In the Wake of the Buccaneers - Alpheus Hyatt Verrill

Ah, the Buccaneers... “We hear much of the bold, wild ways of these adventurers; Perchance it is the fact that we all appreciate bravery—and, notwithstanding their multitude of sins, the buccaneers were brave beyond compare. Again, it may be that in all of us lurks a little of the gambling spirit and we admire those who can take a chance, even though we do not, and no greater gamblers ever lived than the buccaneers. They staked their lives at every turn, they gambled with death, and the greater the odds the more readily did they throw themselves into the game. And it was this gambling spirit, this recklessness that enabled them to defy the world of their day.” (From the Introduction) The author recounts sailing from port to port among the islands of the West Indies and along the Spanish Main. At each, he describes the present (ca. 1923) conditions and relives its dark and bloody history in the Golden Age of Piracy. An interesting take on a familiar subject, it's well written and highly entertaining. Some of the deeds recounted are “dark and bloody” indeed. This is not a book for the soft-stomached. But then, what's a pirate yarn without a few good massacres, plundering, and burnings? Yo-ho! (Summary by Steven Seitel)