Alston Kennerly, Bullen’s Voyages. The Life of Frank T. Bullen: Sailor, Whaler, Author by Michael Toth

Reviews 119 off Valcour Island helped turn the overall tide of the Revolutionary War.One cannot read this book without thinking that Benedict Arnold's later acts of treason were a tragic ending for a man who, otherwise, would have been an American military hero.Historian Kelly is a master storyteller, incorporating beguiling details and background information to bring to life the events and historic characters along with the bit-players who did all the fighting and bleeding.While retaining a scholarly thrust, the author occasionally uses textured prose to create remarkable and compelling word-images.For example: "The sun reached its zenith in the cobalt sky.While cumulus clouds, excited by the drama below went flying by.The guns gushed tumbling white clouds themselves, the sulfurous smoke billowing in the wind" (169).Two more multifaceted gems are, "That night they got a taste of the adversity that always threaten sailors.The clouds first masked, then devoured the newly full moon.The air became restless.Drops of rain splattered on the canopies rigged over the gondolas' decks.The drumroll increased to a fierce tattoo.The wind veered around the north.It whipped the rain under the awnings, giving the men on the decks a cold drenching.The pitching and heaving of the boats under their anchor cables had many of them vomiting over the gunwales.The night went on and on" (98)."And if the days were hard, what are the nights?The moon, which had passed full a few days after they arrived at Valcour, had given relief from the profound darkness.But even bathed in that ghostly light, the nearby forests and hills suggested the darkness of the spirit.The men had to fight against gloom and discouragement.Now that the moon was coming toward new, the darkness deepened, feeding the men's worst imaginings" (128-129).I highly recommend Valcour to historians and lay readers alike, a gem of maritime history chronicling a brief but pivotal event.In closing, Kelly perceptively summarizes his work's overall message as follows: "Generals and politicians have basked in renown.Ordinary fighting men and innocent civilians have carried the burden.The idea of war can inspire glory -its reality is anguish, hardship, and loss" (250).

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