” Shipwrecks of the Southern Seas tells 15 fascinating stories
- some iconic, many little known until now
- of shipwreck, mutiny, piracy & marooning in the region of Australia, New Zeal&, & the Pacific, concentrating on stories from the age of sail & steam. Gripping, engaging storytelling is the key to this book. These stories cover the gamut of human emotion & character: survival, courage, cowardice & treachery, as well as humour, mystery & the absurd. Featured stories include the wreck of the Batavia in the Abrolhos in 1629; Eliza Fraser cast away among the aboriginal population on Fraser Isl&, Queensland in 1836; the wrecks on the subantarctic islands near New Zealand that left people stranded for years before discovery; & the tragic wreck of the Loch Ard, with only two survivors.”