, meet natives untouched by the modern world, and navigate the political waters of Guantanamo Bay.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
The perfect balance
- By Christian on 02-24-23
By: Heyward Coleman
-
Island of the Lost
- Shipwrecked at the Edge of the World
- By: Joan Druett
- Narrated by: David Colacci
- Length: 8 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 5,133
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 4,627
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 4,610
Auckland Island is a godforsaken place in the middle of the Southern Ocean, 285 miles south of New Zealand. With year-round freezing rain and howling winds, it is one of the most forbidding places in the world. To be shipwrecked there means almost certain death. In 1864, Captain Thomas Musgrave and his crew of four aboard the schooner Grafton wreck on the southern end of the island. Utterly alone in a dense coastal forest, plagued by stinging blowflies and relentless rain, Captain Musgrave inspires his men to take action.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
One of the Best Stories Ever Told!
- By Tiffany on 04-10-16
By: Joan Druett
Related to this topic
-
Two Years Before the Mast
- By: Richard Henry Dana
- Narrated by: David McCallion
- Length: 15 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 134
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 117
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 115
Two Years Before the Mast is an American classic published in 1840. This is the account of Richard Henry Dana’s two-year adventure as a sailor. Throughout his time sailing around Cape Horn on the brig Pilgrim, Dana kept a diary, and on his return to Massachusetts, he wrote this now-loved classic. While attending Harvard College, Dana was stricken with measles, which would ultimately have a detrimental effect on his eyesight.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Brilliant
- By scott m on 03-12-19
-
Sailing Alone Around the World
- By: Joshua Slocum
- Narrated by: Alan Sklar
- Length: 7 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 204
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 110
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 113
Joshua Slocum was believed to be the first man to sail single-handed around the world. After a distinguished career, where he worked his way up from cabin boy to captain, Joshua Slocum wrecked his ship off the coast of Brazil. Turning this catastrophe to his advantage, he built a sailing canoe from the wreckage and sailed back to New York. Moreover, he wrote Voyage of the Liberdad, a chronicle of his trip, and earned some literary success.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
A REMARKABLE MAN
- By Rod on 05-03-06
By: Joshua Slocum
-
Master and Commander
- Aubrey/Maturin Series, Book 1
- By: Patrick O'Brian
- Narrated by: Patrick Tull
- Length: 16 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 7,306
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 5,722
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 5,692
This, the first in the splendid series of Jack Aubrey novels, establishes the friendship between Captain Aubrey, Royal Navy, and Stephen Maturin, ship's surgeon and intelligence agent, against the thrilling backdrop of the Napoleonic wars. Details of life aboard a man-of-war in Nelson's navy are faultlessly rendered: the conversational idiom of the officers in the ward room and the men on the lower deck, the food, the floggings, the mysteries of the wind and the rigging, and the road of broadsides as the great ships close in battle.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Choice of Narrators
- By Frank R. Adams on 04-23-10
By: Patrick O'Brian
-
The Unknown Shore
- By: Patrick O'Brian
- Narrated by: Patrick Tull
- Length: 11 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 442
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 337
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 336
Inspired by the Wager disaster, The Unknown Shore is an immediate precursor to Patrick O'Brian's acclaimed Aubrey/Maturin series that displays all the splendid prose and attention to detail that delight O'Brian's millions of fans.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
As Good as the Series
- By Robert Goldston on 08-09-06
By: Patrick O'Brian
-
James Cook
- The Story Behind the Man Who Mapped the World
- By: Peter FitzSimons
- Narrated by: Michael Carman
- Length: 21 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 272
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 230
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 231
The name Captain James Cook is one of the most recognisable in Australian history - an almost mythic figure who is often discussed, celebrated, reviled and debated. But who was the real James Cook? This Yorkshire farm boy would go on to become the foremost mariner, scientist, navigator and cartographer of his era, and to personally map a third of the globe. His great voyages of discovery were incredible feats of seamanship and navigation.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Great. But...
- By Virgil Tracy on 05-01-21
By: Peter FitzSimons
-
Ocean Life in the Old Sailing Ship Days
- From Forecastle to Quarter-Deck
- By: John D. Whidden
- Narrated by: Tom Perkins
- Length: 9 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 34
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 30
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 30
Orphaned at five, nothing held Whidden back from embarking on sea life seven years later. Serving as an apprentice, he quickly proved his worth and earned himself a mate's position by his early 20s. Graduating to third, second, and first office, he ended his career in command of, and having part-ownership of, his own vessel. Ocean Life in the Old Sailing Ship Days records a series of real events from his childhood impressions of rough and ready seamen to his thrilling and brutal experiences of war.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Good salty story
- By Donald L. on 07-17-18
By: John D. Whidden
-
Two Years Before the Mast
- By: Richard Henry Dana
- Narrated by: David McCallion
- Length: 15 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 134
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 117
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 115
Two Years Before the Mast is an American classic published in 1840. This is the account of Richard Henry Dana’s two-year adventure as a sailor. Throughout his time sailing around Cape Horn on the brig Pilgrim, Dana kept a diary, and on his return to Massachusetts, he wrote this now-loved classic. While attending Harvard College, Dana was stricken with measles, which would ultimately have a detrimental effect on his eyesight.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Brilliant
- By scott m on 03-12-19
-
Sailing Alone Around the World
- By: Joshua Slocum
- Narrated by: Alan Sklar
- Length: 7 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 204
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 110
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 113
Joshua Slocum was believed to be the first man to sail single-handed around the world. After a distinguished career, where he worked his way up from cabin boy to captain, Joshua Slocum wrecked his ship off the coast of Brazil. Turning this catastrophe to his advantage, he built a sailing canoe from the wreckage and sailed back to New York. Moreover, he wrote Voyage of the Liberdad, a chronicle of his trip, and earned some literary success.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
A REMARKABLE MAN
- By Rod on 05-03-06
By: Joshua Slocum
-
Master and Commander
- Aubrey/Maturin Series, Book 1
- By: Patrick O'Brian
- Narrated by: Patrick Tull
- Length: 16 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 7,306
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 5,722
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 5,692
This, the first in the splendid series of Jack Aubrey novels, establishes the friendship between Captain Aubrey, Royal Navy, and Stephen Maturin, ship's surgeon and intelligence agent, against the thrilling backdrop of the Napoleonic wars. Details of life aboard a man-of-war in Nelson's navy are faultlessly rendered: the conversational idiom of the officers in the ward room and the men on the lower deck, the food, the floggings, the mysteries of the wind and the rigging, and the road of broadsides as the great ships close in battle.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Choice of Narrators
- By Frank R. Adams on 04-23-10
By: Patrick O'Brian
-
The Unknown Shore
- By: Patrick O'Brian
- Narrated by: Patrick Tull
- Length: 11 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 442
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 337
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 336
Inspired by the Wager disaster, The Unknown Shore is an immediate precursor to Patrick O'Brian's acclaimed Aubrey/Maturin series that displays all the splendid prose and attention to detail that delight O'Brian's millions of fans.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
As Good as the Series
- By Robert Goldston on 08-09-06
By: Patrick O'Brian
-
James Cook
- The Story Behind the Man Who Mapped the World
- By: Peter FitzSimons
- Narrated by: Michael Carman
- Length: 21 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 272
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 230
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 231
The name Captain James Cook is one of the most recognisable in Australian history - an almost mythic figure who is often discussed, celebrated, reviled and debated. But who was the real James Cook? This Yorkshire farm boy would go on to become the foremost mariner, scientist, navigator and cartographer of his era, and to personally map a third of the globe. His great voyages of discovery were incredible feats of seamanship and navigation.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Great. But...
- By Virgil Tracy on 05-01-21
By: Peter FitzSimons
-
Ocean Life in the Old Sailing Ship Days
- From Forecastle to Quarter-Deck
- By: John D. Whidden
- Narrated by: Tom Perkins
- Length: 9 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 34
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 30
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 30
Orphaned at five, nothing held Whidden back from embarking on sea life seven years later. Serving as an apprentice, he quickly proved his worth and earned himself a mate's position by his early 20s. Graduating to third, second, and first office, he ended his career in command of, and having part-ownership of, his own vessel. Ocean Life in the Old Sailing Ship Days records a series of real events from his childhood impressions of rough and ready seamen to his thrilling and brutal experiences of war.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Good salty story
- By Donald L. on 07-17-18
By: John D. Whidden
-
In the Wake of Madness
- The Murderous Voyage of the Whaleship Sharon
- By: Joan Druett
- Narrated by: Dennis Boutsikaris
- Length: 6 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 169
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 127
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 125
Commanded by Captain Howes Norris, the Sharon headed for the whaling grounds of the northwestern Pacific. At Pohnpei Island, 12 men from the Sharon deserted the ship, leaving her critically shorthanded. After steering for New Zealand to recruit more crew, the men on lookout raised a school of sperm whales. Two boats gave chase, each with a crew of six. Five men were left on board the Sharon: Norris, three pacific Islanders, and a Portuguese boy named Manuel.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Love this author.
- By David H. on 07-15-17
By: Joan Druett
-
Wreck of the Whale Ship Essex
- Narrative of the Most Extraordinary and Distressing Shipwreck of the Whale-Ship Essex (Original News Stories of Whale Attacks & Cannibals)
- By: Owen Chase, Thomas Nickerson
- Narrated by: Paul J. McSorley
- Length: 4 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 44
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 37
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 36
In one of the most spellbinding accounts of men who go down to the sea in ships, the modern listener is given a seat in the whale boat of Owen Chase as he and his fellow crew and their captain make way in three boats after the wreckage of the Whaleship Essex. The account of how the Essex was wrecked inspired the infamous book Moby Dick and countless movies, including In the Heart of the Sea.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Excellent telling of the true story
- By Vicki Goodwin on 03-03-16
By: Owen Chase, and others
-
Adrift
- A True Story of Tragedy on the Icy Atlantic and the One Who Lived to Tell About It
- By: Brian Murphy, Toula Vlahou
- Narrated by: Dan Warren
- Length: 9 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 54
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 50
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 50
The small ship making the Liverpool-to-New York trip in the early months of 1856 carried mail, crates of dry goods, and more than 100 passengers, mostly Irish emigrants. Suddenly, an iceberg tore the ship asunder, and five lifeboats were lowered. As four lifeboats drifted into the fog and icy water, never to be heard from again, the last boat wrenched away from the sinking ship with a few blankets, some water and biscuits, and 13 souls. Only one would survive. This is his story.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Engrossing
- By Trish on 04-20-22
By: Brian Murphy, and others
-
Mutiny on the Bounty
- By: Peter FitzSimons
- Narrated by: Michael Carman
- Length: 22 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 926
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 807
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 803
The mutiny on HMS Bounty, in the South Pacific on 28 April 1789, is one of history's truly great stories - a tale of human drama, intrigue and adventure of the highest order - and in the hands of Peter FitzSimons it comes to life as never before. Commissioned by the Royal Navy to collect breadfruit plants from Tahiti and take them to the West Indies, the Bounty's crew found themselves in a tropical paradise. Five months later, they did not want to leave.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
You don't know the whole story.
- By Justin Sluyter on 05-01-19
By: Peter FitzSimons
-
Last Flag Down
- The Epic Journey of the Last Confederate Warship
- By: John Baldwin, Ron Powers
- Narrated by: Michael Kramer
- Length: 11 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 88
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 55
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 55
As the Confederacy felt itself slipping beneath the Union juggernaut in late 1864, the South launched a desperate counteroffensive to force a standoff. Its secret weapon? A state-of-the-art raiding ship whose mission was to sink the U.S. merchant fleet. The raider's name was Shenandoah, and her executive officer was Conway Whittle, a 24-year-old warrior.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Good all around
- By Rob on 01-19-08
By: John Baldwin, and others
-
A Voyage for Madmen
- By: Peter Nichols
- Narrated by: Norman Dietz
- Length: 10 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 313
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 276
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 273
In 1968, nine sailors set off on the most daring race ever held: to single-handedly circumnavigate the globe nonstop. It was a feat that had never been accomplished and one that would forever change the face of sailing. Ten months later, only one of the nine men would cross the finish line and earn fame, wealth, and glory. For the others, the reward was madness, failure, and death. In this extraordinary book, Peter Nichols chronicles a contest of the individual against the sea, waged at a time before cell phones and electronic positioning systems.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Not Awesome
- By Shaun G. on 04-23-19
By: Peter Nichols
-
In the Heart of the Sea
- The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex
- By: Nathaniel Philbrick
- Narrated by: Scott Brick
- Length: 10 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 3,485
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 2,798
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 2,794
The ordeal of the whaleship Essex was an event as mythic in the nineteenth century as the sinking of the Titanic was in the twentieth. In 1819 the Essex left Nantucket for the South Pacific with 20 crew members aboard. In the middle of the South Pacific the ship was rammed and sunk by an angry sperm whale. The crew drifted for more than 90 days in three tiny whaleboats, succumbing to weather, hunger, and disease and ultimately turning to drastic measures in the fight for survival.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Audio must have been fixed
- By Amazon Customer on 02-11-18
-
Sea of Glory
- America's Voyage of Discovery, the U.S. Exploring Expedition, 1838-1842
- By: Nathaniel Philbrick
- Narrated by: Scott Brick
- Length: 12 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 626
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 467
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 471
America's first frontier was not the West; it was the sea, and no one writes more eloquently about that watery wilderness than Nathaniel Philbrick. In his best-selling In the Heart of the Sea, Philbrick probed the nightmarish dangers of the vast Pacific. Now, in an epic sea adventure, he writes about one of the most ambitious voyages of discovery the Western world has ever seen - the US Exploring Expedition of 1838-1842.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
A good solid voyage of discovery
- By Ken Sundermeyer on 06-18-05
-
Farther Than Any Man
- The Rise and Fall of Captain James Cook
- By: Martin Dugard
- Narrated by: Jack Chekijian
- Length: 11 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 391
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 339
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 338
In the annals of seafaring and exploration, there is one name that immediately evokes visions of the open ocean, billowing sails, visiting strange, exotic lands previously uncharted, and civilizations never before encountered - Captain James Cook. Full of realistic action, lush descriptions of places and events, and fascinating historical characters such as King George III and the soon-to-be-notorious Master William Bligh, Dugard's gripping account of the life and death of Captain James Cook is a thrilling story of a discoverer hell-bent on going farther than any man.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
Sloppy History
- By Kyle P. Dalton on 04-06-18
By: Martin Dugard
-
Hell on Ice
- The Saga of the Jeannette
- By: Edward Ellsberg
- Narrated by: Stephen Hoye
- Length: 14 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 31
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 27
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 27
In the 1870s, newspaperman James Gordon Bennett of the New York Herald drummed up excitement and publicity for his paper through highly publicized missions of exploration. In 1879, Bennett's idea for a voyage was his most audacious to date: the North Pole. To do this, he hired a team of naval veterans in addition to a smattering of civilians with specialized knowledge in meteorology, whaling, and naturalism. The men on board the Jeannette set off in September of 1879. This would be the last time anyone saw them for two years.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Great story, and great way to approach the telling
- By Christopher on 08-22-14
By: Edward Ellsberg
-
Erebus
- One Ship, Two Epic Voyages, and the Greatest Naval Mystery of All Time
- By: Michael Palin
- Narrated by: Michael Palin
- Length: 11 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 107
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 95
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 95
Michael Palin brings the fascinating story of the Erebus and its occupants to life, from its construction as a bomb vessel in 1826 through the flagship years of James Clark Ross’s Antarctic expedition and finally to Sir John Franklin’s quest for the holy grail of navigation - a route through the Northwest Passage, where the ship disappeared into the depths of the sea for more than 150 years. It was rediscovered under the arctic waters in 2014.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Engrossing story
- By Anonymous User on 10-01-24
By: Michael Palin
-
Captain James Cook
- By: Rob Mundle
- Narrated by: Paul English
- Length: 15 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 142
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 124
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 124
Captain James Cook is one of the greatest maritime explorers of all time. Over three remarkable voyages of discovery into the Pacific in the latter part of the 18th century, Cook unravelled the oldest mystery surrounding the existence of Terra Australis Incognita - the Great South Land. He became the first explorer to circumnavigate New Zealand and establish that it was two main islands; discover the Hawaiian Islands for the British Empire; and left an enduring legacy.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
High school history text?
- By peter on 08-31-22
By: Rob Mundle
What listeners say about Two Years Before the Mast: A Personal Narrative of Life at Sea
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars
-
Story4 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 01-20-21
reality beats fiction
I loved this book. is a real and accurate glimpse into an other time and life. It has started me looking for more historical journals to read
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 02-08-21
2yrs b4 mast
seemed a little too fast and needing pauses, inflection, changes of pace, modulation otherwisr, enjoyable
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall1 out of 5 stars
-
Performance1 out of 5 stars
- Michael A
- 06-11-21
Narrator killed it for me
I seriously questioned whether the narrator was a robot sometimes. I was really expecting to enjoy this and couldn't bear to listen to more than the first few chapters.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful