Sign in with Facebook
Loading...
44th out of 90 books
—
1,579 voters
Carry On, Mr. Bowditch
Readers today are still fascinated by �Nat,” an eighteenth-century nautical wonder and mathematical wizard. Nathaniel Bowditch grew up in a sailor’s world—Salem in the early days, when tall-masted ships from foreign ports crowded the wharves. But Nat didn’t promise to have the makings of a sailor; he was too physically small. Nat may have been slight of build, but no one g...more
Paperback, 256 pages
Published
May 19th 2003
by Sandpiper
(first published 1955)
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
Community Reviews
(showing
1-30
of
3,000)
I was somewhat surprised when I first learned about this biography that had managed the rare (for a non-fiction book) feat of winning the Newbery Medal, but after reading this very special narrative bio, I would lend my wholehearted support to the committee's decision.
The absolutely enthralling story of Nat Bowditch bursts at the seams with starkly real emotion. So often along the path down which the reader is led, the steps are devastatingly heartbreaking, and to see what terrible ordeals Nat...more
The absolutely enthralling story of Nat Bowditch bursts at the seams with starkly real emotion. So often along the path down which the reader is led, the steps are devastatingly heartbreaking, and to see what terrible ordeals Nat...more
If I tried, I could not begin to describe the effect Carry On, Mr. Bowditch has had on me. I really couldn’t. I have a special place on my bookshelf for my copy of this book, and I usually read in two or three times a year. Yes, two or three times. I adore this book. No, more than adore it. I worship it.
Jean Lee Latham wins my eternal devotion for writing Carry On, Mr. Bowditch.
Once upon a time, Nat Bowditch is a poor boy who comes from a long line of sea captains, but is too small and weak to b...more
Jean Lee Latham wins my eternal devotion for writing Carry On, Mr. Bowditch.
Once upon a time, Nat Bowditch is a poor boy who comes from a long line of sea captains, but is too small and weak to b...more
I was really surprised by this book.
The main character is such a great example of hard work and self-learning. I was amazed at what he was able to accomplish on his own, but searching out and learning what he wanted/needed to. He has a lot of 'bad luck' along the way, but also a lot of people who truly love this humble, industrious man, people who do their best to help him along.
The author did an excellent job developing the characters and moving the action along.
My husband just finished reading...more
The main character is such a great example of hard work and self-learning. I was amazed at what he was able to accomplish on his own, but searching out and learning what he wanted/needed to. He has a lot of 'bad luck' along the way, but also a lot of people who truly love this humble, industrious man, people who do their best to help him along.
The author did an excellent job developing the characters and moving the action along.
My husband just finished reading...more
There is a chapter called "Sailing by Ash Wind" and it sums up the moral of the story for me. The explanation is that when the ship is dead in the water with no wind for the sails to catch, you have to use the oars which were made of ash wood as well as throw your anchor out and pull the boat to it and repeat until you are finally able to regain the wind.
Nathanial Bowditch is an intelligent boy surrounded by hardship yet overcomes by determination and hard work. He perseveres and becomes a part...more
Nathanial Bowditch is an intelligent boy surrounded by hardship yet overcomes by determination and hard work. He perseveres and becomes a part...more
My favorite juvenile fiction work ever, this book tells the inspirational story of a bright young boy who seems to have all his dreams dashed as he grows up. But by "sailing by the ash breeze" and pursuing his intellectual passions whenever he has a spare moment, he becomes one of the most famous marine navigation experts of all time and saves countless lives as a result of his work. No better book can be given to a young person who shows real intellectual potential, especially in math and scien...more
4 likes
·
like
· see review
I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and I was equally surprised to learn that this was a biography.
The events, the plot, the characters ... the way they were woven together seemed to smooth, to good to be true to life story, but it is, and this has helped me view the world with different eyes.
I love books like this - books that inspire. When I read about all Mr. Bowditch had accomplished, and when I learned that the book is a biography, it made me dare to dream. That was one of the few times in my c...more
The events, the plot, the characters ... the way they were woven together seemed to smooth, to good to be true to life story, but it is, and this has helped me view the world with different eyes.
I love books like this - books that inspire. When I read about all Mr. Bowditch had accomplished, and when I learned that the book is a biography, it made me dare to dream. That was one of the few times in my c...more
This is a little longer than I would like it to have been however this is an excellent story that bears revisiting.
Carry On, Mr. Bowditch is the fictionalized biography of Nathaniel Bowditch the late 18th and early 19th century sea captain from Salem, Massachusetts. The story opens shortly after the American Revolutionary war as the United States is beginning to find its place in the world and the world economy. Already established as a strength on the seas (for trade at the time, the United St...more
Carry On, Mr. Bowditch is the fictionalized biography of Nathaniel Bowditch the late 18th and early 19th century sea captain from Salem, Massachusetts. The story opens shortly after the American Revolutionary war as the United States is beginning to find its place in the world and the world economy. Already established as a strength on the seas (for trade at the time, the United St...more
This based-on-a-true-story Newbery winner has a light, breezy tone and engaging writing style. It is clearly a product of the fifties, as anyone familiar with books (particularly books for boys) written during that period can attest. It has the breathless rush of action so often found from that period. The message that hard work and self-education will create success is right on the edge of being heavy-handed, but luckily never quite leaps off the cliff. There is also a depth to the characters,...more
Reading Level: Grades 4 and up
Our story begins in 1775. Nat Bowditch, a small boy for his age, loves arithmetic more than anything because the answers always come out the same. His eldest brother has just signed on with a ship leaving for the open ocean and Nat’s father, deciding that his son needs to begin a trade, has pulled Nat out of school.
Nat is apprenticed to a ship chandlery as their bookkeeper for nine years, squashing all dreams he had of studying at Harvard University. But, Nat rememb...more
Our story begins in 1775. Nat Bowditch, a small boy for his age, loves arithmetic more than anything because the answers always come out the same. His eldest brother has just signed on with a ship leaving for the open ocean and Nat’s father, deciding that his son needs to begin a trade, has pulled Nat out of school.
Nat is apprenticed to a ship chandlery as their bookkeeper for nine years, squashing all dreams he had of studying at Harvard University. But, Nat rememb...more
Mr Bowditch lives in colonial America, is a math whiz, and wants to go to Harvard. But due to family hardship he is indentured as a servant in a shipyard for 9 nine years. He "carries on" and prospers, learning Latin, French besides doing the books for his employer. He becomes a valued crew member, with his ship knowledge and navigation expertise, and interpreter abilities. His voyages excite the reader, while the news from home breaks the heart several times.
Nathaniel persistently teaches and t...more
Nathaniel persistently teaches and t...more
Carry On, Mr. Bowditch
By Jean Lee Latham
Our story begins in 1775. Nat Bowditch, a small boy for his age, loves arithmetic more than anything because the answers always come out the same – unlike many other aspects of his life. His eldest brother has just signed on with a ship leaving for the open ocean and Nat’s father, deciding that his son needs to begin a trade, has pulled Nat out of school.
Nat is apprenticed to a ship chandlery as their bookkeeper for nine years, squashing all dreams he had...more
By Jean Lee Latham
Our story begins in 1775. Nat Bowditch, a small boy for his age, loves arithmetic more than anything because the answers always come out the same – unlike many other aspects of his life. His eldest brother has just signed on with a ship leaving for the open ocean and Nat’s father, deciding that his son needs to begin a trade, has pulled Nat out of school.
Nat is apprenticed to a ship chandlery as their bookkeeper for nine years, squashing all dreams he had...more
This is from my son Dallin, age 12, who read the book (I've read the book as well):
"I learned what a privateer is. I learned what it means to buy an expectation from a sailor. What they used to do is you would find a sailor and pay him some money and he would have an estimated amount of money that he would make on that voyage. You would get some of the money. It's a risky thing like investing because they might get killed or something. One way they make money is by working as part of the crew. I...more
"I learned what a privateer is. I learned what it means to buy an expectation from a sailor. What they used to do is you would find a sailor and pay him some money and he would have an estimated amount of money that he would make on that voyage. You would get some of the money. It's a risky thing like investing because they might get killed or something. One way they make money is by working as part of the crew. I...more
Jul 13, 2010
Judy
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
kids and adults both
Shelves:
books-from-1956,
children-s-lit
Here we have the Newbery Award winner for 1956 and it is an example of the best of the Newbery Awards, according to me. Nathaniel Bowditch wrote the famous American Practical Navigator, published in 1799. In this biography of his life, which is certainly appropriate for ages 8-12 but kept me captivated on every page, we learn that Nat was puny for his age as a kid. Due to the financial difficulties of his parents, he had to leave school and go into indentured service as a bookkeeper at a ship c...more
“A simple Matter of Mathematics”
Jean Latham’s 1955 Newbery award winner is an easy-to-read biography of the early life and career of Nathanial Bowditch, brilliant youth from Salem, a proud Massachusetts maritime village. His career rises and falls like Yankee trader: now billowing ahead--now becalmed, occasionally riding triumphant swells with exotic cargo. Aye, aye, Captain—there be no brine in his brain! Yet a fellow without a Harvard education literally rewrote the book on 18th century navi...more
Jean Latham’s 1955 Newbery award winner is an easy-to-read biography of the early life and career of Nathanial Bowditch, brilliant youth from Salem, a proud Massachusetts maritime village. His career rises and falls like Yankee trader: now billowing ahead--now becalmed, occasionally riding triumphant swells with exotic cargo. Aye, aye, Captain—there be no brine in his brain! Yet a fellow without a Harvard education literally rewrote the book on 18th century navi...more
Nov 24, 2011
Joanne
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
young-adult-lit,
fiction
Surprised this won the Newbery, but...it's a nice historical YA, though not in the grand tradition of Johnny Tremain or The Witch of Blackbird Pond. A little boring.
Features Nathaniel Bowditch, who was a self-taught Colonial-era mathematician-turned-navigator who revolutionized the way sailors took lunar soundings, thereby providing them with longitude as well as latitude.
Reminded me of how easy it was to die back then - Nat loses several family members, and Salem, where he lives, is frequently...more
Features Nathaniel Bowditch, who was a self-taught Colonial-era mathematician-turned-navigator who revolutionized the way sailors took lunar soundings, thereby providing them with longitude as well as latitude.
Reminded me of how easy it was to die back then - Nat loses several family members, and Salem, where he lives, is frequently...more
I read this book umpteen years ago when I was on a "nautical" kick. When it turned up among my Goodreads recommendation, I debated whether to put it on my "children" or "history" bookshelves. It is certainly a children's book. However, Nathaniel Bowditch was a CRUCIALLY important (real) figure in worldwide (not just American) maritime history -- so I listed it in both. The standard "blurb" describes the book's content, so I won't repeat that here.
I am not generally a big fan of fictionalized bio...more
I am not generally a big fan of fictionalized bio...more
Carry On, Mr. Bowditch won the Newbery Award in 1956 and it the true story of Nat Bowditch who revolutionized navigation at the turn of the nineteenth century. The book is for younger readers and is therefore a simple and straightforward narrative. The story begins when Nat is just six years old and ends more than twenty years later once Nat has become a ship's captain and published a book on navigation.
While the story started off a little slow, it didn't take long for me to get hooked. I actual...more
While the story started off a little slow, it didn't take long for me to get hooked. I actual...more
Another book from my son's required reading list that I would unequivocally recommend to both students and parents. Set in the immediate aftermath of the Revolutionary War, "Bowditch," a true story, chronicles the life of an exceptionally brilliant young man who, at an early age, must learn to cope with and overcome difficulty and setback. He learns, you will read, to sail the ship of his life, "by ash breeze." Refusing to be victimized by events outside of his control, Bowditch learns the value...more
This is a wonderful book. On the whole I'm not a fan of books about the sea and sailing but I had so much fun reading it that I could hardly put it down. The main character, Nat, is book smart and very excited about learning, and while he's not boastful about it, he's not ashamed to let others know and make them excited to learn too. His motives are very pure; he assumes the best of people and because he does he sees their best and helps them live to their full potential. It's a very optimistic...more
This is in part the real story of Nathanial Bowditch, a poor New England boy living in post Revolutionary Salem, MA. He is quite intelligent, but instead of getting to go to school, he is indentured out to a chandelry. During his indentured period, he learns many things through self study including French and Latin. He learns about the stars - everything is about "mathematics". He later becomes the navigator for ships - using new techniques to help sail through treacherous waters.
We read this as...more
We read this as...more
Nathaniel Bowditch had always been fascinated by mathematics but was not able to easily access and study it to the extent he wanted to in school because he was a bookkeeper on a ship. Though the circumstances he was in made it tough, Nathaniel learned as much as he could on his voyages. On the ships, he had worked several jobs, but after close losses, one due to navigation table errors, he decided that a correct navigational book should be written. Because of his determination and hard work, Bow...more
Nat has every reason to expect that he will be able to attend college and go on to a happy professional life. Then everything is taken away from him. His father has a tragedy at sea and is forced to leave his life as a captain and become a menial worker. His mother dies and his father takes his sorrows out in drink. Nat must then leave school and become an indentured servant. His dreams of school seem lost to him forever.
Nat never succumbs to feeling sorry for himself or bitterness. Instead, he...more
Nat never succumbs to feeling sorry for himself or bitterness. Instead, he...more
This has got to be one of my top favorites. I just thought it was well written and Nathaniel Bowditch is portrayed as a very exemplary figure. He has a tough life, but he handles it all with light hearted determination. From this book I learned what is now one of my favorite phrases/concepts, that is to sail by ash breeze.
1 like
·
like
· see review
"Carry On, Mr. Bowditch" by Jean Lee Latham is an excellent middle-school level biography of Nathaniel Bowditch (1773-1838). Bowditch was a sailor and mathematician who wrote "The American Practical Navigator," a book which, if Wikipedia is to be believed, is still standard issue on US Navy vessels.
Latham's book, winner of the 1956 Newbery Medal, tells a fascinating story of Bowditch's life that would introduce students to many now-strange aspects of life at that time. These include Bowditch's i...more
Latham's book, winner of the 1956 Newbery Medal, tells a fascinating story of Bowditch's life that would introduce students to many now-strange aspects of life at that time. These include Bowditch's i...more
Carry On, Mr. Bowditch is the children's biography of Nathaniel Bowditch which won the Newbery Honor in 1956. He was a mathematician and nautical wonder in the late 1700's and early 1800's which might seem very uninteresting to some to actually read a book about his life. But I'm glad I gave it a chance because it was quite delightful to read. He was forced to be an indentured servant when he was 12 years old for 9 years. His heart was broken because he could not continue his schooling but that...more
I can't remember why I put this on my reading list but I am really happy I did. This biographical fiction was written in the mid 1950s and is a good example of books written for kids then. It doesn't hide the problems but doesn't dwell on them so that the reader is terribly depressed. This book about the genius Nathaniel Bowditch was interesting and educational. Nat had little opportunity for formal education but used all his resources and became a renowned mathmathician and navigator. He taught...more
Carry on Mr. Bowditch is simply a classic. This book follows the life of Nate Bowditch, a mathematical genius who spends his life with the hope of one day getting enough money to go to Harvard. From a young age Nate spent his time working in a shop in an old town called Salem. During the day he worked, but come nightfall, Nate spent his time reading and studying, teaching himself Latin, science and navigation.
Carry on Mr. Bowditch will definitely go down as one of my favorite books of all time....more
Carry on Mr. Bowditch will definitely go down as one of my favorite books of all time....more
Wow, a couple in a row that I really liked! 1955 & 1956 were most excellent years for the Newbery Award.
Although I will never ever understand math the way Mr. Bowditch did, I loved his passion for correcting errors in books - especially books that mens' lives depended on. I had no idea this was based on a real man, except for a niggling suspicion that I knew the name when I picked up the book. How fun and interesting! Sort of Johnny Tremain-ish.
My only complaint is how many people died in th...more
Although I will never ever understand math the way Mr. Bowditch did, I loved his passion for correcting errors in books - especially books that mens' lives depended on. I had no idea this was based on a real man, except for a niggling suspicion that I knew the name when I picked up the book. How fun and interesting! Sort of Johnny Tremain-ish.
My only complaint is how many people died in th...more
When I first read this book, I did not know it was a biography. My mom had tricked me into reading it and after I praised the book and went to look for more by the author she said, "Oh, there probably is not another like it. It's a biography." I was horrified at that statement, not because I think that biographies are dirty, vile things, but because there was no chance of a continuation to that tale.
Whenever someone asks me who my hero is, the answer is always Nathanial Bowditch. Because of thi...more
Whenever someone asks me who my hero is, the answer is always Nathanial Bowditch. Because of thi...more
I really like this biographical book. What an interesting man! I love that Nat is so willing to teach anybody what he knows. His experience also shows the genius in every person. I also love his willingness, and even need, to question authority and not sail by blind faith. Just now, as I was typing this review, I was thinking about how to articulate why I liked this book as much as I did. I then realized that Nat reminds me a lot of my husband with his quirky scientific ways and quest for truth....more
There are no discussion topics on this book yet.
Be the first to start one »
Born on April 19th, Jean Lee Latham grew up in Buckhannon, West Virginia. She attended West Virginia Wesleyan College, where she wrote plays and operated the county newspaper’s linotype machine. She earned a master’s degree at Cornell University. While completing her degree, Ms. Latham taught English, history, and drama at Ithaca.
Once she graduated, she became editor-in-chief of the Dramatic Publi...more
More about Jean Lee Latham...
Once she graduated, she became editor-in-chief of the Dramatic Publi...more
Share This Book
1 trivia question
More quizzes & trivia...
“Behind Nat someone chuckled. Nat turned. Dr. Bentley was looking at him with a twinkle. "Is this a political argument?"
Nat shrugged. "No argument at all. Ben's got an article there that talks against the President. I said I didn't want to hear it. I said that sort of thing ought to be stopped."
To Nat's amazement, Dr. Bentley shook his head. "No, Nat. We can't have freedom—unless we have freedom."
Nat stiffened. "Does that mean right to tell lies?"
Dr. Bentley smiled. "It means the right to have our own opinions. Human problems aren't like mathematics, Nat. Every problem doesn't have just one answer; sometimes you get several answers—and you don't know which is the right one.”
—
4 people liked it
Nat shrugged. "No argument at all. Ben's got an article there that talks against the President. I said I didn't want to hear it. I said that sort of thing ought to be stopped."
To Nat's amazement, Dr. Bentley shook his head. "No, Nat. We can't have freedom—unless we have freedom."
Nat stiffened. "Does that mean right to tell lies?"
Dr. Bentley smiled. "It means the right to have our own opinions. Human problems aren't like mathematics, Nat. Every problem doesn't have just one answer; sometimes you get several answers—and you don't know which is the right one.”
“It's a simple matter of mathematics.”
—
4 people liked it
More quotes…
Apr 25, 2009 07:02am