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  <id>1425916</id>
  <title><![CDATA[Two Years Before the Mast (Signet Classics)]]></title>
  <isbn><![CDATA[0451527593]]></isbn>
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  <description><![CDATA[Tracing an awe-inspiring oceanic route from Boston, around Cape Horn, to the California coast, Two Years Before the Mast is both a riveting story of adventure and the most eloquent, insightful account we have of life at sea in the early nineteenth century. Richard Henry Dana is only nineteen when he abandons the patrician world of Boston and Harvard for an arduous voyage among real sailors, amid genuine danger. The result is an astonishing read, replete with vivid descriptions of storms, whales, and the ship's mad captain, terrible hardship and magical beauty, and fascinating historical detail, including an intriguing portrait of California before the gold rush. As D. H. Lawrence proclaimed, &quot;Dana's small book is a very great book.&quot;]]></description>
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  <original_publication_year type="integer">1840</original_publication_year>
  <original_title>Two Years before the Mast: A Sailor's Life at Sea</original_title>
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        <name><![CDATA[Richard Henry Dana Jr.]]></name>
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  <title>
    <![CDATA[Two Years Before the Mast]]>
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  <average_rating>3.75</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>24</ratings_count>
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    <![CDATA[Tracing an awe-inspiring oceanic route from Boston, around Cape Horn, to the California coast, Two Years Before the Mast is both a riveting story of adventure and the most eloquent, insightful account we have of life at sea in the early nineteenth century. Richard Henry Dana is only nineteen when he abandons the patrician world of Boston and Harvard for an arduous voyage among real sailors, amid genuine danger. The result is an astonishing read, replete with vivid descriptions of storms, whales, and the ship's mad captain, terrible hardship and magical beauty, and fascinating historical detail, including an intriguing portrait of California before the gold rush. As D. H. Lawrence proclaimed, &quot;Dana's small book is a very great book.&quot;]]>
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    <rating>4</rating>
  <votes>2</votes>
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  <recommended_for><![CDATA[sailors and wannabe o'brien fans]]></recommended_for>
  <recommended_by><![CDATA[sailors]]></recommended_by>
  <read_at>Wed May 07 00:00:00 -0700 2008</read_at>
  <date_added>Sun Apr 27 20:07:13 -0700 2008</date_added>
  <date_updated>Wed May 07 18:35:01 -0700 2008</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[     this book is absolutely essential for anyone who has any desire of stepping off the quarterdeck of his historical fiction (O'Brien novels) and heading down to the focs'l to hear about sailing traditional ships from the men who were actually sweating lines, heave-yo-ho-ing, and climbing the rigg...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/21140042">more...</a>]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/21140042]]></url>
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      <review>
  <id>4961834</id>
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    <id>297947</id>
    <name><![CDATA[Cat]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[San Diego, CA]]></location>
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  <id type="integer">874725</id>
  <isbn>0375757945</isbn>
  <isbn13>9780375757945</isbn13>
  <text_reviews_count type="integer">8</text_reviews_count>
  <title>
    <![CDATA[Two Years Before the Mast: A Personal Narrative of Life at Sea]]>
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  <average_rating>3.91</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>35</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[Tracing an awe-inspiring oceanic route from Boston, around Cape Horn, to the California coast, Two Years Before the Mast is both a riveting story of adventure and the most eloquent, insightful account we have of life at sea in the early nineteenth century. Richard Henry Dana is only nineteen when he abandons the patrician world of Boston and Harvard for an arduous voyage among real sailors, amid genuine danger. The result is an astonishing read, replete with vivid descriptions of storms, whales, and the ship's mad captain, terrible hardship and magical beauty, and fascinating historical detail, including an intriguing portrait of California before the gold rush. As D. H. Lawrence proclaimed, &quot;Dana's small book is a very great book.&quot;]]>
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    <rating>3</rating>
  <votes>1</votes>
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  <recommended_for><![CDATA[Kerouac fans]]></recommended_for>
  <recommended_by><![CDATA[]]></recommended_by>
  <read_at>Sun Feb 01 00:00:00 -0800 2004</read_at>
  <date_added>Wed Aug 22 16:19:14 -0700 2007</date_added>
  <date_updated>Thu Aug 23 08:11:38 -0700 2007</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[I read this book after reading about it in Kevin Starr's excellent history of California: California and the American Dream as well as reading about it in the foreword to Herman Melville's &quot;White Jacket&quot;.<br/>White Jacket was, of course, at least partially inspired by this book, and after...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4961834">more...</a>]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4961834]]></url>
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</review>
      <review>
  <id>2927130</id>
    <user>
    <id>182590</id>
    <name><![CDATA[Andrew]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[The United States]]></location>
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  <id type="integer">857114</id>
  <isbn>0451523695</isbn>
  <isbn13>9780451523693</isbn13>
  <text_reviews_count type="integer">4</text_reviews_count>
  <title>
    <![CDATA[Two Years Before the Mast: A Personal Narrative of Life at Sea]]>
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  <average_rating>3.71</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>7</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[Tracing an awe-inspiring oceanic route from Boston, around Cape Horn, to the California coast, Two Years Before the Mast is both a riveting story of adventure and the most eloquent, insightful account we have of life at sea in the early nineteenth century. Richard Henry Dana is only nineteen when he abandons the patrician world of Boston and Harvard for an arduous voyage among real sailors, amid genuine danger. The result is an astonishing read, replete with vivid descriptions of storms, whales, and the ship's mad captain, terrible hardship and magical beauty, and fascinating historical detail, including an intriguing portrait of California before the gold rush. As D. H. Lawrence proclaimed, &quot;Dana's small book is a very great book.&quot;]]>
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    <rating>5</rating>
  <votes>1</votes>
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  <recommended_for><![CDATA[mates, office types]]></recommended_for>
  <recommended_by><![CDATA[]]></recommended_by>
  <read_at>Mon Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007</read_at>
  <date_added>Tue Jul 10 20:32:19 -0700 2007</date_added>
  <date_updated>Tue Jul 10 20:44:19 -0700 2007</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[This book made me cry multiple times, but not for the direct subject matter.  I think there were just a few too many references to the California coast described in enough detail that the effect was to pry out long-lingering ghosts haunting the coastline of my own isle of denial.  his descriptions a...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2927130">more...</a>]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2927130]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2927130]]></link>
</review>
      <review>
  <id>45443265</id>
    <user>
    <id>1986949</id>
    <name><![CDATA[Bathcitygazette]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[Clinton Township, MI]]></location>
    <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/1986949-bathcitygazette]]></link>
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    <book>
  <id type="integer">335394</id>
  <isbn>0766182215</isbn>
  <isbn13>9780766182219</isbn13>
  <text_reviews_count type="integer">4</text_reviews_count>
  <title>
    <![CDATA[Two Years Before the Mast and Twenty-Four Years After (Harvard Classics, Part 23)]]>
  </title>
  <image_url>http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1173843538m/335394.jpg</image_url>
  <link>http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/335394.Two_Years_Before_the_Mast_and_Twenty_Four_Years_After</link>
  <average_rating>4.32</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>22</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[1909. R.H. Dana took a sea voyage and decided to go as a sailor not as a passenger. The voyage was bound from his home town of Boston to California. His experiences during those two years form the subject of this volume. Later in life he took another voyage around the world and those observations form the postscript of this book. This books value and interest today are even greater than they were when it was written for, while the purely human element remains the same, the account of the routine on board the old sailing ships, the picture of the trading on the coast of California, and the description of that country in the days before the discovery of gold had transformed its civilization, have all acquired a historical importance.]]>
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    <rating>4</rating>
  <votes>0</votes>
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  <recommended_for><![CDATA[]]></recommended_for>
  <recommended_by><![CDATA[]]></recommended_by>
  <read_at>Thu Feb 05 00:00:00 -0800 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Thu Feb 05 06:08:09 -0800 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Thu Feb 05 06:14:18 -0800 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[oh my gosh! what can i say about this book? by the time, that merchant ship landed back in boston.....i couldn't even bring myself to finish &amp; go on shore. i ended up taking a hot shower &amp; washing the sea salt off my body. never have a group of people suffered more or endured more hardship, than the...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/45443265">more...</a>]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/45443265]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/45443265]]></link>
</review>
      <review>
  <id>69635823</id>
    <user>
    <id>2247935</id>
    <name><![CDATA[Ben]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[The United States]]></location>
    <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/2247935-ben]]></link>
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  <id type="integer">335397</id>
  <isbn>1402179626</isbn>
  <isbn13>9781402179624</isbn13>
  <text_reviews_count type="integer">55</text_reviews_count>
  <title>
    <![CDATA[Two Years before the Mast: A Sailor's Life at Sea]]>
  </title>
  <image_url>http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1173843539m/335397.jpg</image_url>
  <link>http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/335397.Two_Years_before_the_Mast_A_Sailor_s_Life_at_Sea</link>
  <average_rating>3.95</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>266</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[This Elibron Classics book is a reprint of a 1853 edition by G. Routledge &amp; Co., London.]]>
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    <rating>4</rating>
  <votes>1</votes>
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  <recommended_for><![CDATA[]]></recommended_for>
  <recommended_by><![CDATA[]]></recommended_by>
  <read_at>Mon Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Mon Aug 31 20:06:11 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Mon Aug 31 20:16:19 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[One of the earliest travel diaries, this was a huge hit back in the 1830s. Melville stole liberally from Dana in his creation of Moby Dick. Dana, sick from life at law school at Harvard, takes to the seas on a boat sailing from Boston. <br/><br/>They head around the Cape and spend a few years trad...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/69635823">more...</a>]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/69635823]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/69635823]]></link>
</review>
      <review>
  <id>77607944</id>
    <user>
    <id>1176713</id>
    <name><![CDATA[Rachel]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[The United States]]></location>
    <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/1176713-rachel-kopel]]></link>
    <image_url><![CDATA[http://photo.goodreads.com/users/1240067157p3/1176713.jpg]]></image_url>
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  <id type="integer">335397</id>
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  <text_reviews_count type="integer">55</text_reviews_count>
  <title>
    <![CDATA[Two Years before the Mast: A Sailor's Life at Sea]]>
  </title>
  <image_url>http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1173843539m/335397.jpg</image_url>
  <link>http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/335397.Two_Years_before_the_Mast_A_Sailor_s_Life_at_Sea</link>
  <average_rating>3.94</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>426</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[This Elibron Classics book is a reprint of a 1853 edition by G. Routledge &amp; Co., London.]]>
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    <rating>4</rating>
  <votes>0</votes>
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  <recommended_for><![CDATA[]]></recommended_for>
  <recommended_by><![CDATA[]]></recommended_by>
  <read_at>Thu Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Thu Nov 12 18:52:14 -0800 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Thu Nov 12 18:58:21 -0800 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[So there I was, home for 10 days with a cold/flu, and part way through the time this book surfaced from some pile or another.  It is certainly a real page turner, although we know from the title that he did survive to write the book and did get home in two years.  Most of the book is spent at sea in...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/77607944">more...</a>]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/77607944]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/77607944]]></link>
</review>
      <review>
  <id>74974156</id>
    <user>
    <id>2489331</id>
    <name><![CDATA[Abe]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[Nashville, TN]]></location>
    <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/2489331-abe-goolsby]]></link>
    <image_url><![CDATA[http://photo.goodreads.com/users/1252927731p3/2489331.jpg]]></image_url>
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  <id type="integer">1425916</id>
  <isbn>0451527593</isbn>
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  <text_reviews_count type="integer">9</text_reviews_count>
  <title>
    <![CDATA[Two Years Before the Mast]]>
  </title>
  <image_url>http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1183492071m/1425916.jpg</image_url>
  <link>http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1425916.Two_Years_Before_the_Mast</link>
  <average_rating>3.75</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>24</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[Tracing an awe-inspiring oceanic route from Boston, around Cape Horn, to the California coast, Two Years Before the Mast is both a riveting story of adventure and the most eloquent, insightful account we have of life at sea in the early nineteenth century. Richard Henry Dana is only nineteen when he abandons the patrician world of Boston and Harvard for an arduous voyage among real sailors, amid genuine danger. The result is an astonishing read, replete with vivid descriptions of storms, whales, and the ship's mad captain, terrible hardship and magical beauty, and fascinating historical detail, including an intriguing portrait of California before the gold rush. As D. H. Lawrence proclaimed, &quot;Dana's small book is a very great book.&quot;]]>
  </description>
</book>

    <rating>5</rating>
  <votes>1</votes>
  <spoiler_flag>false</spoiler_flag>
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  <recommended_for><![CDATA[]]></recommended_for>
  <recommended_by><![CDATA[]]></recommended_by>
  <read_at>Mon Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 1998</read_at>
  <date_added>Sun Oct 18 19:15:02 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Sun Oct 18 19:30:33 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[This book is, I suppose, something of a family favorite. It was a favorite of my father's and became one of mine as well. R. H. Dana was a student at Harvard in the 1830s who, following an illness which compromised his eyesight and forced an extended leave from study, signed on as a rank-and-file se...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/74974156">more...</a>]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/74974156]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/74974156]]></link>
</review>
      <review>
  <id>43208683</id>
    <user>
    <id>1465168</id>
    <name><![CDATA[Richard]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[La Palma, CA]]></location>
    <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/1465168-richard]]></link>
    <image_url><![CDATA[http://photo.goodreads.com/users/1232086018p3/1465168.jpg]]></image_url>
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  <id type="integer">335397</id>
  <isbn>1402179626</isbn>
  <isbn13>9781402179624</isbn13>
  <text_reviews_count type="integer">55</text_reviews_count>
  <title>
    <![CDATA[Two Years before the Mast: A Sailor's Life at Sea]]>
  </title>
  <image_url>http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1173843539m/335397.jpg</image_url>
  <link>http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/335397.Two_Years_before_the_Mast_A_Sailor_s_Life_at_Sea</link>
  <average_rating>3.94</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>426</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[This Elibron Classics book is a reprint of a 1853 edition by G. Routledge &amp; Co., London.]]>
  </description>
</book>

    <rating>3</rating>
  <votes>0</votes>
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  <recommended_for><![CDATA[]]></recommended_for>
  <recommended_by><![CDATA[]]></recommended_by>
  <read_at>Wed Jan 07 00:00:00 -0800 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Thu Jan 15 21:38:57 -0800 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Thu Jan 15 22:04:33 -0800 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[As a long-time Patrick O'Brian fan, I felt that &quot;Two Years Before the Mast&quot; was a must-read.  However, I ended up with decidedly mixed feelings about it.  Dana is certainly a skilled prose craftsman and as a Californian, I liked the pre-gold rush descriptions of the West Coast, especially ...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/43208683">more...</a>]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/43208683]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/43208683]]></link>
</review>
      <review>
  <id>57088012</id>
    <user>
    <id>76337</id>
    <name><![CDATA[Clark]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[The United States]]></location>
    <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/76337-clark]]></link>
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  <id type="integer">1654228</id>
  <isbn>0140390081</isbn>
  <isbn13>9780140390087</isbn13>
  <text_reviews_count type="integer">4</text_reviews_count>
  <title>
    <![CDATA[Two Years Before the Mast: A Personal Narrative of Life at Sea]]>
  </title>
  <image_url>http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1186419408m/1654228.jpg</image_url>
  <link>http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1654228.Two_Years_Before_the_Mast_A_Personal_Narrative_of_Life_at_Sea</link>
  <average_rating>3.78</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>18</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[Tracing an awe-inspiring oceanic route from Boston, around Cape Horn, to the California coast, Two Years Before the Mast is both a riveting story of adventure and the most eloquent, insightful account we have of life at sea in the early nineteenth century. Richard Henry Dana is only nineteen when he abandons the patrician world of Boston and Harvard for an arduous voyage among real sailors, amid genuine danger. The result is an astonishing read, replete with vivid descriptions of storms, whales, and the ship's mad captain, terrible hardship and magical beauty, and fascinating historical detail, including an intriguing portrait of California before the gold rush. As D. H. Lawrence proclaimed, &quot;Dana's small book is a very great book.&quot;]]>
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    <rating>4</rating>
  <votes>0</votes>
  <spoiler_flag>false</spoiler_flag>
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  <recommended_for><![CDATA[]]></recommended_for>
  <recommended_by><![CDATA[]]></recommended_by>
  <read_at>Wed Apr 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Sat May 23 15:08:35 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Sat May 23 15:20:14 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[This one was a slow starter, but I have to say that I was pretty blown away by how much I was digging it at the end. It's just a straight up nonfiction account of a young sailor's trip to California in the early 1800s. The depth of the feelings that this book plumbs are phenomenal. You get a sense f...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/57088012">more...</a>]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/57088012]]></url>
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</review>
      <review>
  <id>33727254</id>
    <user>
    <id>771530</id>
    <name><![CDATA[Larry]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[Vincennes, IN]]></location>
    <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/771530-larry]]></link>
    <image_url><![CDATA[http://photo.goodreads.com/users/1205522380p3/771530.jpg]]></image_url>
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  <id type="integer">335397</id>
  <isbn>1402179626</isbn>
  <isbn13>9781402179624</isbn13>
  <text_reviews_count type="integer">55</text_reviews_count>
  <title>
    <![CDATA[Two Years before the Mast: A Sailor's Life at Sea]]>
  </title>
  <image_url>http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1173843539m/335397.jpg</image_url>
  <link>http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/335397.Two_Years_before_the_Mast_A_Sailor_s_Life_at_Sea</link>
  <average_rating>3.94</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>426</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[This Elibron Classics book is a reprint of a 1853 edition by G. Routledge &amp; Co., London.]]>
  </description>
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    <rating>5</rating>
  <votes>1</votes>
  <spoiler_flag>false</spoiler_flag>
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  <read_at></read_at>
  <date_added>Wed Sep 24 11:00:59 -0700 2008</date_added>
  <date_updated>Wed Sep 24 11:01:33 -0700 2008</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[awesome, but then again, i was born with salt water in my veins and love sea stories]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/33727254]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/33727254]]></link>
</review>
      <review>
  <id>68806337</id>
    <user>
    <id>2555967</id>
    <name><![CDATA[Laura]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[New York, NY]]></location>
    <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/2555967-laura]]></link>
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  <id type="integer">335397</id>
  <isbn>1402179626</isbn>
  <isbn13>9781402179624</isbn13>
  <text_reviews_count type="integer">55</text_reviews_count>
  <title>
    <![CDATA[Two Years before the Mast: A Sailor's Life at Sea]]>
  </title>
  <image_url>http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1173843539m/335397.jpg</image_url>
  <link>http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/335397.Two_Years_before_the_Mast_A_Sailor_s_Life_at_Sea</link>
  <average_rating>3.94</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>426</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[This Elibron Classics book is a reprint of a 1853 edition by G. Routledge &amp; Co., London.]]>
  </description>
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    <rating>4</rating>
  <votes>0</votes>
  <spoiler_flag>false</spoiler_flag>
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  <recommended_for><![CDATA[]]></recommended_for>
  <recommended_by><![CDATA[]]></recommended_by>
  <read_at>Mon Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007</read_at>
  <date_added>Tue Aug 25 06:14:32 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Tue Aug 25 07:02:13 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count>1</read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[I don't even know what it is that appealed to me so much about this book.  Sometimes it was a little tedious.  But it's a diary, and didn't try to be anything else, and in the end, I liked that because it gave a first hand account (without fiction's prescience) of what it was like to live in a time ...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/68806337">more...</a>]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/68806337]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/68806337]]></link>
</review>
      <review>
  <id>63384283</id>
    <user>
    <id>976431</id>
    <name><![CDATA[Brett]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[Logandale, NV]]></location>
    <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/976431-brett]]></link>
    <image_url><![CDATA[http://photo.goodreads.com/users/1236506986p3/976431.jpg]]></image_url>
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    <book>
  <id type="integer">6068189</id>
  <isbn>0899664261</isbn>
  <isbn13>9780899664262</isbn13>
  <text_reviews_count type="integer">1</text_reviews_count>
  <title>
    <![CDATA[Two Years Before the Mast]]>
  </title>
  <image_url>http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-111x148.jpg</image_url>
  <link>http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6068189.Two_Years_Before_the_Mast</link>
  <average_rating>2.00</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>1</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[The narrative of the author's journey from Boston around the Cape Horn and landing at a port in the western coast of the United States.]]>
  </description>
</book>

    <rating>2</rating>
  <votes>0</votes>
  <spoiler_flag>false</spoiler_flag>
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  <recommended_for><![CDATA[]]></recommended_for>
  <recommended_by><![CDATA[]]></recommended_by>
  <read_at>Mon Dec 07 00:00:00 -0800 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Mon Jul 13 21:18:10 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Tue Dec 08 21:12:46 -0800 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[This might be an instance where I'd enjoy reading the book more than listening to the Audiobook.  I didn't care for the narrator overmuch; either his narration was very stilted, or the prose is.  The book was frustrating in that it was <em>almost</em> holding my interest but not quite.  The part I was partic...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/63384283">more...</a>]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/63384283]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/63384283]]></link>
</review>
      <review>
  <id>44252141</id>
    <user>
    <id>973977</id>
    <name><![CDATA[FrankO]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[Portland, OR]]></location>
    <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/973977-franko]]></link>
    <image_url><![CDATA[http://photo.goodreads.com/users/1205705202p3/973977.jpg]]></image_url>
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  <id type="integer">335397</id>
  <isbn>1402179626</isbn>
  <isbn13>9781402179624</isbn13>
  <text_reviews_count type="integer">55</text_reviews_count>
  <title>
    <![CDATA[Two Years before the Mast: A Sailor's Life at Sea]]>
  </title>
  <image_url>http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1173843539m/335397.jpg</image_url>
  <link>http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/335397.Two_Years_before_the_Mast_A_Sailor_s_Life_at_Sea</link>
  <average_rating>3.94</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>426</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[This Elibron Classics book is a reprint of a 1853 edition by G. Routledge &amp; Co., London.]]>
  </description>
</book>

    <rating>5</rating>
  <votes>0</votes>
  <spoiler_flag>false</spoiler_flag>
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      <shelf name="read" />
    
          <shelf name="history" />
          <shelf name="memoir" />
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  <recommended_for><![CDATA[]]></recommended_for>
  <recommended_by><![CDATA[]]></recommended_by>
  <read_at>Sun Jun 21 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Sat Jan 24 22:44:53 -0800 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Sun Jun 21 11:00:16 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[Very well written, fascinating memoir of a young man, recently of Harvard, who sailed on a merchant ship in the 1830's.  It's the story of the perilous voyage from Boston around Cape Horn to California.  Very interesting descriptions of his shipmates, sailors from the Sandwich Islands, the peoples l...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/44252141">more...</a>]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/44252141]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/44252141]]></link>
</review>
      <review>
  <id>30982140</id>
    <user>
    <id>1454542</id>
    <name><![CDATA[Megan]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[The United States]]></location>
    <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/1454542-megan]]></link>
    <image_url><![CDATA[http://photo.goodreads.com/users/1219503275p3/1454542.jpg]]></image_url>
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    <book>
  <id type="integer">335397</id>
  <isbn>1402179626</isbn>
  <isbn13>9781402179624</isbn13>
  <text_reviews_count type="integer">55</text_reviews_count>
  <title>
    <![CDATA[Two Years before the Mast: A Sailor's Life at Sea]]>
  </title>
  <image_url>http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1173843539m/335397.jpg</image_url>
  <link>http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/335397.Two_Years_before_the_Mast_A_Sailor_s_Life_at_Sea</link>
  <average_rating>3.94</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>426</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[This Elibron Classics book is a reprint of a 1853 edition by G. Routledge &amp; Co., London.]]>
  </description>
</book>

    <rating>5</rating>
  <votes>0</votes>
  <spoiler_flag>false</spoiler_flag>
  <shelves>
    
      <shelf name="read" />
    
      </shelves>
  <recommended_for><![CDATA[]]></recommended_for>
  <recommended_by><![CDATA[]]></recommended_by>
  <read_at>Sat Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2000</read_at>
  <date_added>Sat Aug 23 08:48:52 -0700 2008</date_added>
  <date_updated>Wed Mar 18 17:23:21 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[I began this book out of a sense of duty. It was written by an ancestor of mine, for whom my father was named, and I knew that this was one of countless sea stories that had put the sailing bug in my dad's blood. So I figured I sort of owed it to myself to explore what this book was about. But I mus...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/30982140">more...</a>]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/30982140]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/30982140]]></link>
</review>
      <review>
  <id>19945752</id>
    <user>
    <id>914675</id>
    <name><![CDATA[Stephen]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[Caribou, ME]]></location>
    <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/914675-stephen]]></link>
    <image_url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/images/nophoto-M-111x148.jpg]]></image_url>
  </user>
    <book>
  <id type="integer">874725</id>
  <isbn>0375757945</isbn>
  <isbn13>9780375757945</isbn13>
  <text_reviews_count type="integer">8</text_reviews_count>
  <title>
    <![CDATA[Two Years Before the Mast: A Personal Narrative of Life at Sea]]>
  </title>
  <image_url>http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1179101139m/874725.jpg</image_url>
  <link>http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/874725.Two_Years_Before_the_Mast_A_Personal_Narrative_of_Life_at_Sea</link>
  <average_rating>3.91</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>35</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[Tracing an awe-inspiring oceanic route from Boston, around Cape Horn, to the California coast, Two Years Before the Mast is both a riveting story of adventure and the most eloquent, insightful account we have of life at sea in the early nineteenth century. Richard Henry Dana is only nineteen when he abandons the patrician world of Boston and Harvard for an arduous voyage among real sailors, amid genuine danger. The result is an astonishing read, replete with vivid descriptions of storms, whales, and the ship's mad captain, terrible hardship and magical beauty, and fascinating historical detail, including an intriguing portrait of California before the gold rush. As D. H. Lawrence proclaimed, &quot;Dana's small book is a very great book.&quot;]]>
  </description>
</book>

    <rating>5</rating>
  <votes>0</votes>
  <spoiler_flag>false</spoiler_flag>
  <shelves>
    
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      </shelves>
  <recommended_for><![CDATA[]]></recommended_for>
  <recommended_by><![CDATA[]]></recommended_by>
  <read_at>Fri Feb 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008</read_at>
  <date_added>Fri Apr 11 11:19:30 -0700 2008</date_added>
  <date_updated>Fri Apr 11 11:40:03 -0700 2008</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[California before the Gold Rush. Life at sea during the great age of sail. An autobiographical coming of age story for the son of a Cambridge, Massachusetts, aristocracy. (His grandfather Francis Dana was a secretary to John Adams, signer of the Articles of the Confederation, third chief justice of ...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/19945752">more...</a>]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/19945752]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/19945752]]></link>
</review>
      <review>
  <id>14149626</id>
    <user>
    <id>264337</id>
    <name><![CDATA[Michele]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[Houston, TX]]></location>
    <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/264337-michele]]></link>
    <image_url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/images/nophoto-F-111x148.jpg]]></image_url>
  </user>
    <book>
  <id type="integer">857114</id>
  <isbn>0451523695</isbn>
  <isbn13>9780451523693</isbn13>
  <text_reviews_count type="integer">4</text_reviews_count>
  <title>
    <![CDATA[Two Years Before the Mast: A Personal Narrative of Life at Sea]]>
  </title>
  <image_url>http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1178937290m/857114.jpg</image_url>
  <link>http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/857114.Two_Years_Before_the_Mast_A_Personal_Narrative_of_Life_at_Sea</link>
  <average_rating>3.71</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>7</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[Tracing an awe-inspiring oceanic route from Boston, around Cape Horn, to the California coast, Two Years Before the Mast is both a riveting story of adventure and the most eloquent, insightful account we have of life at sea in the early nineteenth century. Richard Henry Dana is only nineteen when he abandons the patrician world of Boston and Harvard for an arduous voyage among real sailors, amid genuine danger. The result is an astonishing read, replete with vivid descriptions of storms, whales, and the ship's mad captain, terrible hardship and magical beauty, and fascinating historical detail, including an intriguing portrait of California before the gold rush. As D. H. Lawrence proclaimed, &quot;Dana's small book is a very great book.&quot;]]>
  </description>
</book>

    <rating>4</rating>
  <votes>1</votes>
  <spoiler_flag>false</spoiler_flag>
  <shelves>
    
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          <shelf name="older-non-fiction" />
      </shelves>
  <recommended_for><![CDATA[]]></recommended_for>
  <recommended_by><![CDATA[]]></recommended_by>
  <read_at>Tue Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008</read_at>
  <date_added>Thu Jan 31 07:30:58 -0800 2008</date_added>
  <date_updated>Thu Jan 31 07:43:20 -0800 2008</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[Somehow I missed this classic growing up. I think I confused it with Conrad &amp; Melville's fiction. After reading a review in an online group I got a copy for myself. The author was a Harvard student from Boston. In 1834 he signed on as a common seaman in hopes that a break from his studies would cure...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/14149626">more...</a>]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/14149626]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/14149626]]></link>
</review>
      <review>
  <id>1377669</id>
    <user>
    <id>86384</id>
    <name><![CDATA[Charlie]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[Ventura, CA]]></location>
    <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/86384-charlie-inyo]]></link>
    <image_url><![CDATA[http://photo.goodreads.com/users/1179288159p3/86384.jpg]]></image_url>
  </user>
    <book>
  <id type="integer">874725</id>
  <isbn>0375757945</isbn>
  <isbn13>9780375757945</isbn13>
  <text_reviews_count type="integer">8</text_reviews_count>
  <title>
    <![CDATA[Two Years Before the Mast: A Personal Narrative of Life at Sea]]>
  </title>
  <image_url>http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1179101139m/874725.jpg</image_url>
  <link>http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/874725.Two_Years_Before_the_Mast_A_Personal_Narrative_of_Life_at_Sea</link>
  <average_rating>3.91</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>35</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[Tracing an awe-inspiring oceanic route from Boston, around Cape Horn, to the California coast, Two Years Before the Mast is both a riveting story of adventure and the most eloquent, insightful account we have of life at sea in the early nineteenth century. Richard Henry Dana is only nineteen when he abandons the patrician world of Boston and Harvard for an arduous voyage among real sailors, amid genuine danger. The result is an astonishing read, replete with vivid descriptions of storms, whales, and the ship's mad captain, terrible hardship and magical beauty, and fascinating historical detail, including an intriguing portrait of California before the gold rush. As D. H. Lawrence proclaimed, &quot;Dana's small book is a very great book.&quot;]]>
  </description>
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    <rating>4</rating>
  <votes>0</votes>
  <spoiler_flag>false</spoiler_flag>
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  <recommended_for><![CDATA[]]></recommended_for>
  <recommended_by><![CDATA[]]></recommended_by>
  <read_at></read_at>
  <date_added>Tue May 22 20:32:32 -0700 2007</date_added>
  <date_updated>Thu Jul 05 19:01:13 -0700 2007</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[I read this book because I was looking for insight on what California was like 180 years ago.  However, I found myself really enjoying the stories of life on the high seas as well.  I was fascinated with the amazingly dangerous, rough, and sometimes beautiful life of a sailor in the time of tall shi...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1377669">more...</a>]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1377669]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1377669]]></link>
</review>
      <review>
  <id>55287926</id>
    <user>
    <id>995162</id>
    <name><![CDATA[Annie]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[Gaithersburg, MD]]></location>
    <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/995162-annie]]></link>
    <image_url><![CDATA[http://photo.goodreads.com/users/1218802928p3/995162.jpg]]></image_url>
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  <id type="integer">335397</id>
  <isbn>1402179626</isbn>
  <isbn13>9781402179624</isbn13>
  <text_reviews_count type="integer">55</text_reviews_count>
  <title>
    <![CDATA[Two Years before the Mast: A Sailor's Life at Sea]]>
  </title>
  <image_url>http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1173843539m/335397.jpg</image_url>
  <link>http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/335397.Two_Years_before_the_Mast_A_Sailor_s_Life_at_Sea</link>
  <average_rating>3.94</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>426</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[This Elibron Classics book is a reprint of a 1853 edition by G. Routledge &amp; Co., London.]]>
  </description>
</book>

    <rating>3</rating>
  <votes>0</votes>
  <spoiler_flag>false</spoiler_flag>
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  <recommended_for><![CDATA[]]></recommended_for>
  <recommended_by><![CDATA[]]></recommended_by>
  <read_at>Fri May 15 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Thu May 07 13:22:24 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Fri May 29 19:32:51 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/15248.Flann_O_Brien" title="Flann O'Brien">Patrick O'Brien</a> lists this memoir of a Harvard student who sails as a common sailer to California and back in the 1830s as an important source for his historical novels, and I found it as informative as it was fun to read.  Not only does Dana describe the life and day to day activities on board a sa...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/55287926">more...</a>]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/55287926]]></url>
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      <review>
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    <name><![CDATA[Stephy]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[Mundelein, IL]]></location>
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  <id type="integer">6443377</id>
  <isbn>080490085X</isbn>
  <isbn13>9780804900850</isbn13>
  <text_reviews_count type="integer">1</text_reviews_count>
  <title>
    <![CDATA[Two Years Before the Mast]]>
  </title>
  <image_url>http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-111x148.jpg</image_url>
  <link>http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6443377-two-years-before-the-mast</link>
  <average_rating>4.00</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>1</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[The narrative of the author's journey from Boston around the Cape Horn and landing at a port in the western coast of the United States.]]>
  </description>
</book>

    <rating>4</rating>
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  <read_at>Sun Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 1961</read_at>
  <date_added>Wed May 06 22:12:37 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Wed May 06 22:12:37 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[<br/><br/>Published in 1840, this Journal of the author's experience sailing around the Cape of Horn, and later return voyage, during an terrifying Winter, was based on his experiences aboard a ship called The Pilgrim. The expression, &quot;before the mast&quot; refers to the location of the sleep...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/55227921">more...</a>]]></body>
    
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      <review>
  <id>47463354</id>
    <user>
    <id>976531</id>
    <name><![CDATA[Angie]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[Fernley, NV]]></location>
    <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/976531-angie]]></link>
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  <id type="integer">1425916</id>
  <isbn>0451527593</isbn>
  <isbn13>9780451527592</isbn13>
  <text_reviews_count type="integer">9</text_reviews_count>
  <title>
    <![CDATA[Two Years Before the Mast]]>
  </title>
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  <link>http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1425916.Two_Years_Before_the_Mast</link>
  <average_rating>3.75</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>24</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[Tracing an awe-inspiring oceanic route from Boston, around Cape Horn, to the California coast, Two Years Before the Mast is both a riveting story of adventure and the most eloquent, insightful account we have of life at sea in the early nineteenth century. Richard Henry Dana is only nineteen when he abandons the patrician world of Boston and Harvard for an arduous voyage among real sailors, amid genuine danger. The result is an astonishing read, replete with vivid descriptions of storms, whales, and the ship's mad captain, terrible hardship and magical beauty, and fascinating historical detail, including an intriguing portrait of California before the gold rush. As D. H. Lawrence proclaimed, &quot;Dana's small book is a very great book.&quot;]]>
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    <rating>5</rating>
  <votes>1</votes>
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  <recommended_by><![CDATA[Saw it at the Dana Point Store]]></recommended_by>
  <read_at>Sat Jun 27 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Wed Feb 25 02:18:13 -0800 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Sat Jun 27 21:54:41 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count>1</read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[I can't recommend this book enough. My only complaint with this book is that I wanted more: more details, and more follow up. I thought the particular moment and place in history that Dana describes is so interesting and he tells it from an interesting and seldom seen perpsective as well. This isn't...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/47463354">more...</a>]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/47463354]]></url>
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