The Last Voyage of Columbus: Being the Epic Tale of the Great Captain's Fourth Expedition, Including Accounts of Mutiny, Shipwreck, and Discovery

From Publishers Weekly
"For a guy who's been dead five centuries," says Dugard, "Columbus was very much a physical presence as I wrote this book." The author's Columbus—who engages in swashbuckling deeds of derring-do as he explores the Caribbean and Central America in his fourth and final voyage (1502–1504)—is a guy's guy. Spurning views of Columbus as a harbinger of genocide, Dugard (Into Africa, etc.) senses virile, visionary boldness, a man "fuelled by focus and challenge." Unsullied by too much modern scholarship, this book is at heart a recasting of Washington Irving and Samuel Eliot Morison updated to appeal to readers of GQ and Sports Illustrated (for which Dugard has written). His is a sexy tale: Columbus flirts with the (much romanticized) queen Isabella; nautical mapmaking is "one of the world's sexiest new occupations." In a text that idolizes navigation skills, there are some geographical slipups (Syria isn't near the site of the Suez Canal), and petty-minded linguists will wonder about Dugard's translations ("La Huerta," for instance, is not "special garden"). Historians might puzzle over the claim that Granada was the "only vestige" of the Moorish invasion (Islam continued to be practiced widely in Spain until the early 16th century). But for those who enjoy exciting descriptions of shipwrecks, bloodshed, shark-infested waters and storms from hell, this may be beside the point. 2 maps. Agent, Eric Simonoff. (June)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From School Library Journal
Adult/High School–Dugard's compelling account of European history in the concluding years of the 15th century is chock-full of the intrigue and manipulation that underscored various monarchies' race to control the world. Columbus is presented as a man of courage and perseverance who unwittingly became caught up in the various treacheries of the more political players around him. Along with Columbus and his family, Dugard introduces readers to such contemporaries as Vasco da Gama, Amerigo Vespucci, and Alonso de Ojeda. With its blend of adventure and intrigue, and its comprehensive character development, this book is highly readable, thoroughly enjoyable, and an excellent addition to any high-school biography collection.–Kim Dare, Fairfax County Public Library System, VA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Booklist
Things fell apart for Christopher Columbus after 1492. At his nadir, he was manacled and returned to Spain for alleged misgovernment of Hispaniola, the colony he founded. This is the entry point for Dugard's chronicle of the explorer. Instead of the dungeon or worse, King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella gave Columbus a new fleet and sanction to realize, once and for all, his ambition to blaze a westward route to China. Lasting from 1502 to 1504, this fourth and final voyage becomes, in Dugard's rendition, a vivid tally of adventure replete with maritime hazards, war with Indians, a shipwreck, a mutiny among the crew, and an astounding rescue mission. With apt details, Dugard re-creates the terrors and discomforts of the expedition, which coasted along Central America and ground to a halt in Jamaica. Instead of the ideological symbol he is viewed as today, Columbus emerges from Dugard's energetic narrative as totally human--imperfect and bent with arthritis yet still a charismatic mariner who will keep historians employed and readers reading. Gilbert Taylor
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review
"A rich, fluent account…both a gripping naval adventure and a revealing history." -- New York Times Book Review

"A swashbuckling history." -- Philadelphia Inquirer

"Astonishing adventure stories are interwoven with personalized accounts of dazzling characters, the first of whom is Columbus himself." -- Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Product Description
This thrilling adventure narrative recreates the epic, never-before-told story of Columbus's fourth and final journey to the New World--a voyage that was by far his most dangerous, unexpected, exhilarating, and consequential.

About the Author
Martin Dugard has written for Esquire, Outside, Sports Illustrated, and GQ. He lives in Orange County, California, with his wife and three sons.

From AudioFile
In October 1500, Christopher Columbus found himself confined to prison in Santo Domingo, with the gallows he himself had had built ironically threatening his own neck. He was soon freed, however, and found an opportunity to salvage his reputation as he began a fourth voyage in search of the route to the East. Simon Jones gives the story the tone of an adventure as Columbus deals with mutineers and political intrigue. Jones adds the occasional touch of wry humor--for example, when he describes the passion for spices among wealthy Europeans (which is why we say rich people do or don't have "taste"). The last disc has maps of the voyage among its computer goodies; you'll have to sit at your tube to follow them since they don't print, though. J.A.S. © AudioFile 2005, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.