Atlantic

Great Sea Battles, Heroic Discoveries, Titanic Storms,and a Vast Ocean of a Million Stories

By: Simon Winchester

Narrated by: Simon Winchester

"Variably genial, cautionary, lyrical, admonitory, terrifying, horrifying and inspiring…A lifetime of thought, travel, reading, imagination and memory inform this affecting account." —Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

Blending history and anecdote, geography and reminiscence, science and exposition, New York Times bestselling author Simon Winchester tells the breathtaking saga of the Atlantic Ocean. A gifted storyteller and consummate historian, Winchester sets the great blue sea's epic narrative against the backdrop of mankind's intellectual evolution, telling not only the story of an ocean, but the story of civilization. Fans of Winchester's Krakatoa, The Man Who Loved China, and The Professor and the Madman will love this masterful, penetrating, and resonant tale of humanity finding its way across the ocean of history.

So important yet taken for granted

What did you like best about Atlantic? What did you like least?

Best: the description of the birth of the Atlantic and the history of it's exploration. Excellent explanations and recounting of a lot of history in an understandable, succinct way. Loved the historical anecdotes. Although it was hard to hear, there was an important message about mankind's abuse of the ocean and it's sea life.
Least: the overall structure of the book. It was, at points, an obvious stretch to make the content fit the structure. Instead of the structure helping to lay out so much information in a helpful way, it just made it feel like a hodgepodge. Also, didn't like the sections of the Atlantic portrayed in art and literature. Really disliked the comparisons between coastal cities. There were too many personal anecdotes.

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

A different structure instead of the Shakespearean reference.
Less personal information and much less about how certain experiences affected the author. The personal commentary seemed out of place at times. I appreciate the author's appreciation of things, but seemed over-sentimental.

What did you like about the performance? What did you dislike?

I love Simon Winchester as a narrator. Great voice. The only times I didn't care for the narration was during the sentimental portions-a little too affected.

Was Atlantic worth the listening time?

Overall, yes. Some interesting and important information. You just have to push through the sentimentality and the topics that don't really fit.

Any additional comments?

Simon Winchester is an excellent author and narrator. This book was good but it could have been amazing. He is so talented imparting information about history and science, but I find him less talented as an essayist.

An homage to Atlas

Magnificent. Brilliant, captivating i listening to the book over & over chapter by chapter, savoring its wisdom & stories like a delectable dessert. Simon Winchester is a master at making history & the earth come alive in ways one could hardly imagine. Pure perfection

I will read all of Winchester's books because....

Would you listen to Atlantic again? Why?

Yes, the narrator has a soothing intelligent voice of reason and he makes anything fascinating.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Atlantic?

Description of a South Atlantic island and how a friend ended up running the fishing industry there.

Any additional comments?

I will read everything SW writes. He's a pillar of knowledge and truth in a confusing world.

Interesting personal account in author's voice

I truly enjoyed hearing the author read his book. It made his personal accounts and stories more memorable. The author has a very interesting way of presenting information.

Another Splendid Book from a Great Author

Simon Winchester writes books like no author I have ever read. He can take a word, like "Pacific" or "Atlantic" and weave it in to the grand story that you never knew, and feel you ought to have known. His intellectual powers are prodigious, yet he is a man with a soul -- as the moving ending to this book, on a forlorn and forgotten beach -- amply demonstrates. Best of all this audiobook is actually read by the author. No actor could give more power to words which Winchester researched and lived.

Winchester writes in the finest traditions of the best authors I have ever read, people like Andrew Chaiken, Richard Rhodes and Norman Mailer -- who know that melodrama is no substitute for exhaustive research. I highly recommend this, and every other Winchester book I have ever read: "Krakatoa", "Pacific" and "A Crack in the Edge of the World". I intend to read his others. Sincerely, Dan Fiorucci Odessa, TX. July 2017