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The Bounty Trilogy #1-3
The Mutiny on the Bounty Trilogy
The story of the Bounty will be told as long as men sail the sea. The storytelling genius of the authors finds here a canvas filled with color, action and adventure. Readers will realize, as did the authors, that so large a drama could not be confined to the compass of an ordinary book. Nordoff and Hall chose to tell the story of the Bounty in three acts:
Mutiny on the Bounty
Men Against the Sea
Pitcairn's Island
In The Mutiny on the Bounty Trilogy these three books have been united in a single volume to form the complete work that the authors had in mind.
692 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1936
About the author
Charles Bernard Nordhoff
34 books45 followers This describes the 20th century novelist, most famous for Mutiny on the Bounty. For the 19th century journalist and author, see Charles Nordhoff.
Charles Bernard Nordhoff was an English-born American novelist and traveler.
Charles Bernard Nordhoff was an English-born American novelist and traveler.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 106 reviews
July 8, 2012
I love sea stories and this one is one of the best.
I first read Mutiny on the Bounty when I was in the Navy. The Captain of the destroyer I was stationed on saw me walking around with the book and told me that in naval history circles, the Bounty mutiny was much researched and discussed because it was an anomaly in that Captain Bligh was much less ruthless than most Captains of the Line at that time. Naval historians are still trying to figure out why Bligh and the Bounty and not other ships of the line whose captains were much more harsh when it came to the discipline and punishment of the crew.
The first book of the trilogy deals with the events that led up to the mutiny. I later was able to obtain all three books of the trilogy, and after re-reading the mutiny, went on to the second volume, Men Against the Sea. After the mutiny, Bligh and several men who were loyal to him were placed in a 23 foot long boat and cast adrift. In the ensuing months, Bligh navigated the boat 3600 miles to safe harbor. To this day it is considered one of the most daring feats of seamanship to ever take place.
Third in the trilogy is Pitcairn's Island. This is the story of Fletcher Christian and the mutineers who sail the Bounty back to Tahiti where they drop off the remainder of the men who were against the mutiny. They also collect the women they cared for during their breadfruit tree gathering along with a number of Tahitian men who wanted to join up with Christian and his men and the whole lot set off to find a place where they can live without fear of being found by the British who will certainly hang them for mutiny. They eventually discover and settle on Pitcairn's Island where they scuttle the Bounty so that none can escape. However, life does not go well for the mutineers and their friends. Hate and greed lead to war and most of the mutineers, including Christian are killed.
Anyone who loves tales of the sea has probably read this trilogy. Those who have not should head for the bookstore or library.
I first read Mutiny on the Bounty when I was in the Navy. The Captain of the destroyer I was stationed on saw me walking around with the book and told me that in naval history circles, the Bounty mutiny was much researched and discussed because it was an anomaly in that Captain Bligh was much less ruthless than most Captains of the Line at that time. Naval historians are still trying to figure out why Bligh and the Bounty and not other ships of the line whose captains were much more harsh when it came to the discipline and punishment of the crew.
The first book of the trilogy deals with the events that led up to the mutiny. I later was able to obtain all three books of the trilogy, and after re-reading the mutiny, went on to the second volume, Men Against the Sea. After the mutiny, Bligh and several men who were loyal to him were placed in a 23 foot long boat and cast adrift. In the ensuing months, Bligh navigated the boat 3600 miles to safe harbor. To this day it is considered one of the most daring feats of seamanship to ever take place.
Third in the trilogy is Pitcairn's Island. This is the story of Fletcher Christian and the mutineers who sail the Bounty back to Tahiti where they drop off the remainder of the men who were against the mutiny. They also collect the women they cared for during their breadfruit tree gathering along with a number of Tahitian men who wanted to join up with Christian and his men and the whole lot set off to find a place where they can live without fear of being found by the British who will certainly hang them for mutiny. They eventually discover and settle on Pitcairn's Island where they scuttle the Bounty so that none can escape. However, life does not go well for the mutineers and their friends. Hate and greed lead to war and most of the mutineers, including Christian are killed.
Anyone who loves tales of the sea has probably read this trilogy. Those who have not should head for the bookstore or library.
May 29, 2020
The Mutiny on the Bounty Trilogy does have a basis on real history, hence my tagging it as "historical fiction". First the real story:
In 1789, disaffected members of the HMS Bounty mutinied against their Captain, Lieutenant William Bligh. The mutiny was led by Acting Lieutenant Fletcher Christian. Captain Bligh and 18 loyalists were set adrift in a launch, while the mutineers went off to settle in Tahiti or on Pitcairn Island. Bligh managed a remarkable voyage of more than 3,500 nautical miles (6,500 km; 4,000 mi) in the launch to reach safety, and began the process of bringing the mutineers to justice.
The first book, "The Mutiny on the Bounty", details the acts that led to the mutiny and of the subsequent court martial. The story is told by a fictional first-person narrator by the name of Roger Byam, based on a crew member Peter Heywood.
The second book, "Men Against the Sea", tells the story of the remarkable journey of Bligh and his loyalists to reach a safe port. The story is told from the perspective of Thomas Ledward, the Bounty's acting surgeon, who went into the ship's launch with Bligh.
The third and final book, "Pitcairn's Island" tells the tale of the mutineers who fled. Some settled in Tahiti, while some went to Pitcairn's Island. This third book is by far the most depressing story. Mutineers tend to make piss poor colonists that have to work together and this escapade devolves into a "Lord of the Flies" type scenario.
A very well written book and quite interesting to read. I, for one, am glad to have never had to serve in the Royal Navy during this time. Winston Churchill allegedly said that Royal Navy tradition relied on "Rum, buggery and the lash!", though to be fair it is something he denied saying and even said "I wish I had said it!".
On a side note of real history- Christian's group remained undiscovered on Pitcairn until 1808, by which time only one mutineer, John Adams, remained alive. Almost all his fellow-mutineers, including Christian, had been killed, either by each other or by their Polynesian companions. No action was taken against Adams; descendants of the mutineers and their Tahitian captives live on Pitcairn into the 21st century.
A classic book that is a great read. Do yourself a favor and read this misadventure on the high seas.
In 1789, disaffected members of the HMS Bounty mutinied against their Captain, Lieutenant William Bligh. The mutiny was led by Acting Lieutenant Fletcher Christian. Captain Bligh and 18 loyalists were set adrift in a launch, while the mutineers went off to settle in Tahiti or on Pitcairn Island. Bligh managed a remarkable voyage of more than 3,500 nautical miles (6,500 km; 4,000 mi) in the launch to reach safety, and began the process of bringing the mutineers to justice.
The first book, "The Mutiny on the Bounty", details the acts that led to the mutiny and of the subsequent court martial. The story is told by a fictional first-person narrator by the name of Roger Byam, based on a crew member Peter Heywood.
The second book, "Men Against the Sea", tells the story of the remarkable journey of Bligh and his loyalists to reach a safe port. The story is told from the perspective of Thomas Ledward, the Bounty's acting surgeon, who went into the ship's launch with Bligh.
The third and final book, "Pitcairn's Island" tells the tale of the mutineers who fled. Some settled in Tahiti, while some went to Pitcairn's Island. This third book is by far the most depressing story. Mutineers tend to make piss poor colonists that have to work together and this escapade devolves into a "Lord of the Flies" type scenario.
A very well written book and quite interesting to read. I, for one, am glad to have never had to serve in the Royal Navy during this time. Winston Churchill allegedly said that Royal Navy tradition relied on "Rum, buggery and the lash!", though to be fair it is something he denied saying and even said "I wish I had said it!".
On a side note of real history- Christian's group remained undiscovered on Pitcairn until 1808, by which time only one mutineer, John Adams, remained alive. Almost all his fellow-mutineers, including Christian, had been killed, either by each other or by their Polynesian companions. No action was taken against Adams; descendants of the mutineers and their Tahitian captives live on Pitcairn into the 21st century.
A classic book that is a great read. Do yourself a favor and read this misadventure on the high seas.
April 30, 2015
This review is for book one, I'll review the others as I read them.
The Mutiny on the Bounty 4 stars
When I started this I was slightly worried because a) it's written by two authors and I though it might be jarring when it switched from one to the other b) N. C. Wyeth's illustrations had several top-less ladies and c) the books didn't seem very happy I knew almost for certain how it would end.
But... I really enjoyed it. A) the writing is seamless from one to the other. I truly could not tell who was writing. Maybe because they both edited each other's writing. B) While the island ladies don't wear tops all the time (just sunshade cloaks), they aren't loose and are represented as being like women everywhere else, some are doxies and some are respectable. We aren't shown the doxies much, no more than seeing them swarming the ships. C) it wasn't happy. I wish I could change the outcome for some of the characters. I wish I could get a ship and give it to Roger Byam so he could sail back to Tehani on the island of Tahiti. I AM NOT HAPPY WITH THE ENDING. I have my own version in my head that the romanic me likes better.
It did help knowing that the main character Roger Byam was fictional. I found his making of a dictionary in Tahitian interesting and for him lifesaving.
One thing I really like it that I could put it down and when easily get back into it when I picked it back up. I'll definitely be reading more by these authors.
Would I reread this? Sure. But it's not a comfort read. I would have given it 3 1/2 but the writing, the characters and the plot were just so good that I couldn't hold the ending against it. After all, the authors couldn't really change the truth.
PG Few swears, some sailors have island girls and a few marry the island girls. Perfectly clean though, just a kiss or two. The violence is fairly strong in the beginning with several floggings for minor offenses and later some cruelty not in violence but in human kindness.
The Mutiny on the Bounty 4 stars
When I started this I was slightly worried because a) it's written by two authors and I though it might be jarring when it switched from one to the other b) N. C. Wyeth's illustrations had several top-less ladies and c) the books didn't seem very happy I knew almost for certain how it would end.
But... I really enjoyed it. A) the writing is seamless from one to the other. I truly could not tell who was writing. Maybe because they both edited each other's writing. B) While the island ladies don't wear tops all the time (just sunshade cloaks), they aren't loose and are represented as being like women everywhere else, some are doxies and some are respectable. We aren't shown the doxies much, no more than seeing them swarming the ships. C) it wasn't happy. I wish I could change the outcome for some of the characters. I wish I could get a ship and give it to Roger Byam so he could sail back to Tehani on the island of Tahiti. I AM NOT HAPPY WITH THE ENDING. I have my own version in my head that the romanic me likes better.
It did help knowing that the main character Roger Byam was fictional. I found his making of a dictionary in Tahitian interesting and for him lifesaving.
One thing I really like it that I could put it down and when easily get back into it when I picked it back up. I'll definitely be reading more by these authors.
Would I reread this? Sure. But it's not a comfort read. I would have given it 3 1/2 but the writing, the characters and the plot were just so good that I couldn't hold the ending against it. After all, the authors couldn't really change the truth.
PG Few swears, some sailors have island girls and a few marry the island girls. Perfectly clean though, just a kiss or two. The violence is fairly strong in the beginning with several floggings for minor offenses and later some cruelty not in violence but in human kindness.
July 20, 2016
Now this is historical fiction the way it should be written! The high seas and mutiny and south sea islands! The famous Bounty incident and aftermath is written with such a flair for the real-life characters, it's almost impossible to put down. I resorted to reading under the covers with a flashlight even though my childhood days are long ago.
The first part of the trilogy focuses upon the mutiny and what led up to it. The second part shows us the incredible voyage of Captain Bligh and his little rowboat of loyalists after they were cruelly abandoned at sea. The final third of the book brings us to Pitcairn Island, where the mutineers went to live, having burnt the Bounty and forced to live together on a rocky inhospitable island.
This book did enough to make me visit Norfolk Island, which is where the ancestors of the mutineers ended up living when they left Pitcairn. Truly a well-told tale. Classic.
Book Season = Summer (when the salty sea is in your face)
The first part of the trilogy focuses upon the mutiny and what led up to it. The second part shows us the incredible voyage of Captain Bligh and his little rowboat of loyalists after they were cruelly abandoned at sea. The final third of the book brings us to Pitcairn Island, where the mutineers went to live, having burnt the Bounty and forced to live together on a rocky inhospitable island.
This book did enough to make me visit Norfolk Island, which is where the ancestors of the mutineers ended up living when they left Pitcairn. Truly a well-told tale. Classic.
Book Season = Summer (when the salty sea is in your face)
February 12, 2023
He dudado bastante si dejar las cinco estrellas, y la verdad es que sería injusto darle menos, máxime valorando que la trilogía ha envejecido bastante bien.
April 22, 2023
One of the most amazing tales ever told. If you think the story ended with Bligh and his supporters being left adrift in a rowboat think again. Find out what happened to Bligh. Find out what happened to Fletcher Christian and the mutineers.
February 6, 2022
More tense and sad than suspenseful and exciting, and while I enjoyed the authors' attention to characterization, especially in the first and third books, that didn't make up for their storytelling deficiencies.
December 14, 2017
The three books are pretty distinct. The first, Mutiny on the Bounty, is narrated by Byam, the fictional midshipman played by Franchot Tone in the film; the Bligh of the book is if anything even more monstrous than the Bligh of the film, and the confusion of the mutiny itself - a ten-minute spurt of late-night impulse which had long-lasting effects - better conveyed. The Tahitians are referred to invariably as "Indians", but otherwise treated as a dignified culture which the English sailors disrupt by their presence; the only cannibal joke is directed against the cheapskate purveyors of Portsmouth, who allegedly look out for black sailors to add to their mix.
However, it's an anti-Semitic novel - an aspect completely dropped from the film. At Spithead, when we first encounter the Bounty, "sharp-faced Jews, in their wherries, hovered alongside, eager to lend money at interest against pay day, or to sell on credit the worthless trinkets on their trays" and the second in command declares that "I'd like to sink the lot of those Jews". Samuel, Bligh's clerk, is described as "a smug, tight-lipped little man, of a Jewish cast of countenance" and later explicitly as "a London Jew". In fact, the real Samuel appears to have been from Edinburgh, where a George Samuel was a burgess in 1699; so this anti-Semitism is entirely gratuitously introduced to the historical record by Nordhoff and Hall. (As indeed are many of Bligh's portrayed acts of tyranny.)
Given what is said about so many historical characters, it's a bit odd that Nordhoff and Hall chose to disguise the real midshipman Peter Heywood as the fictional Alexander Byam.
One of the shock moments in the film is that when the Pandora comes to Tahiti to arrest the mutineers, it turns out that Bligh is in command. In the book, as in history, he was by then on another assignment elsewhere. Otherwise the film sticks pretty closely to the book.
I read Men Against the Sea during a particularly insomniac night; it's the shortest of the three books, told in the voice of the (historical) surgeon's mate of the Bounty, Thomas Ledward, explaining the epic 41-day, 6,500 km journey taken by Bligh and 18 others in an 7-metre long open boat from the site of the mutiny (near Tofua, one of the Tonga islands) to Kupang at the western end of Timor, avoiding the potentially hostile shores of Australia and other islands - one man was killed at the very beginning, on Tofua. It is an extraordinary feat of navigation, and Nordhoff and Hall succeed in spinning it out; the internal tensions among the 18 survivors are easy to imagine and well portrayed. The impact of their ordeal on the men's digestive systems also is a disturbing but reasonable detail. Interestingly, Samuel is portrayed here as just another crew member; the previous book's anti-Semitism has disappeared. The book ends with Ledward taking his leave of Bligh, who is on his way back to London. In real life, Ledward was one of the five crewmen who died very soon after they reached Batavia (where they all went shortly after arriving in Timor).
Pitcairn's Island, unlike the other two volumes, has no narrator, apart from the last three chapters which are told by Alexander Smith aka John Adams. Of the fifteen men (nine English and six Tahitians) who landed at Pitcairn in 1789, he was the only survivor when the island was eventually discovered by the American ship Topaz in 1808; Smith/Adams himself gave several different accounts of what had happened during the remaining two decades of his life, and one of the women who moved there in 1789 eventually returned to Tahiti and gave her own account. It's a messy story of violence, alcoholism, and sexual confusion, in an earthly paradise - Pitcairn has the natural resources to support a couple of hundred inhabitants, but even so the small settlement disintegrated fatally.
Nordhoff and Hall dramatise some parts - Fletcher Christian here lives for a few agonising days after the inevitable killing starts, whereas most historical accounts agree that he was one of the first to die - and undersell others - I would very much like someone to write the story from the Tahitian women's perspective, given that they outnumbered the men by three to one after the first spate of killings, and by twelve to one from 1800 when the second last mutineer died. It's also striking that the society was a very young one - Fletcher Christian was 24 when the mutiny took place, and 28 when he was killed; the other mutineers (and presumably the Tahitian men and women they brought with them to Pitcairn) must have been mostly the same age or even younger. Nordhoff and Hall fall back on the clichés of the veteran tars, the unsophisticated "Indians" or "Maori", and their statesmanlike leader, rather than the possible truth of the confused young men and women in an extraordinary situation. But the moment of discovery of the island by the Topaz is particularly well done, and is almost worth the read in itself.
However, it's an anti-Semitic novel - an aspect completely dropped from the film. At Spithead, when we first encounter the Bounty, "sharp-faced Jews, in their wherries, hovered alongside, eager to lend money at interest against pay day, or to sell on credit the worthless trinkets on their trays" and the second in command declares that "I'd like to sink the lot of those Jews". Samuel, Bligh's clerk, is described as "a smug, tight-lipped little man, of a Jewish cast of countenance" and later explicitly as "a London Jew". In fact, the real Samuel appears to have been from Edinburgh, where a George Samuel was a burgess in 1699; so this anti-Semitism is entirely gratuitously introduced to the historical record by Nordhoff and Hall. (As indeed are many of Bligh's portrayed acts of tyranny.)
Given what is said about so many historical characters, it's a bit odd that Nordhoff and Hall chose to disguise the real midshipman Peter Heywood as the fictional Alexander Byam.
One of the shock moments in the film is that when the Pandora comes to Tahiti to arrest the mutineers, it turns out that Bligh is in command. In the book, as in history, he was by then on another assignment elsewhere. Otherwise the film sticks pretty closely to the book.
I read Men Against the Sea during a particularly insomniac night; it's the shortest of the three books, told in the voice of the (historical) surgeon's mate of the Bounty, Thomas Ledward, explaining the epic 41-day, 6,500 km journey taken by Bligh and 18 others in an 7-metre long open boat from the site of the mutiny (near Tofua, one of the Tonga islands) to Kupang at the western end of Timor, avoiding the potentially hostile shores of Australia and other islands - one man was killed at the very beginning, on Tofua. It is an extraordinary feat of navigation, and Nordhoff and Hall succeed in spinning it out; the internal tensions among the 18 survivors are easy to imagine and well portrayed. The impact of their ordeal on the men's digestive systems also is a disturbing but reasonable detail. Interestingly, Samuel is portrayed here as just another crew member; the previous book's anti-Semitism has disappeared. The book ends with Ledward taking his leave of Bligh, who is on his way back to London. In real life, Ledward was one of the five crewmen who died very soon after they reached Batavia (where they all went shortly after arriving in Timor).
Pitcairn's Island, unlike the other two volumes, has no narrator, apart from the last three chapters which are told by Alexander Smith aka John Adams. Of the fifteen men (nine English and six Tahitians) who landed at Pitcairn in 1789, he was the only survivor when the island was eventually discovered by the American ship Topaz in 1808; Smith/Adams himself gave several different accounts of what had happened during the remaining two decades of his life, and one of the women who moved there in 1789 eventually returned to Tahiti and gave her own account. It's a messy story of violence, alcoholism, and sexual confusion, in an earthly paradise - Pitcairn has the natural resources to support a couple of hundred inhabitants, but even so the small settlement disintegrated fatally.
Nordhoff and Hall dramatise some parts - Fletcher Christian here lives for a few agonising days after the inevitable killing starts, whereas most historical accounts agree that he was one of the first to die - and undersell others - I would very much like someone to write the story from the Tahitian women's perspective, given that they outnumbered the men by three to one after the first spate of killings, and by twelve to one from 1800 when the second last mutineer died. It's also striking that the society was a very young one - Fletcher Christian was 24 when the mutiny took place, and 28 when he was killed; the other mutineers (and presumably the Tahitian men and women they brought with them to Pitcairn) must have been mostly the same age or even younger. Nordhoff and Hall fall back on the clichés of the veteran tars, the unsophisticated "Indians" or "Maori", and their statesmanlike leader, rather than the possible truth of the confused young men and women in an extraordinary situation. But the moment of discovery of the island by the Topaz is particularly well done, and is almost worth the read in itself.
June 2, 2020
A classic - this is 3 books in one volume (aka trilogy)
July 6, 2013
This book comes really, really close to receiving five stars from me. As I have said in other reviews of mine, I only award a book five stars if it is legitimately astounding and inexhaustibly rewarding. This fine tale comes very close to that status indeed. Do not let the four stars mislead you, they ought to be very nearly five.
Granted, I read the first book only. I could not find the first book independent of the trilogy, so my review will only concern episode one of this trilogy.
This is really high-adventure at its finest. It is not unrealistically action-packed or grotesque either, though it really is a grand, sweeping story, and perhaps the finest that I have ever heard of or read.
Along with the epic expanse of the story, I almost cannot commend enough the incredibly unified, though long-winded and complex plot. The characterization was excellent, and almost every feature of the story itself was so original, so unique and complex, yet so well tied together that it is hard to confine the book to four stars. I would not give five stars to a mere story, and that is what this book is (though one of the very best that I have read).
All adventure stories nowadays tend to be archetypical and cheap copies of long-overused plots and characters. This was highly original. I am convinced that even a very skilled reader would not be able to predict the chain of events that is carried out (though it is not by random application that they occur; there are subtleties and hints throughout that determine the unfolding of the plot) accurately and without difficulty.
Along with the ever-commendable plot, I have an infatuation with tales of the sea. It is a highly interesting setting in my view. It also makes for a great setting of a story, with the isolation, power-hierarchy, close-contact and factionalism within the tight confines of a wooden ship in the Age of Sail. If adventure is to be found anywhere, it is aboard a ship and her crew, entirely at the mercy of the sea and wind, on a dangerous voyage with little to rely upon save for their own wits and determination.
My review will not give this book justice, though hopefully it has convinced you to read it.
Granted, I read the first book only. I could not find the first book independent of the trilogy, so my review will only concern episode one of this trilogy.
This is really high-adventure at its finest. It is not unrealistically action-packed or grotesque either, though it really is a grand, sweeping story, and perhaps the finest that I have ever heard of or read.
Along with the epic expanse of the story, I almost cannot commend enough the incredibly unified, though long-winded and complex plot. The characterization was excellent, and almost every feature of the story itself was so original, so unique and complex, yet so well tied together that it is hard to confine the book to four stars. I would not give five stars to a mere story, and that is what this book is (though one of the very best that I have read).
All adventure stories nowadays tend to be archetypical and cheap copies of long-overused plots and characters. This was highly original. I am convinced that even a very skilled reader would not be able to predict the chain of events that is carried out (though it is not by random application that they occur; there are subtleties and hints throughout that determine the unfolding of the plot) accurately and without difficulty.
Along with the ever-commendable plot, I have an infatuation with tales of the sea. It is a highly interesting setting in my view. It also makes for a great setting of a story, with the isolation, power-hierarchy, close-contact and factionalism within the tight confines of a wooden ship in the Age of Sail. If adventure is to be found anywhere, it is aboard a ship and her crew, entirely at the mercy of the sea and wind, on a dangerous voyage with little to rely upon save for their own wits and determination.
My review will not give this book justice, though hopefully it has convinced you to read it.
July 10, 2020
One of the best books I've read - the best novel. As kids we read the trilogy in the town of Nordhoff, CA. which was changed in the WWI days being that it was a German name to Ojai. This book without a doubt changed my life and gave me a greater world view, and a love of South Seas and Tahitii. One very important cherished book in my early evolving life, like a foundation of sorts. Fascinating history and there's more to learn about those times and places. It would seem like I was born to read this book, to have many adventures and exploration including many of which were sailing. Excellent writing that many could love to read. Better than any movie about it! Read in 1962. Where were you in 62? LOL.
May 8, 2018
I'm giving the third book (Pitcairn's Island) only two-stars. They could have skipped the entire book and used Smith's/Adam's first person recap at the end as short-story and it would have been better. But I'll still give the trilogy 3-stars on the merits of Mutiny alone.
If you've never read an "adrift-at-sea" story, by all means give Men Against the Sea a shot. Otherwise, read Mutiny On the Bounty and forget about the other two, in my opinion. While factually questionable (which holds very little relevance to me personally), Mutiny is by far the more entertaining and engaging of the three.
If you've never read an "adrift-at-sea" story, by all means give Men Against the Sea a shot. Otherwise, read Mutiny On the Bounty and forget about the other two, in my opinion. While factually questionable (which holds very little relevance to me personally), Mutiny is by far the more entertaining and engaging of the three.
March 23, 2009
The Mutiny on the Bounty is truly one of my favorite books of all time. You've seen the films, you think you know the story, but the book goes so far beyond that. The part about Bligh's navigating them to Timor in that little boat is more than remarkable. The part about the mutineers on Pitcairn is fascinating, and not hard to see how things went so horribly awry there. I don't know why I love sea stories but I do and this is the best.
January 19, 2016
I read this so long ago that it's hard to remember exactly. It was when I was in junior high school. I borrowed it from my Dad's extensive shelves. I remember liking it and finding the fact that it was a true story very interesting, but I also remember it being a bit of a slog.
November 24, 2021
this book is one of my all time favorites and I have probably read it 5 times through the years. You feel like you are on the Bounty, you feel like you are in Tahiti and Pitcairn's Island, Bligh's voyage is remarkable
May 11, 2023
Lorem Ipsum
(or ... the review that is lost)
(or ... the review that is lost)
October 18, 2023
In The Bounty Trilogy by Charles Nordhoff and James Norman Hall, the preface tells the reader how, based on actual events, each of the three volumes will end. But despite knowing how the stories conclude, the journeys to their endings are fascinating.
The first novel, told in the first person, covers the voyage of HMS Bounty to the South Pacific, including the mutiny, and then the repatriation and court martial of a small group of alleged mutineers. The second, also in the first person, describes the ordeals of Captain Bligh and his few faithful hands after being set adrift by the mutineers. The third details the establishment of a settlement on a deserted island by the main group of mutineers and indigenous people. Most of this volume is told in the third-person.
One particularly interesting aspect is how differently Bligh is portrayed in each story. In the first, Bligh is vilified. In the second, he is portrayed in a more sympathetic light. In the third, he is largely overlooked, but considerable concern and guilt is expressed by the mutineers for their former crewmembers who were set adrift.
My edition of The Bounty Trilogy has just over 900 pages. That’s a pretty long slog, but Nordhoff and Hall have a conversational style that makes it interesting and easy. If you break it up with other reads between the volumes, you may find The Bounty Trilogy a thoroughly rewarding adventure well worth the time.
The first novel, told in the first person, covers the voyage of HMS Bounty to the South Pacific, including the mutiny, and then the repatriation and court martial of a small group of alleged mutineers. The second, also in the first person, describes the ordeals of Captain Bligh and his few faithful hands after being set adrift by the mutineers. The third details the establishment of a settlement on a deserted island by the main group of mutineers and indigenous people. Most of this volume is told in the third-person.
One particularly interesting aspect is how differently Bligh is portrayed in each story. In the first, Bligh is vilified. In the second, he is portrayed in a more sympathetic light. In the third, he is largely overlooked, but considerable concern and guilt is expressed by the mutineers for their former crewmembers who were set adrift.
My edition of The Bounty Trilogy has just over 900 pages. That’s a pretty long slog, but Nordhoff and Hall have a conversational style that makes it interesting and easy. If you break it up with other reads between the volumes, you may find The Bounty Trilogy a thoroughly rewarding adventure well worth the time.
April 26, 2024
A superbly written book, that truely takes you into the characters, and tries to do them justice as they were, as people. Flawed, but ultimately not villains or heroes, but people with their own ideas, hopes, fears and agenda's.
Though there are a lot of things the writer could not have known, you feel as if he were there himself and saw the people. I truely imagined it could have happened like that. So well researched the book must have been.
I have been looking up different things on the crews, their lives etc in between reading the book, and there were only a very few things that did not (entirely) correlate with how it was written. You can never be perfect, especially with a story so long passed (though there was probably sufficient documentation from those that made it back to England). I do wonder with how Blight really was a person. He seems such an enigma. Both more lax then many a captain, but also more controlling or petty then a lot of them. I had wished the book was entirely true in this style, so that I could know for sure. But alas, I doubt that any person in this day and age can.
Though there are a lot of things the writer could not have known, you feel as if he were there himself and saw the people. I truely imagined it could have happened like that. So well researched the book must have been.
I have been looking up different things on the crews, their lives etc in between reading the book, and there were only a very few things that did not (entirely) correlate with how it was written. You can never be perfect, especially with a story so long passed (though there was probably sufficient documentation from those that made it back to England). I do wonder with how Blight really was a person. He seems such an enigma. Both more lax then many a captain, but also more controlling or petty then a lot of them. I had wished the book was entirely true in this style, so that I could know for sure. But alas, I doubt that any person in this day and age can.
July 14, 2023
This trilogy is a fictional retelling of the real life Mutiny on the Bounty, where in 1789, a group of disgruntled crew mutinied against their captain and set him in a lifeboat in the middle of the ocean. The first book of this series follows a young man who is against the mutiny, but forced to remain onboard. He is part of the middle group, the only members tried and some sentenced for the mutiny. The second book follows the Captain's group, as they attempt to survive in the ocean and get to safety. Finally, the third book focuses on the mutiny group, who land on an island and survive there.
I loved the first book, and I appreciated that none of the groups are truly bad. Some make bad decisions, but you understand where everyone is coming from. The second book wasn't bad, but I didn't enjoy it as much because I knew how it was going to end. And the third book was dreadfully boring. So I would give the first book 5 stars, second 3 stars, and third 2 stars.
I loved the first book, and I appreciated that none of the groups are truly bad. Some make bad decisions, but you understand where everyone is coming from. The second book wasn't bad, but I didn't enjoy it as much because I knew how it was going to end. And the third book was dreadfully boring. So I would give the first book 5 stars, second 3 stars, and third 2 stars.
August 23, 2021
Trust me, I can't curb my hysteria after listening the whole story of this stupendous novel ❤️. It takes almost 33 hours to completely the whole book which is associated with 3 parts. Interestingly, the whole story is based on true eminent event, Mutiny on bounty, which was happened in HMS BOUNTY, the warship of British. There are many protagonists and antagonists in this story but I want to consider Christian, Bions and Captain Bliah as protagonists of this tale,without any hesitation. The 2nd part of this book Man Against the sea is not so good, kinda bit slow type in compare to the other part of this books. After completing this book, I am planning to go Pitcairn Islands, the most anticipated place in the earth right now for me.
September 21, 2022
A classic tale of the sea
This is a well researched and exciting story about the trip of the HMS Bounty to Tahiti. Captain Bligh has become a metaphor for a cruel and delusional leader. But he turns out to be uniquely competent and inspiring as he leads18 followers on a 3600-mile journey to safety In a tiny, overloaded cutter.
The trilogy deals with the mutiny, the voyage of the deposed captain, and the sanctuary of the mutineers.
You will have to deal with some unevolved attitudes of the authors toward the islanders, as well as 1 member of the crew who happens to be Jewish.
This is a well researched and exciting story about the trip of the HMS Bounty to Tahiti. Captain Bligh has become a metaphor for a cruel and delusional leader. But he turns out to be uniquely competent and inspiring as he leads18 followers on a 3600-mile journey to safety In a tiny, overloaded cutter.
The trilogy deals with the mutiny, the voyage of the deposed captain, and the sanctuary of the mutineers.
You will have to deal with some unevolved attitudes of the authors toward the islanders, as well as 1 member of the crew who happens to be Jewish.
October 26, 2022
What a great book. Never had read it. (And I never write reviews, so that should tell you something!). And you must read all three - you will want to in order to finish the story. Amazing writing. Wondered how two authors could collaborate so well. Took me back there with them, particularly on Blighs journey across the south seas with his few faithful crew and making it alive!!! He was an incredible seaman if not also an impossible man to be around. Regardless of your fav genre, I’m sure you will enjoy this book.
October 17, 2023
Three classics. All good books in their own right. If you like British naval history and tales of the sea, you will like these. Men Against the Sea relates one of the most heroic sea voyages of all time with Captain Bligh sailing a small boat with 18 men over 3600 miles of open sea. Interesting to note also that Captain Bligh, while commonly thought a ruthless disciplinarian, was actually not that cruel by the standards of the day.
April 6, 2020
My second time through Mutiny on the Bounty, still didn't get to either of the sequels. Pretty much all I remembered from the first time around was that the Bounty was transporting breadfruit trees and there was, of course, a mutiny.
The mutiny itself is nearly over in an instant, but it is the luck and misfortune which befalls the crew afterward which makes it such an extraordinary tale.
The mutiny itself is nearly over in an instant, but it is the luck and misfortune which befalls the crew afterward which makes it such an extraordinary tale.
October 23, 2020
Three books in one volume: Mutiny on the Bounty, the story of the mutiny; Men Against the Sea, the amazing story of how Captain Bligh led 18 men in a small open boat over 3500 miles to safety in the Dutch East Indies; and Pitcairn's Island, where the mutineers and natives settled to live out their remaining days. Their descendants still live on the island.
October 20, 2022
Er zijn van die boeken die je van jongs af aan altijd wel weer oppakt. Ik vind niet alle delen even goed, maar het leven op zee blijft boeien. Gelukkig heb ik een heel oude versie met nog ouderwets taalgebruik.
December 14, 2022
A highly enjoyable retelling, all the more so for being true.
An adventure that has stood the test of time. Even the boring parts are forgivable, as they follow the known facts; and they're few and far between.
I felt educated as well as enthralled.
An adventure that has stood the test of time. Even the boring parts are forgivable, as they follow the known facts; and they're few and far between.
I felt educated as well as enthralled.
July 3, 2017
Very exciting and well written book.
July 3, 2018
My first exposure to the genre of nautical historical fiction. Simply magnificent, all three volumes of the trilogy. Look in used bookstores for an edition with the N.C. Wyeth illustrations.
October 22, 2018
An amazing story. Must read!
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