She Captains: Heroines and Hellions of the Sea torrent

She Captains: Heroines and Hellions of the Sea - Joan Druett [epub]

Long before women had the right to vote, earn money, or have lives of their own, "she captains" -- bold women distinguished for courageous enterprise on the high seas -- thrilled and terrorized their shipmates, performed acts of valor, and pirated with the best of their male counterparts.

The cast ranges from Cleopatra, the Valkyries, pirate queens such as Anne Bonny and cross-dressing sailors to tough mariners' wives, lighthouse keepers like Kate Walkers at Robbins Reef, N.Y., and enterprising ship owners. Some are memorialized in legend, like the Irish pirate Grace O'Malley, while others are included because of their influential relationships: Emma Hamilton had a scandalous affair with Admiral Nelson; Lady Jane Franklin launched an intensive campaign for the rescue of her husband's lost 1845 Polar expedition that not only secured Sir John Franklin's reputation as an arctic explorer but led to the opening and mapping of new arctic routes.

She Captains brings together a real-life cast of characters whose audacity and bravado will capture the imagination. In her inimitable style, Joan Druett paints a vivid portrait of real women who were drawn to the ocean's beauty -- and danger -- and dared to captain ships of their own.

Paperback: 304 pages
Publisher: Simon & Schuster; 1st Touchstone edition (March 6, 2001)