Over the Edge of the World

Magellan's Terrifying Circumnavigation of the Globe

By: Laurence Bergreen

Narrated by: Laurence Bergreen

A majestic tale of discovery thatchanged many long-held views about the world

In 1519 Magellan and his fleet of five ships set sail from Seville, Spain, to discover a water route to the fabled Spice Islands in Indonesia, where the most sought-after commodities -- cloves, pepper, and nutmeg -- flourished. Three years later, a handful of survivors returned with an abundance of spices from their intended destination, but with just one ship carrying eighteen emaciated men. During their remarkable voyage around the world the crew endured starvation, disease, mutiny, and torture. Many men died, including Magellan, who was violently killed in a fierce battle.

This is the first full account in nearly half a century of this voyage into history: a tour of the world emerging from the Middle Ages into the Renaissance; a startling anthropological account of tribes, languages, and customs unknown to Europeans; and a chronicle of a desperate grab for commercial and political power.

The Voice is NOT a Problem

I held off on buying this book for months because of the one-star rating by the listener who could not stand the author's voice. Well, I wish I hadn't waited. Sure, the guy's voice is a bit geeky, but few of us have a voice like James Earl Jones and others. Having the author read the book lends authenticity. I had no problems with it and found the book fascinating. It the subject matter interests you, do not hesitate. You will enjoy this book.

Nuanced

Very interesting, exciting and inspiring - the narrative is engaging and the positions pretty nuanced.

Reads like a history professor

This would have benefitted greatly from the services of a professional narrator. The author’s own reading might have added authority but, alas, he plods along with little expressive enthusiasm. The story itself treats the huge volume of facts as all of equal importance.

Amazing adventure

Excellent story of hardship, luck, death and survival. But authors should stick to writing and not narrating.

NO Se Habla Espanol or Ingles

On the plus side, a descriptive window into the "Time of Discovery". I learned a great deal about Magellan and his fated voyage. If you multi-task and listen to this while on the elliptical or treadmill, you will not feel so ripped off. As a student of romance languages, I was so offended with the author's constant hacked up Spanish and Portugues... but even English was a challenge for him ... "sea-men" which came out like "semen", it was so annoying! The author overstepped in attempting to narrate. Hello?? Are there any audio editors out there???