When Portuguese sailor Ferdinand Magellan set sail from Spain in 1519, he believed he could get to the Spice Islands by sailing west through or around the New World. He was right, but what he didn't know was that the treacherous voyage would take him three years and cost him his life. Black-and-white line drawings illustrate Magellan's life and voyage, with sidebars and a time line that enhance readers' understanding of the period.

The First Voyage around the World is also a remarkably accurate ethnographic and geographical account of the circumnavigation, and one that has earned its reputation among modern historiographers and students of the early contacts between Europe and the East Indies.

“A first-rate historical page turner.” —New York Times Book Review The acclaimed and bestselling account of Ferdinand Magellan’s historic 60,000-mile ocean voyage. Ferdinand Magellan's daring circumnavigation of the globe in the sixteenth century was a three-year odyssey filled with sex, violence, and amazing adventure. Now in Over the Edge of the World, prize-winning biographer and journalist Laurence Bergreen entwines a variety of candid, firsthand accounts, bringing to life this groundbreaking and majestic tale of discovery that changed both the way explorers would henceforth navigate the oceans and history itself. Now updated to include a new introduction commemorating the 500th anniversary of Magellan’s voyage.

Enjoy reading this biography about Ferdinand Magellan and what he did to become known.

Presents a biography of the daring Portuguese sea captain who commanded the first expedition that sailed around the world.

Meet the explorer who first went around the world--now in paperback Before he led the first expedition to circumnavigate the Earth, Ferdinand Magellan (1480-1521) was a Portuguese noble who loved the sea. A skilled sailor, he led a number of voyages and is known for his incredible navigation skills. Over the course of his sailing career, he faced terrible storms and mutinies but always managed to get his crew home safely. He set off with his crew to circle the globe--a trip that no other ship had ever completed. Though Magellan died in combat in the Philippines before he could complete the voyage, his ship went on to complete the first circumnavigation of the world, and he is still known as one of the greatest explorers. However, as historians today note, many of the places that Magellan "discovered" already had people living there and his fame is one rooted in colonialism. Ferdinand Magellan tackles the legacy--both good and bad--of this famous explorer. First Names is a highly illustrated nonfiction series that puts readers on a first-name basis with some of the most incredible people in history and of today!

What must it have been like to be the first to circumnavigate the globe or traverse America from shore to shore? What political, social and financial factors of the day encouraged exploration? What personal dreams and desires drove these fearless men to search the vast unknown waters and lands, to tempt danger time and time again, all in the name of discovery? In Great Explorations, acclaimed authors including recent Laura Ingalls Wilder Award winner Milton Meltzer guide us through the adventures of the indomitable explorers who knew first-hand the joys and sorrows of pioneering.