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Pirate Queens

The Lives of Anne Bonny & Mary Read

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Pirate Queens

By: Rebecca Alexandra Simon
Narrated by: Rebecca Alexandra Simon
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Between August and October 1720, two female pirates named Anne Bonny and Mary Read terrorized the Caribbean in and around Jamaica. Despite their short career, they became two of the most notorious pirates during the height of the eighteenth-century Golden Age of Piracy. In a world dominated by men, they became infamous for their bravery, cruelty and unwavering determination to escape the social constraints placed on women during that time. Despite their infamy, mystery shrouds their lives before they became pirates. Their biographies were recorded in Captain Charles Johnson’s 1724 book, A General History of the Pyrates, depicting the two women as illegitimate women raised by men who, against insurmountable odds, crossed paths in Nassau and became pirates together. But how much is fact versus fiction?

This first full-length biography about Anne Bonny and Mary Read explores their intriguing backgrounds while examining the social context of women in their lifetime and their legacy in popular culture that exists to the present day. Using A General History of the Pyrates, early modern legal documents relating to women, their recorded public trial in The Tryal of Jack Rackham and Other Pyrates, newspapers and new, uncovered research, this book unravels the mysteries and legends surrounding their lives.

©2022 Rebecca Alexandra Simon (P)2022 Pen and Sword
Historical Maritime History & Piracy Women World
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I first learned of this book after hearing Dr. Simon give a great interview on the podcast American History Tellers. The book has great storytelling about the many potential backgrounds of these 2 characters. You come away with a broader perspective about women's agency in the early 18th century.

a fun tale about pirates and gender

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This book is great for lovers of pirate history and women’s studies. It examines the similar lives of Mary Read and Anne Bonny, two of the greatest female pirates of early 18th century Golden Age of Piracy. This book traces their stories from roots to sea faring adulthood.

Anne was born out of wedlock in Ireland; Mary, also illegitimate, in England. Both were raised as boys to be more acceptable to society and family. As young adults, however, their remaining parent began transitioning them to life as a woman. However, neither the life of a maid nor the life of the domestic housewife suited them. To escape, Mary assumed the alias of Mark and joined the military. Anne, on the other hand, identified as female and ran off with a sailor James Bonny to the Caribbean.

Anne and Mary’s most famous time as pirates came while under the command of Jack Rackman, “Calico Jack.” In Jamaica, Jack met and fell in love with Anne, at this point, unhappily married to James Bonny. To help Anne escape the bounds of her marriage, Jack decided to hastily assemble a pirate crew and flee. Mary Read, who was currently in Jamaica, was added to the crew. This time, she decided to sail as female. Anne and Mary were now together on the same ship. Here, they were known to work and fight harder than most of the male crew and became highly feared pirates. Unfortunately, due to Jack’s recklessness, their escapades were short lived and Jack’s ship was captured. While Anne and Mary stayed onboard to fight a battle against all odds, the men ran below deck to hide. Before Jack was hung for piracy, Anne reportedly told him “if you had fought like a man, who wouldn’t have to hang like a dog.”

Anne and Mary proved their fearlessness during a time when women were thought incapable of succeeding in most non-domestic roles. They rebelled through their seafaring and pirating adventures. It is true that they may have committed many atrocities during their tenures; however, they also proved women’s ability to succeed in a man’s world.

Feminist Pirate History

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This is an excellent book! At first I was hesitant cuz it only had two reviews and was rated 3/5 but whoever gave this a poor scoring is off their rocker. I’m a huge history buff and read many a terrible historical nonfiction books as well as great ones. This book will definitely be going down as one of my favorites.

The author/narrator did a good job with only a few slip ups but mostly so minor you barely notice.

Don’t let the reviews fools you

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