The Unknown Shore

By: Patrick O'Brian

Narrated by: Patrick Tull

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.

Patrick O'Brian's first novel about the sea, The Golden Ocean, took inspiration from Commodore George Anson's fateful circumnavigation of the globe in 1740.

In The Unknown Shore, O'Brian returns to this rich source and mines it brilliantly for another, quite different tale of exploration and adventure.

The Wager was parted from Anson's squadron in the fierce storms off Cape Horn and struggled alone up the coast of Chile until she was driven against the rocks and sank. The survivors were soon involved in trouble of every kind. A surplus of rum, a disappearing stock of food, and a hard, detested captain soon drove them into drunkenness, mutiny, and bloodshed. After many months of privation, a handful of men made their way northward under the guidance of a band of Indians, at last finding safety in Valparaiso.

This saga of survival is the background to the adventures of two young men aboard the Wager: midshipman Jack Byron and his friend Tobias Barrow, an alarmingly naive surgeon's mate. Patrick O'Brian's many devoted readers will take particular interest in this story, as Jack and Toby form a kind of blueprint for Jack Aubrey and Stephen Maturin, the famed heroes of the great Aubrey/Maturin series to come.

©1959 Patrick O'Brian (P)1996 Recorded Books

Critic reviews

"Here is an unexpected bonus: a precursor to the Aubrey-Maturin series...with all the charm of the author's mature works." (The New York Times)

Wonderful predecessor to the Aubrey Maturin series

Wonderful predecessor to the Aubrey Maturin series, highly recommended to fans of that series. (minus the outdated prejudice against native peoples)

An amazing journey

Plus the Full wit of Patrick O'Brian, Who should never be read by anyone but Patrick Tull. The early version of the Aubrey Maturin stories, some of the most grim and comical adventures you'll hear anywhere.

Not for listening in a car

An expansive yarn that encompasses a world that no one living has had the chance to experience. But don't listen in a car, plane or anywhere there is background noise and no N/C earphones. The narrative is very realistic with many asides, mutters and introspection that gets lost.

Great story for lovers of the nautical adventures

Great story for lovers of Aubrey/Maturin series! while not about the same characters, this story's protagonists feel like the author was developing the former. Jack and Tobias are younger (midshipman and surgeon's mate) but their character and personality traits make you think it's (almost) a younger Aubrey and Maturin.
Told with the same wit as his later books, part of the story made me laugh out loud, and the fact that the underlying story is based on true occurrence makes it all the more incredible as to the hardship that they endured in the second part of the book.
Also the narrator does a fantastic job!

Portrait of Jack Aubrey as a Young Man

Oddly, I read this book last of the whole Aubrey-Maturin series, including the dictionary and the cook book. I was fortunate. You wonder what makes a man devote the most part of his life to a single set of characters and this book was the germ from which all of that had sprung. You can almost hear O'Brian's brain working, developing, almost growing each character's idiosyncrasies, character, opinions, etc., as he goes along. It was well worth the read. Patrick Tull is the perfect narrator, and added greatly to this whole work.