Reviewed by Anna Brinkmann

Blue Latitudes, Tony Horwitz’s exploration of the voyages of the legendary 18th century sea captain James Cook, is a fun romp that takes the reader along as Horwitz retraces the captain’s journeys from one end of the earth to the other. Cook’s path criss-crossed the seas from the Arctic to the Antarctic, where his crew dealt with ice-coated sails and hurricane-speed winds, along with the usual problems of illness, poor diet, and the violence that comes from living with too many people for too long.

The journey begins when Horwitz ships out as part of the crew of the Endeavour, a re-creation of one of Cook’s ships. Horwitz emerges dirty, oily and inspired from the experience, ready to take on the rest of the journeys and show us their joy, their strangeness, and their impact on history. Horwitz explores the human toll of Cook’s travels, the ways that first contact would alter forever the natives of Tonga, New Zealand, Australia, and the rest of the tribal societies Cook discovered.

Cook explored much of the sun-drenched South Pacific, and on Horwitz’s jaunts through those portions of the journey, he is occasionally joined by his buddy Roger Williamson, a man of vulgar charm. Horwitz plays the straight man to Williamson’s outrageous antics in a friendship that is thoroughly enjoyable to follow.

Horwitz’s powers as a dry wit and storyteller make the journey one we want to take with him, and thanks to the people we meet along the way, the book is a wonderful ride.