THE ATLANTIC: A History of an Ocean

by Leonard Outhwaite ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 4, 1957

Although this considers the total expanse of the Atlantic, north, south, east and west, as the ocean proper, there is much of the same material here as in Villiers' Wild Ocean (McGraw-Hill, P. 342) for the important history is largely confined to the northern areas. Regarding the Atlantic in this manner provides an overall geographic picture and underlines to what degree it has operated --and still operates -- on human affairs, and Part I, Portrait of an Ocean, with its discussion of the structure, the behavior and the meaning of the Atlantic, becomes an excellent springboard for the rest of the book. From past to modern history, the ocean is shown in its effect on men's thinking, feeling and actions: how it has assisted in some directions and held back in other; how it has been a highway of culture and a means of developing sciences. There is the parade of the early mariners, the colonizing, the growth of mechanical power at sea, the acceleration of air transport- along with the economic, international, military, nautical and dramatic aspects of its story. A somewhat broader approach than Villiers, this again emphasizes the tremendous part the Atlantic played --and plays- and its importance to the peoples of its ""basin"".

Pub Date: Sept. 4, 1957

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Coward-McCann

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1957

Categories: NONFICTION