One of Library Journal's 10 Best Books of 2015
Following his acclaimed Atlantic and The Men Who United the States,
New York Times bestselling author Simon Winchester offers an
enthralling biography of the Pacific Ocean and its role in the modern
world, exploring our relationship with this imposing force of nature.
As the Mediterranean shaped the classical world, and the Atlantic
connected Europe to the New World, the Pacific Ocean defines our
tomorrow. With China on the rise, so, too, are the American cities of
the West coast, including Seattle, San Francisco, and the long cluster
of towns down the Silicon Valley.
Today, the Pacific is ascendant. Its geological history has long
transformed us--tremendous earthquakes, volcanoes, and tsunamis--but its
human history, from a Western perspective, is quite young, beginning
with Magellan's sixteenth-century circumnavigation. It is a natural
wonder whose most fascinating history is currently being made.
In telling the story of the Pacific, Simon Winchester takes us from the
Bering Strait to Cape Horn, the Yangtze River to the Panama Canal, and
to the many small islands and archipelagos that lie in between. He
observes the fall of a dictator in Manila, visits aboriginals in
northern Queensland, and is jailed in Tierra del Fuego, the land at the
end of the world. His journey encompasses a trip down the Alaska
Highway, a stop at the isolated Pitcairn Islands, a trek across South
Korea and a glimpse of its mysterious northern neighbor.
Winchester's personal experience is vast and his storytelling second to
none. And his historical understanding of the region is formidable,
making Pacific a paean to this magnificent sea of beauty, myth, and
imagination that is transforming our lives.
