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Summary: The start of something wonderful...
Review: It's hard to believe I only discovered the Aubrey/Maturin novels last fall. Since first reading "Master and Commander", Jack Aubrey & Stephen Maturin, their shipmates & their families, have come to seem like members of our family to both myself & my husband!If "Master and Commander" is your introduction to the novels of Patrick O'Brian (as it should be), it may take awhile to become accustomed to the formality of the language. Think Jane Austen at sea, & you'll have some idea of their flavor. Pretty soon tho, the action will grab you & the pages will turn faster than you thought possible! Just make sure to savor the humor that infuses so many of the interactions & observations; you'll be laughing out loud without even realising it! Just be warned: if you buy this book it will probably only be the beginning for you. There are 20 Aubrey/Maturin novels in all, plus numerous books (the best by Dean King) that will provide maps, nautical & historical definitions, recipes etc. to help you more fully appreciate every aspect of Patrick O'Brian's creation. You'll want them all. You will want to check out some of the excellent web sites that elaborate upon these novels. You'll even find yourself reading biographies & histories of the period! In short, when you buy "Master & Commander" you are starting a whole new hobby! Enjoy!
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Summary: A great career launched
Review: Now that the film of MASTER AND COMMANDER is about to be released, starring Russell Crowe, many new readers will be attracted to this, the first of the Aubrey-Maturin series
that launched the 20-book series and consumed the last 30+ years of the author's life. This series established O'Brian as one of the outstanding writers of the 20th century.
Modern readers must attempt a deliberate intellectual change of pace and perspective to acquire empathy with this book and its successors. O'Brian captures with exceptional ability the language, style and pacing of almost two centuries ago, yet such is his skill that within a short time the reader is carried away by his mastery of the subject, clearly based on immersion in the historical record, coupled in O'Brian's case to extraordinary skills of observation and literary execution.
O'Brian works in ways that are significantly different from, even alien to, many modern writers. He takes the time to establish time, place, character and plot, capturing at the same time a master's sense of perspective that is remarkably broad and highly informative in every area he touches, from music to the technologies of sailing and warfare in the era.
Reading M&C will almost certainly launch the new reader on a long and enjoyable journey through the succeeding books of the series, into a period that profoundly affects the world today. It will be time well spent, and will enrich the reader in ways that extend from natural philosophy to world affairs, capturing a time in history when individual character and courage counted.
For a further examination of O'Brian's skills, may I respectfully refer the reader of this review to my review of his novel TESTIMONIES, re-issued by Norton in 1993.
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Summary: One of the best books ever writtten
Review: I read this book for the first time almost two years ago. Since then Jack and Stephen have been a part of my life. I have read the series almost three times, and everytime I find more that I understand and appreciate. Patrick O'Brian is excrutiatingly accurate with his historical facts, and one of the best things about the series is how strong a sense a reader gets of the time period and culture. Well written and facinating, I heartily reccomend this book to anyone. Even if you don't know much about naval life and the language, it is still worth reading.
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Summary: book > movie
Review: Having sailed a tall ship, scuttled around like a spider in her shrouds, scrubbed her decks and promoted Navigator, Master and Commander does an exemplary job in recreating the tense atmosphere of adventure in the Napoleonic wars. With a voyage and brig secured, Jack Aubrey, accompanied by his friend Stephen Maturin, does his duty in commanding the little brig HMS Sophie and her crew for England to capture other ships of the French fleet and take them as prize. Set in the wet waters of Gibraltar and the Mediterranean, the inseparable pair Aubrey and Maturin sail their way through many eye-opening encounters. It is O'Brian's beauteous prose and characterisations that seize the reader's imagination - allowing him to delve into the world itself and actively take part in it. By elegantly combining nautical terms of the Enlightenment thinker and descriptions of feelings and the environment like a Romantic, O'Brian creates a pleasantly-paced plot which give readers an unquenchable thirst for more. The language is formal and most proper, littered with delectable nautical terms (depending on your naval background). This may be a crucial factor in determining whether this read will be one of success or not. Therefore it is only highly recommended to those with even a dollop of sailing lingo. Only then is it possible to relive the delight of going aloft to furl the forecourse; with Maturin the ship's surgeon to learn of the knuts and bolts of the brig. Therefore I would highly recommend this book to all adventurous souls who delight in sailing or history. The fact that there are twenty books in the Aubrey/Maturin series makes it even more of a treasure. Life is all about experiences, and what more could you wish for than to dive into the world of a man-of-war while riding the bus? Especially when O'Brian's world of 18th century sailing is fading.
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Summary: A Wonderful Sea Story
Review: The first in Patrick O'Brian's twenty-volume "Aubrey-Maturin" series, "Master and Commander" is both a compelling narrative and a fine foundation for the books to follow. In the first decade of the nineteenth century, British naval officer Jack Aubrey is promoted to his first command of a warship, the sloop "Sophie". He befriends an eccentric physician, Stephen Maturin, and convinces him to sail as ship's surgeon. What follows is a sort of odyssey, a linear narrative as the Sophie cruises the Mediterranean, capturing cargo ships and fighting French and Spanish warships. O'Brian has a wonderful, mature prose, a spare style that omits repetitious detail while allowing characters and events to describe themselves and leaving the minutiae to the reader's imagination. His complete ease with nineteenth century maritime affairs, from the idiom to the equipment is wholly convincing, yet never patronizing. Readers familiar with neither the sea nor the era will be swept along for the ride. Aubrey is heroic, but three-dimensional. He is flawed and sometimes unlikable, courageous yet occasionally frustratingly inept. Other characters are drawn with equal attention to detail and humanity. This is a fine book, a wonderful sea story. Norton's newly-released edition of the entire series is attractive, and the books continue to please.
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Summary: Very good historical novel
Review: The Aubrey-Maturin novels a series of very highly acclaimed historical novels, of which 'Master & Commander' is the first. The novels take place during the Napoleanic Wars, when all that stood between Britain and the armies of Napolean was the Royal Navy. How different the world might be if Nelson had not been victorious at Trafalgar.
Patrick O'Brian very convincingly and in great detail immerses the reader into life on board a Royal Navy ship circa 1805. However O'Brian does not help out his readers much. I am tolerably well versed in history and geography, but I have to admit a map would have helped, and a little historical background wouldn't have hurt either. As for the nautical terms and jargon I was completely lost. But the story was entertaining and the detail of Royal Navy politics and shipboard life was interesting. It wasn't an easy read and although I'm sure I will read the next in the series, I didn't feel the need to seek it out immediately. Bottom line: if your interested in sailing or military history, you will probably enjoy it- others should steer clear.
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Summary: Not Masterful, Yet
Review: The first in the Aubrey-Matruin series displays all of O'Brian's erudition, with only some of the verve and narrative mastery of the books that came shortly thereafter. Essentially a series of cruises through the Mediterranean, the novel lacks the strong narrative arc that many of the other novels posses and it suffers for the lack. Nevertheless, Master and Commander remains a fascinating and compelling story of life at sea during the Napoleonic wars. Captain Jack Aubrey and Surgeon Steven Maturin are here revealed, for the first time, in all their complexity and humanity. If you find yourself getting slowed down by this book, muddle through. The rewards will be great when you dive into the next several books, beginning with number two, Post Captain.
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Summary: A Great Story
Review: The master and commander series is incredible. I very much enjoyed the Master and Commander story. It was the first time in a long while that I did not try to avoid reading this book. It was very long but I was glued to this exciting story. This book is great if you want to read a factual and realistic action adventure story. I am really looking forward to reading the rest of the series. I think everyone should sit back and enjoy the wonderfully composed Master and Commander series,
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Summary: On second thought...
Review: On second reading: the prose is still splendid and the wry humor is now more understandable (full of allusive lingo and obscure situations). Capt. Aubrey's meaty speech and amusing malapropisms more intensely entertain. On the other hand, the shockingly unexpected situations are of course less so now. This is perhaps the most exciting volume in O'Brian's 20-book series. This first volume is awash in emotional extremes of hope and despair, women, allusions to sexual escapades, frequent battles, swashbuckling adventures, challenges to authority, and a surprising number of floggings (these are all toned down in later, more languid volumes). O'Brian includes a few explanations of the characters' backgrounds and motives, and, unusually, a few helpful comments on seamanship under sail occasioned by the ignorant landsman and ship's surgeon, Stephen Maturin, who strikes up a happy acquaintance with Capt. Jack Aubrey. I also realize now that O'Brian shamefully gives Jack a great pass, nay two, at his court-martial, where the matter neither of his orders nor his conduct of a convoy is raised. If this is your first entry into the Age of Fighting Sail, I urge you to study carefully the single illustration of a square-rigged sail plan, committing to memory their names and puzzling the use of each rope in the standing and the running rigging. O'Brian's stories are so much more more enjoyable if they are intelligible! He does immerse us directly in an antique world without so much as a by your leave. If you like O'Brian's prose and pace, I pray you go back and read his The Golden Ocean and The Unknown Shore before continuing, in which you will gain the acquaintance, sir, of both an earlier Royal Navy and your illustrious author developing the prototypes of our prodigious heroes, Jack and Stephen. Acquiring a copy of Dean King's compendium, A Sea of Words, is also not amiss.
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Summary: Incredible book, also try the Recorded Books audiobooks
Review: Having read the entire series twice through, I am a huge fan and can not say enough about O'Brian. But before talking about the book itself, I will point all of you to the wonderful unabridged audiobook versions performed by (as opposed to simply "read by") Patrick Tull and produced by Recorded Books, LLC. They are vastly superior to any other audiobook productions of the series I have listened to (including the versions sold here on Amazon, unfortunately). For those who have difficulty with the pacing or the language, the audiobook format brings it all to life with amazing clarity. The accents, the tones, the emotion, they are all there in Tull's masterful rendition. Having said that, I will turn to the book itself. Master and Commander (and the entire series) brings the past to life with more immediacy than any other historical novel I have ever read. After spending some time in O'Brian's world, you truly feel at home there, even those of us who know (or at least knew) very little about things nautical or the history of the Napoleonic Wars. The characters become your friends, the ships become familiar surroundings. You come to be in tune with the period even though it is alien to our own times in so many ways. There is also a great deal of humor in these novels, something unexpected in such literate works. The action is phenomenal, the character development (within the book, but especially over the series) is engrossing. The language is brilliant and sophisticated, but at the same time earthy and "real". All in all, I would have to agree with the New York Times that these are the best historical novels ever written.
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