Chase, Owen & Nickerson Thomas: The Loss of the Ship Essex Sunk By a Whale

Penguin Books, 2000. 256 pages. paperback. ISBN: 9780140437966. K3.

The gripping first-hand story of the disaster that inspired Melville's Moby-Dick and is the basis for a major new feature film, In the Heart of the Sea.

In 1820, the Nantucket whaleship Essex was sailing in the South Pacific when it was rammed by an angry sperm whale. The ship sank, leaving twenty crew members floating in three small boats for ninety days. By taking drastic measures, eight men survived to reveal their astonishing tale. This authoritative edition brings together the harrowing tales of the survivors, including Owen Chase's 'Narrative of the Wreck of Whaleship Essex' and an account by Thomas Nickerson, the 15-year old cabin boy who was steering the ship when the whale attacked.

Thomas Nickerson and Owen Chase were two of the eight surviving crew members of the Ship Essex.