Chesapeake: A Novel [Paperback]

James A. Michener (Author)

Book Description

Release date: September 9, 2003

"Michener's most ambitious work of fiction in theme and scope."
THE PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER
"Brilliantly written."
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Once again James A. Michener brings history to life with this 400-year saga of America's great bay and its Eastern Shore. Following Edmund Steed and his remarkable family, who parallel the settling and forming of the nation, CHESAPEAKE sweeps readers from the unspoiled world of the Native Americans to the voyages of Captain John Smith, the Revolutionary War, and right up to modern times.


From the Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

"Michener's most ambitious work of fiction in theme and scope."
THE PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER
"Brilliantly written."
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Once again James A. Michener brings history to life with this 400-year saga of America's great bay and its Eastern Shore. Following Edmund Steed and his remarkable family, who parallel the settling and forming of the nation, CHESAPEAKE sweeps readers from the unspoiled world of the Native Americans to the voyages of Captain John Smith, the Revolutionary War, and right up to modern times.


From the Paperback edition.

About the Author

George Grizzard's distinguished career includes Broadway performances in Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? and California Suite. His film work includes Advise and Consent and Comes a Horseman. His many television appearances include his portrayal of John Adams in PBS's The Adams Chronicles and The Oldest Living Graduate, for which he won an Emmy Award. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 888 pages
• Publisher: Random House Trade Paperbacks; Reprint edition (September 9, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0812970438
• ISBN-13: 978-0812970432
• Product Dimensions: 5.3 x 1.5 x 8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (139 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #12,586 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

102 of 104 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars "Chesapeake" Charms the Reader August 6, 2005

By kone TOP 100 REVIEWER

Format:Mass Market Paperback

Author James A. Michener has conceived and written an epic novel about the land we now know as the Chesapeake Bay region. Using his characteristic writing style of starting at the very beginning (in this case, with the Native American Indians) and then developing the story generation after generation through his rich and interesting characters, Michener tells the complete story of the Chesapeake region. The reader learns how the white settlers from Europe displaced the natives, what animals roamed its lands or flew its skies (he has a whole chapter on Canadian Honker geese - fascinating reading by the way!), what the settlers faced when they tried to build homes and put down roots, how the American shipbuilding industry came to this region, the fight for emancipation of the negro in the Civil War, the great migration of geese and the hunters that tried to shoot them for food and sport, and so much more.

Like other Michener novels, as I was reading "Chesapeake" I thoroughly became engrossed in the story to the extent that I forsook sleeptime to enjoy hours of late-night reading. I literally could not put the book down!

Yes, the novel is long - over 1,000 pages, but it is still an absorbing page-turner. Each chapter is a mini-novel in itself and tells the story of a particular generation of people in the Chesapeake Bay development. Michener has a knack of creating and developing characters that are both interesting and believable and this is his greatest strength as a writer. The reader comes to care about these fictious charcters as though they are living breathing realities, and in a sense, the characters are "real", as Michener's painstaking research enabled him to create his charcters based on historical personages....

"Chesapeake" is a marvelous book in a long series of marvelous Michener books. For those that love sweeping epic novels, this is a book for you. It seems that Michener's writing style either fascinates or tries the patience of his readers. Michener goes into great detail in explaining the lives of his characters and some readers are impatient with his extensive prose and are apt to put his books down before finishing them. I happen to love his writing style and appreciate the detail, as it paints vivid word pictures in my mind that I never forget. Michener is one of my favorite authors, for each of his books takes me to a particular place or culture, and it is as though I am actually viewing that culture, its people, and the land first-hand. I have learned a wealth of information about near and distant lands thanks to the writing of James A. Michener. These are places I may never have the opportunity to visit in my life, but thanks to Michener, it is as though I have been there through his writing.

I most certainly recommend this book to anyone who wants to learn about the land and people of the Chesapeake Bay region, or to one who is a student of American history. The book is also a good read for the story alone, irrespective of the history lesson one learns coincidentally. Once you read "Chesapeake", you will have a greater appreciation for the great struggles that our forefathers and foremothers went through to bring western "civilization" to this great land. I guarantee you will always remember "Chesapeake" and its characters for the rest of your life.

I highly recommend this book!

Jim "Konedog" Koenig Read more ›

28 of 28 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars It's one of those great books that becomes a classic! April 1, 1999

By A Customer

Format:Mass Market Paperback

Although it is the largest book I've read, it was one of the best! I would've finished it alot sooner, had I more time. I enjoyed learning about the struggles of the Paxmores the Steeds, the Turlocks, and most of all, the Native Americans. when I was reading it, my U.S. history class was learning the same information, and my teacher was amazed I knew so much! I also read the book for a book report, and my teacher was amazed I picked the book, as opposed to the shorter, Catcher in The Rye-like books we've been reading. Never have I learned this much history from one book, and actually kept my interest in it! I went to the Chesapeake Bay when I was little, and remembered the atmosphere that I had forgotten, almost immediately. If this is a fair example of what James Michener has written, you can count me in as a regular James reader.

25 of 28 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars This book is excellent! You must read it! July 23, 1999

By A Customer

Format:Mass Market Paperback

When I was first given Chesapeake, I thought that it would be boring. Who could cover 400 years of history and not be boring? I was so wrong! I love this book and can not wait to read it again. I became so involved with all of the families, that when someone grew old and died, I mourned their death! This author's insight into people and animals is amazing! I loved the chapter on the geese and how they were outsmarting the Turlocks! My appreciation for history has increased, as well as my vocabulary. Michener describes the scenes in the book so vividly that you feel like you are there. Do not be intimiated by the size of the book, I wish that it was longer. I is wonderful! You will not be disappointed!

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Good, but... June 4, 2011

By Mark E. Arden

Format:Paperback

I'd previously read Alaska by Michener and enjoyed in immensely. As a local resident of the Chesapeake Bay, I really enjoyed Michener's unparalleled chronicle of it's history told through such compelling characters. At the risk of sounding offensive to some however, I was surprised at the proportion of the book focused on slavery and Quakerism. Michener does a great job capturing the wrong of slavery, and likewise on aspects of Quakerism, but fully 75 percent or so of the book seems primarily focused on these two subjects. I would have enjoyed a more balanced view of the many other subjects that suffered such as Native American history, two wars with the British, economic development, etc.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Another Great Michener epic! November 23, 2006

By Joseph Guillaume

Format:Mass Market Paperback

I wasn't sure where Chesapeake Bay was when I started this book. I knew it was somewhere on the east coast but didn't realize it was so geographically big. I also didn't realize so many of the big cities that I've heard of is located on or near the Chesapeake Bay. So for me this made the book quite interesting. Once again with Micheners characteristic trademark, he starts the earliest Indians. It was interesting to read that while some Indians were violent some were passive. This makes sense; it would be really hard to generalize about such a big population. Some may find the beginning of Micheners epics slow; certainly this book is no exception. But what I really like is how the last third of the book will some how reference an event or character from the previous part. The pirate aspect of the Chesapeake is interesting; but what captivates is the civil war and the statues of African Americans. We tend to forget at one time that even good people had misconceptions. Much like the Afrikaners in Micheners "The Covenant," I liked these hard working white people; I just didn't like their attitude or treatments of Blacks. The introduction of the Quakers was a bonus for me , as I am unfamiliar with there practices and beliefs. It was also an ironic twist that Michener included a Watergate plot near the end this really brought it into the modern times. So from the earliest Indians to Watergate this book should not fail to interest every reader.