The Wager

There are a lot of themes that apply to the modern day in this book: governmental policy and power, public opinion, greed, class struggles truth, and race relations. What do you think the author intends the reader to take away from the book?

The Wager contains several storylines based on the different status and perspectives of those involved: ambition, duty, hope, desperation, and adventure. Which individual’s motivation was the most relatable to you?

After reading about both sides of the dispute between Captain David Cheap and gunner, John Buckley–whose side are you on? Why?

Were the crew members right to challenge/revolt against their captain? Why or why not?

This book deftly illustrates the spectrum of ways people can react in extreme and dire situations. What conditions and pressures must occur for a mutiny to take place in the 1740s compared to now in 2023?

How did colonialism and racism impact the events surrounding the Wager and the accounts emerging from them?

What was the most memorable part of this book for you? Why did it make an impression?

Similarly, which characters in this story are sympathetic? Which are not? What are your reasons? 

Life onboard an 18th-century ship was perilous, as Grann amply shows. Threats included weather, enemy fire, scurvy and typhus, insurrection, starvation, and poor navigational tools to name a few. Had you been alive during this time, would you have taken the risk to make a living on the seas? Would you have had a choice in the matter?

Grann does a great job outlining the crew responsibilities and processes required for such a voyage–of the positions mentioned (captain, cook, surgeon, carpenter, gunner, midshipman, boatswain, navigator, quartermaster, etc?), which position sounds the most or least appealing to you? Why?