The Wager

A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder

By: David Grann

Narrated by: Dion Graham, David Grann

Length: 8 hrs and 28 mins

Publisher's summary

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From the author of Killers of the Flower Moon, a thrilling story of shipwreck, survival, and savagery, culminating in a court-martial that reveals a shocking truth. The powerful narrative reveals the deeper meaning of the events on the Wager, showing that it was not only the captain and crew who ended up on trial, but the very idea of empire.

A Best Book of the Year: The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The New Yorker, TIME, Smithsonian, NPR, Vulture, Kirkus Reviews

“Riveting...Reads like a thriller, tackling a multilayered history—and imperialism—with gusto.”—Time

"A tour de force of narrative nonfiction.”—The Wall Street Journal

On January 28, 1742, a ramshackle vessel of patched-together wood and cloth washed up on the coast of Brazil. Inside were thirty emaciated men, barely alive, and they had an extraordinary tale to tell. They were survivors of His Majesty’s Ship the Wager, a British vessel that had left England in 1740 on a secret mission during an imperial war with Spain. While the Wager had been chasing a Spanish treasure-filled galleon known as “the prize of all the oceans,” it had wrecked on a desolate island off the coast of Patagonia. The men, after being marooned for months and facing starvation, built the flimsy craft and sailed for more than a hundred days, traversing nearly 3,000 miles of storm-wracked seas. They were greeted as heroes.

But then...six months later, another, even more decrepit craft landed on the coast of Chile. This boat contained just three castaways, and they told a very different story. The thirty sailors who landed in Brazil were not heroes—they were mutineers. The first group responded with countercharges of their own, of a tyrannical and murderous senior officer and his henchmen. It became clear that while stranded on the island the crew had fallen into anarchy, with warring factions fighting for dominion over the barren wilderness. As accusations of treachery and murder flew, the Admiralty convened a court martial to determine who was telling the truth. The stakes were life-and-death—for whomever the court found guilty could hang.

The Wager is a grand tale of human behavior at the extremes told by one of our greatest nonfiction writers. Grann’s recreation of the hidden world on a British warship rivals the work of Patrick O’Brian, his portrayal of the castaways’ desperate straits stands up to the classics of survival writing such as The Endurance, and his account of the court-martial has the savvy of a Scott Turow thriller. As always with Grann’s work, the incredible twists of the narrative hold the listener spellbound.

©2023 David Grann (P)2023 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

A Best Book of the Year: The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, TIME, NPR, Esquire, BookPage

“The most gripping sea-yarn I’ve read in years….A tour de force of narrative nonfiction. Mr. Grann’s account show how storytelling, whether to judges or readers, can shape individual and national fortunes–as well as our collective memories.”—Wall Street Journal

“Glorious, steely…a tightly written, relentless, blow-by-blow account that is hard to put down”—The Washington Post

“As much a rousing adventure as an exploration of the power of narratives to shape our perception of reality.”—The New York Times

Meh

Having delighted in the audiobooks of Patrick O’Brian’s Aubrey Maturin series performed by the peerless Patrick Tull, I admit I’m harder to please. As storytelling this nonfiction account of similar subject matter doesn’t come close. Most troublesome to me was the choice of an American performer instead of a British talent. It sounded like a recitation of facts lacking atmosphere from beginning to end.

A thoroughly enjoyable book

This was a departure from the books I usually read and now I am a pumped septuagenarian! I feel that the narrator kept the story alive and interesting. Of course it was interesting.because of the author’s diligent research and writing skill.

Gripping!

This is a spectacular and gripping adventure yarn, and the best thing is is that it’s all true and narrated perfectly by Dion Graham. David Grann is a talented storyteller and boots-on-the-ground researcher. I highly recommend all of his books.

Page Turner!

I really enjoyed this book and how Grann weaved together the story through numerous written communications of the time.

This Has Everything

No book is perfect, however for me - a lover of sea stories and history, emotional court dramas and a chance to visit diverse perspectives - this will be a hard one to top. It is well staged, carefully woven, and sensitive. Dion Graham reflects the material especially well. Interestingly, author and narrator are both American, telling a (very) English story. I thought they did well.

As in any good historical narrative, it gets in the weeds a bit in the beginning; Fleshing out important details about the mission, the vessels, the characters, and their relative positions. I was happy later that I had taken my time, relistening to portions my mind had wandered away from and keeping an ear out for bits of foreshadowing.

There is a lot to this story, and without giving away too much, let me say that after a slow beginning, this tale is as riveting and harrowing as they get. I was glued to it in every spare moment once things got going, which is rare for an historical narrative - and all the more affecting for being one too.

Wow

I’ve been to sea before, but it’s a good thing I wasn’t born in the 18th century because I don’t think I could hang with those sailors! Incredible story that was told very well. The narration was good for the story but I wasn’t 100% on board with his style. This is my first book from this author, but it won’t be my last. 👍

overrated

not sure what all the critic raves are about, but it was a slog to get through this book. didn't seem to flow well at all.

Def listen to the sample

This narrator was REALLY not my cup of tea and I struggled to finish because of it. High school drama club stuff that took a fascinating story and forced me to read the print version with 3 hours to go. Maybe just me.

Right up there with Endurance

If you like a story of men against the elements, and each other, this is for you. Incredible that anyone lived to tell the tale. Unfortunately the narrator was unnecessarily dramatic, detracting from a story that is already so filled with drama it needs no enhancement.

Offputting narration

The exaggerated overwrought narration almost ruined for me what is otherwise a fascinating and incredible tale.