One of my resolutions for 2024 is to get back into reading (paper) books and spend a bit less time in front of my computer, and the book that I’m into right now is called The Wager, which is a #1 New York Times Bestseller by David Grann, who is also the author of Killers of the Flower Moon (which was adapted into a movie by Martin Scorsese last year). 

The Wager is “a tale of shipwreck, mutiny, and murder” that takes place in the 1700s and is based on real events. It tells the story of a British navy ship named The Wager, which is wrecked off the coast of South America, and its crew, who struggle to survive against all odds and return to England. Much like the old classic Lord of the Flies, it shows what happens to people when they are removed from civilized society, and how their values and behaviours change. It also shows what life on a ship was like in the 1700s, detailing the discipline and hard work required to sail a ship and the many threats - from disease to enemy ships, and storms to mutinies - that could cause a sea voyage to end in disaster. 

I’m just starting Chapter 10, but so far The Wager is a page-turner and at times quite shocking. For example, because the British were competing with the Spanish in the 1700s, they always needed more sailors and soldiers, but because there was no conscription (compulsory military service), they had to find other ways to force men to serve. One way was to hire “press gangs” to press (force) men into service, and many of the sailors aboard The Wager had been literally kidnapped and forced to serve on the ship! This caused low morale, and many men were quick to desert (escape from military service) as soon as they had a chance. 

Another shocking fact was that scurvy (a disease caused by a lack of Vitamin C) killed far more sailors than any gun or storm. The men who caught scurvy suffered terribly, and the doctors had no idea what caused it or how to treat those who were suffering from it. Eventually, it was discovered that citrus juice could prevent scurvy, so British sailors were given limes during sea voyages, and this earned them the nickname of “limeys” (which is still a slang word for British people today).

A mutiny is “an open rebellion against the proper authorities, especially by soldiers or sailors against their officers.”

To struggle against all odds is to try to achieve something very difficult that is unlikely to end in success. To succeed against all odds is to achieve an unlikely, even miraculous success.