Left for Dead

“It would hardly be an exaggeration to say that Dolin’s saga has as many twists and turns as a route through the mazy South Atlantic archipelago….Dolin does justice to the drama of it all… without stinting on one of pleasures of reading 19th-century history: the wordsmithery of people high and low…The author of several previous books on such maritime topics as piracy and whaling, Dolin is an expert literary steersman.” – Dennis Drabelle - The Washington Post“It’s a tale with all the elements of a movie blockbuster: shipwreck, mutiny, greed and a desperate struggle for survival in a hostile environment. There is also high-minded altruism, persistent backstabbing, drunkenness and—as if a movie executive had insisted it could only help the box office—a noble dog….Dolin’s firm grasp of the 19th-century maritime world is undeniable….This is a masterly account of a historical event.” – Bill Heavey - The Wall Street Journal“Eric Jay Dolin’s depiction of early 1800s seafaring is filled with as much adventure, intrigue, action, and colorful characters as any classic Hollywood movie. Surviving a thousand-mile ocean journey in a small boat is just one of several scintillating ingredients. Left for Dead is a true account that reads like a grizzled sailor’s tall tale.” – Tom Clavin, author of Lightning Down: A World War II Story of Survival“In Left for Dead, a handful of sailors abandoned on a remote island by their mates more than two centuries ago is only the beginning. Eric Jay Dolin delivers surprise after surprise. With a plot worthy of the best seafaring fiction, Dolin’s gripping narrative has the added fascination of being entirely true.” – Andrea Pitzer, author of Icebound: Shipwrecked at the Edge of the World“An absorbing adventure that explores the dark shadows of instinct and self-preservation, and the hardships and stress that stretch the bonds of humanity. Fascinating reading.” – Stephen R. Bown, author of Island of the Blue Foxes: Disaster and Triumph on the World’s Greatest Scientific Expedition

Eric Jay Dolin is the best-selling and award-winning author of numerous works in maritime history, including Leviathan, Rebels at Sea, and Black Flags, Blue Waters. He lives in Marblehead, Massachusetts.