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Summary: A "real" survivor story.
Review: This book is an accurate account of survival at sea for a crew of a shipwrecked whale boat in the Pacific Ocean. It is interesting to read about the "bad" decisions made by the Captain and officers, by avoiding certain islands(which would have saved lives ultimately)because of a fear of island "cannibilism". It shows the lack of knowledge or communication present during this era. The last chapters of the book are very captivating, in which the crew resorts to the true essence of survival in the human species( I don't want to spoil the story by describing the details!) This really made me think of how we, as human beings, take everyday things for granted. I think that this book brings us back to "reality" of just how fragile our lives are! A great history book. If you think those "reality" TV survival shows are tough, you need to read a "real" survival story, this one wasn't made for TV ratings!!!
Rating: 
Summary: a fascinating portrait...
Review: Nathaniel Philbrick gives us a well-rounded study of life in the whaling town of Nantucket in the early 1800's. Drawing you into the machinations of life there & the motivations of its people, you find you are fully engrossed in a page-turner. I enjoyed the book, and found myself having vivid dreams of life on the sea,(and a few nightmares).Having listened to the complaints of students who can't get through Moby Dick, I would implore them to read this fascinating & historical account first... This book is written well for wide appeal.
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Summary: Extraordinary tale of survival
Review: Wanting to take something to read at the beach while on vacation, I literally stumbled across this book at the book store. After reading the back cover and glancing through the pages, I decided to give it a shot. I'm very glad that I did. Philbrick tells the tragic story of the whaleship Essex, sunk by a whale in the 19th century. He starts off the story with the background of the whaling industry that transformed Nantucket into the whaling capital of the world. And then it's on to the Essex's travels. Explaining in great detail what a crewman on a whaleship goes through when capturing and harvesting a whale gives you a greater appreciation for their efforts. These trips lasted years. Philbrick explains what problems whaleships can encounter while out at sea. It's only when the ship is attacked by a whale that the story really picks up the pace. Until then it was an interesting reading on their trials and tribulations, but sometimes it felt like I was reading a history book. When the men are alone on the water in their smaller whaleships, and the struggles with the sea, food and monotony take center stage, the book is hard to put down. Everything they went through, from misguided information, boats they couldn't steer, some stealing food to ultimately having to rely on the dead for nourishment, it's hard to believe anyone survived. It's at this point you wish Philbrick could get even more information into his narrative - you want to know everything that happened on their journey. His style is very easy reading. He fills in the story with background information where appropriate, letting the reader know what went wrong and why. What a different course of events would of happened if they decided on a different course. By the time you finish the story, you feel overwhelmed at their struggles. It makes your own problems seem insignificant. This book shows what we are capable of enduring when put to the task.
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Summary: In The Heart of the Sea....
Review: I found "In the Heart of the Sea" not only a compelling tale about survival on the sea, but also very informative about whaling in the 1800's. Some parts were slow moving but overall a very good book.
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Summary: Floats above others of the genre...
Review: A great read, both educational and entertaining, In the Heart of the Sea goes beyond a typical sea story and captures the time and space of a real event, trumping the famous fiction story (Moby Dick) that loosely rose from the history. Starting with a great adventure as its base, Philbrick has wrapped in many fascinating details of the time (the nantucket whaleing industry, the island's cultural roots, a geography lesson and social commentary). I bought this book following on some of the sea adventure stories I've read lately (including the fascinating story of Shackelton's travails ("Endurance")... and was pleased to find adventure and so much more. Run out to buy this and you'll have a suspensful read, a sailing story, and a history lesson all in one!
Rating:
Summary: A very fine book.
Review: I disagree with the comparisons to "Longitude"--this book is much, much better. "In the Heart of the Sea" defies expectations. In just 300 pages, Philbrick covers in engaging fashion everything from the whaling industry to early 19th century Nantucket society. Without preaching (thank goodness), he raises issues of race, the role of women in business and society, and man's impact on the environment, among others. At the same time, the book is, to use the cliche, a real page-turner. The narrative never slows, and the action is almost continuous, from storms to killing whales to the battle for survival and the ultimate resort to cannibalism. Again, not something I expected from the National Book Award winner for nonfiction. Still, Philbrick finds time to take the occasional interesting detour: for example, discussing other instances of cannibalism, or the harvesting of Galapagos tortoises, or the mariner's custom of "casting lots" to determine who will survive. These sidelights further illuminate, rather than detract from, an already compelling story. The book also contains helpful maps, diagrams of the Essex, and just enough photographs to flavor the story. History readers should put this book at the top of their list.
Rating:
Summary: Good book if you read it for what it is
Review: I enjoyed this book very much. I will not get into the story of what the book is about because the reviews made before me has done the job remarkably well. Especially the fact that it is a true story. It seems to me that fiction has taken prominence over fact sometimes in this modern world that we can not disern which is which any more. We live in a world that sometimes cannot put things like this in there proper perspective. Folks, it did happen. If its not on the six o'clock news we think it never happen. Well, what is history for? Never the less it is a great read,unless of course you happen to be stranded on a island or on a life boat. Enjoy every morsel.
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Summary: Survival AND Suspense
Review: This is a captivating book that cannot be put down easily. The description of the survival methods of these whalers in the early 1800's makes for engrossing reading. I highly recommend this to everyone. It is better by far than The Perfect Storm. I purposely slowed my reading of the book in order to make it last longer since it is a relatively short novel. Enjoy it everyone!
Rating:
Summary: This is a fascinating glimpse of the past.
Review: So many reviewers have done such a great job in their descriptions that I don't want to rehash the story again. Big whale, little ship, cannibalization, fascinating characters - all great elements to create a compelling story. This is not the typical genre that I gravitate toward, but I found myself unable to put this book down. The descriptions of the whaling society in Nantucket hooked me from page one - and the story just would not let go. I really don't care for gross out books, and to be honest if I had realized how much of that was in this novel, I would have passed it over. That would have been a mistake.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent, very interesting book.......
Review: I have been on a "sea-disaster" kick lately and read this book in 2 days. It is an excellent account of the story of the essex and it's survivors, and includes detail that I was unaware of; such as the fact that the son of one of the survivors was a shipmate of Herman Melville on another whaling vessel. Excellent book.
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