Shipwreck

I did not enjoy Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World. I don't feel the need to mask my feelings for the text. To me, it read as overly simplistic without the connection I necessarily desire from a book – I felt no attachment to or sympathy for any characters, and I did not get to know them as people. I am not sure as to the degree to which this can be generalized to the genre of nonfiction as a whole, but I believe that I prefer autobiography/biography and historical fiction books more.

Shipwreck read as a series of events, interlaced with historical context, geographic trivia, and related but disconnected facts. The chapters read the opposite of how I would have written them, starting out with information that I found unengaging before proceeding to the relevant story. The few times the text piqued my interest and ended the chapter, the conclusion to the events I was following did not readily arrive.

The redeeming quality of the text was in the pictures. The selection of pictures and the way they were related to the text made it seem real – and surreal. While some of the pictures were indiscernible from pictures of a Minnesota winter, some of the images were powerful. I especially enjoyed the picture of the boat that looked as if it were a negative. Images of wildlife or the dogloos helped me understand the reality of the story. The multimodal presentation of information ultimately made the book quite interesting.

I am not sure how to assess a book like this. I can't judge it on the plot or story, since those are beyond the author's control. The language didn't speak to me. However, it is important to note that the text was written for a young audience (If I wanted to learn about this independently, I would most likely seek out a higher-level text or read a more straightforward summary such as the Wikipedia page rather than reading a YA book.).