The Wide Wide Sea: Imperial Ambition, First Contact and the Fateful Final Voyage of Captain James Cook

Content Warning: This section of the guide discusses colonial violence and imperialist attitudes.

Hampton Sides is an American historian, journalist, and author known for his research and detailed narrative style. With a background in history and English literature, Sides has crafted numerous works that recount significant historical events and figures. He blends historical scholarship with storytelling, making complex historical subjects accessible to a broad audience.

Sides has experience in historical journalism and an interest in exploration and adventure narratives. His previous works, such as In the Kingdom of Ice (2014) and Ghost Soldiers (2001), also recount dramatic and pivotal moments in history; they are about the Arctic voyage of USS Jeannette and a prison camp raid in World War II, respectively. In The Wide Wide Sea, Sides offers readers another immersive account of a monumental expedition.

In The Wide Wide Sea, Sides not only provides a detailed chronicle of Cook’s voyages but also explores the broader impact of these explorations on Indigenous cultures and global geopolitics. He contextualizes Cook’s voyages within the broader framework of 18th-century global exploration and imperialism. He also turns the text into a character study by humanizing historical figures, presenting them as complex individuals with motivations, flaws, and aspirations.