{"product_id":"books-a-pirate-of-exquisite-mind-by-diana-preston","title":"A Pirate Of Exquisite Mind","description":"William Dampier, (1651-1715), was an English adventurer and pirate who preyed on ships on the Spanish Main. Poor and ill-educated and determined to make his fortune, he nonetheless had a passion for exploration and scientific research.   Dampier was the first to map the winds and currents of the world's oceans; led the first recorded party of Englishmen to set foot on Australia - 80 years before Cook; wrote about Galapagos wildlife 150 years before Darwin, who drew on Dampier's notes in his own work; was the first travel writer: A NEW VOYAGE AROUND THE WORLD was instant bestseller when it was published in 1697 - said to have influenced the novels of Swift and Defoe.   A man full of contradictions: he who achieved so much 'blew it' later in life, declining into scandal, failure and even farce. A unique man ahead of his time, he lived a large part of his life among pirates yet managed to preserve what Coleridge called his \"exquisite refinement of mind\". A classic example of the best narrative history.","brand":"World of Books ","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":53671783563537,"sku":null,"price":0.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/9780552772105.jpg?v=1781517295","url":"https:\/\/www.worldofbooks.com\/products\/books-a-pirate-of-exquisite-mind-by-diana-preston","provider":"World of Books ","version":"1.0","type":"link"}