Lives of the Pirates
Swashbucklers, Scoundrels (Neighbors Beware!)
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Lives of the Pirates
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Narrated by:
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Ray Childs
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Kymberly Dakin
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By:
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Kathleen Krull
About this listen
This long-awaited new volume in the acclaimed "Lives of" series presents the fascinating true tales of both notorious and little-known pirates. Why did Blackbeard and Long John Silver go to sea? Who was Madame Cheng? How did pirates really talk? What did they eat and what did they do to pass the time during long sea voyages? Lives of the Pirates answers these and many other questions.
©2010 Kathleen Krull (P)2012 Audio BookshelfListeners also enjoyed...
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5 out of 5 stars
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The Pirate Hunter
- By: Richard Zacks
- Narrated by: Michael Prichard
- Length: 18 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 955
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 616
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Story4 out of 5 stars 621
Captain Kidd has gone down in history as America's most ruthless buccaneer. However, Captain William Kidd was no career cut-throat; he was a tough, successful New York sea captain who was hired to chase pirates. Across the oceans of the world, the pirate hunter, Kidd, pursued the pirate, Culliford. One man would hang in the harbor; the other would walk away with the treasure. The Pirate Hunter is both a masterpiece of historical detective work and a page-turner.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Aaaargh Matey, Listen to this tale!
- By Karen on 04-20-04
By: Richard Zacks
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The Republic of Pirates
- Being the True and Surprising Story of the Caribbean Pirates and the Man Who Brought Them Down
- By: Colin Woodard
- Narrated by: Lewis Grenville
- Length: 13 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 8,273
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 7,286
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 7,246
In the early 18th century, the Pirate Republic was home to some of the great pirate captains, including Blackbeard, "Black Sam" Bellamy, and Charles Vane. Along with their fellow pirates - former sailors, indentured servants, and runaway slaves - this "Flying Gang" established a crude but distinctive democracy in the Bahamas, carving out their own zone of freedom in which servants were free, Blacks could be equal citizens, and leaders were chosen or deposed by a vote.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Audible is better
- By CaptainRavick on 01-19-16
By: Colin Woodard
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Girt
- The Unauthorised History of Australia, Volume 1
- By: David Hunt
- Narrated by: David Hunt
- Length: 6 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 247
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 219
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 219
Girt. No word could better capture the essence of Australia.... In this hilarious history, David Hunt reveals the truth of Australia's past, from megafauna to Macquarie - the cock-ups and curiosities, the forgotten eccentrics and Eureka moments that have made us who we are. Girt introduces forgotten heroes like Mary McLoghlin, transported for the crime of "felony of sock", and Trim the cat, who beat a French monkey to become the first animal to circumnavigate Australia.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Typically irreverent.
- By patricia heffernan on 12-27-15
By: David Hunt
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Empire of Blue Water
- Captain Morgan's Great Pirate Army, the Epic Battle for the Americas, and the Catastrophe that Ended the Outlaws' Bloody Reign
- By: Stephan Talty
- Narrated by: John H. Mayer
- Length: 13 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,223
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 973
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 967
He challenged the greatest empire on earth with a ragtag bunch of renegades and brought it to its knees. This is the real story of the pirates of the Caribbean. Henry Morgan, a 20-year-old Welshman, crossed the Atlantic in 1655, hell-bent on making his fortune. Over the next three decades, his exploits in the Caribbean became legendary. His daring attacks on the mighty Spanish empire on land and at sea determined the fates of kings and queens, and his victories helped shape the destiny of the New World.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Morbid Terrorists?
- By Jack on 11-11-08
By: Stephan Talty
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Pirate Women
- The Princesses, Prostitutes, and Privateers Who Ruled the Seven Seas
- By: Laura Sook Duncombe
- Narrated by: Hillary Huber
- Length: 9 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 126
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 116
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Story4 out of 5 stars 116
In the first-ever history of the world's female buccaneers, Pirate Women: the Princesses, Prostitutes, and Privateers Who Ruled the Seven Seas tells the story of women, both real and legendary, who through the ages sailed alongside - and sometimes in command of - their male counterparts. These women came from all walks of life but had one thing in common: a desire for freedom.
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2 out of 5 stars
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Don’t waste your time or credit
- By CJ on 08-06-18
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The Whydah
- A Pirate Ship Feared, Wrecked, and Found
- By: Martin W. Sandler
- Narrated by: Jeff Cummings
- Length: 3 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 41
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 36
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Story5 out of 5 stars 36
For more than 200 years, the wreck of the Whydah (and the riches that went down with it) eluded treasure seekers, until the ship was finally found in 1984 by marine archaeologists. The artifacts brought up from the ocean floor are priceless, both in value and in the picture they reveal of life in that much-mythologized era, changing much of what we know about pirates.
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5 out of 5 stars
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A must for any authentic pirate enthusiast!
- By The Wizzzard on 01-17-23
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Black Tudors
- The Untold Story
- By: Miranda Kaufmann
- Narrated by: Corrie James
- Length: 10 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 67
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 54
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 52
A Black porter publicly whips a White English gentleman in a Gloucestershire manor house. A heavily pregnant African woman is abandoned on an Indonesian island by Sir Francis Drake. A Mauritanian diver is dispatched to salvage lost treasures from the Mary Rose.... Miranda Kaufmann reveals the absorbing stories of some of the Africans who lived free in Tudor England.
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5 out of 5 stars
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I thought I knew it all...
- By Sylvia Schmidt on 08-01-19
By: Miranda Kaufmann
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Over the Edge of the World
- Magellan's Terrifying Circumnavigation of the Globe
- By: Laurence Bergreen
- Narrated by: Laurence Bergreen
- Length: 6 hrs and 13 mins
- Abridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 853
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 638
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 638
In 1519 Magellan and his fleet of five ships set sail from Seville, Spain, to discover a water route to the fabled Spice Islands in Indonesia, where the most sought-after commodities (cloves, pepper, and nutmeg) flourished. Three years later, a handful of survivors returned with an abundance of spices from their intended destination, but with just one ship carrying 18 emaciated men. During their remarkable voyage around the world the crew endured starvation, disease, mutiny, and torture. Many men died, including Magellan, who was violently killed in a fierce battle.
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2 out of 5 stars
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The Reading IS an Issue
- By mcbeene on 12-26-05
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The Empire of Necessity
- Slavery, Freedom, and Deception in the New World
- By: Greg Grandin
- Narrated by: Luis Moreno
- Length: 11 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 74
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 63
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 65
One morning in 1805, off a remote island in the South Pacific, Captain Amasa Delano, a New England seal hunter, climbed aboard a distressed Spanish ship carrying scores of West Africans he thought were slaves. They weren' t. Having earlier seized control of the vessel and slaughtered most of the crew, they were staging an elaborate ruse, acting as if they were humble servants. When Delano, an idealistic, anti-slavery republican, finally realized the deception, he responded with explosive violence. Drawing on research on four continents, The Empire of Necessity explores the multiple forces that culminated in this extraordinary event.
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4 out of 5 stars
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What is the "right thing to do"?
- By Lake on 03-08-14
By: Greg Grandin
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A Commonwealth of Thieves
- The Improbable Birth of Australia
- By: Thomas Keneally
- Narrated by: Simon Vance
- Length: 12 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 119
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 79
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Story4 out of 5 stars 79
It was 1786 when Arthur Phillip, an ambitious captain in the Royal Navy, was assigned the formidable task of organizing an expedition to Australia in order to establish a penal colony. With the authority of a renowned historian and the narrative grace of a brilliant novelist, Thomas Keneally offers an insider's perspective into the dramatic saga of the birth of a vibrant society in an unfamiliar land.
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2 out of 5 stars
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Interesting tidbits, but slow overall
- By Dan on 08-23-07
By: Thomas Keneally
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Batavia's Graveyard
- The True Story of the Mad Heretic Who Led History's Bloodiest Mutiny
- By: Mike Dash
- Narrated by: Guy Bethell
- Length: 12 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 119
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 103
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 104
It was the autumn of 1628, and the Batavia, the Dutch East India Company's flagship, was loaded with a king's ransom in gold, silver, and gems for her maiden voyage to Java. The Batavia was the pride of the company's fleet, a tangible symbol of the world's richest and most powerful commercial monopoly. She set sail with great fanfare, but the Batavia and her gold would never reach Java.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Perhaps the best book ever
- By Ray928 on 03-12-19
By: Mike Dash
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Why We Love Pirates
- The Hunt for Captain Kidd and How He Changed Piracy Forever
- By: Rebecca Simon PhD
- Narrated by: Kate Mulligan
- Length: 6 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 74
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 71
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 71
During his life and even after his death, Captain William Kidd’s name was known around England and the American colonies. He was infamous for the very crime for which he was hanged, piracy. This book by Rebecca Simon dives into the details of the two-year manhunt for Captain Kidd and the events that ensued afterward. Captain Kidd was hanged in 1701, and from that sprung a massive hunt for all pirates led by the British during a period known as the Golden Age of Piracy. Ironically, public executions only led to pirates’ growth in popularity and interest.
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2 out of 5 stars
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aweful unless a 6th grade book report
- By Mike in NC on 03-13-22
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The Last Voyage of Columbus
- Being the Epic Tale of the Great Captain's Fourth Expedition
- By: Martin Dugard
- Narrated by: Simon Jones
- Length: 6 hrs and 1 min
- Abridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 152
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 85
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 86
The epic, never-before-told story of Columbus's final, and perhaps greatest, journey to the New World. The final voyage of Christopher Columbus was by far his most dangerous, unexpected, exhilarating, and consequential. It was, as Pulitzer Prize-winner Samuel Eliot Morison put it, "a story of adventure which imagination could hardly invent; a struggle between man and the elements, in which the most splendid manifestations of devotion, loyalty and courage are mingled with the vilest human passions."
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5 out of 5 stars
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Brilliant!
- By David on 09-11-05
By: Martin Dugard
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The Last Slave Ship
- The True Story of How Clotilda Was Found, Her Descendants, and an Extraordinary Reckoning
- By: Ben Raines
- Narrated by: Kevin R. Free
- Length: 8 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall5 out of 5 stars 210
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 185
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Story5 out of 5 stars 185
Fifty years after the Atlantic slave trade was outlawed, the Clotilda became the last ship in history to bring enslaved Africans to the United States. The ship was scuttled and burned on arrival to hide the wealthy perpetrators to escape prosecution. Despite numerous efforts to find the sunken wreck, Clotilda remained hidden for the next 160 years. But in 2019, journalist Ben Raines made international news when he successfully concluded his obsessive quest through the swamps of Alabama to uncover one of our nation’s most important historical artifacts.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Wow. Just Wow.
- By Pinkhippiechick on 02-11-22
By: Ben Raines
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Rebels at Sea
- Privateering in the American Revolution
- By: Eric Jay Dolin
- Narrated by: Eric Jason Martin
- Length: 8 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 57
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 52
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 53
The heroic story of the founding of the US Navy during the Revolution has been told many times, yet largely missing from maritime histories of America's first war is the ragtag fleet of private vessels that truly revealed the new nation's character. In Rebels at Sea, Eric Jay Dolin corrects that significant omission, and contends that privateers, as they were called, were in fact critical to the American victory. Privateers were privately owned vessels that were granted permission by the new government to seize British merchantmen and men of war.
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3 out of 5 stars
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If you can get over the narrator...
- By Toby Everett on 09-20-22
By: Eric Jay Dolin
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The Pirate Queen
- By: Susan Ronald
- Narrated by: Josephine Bailey
- Length: 13 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 75
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 39
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 39
Dubbed the "pirate queen" by the Vatican and Spain's Philip II, Elizabeth I was feared and admired by her enemies. Extravagant, whimsical, and hot-tempered, Elizabeth was the epitome of power. Her visionary accomplishments were made possible by her daring merchants, gifted rapscallion adventurers, astronomer philosophers, and her stalwart Privy Council, including Sir William Cecil, Sir Francis Walsingham, and Sir Nicholas Bacon.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Too lilttle about Elizabeth!
- By Eunice on 12-20-07
By: Susan Ronald