The Voyage (Hardcover)

by Philip Caputo (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
The title voyage of Philip Caputo's sweeping new novel commences under exceedingly strange circumstances: in June 1900, Cyrus Braithwaite, a gruff Yankee granite magnate, orders his three teenage sons to board the family's beloved schooner, sail away from their imposing Maine summer home, and stay away until September. His sole explanation for this sudden expulsion: "It's a new century, boys." Puzzled, abashed, but also intrigued by the adventure forced upon them, Nathaniel, Eliot, and Andrew leave behind their privileged WASP childhood and head out to sea--bound, they decide more or less on a whim, for the Florida keys.

Adventures are slow to shape themselves at first, but once the Braithwaite boys enlist the help of blond, worldly wise Yale dropout Will Terhune, the pace quickens considerably. Nat, who serves as skipper, and is also the most naive and most ambitious of the brothers, nearly dies in a bar fight in lower Manhattan. Fourteen-year-old Drew, the seasick-prone family rationalist, discovers a penchant for cold-blooded violence. Caught in a blow off the Carolinas, the boys limp the damaged schooner into Beaufort, South Carolina, their mother's birthplace, where an ancient aunt invites them to dinner and hints darkly at family secrets. Then, about two-thirds of the way in, what has seemed a leisurely coming-of-age story explodes into an elemental drama as a hurricane swallows the boat and spits it out on the desolate coast of Cuba. This, as it turns out, is but the first in a series of terrible reversals.

The Voyage is a departure for Caputo, a former foreign correspondent who made his name with a Vietnam memoir (A Rumor of War), and he does a fine job of conjuring up an age "when both the awareness of death and the hope of salvation were writ on every face." True, his framing device of a present-day Braithwaite descendant delving into her family's secret history is a bit forced and yes, the characters could use more depth. No matter. At some point, The Voyage becomes irresistible. --David Laskin

From Library Journal
Caputo, author of the Vietnam classic Rumors of War, has crafted a compelling novel that offers both rousing adventure and penetrating insight into the mystery that is family. At the turn of the 19th century, a flinty New Englander suddenly orders his three sons, the oldest of whom is 16, to sail away from the Maine coast and stay away until September. "Where are we supposed to go?" they ask. "Don't much care," he answers. So off they sail to face the series of adventures that make up most of the book, all the while trying to understand their seeming abandonment. Their story is reconstructed by one son's granddaughter, herself haunted by the mystery. Determined to unravel the secret behind her great-grandfather's behavior, she is able to put together major pieces of the puzzle using both hard facts and a lot of imagination, which "is not an unreliable sextant, if you're trying to get a fix on the truth." That, of course, is exactly what all good novels do. This book should appeal to a wide audience, including older teenagers. Highly recommended for all public and most academic libraries.
-ADavid W. Henderson, Eckerd Coll. Lib., St. Petersburg, FL
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 432 pages
• Publisher: Knopf; 1st edition (October 19, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0679450394
• ISBN-13: 978-0679450399
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 5.9 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (38 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,222,033 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An extremely entertaining and beautifully written story!, October 26, 1999

By A Customer

The Voyage is a wonderful story of discovery and adventure, with passages so well crafted that you just shake your head in admiration... and read them over again! Within that craftwork is a tremendously entertaining sailing adventure, with rich detail, memorable characters and thematic overtones that give you a plenty to think about.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A riveting tale. Awesome!, October 15, 1999

By A Customer

This is a spectacular book -- both engaging and educational. Beautifully written, the book's characters truly come to life.

P.S. Though Caputo's "muscular prose" has often appealed to men, I'm a woman and loved "The Voyage."

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Caputo has a winner here, November 17, 1999

By A Customer

This one is well-worth checking out. I'm a big fan of current 90's style best sellers like 'The Triumph and the Glory' and 'Going After Cacciato', I appreciate their candour and gritty reality. 'The Voyage' is every bit as effective in this regard. The storytelling is first-rate, the characters memorable, and the writing is first-rate.