Description
Book SynopsisSHORTLISTED FOR THE JAMES TAIT BLACK PRIZE FOR BIOGRAPHY and THE ELIZABETH LONGFORD PRIZE FOR HISTORICAL BIOGRAPHY
''A thrilling account'' The Times
''As heroic as Digby himself, Moshenska has defied the tyranny of genre and made his own absorbing account'' Observer
''A master storyteller. Full of exquisite details, but with the grandest themes... this is a gripping adventure story'' Zia Haider Rahman
''A brilliant account of one of the seventeenth century''s most dashing lives'' Ruth Scurr
''Gripping and extraordinary'' Ann Wroe
On the 16th of August 1628, five battle-scarred English ships sailed into the harbour of the Greek island of Milos. Dropping anchor, the 25-year-old captain banqueted with the local lord before sitting down to write an account of his journey an account that would transform him entirely.
Sir Kenelm Digby was one of the most remarkable Englishmen
Trade Review
Joe Moshenska's wonderful book is an act of restoration. He mixes impressive scholarship with narrative flair to bring the young Digby back to vivid life. A thrilling account... sparkling… fascinating. -- Michael Prodger * The Times *
Combining the rigour and precision of the academic with the skills of a master storyteller, in this remarkable tale of one man, the author brings to life an important period of British and Mediterranean history. Full of exquisite details, but with the grandest themes – it has heroic love, it has religion and science, art and literature, power and politics – this is a gripping adventure story. -- Zia Haider Rahman, author of In The Light of What We Know
Romance and adventure, piracy and alchemy – Kenelm Digby blazed through one of the most remarkable lives of the seventeenth century. With his engaging blend of scholarship and storytelling, Joe Moshenska takes us on the eye-opening tale of an extraordinary man's daring quest for fame, fortune, and knowledge on the treacherous seas of the Mediterranean. -- Faramerz Dabhoiwala, author of The Origins of Sex
Gripping and extraordinary. -- Ann Wroe
A brilliant account of one of the seventeenth century's most dashing lives. -- Ruth Scurr, author of John Aubrey: My Own Life
