The Ship that Never Was: The Greatest Escape Story of Australian Colonial History

Another amazing, interesting and educational story from Adam Courtenay and one I devoured with glee. If you’re a history enthusiast you will undoubtedly enjoy being transported back to the<br />1800s. Journey along with James Porter and other convicts on the high seas crossing thousands of miles of water to Chile. Adam Courtenay sure does have a knack for storytelling it wasn’t hard to be sucked right into this captivating and rollicking tale.

This was a fascinating read.<br /><br />My first thought upon completion was, 'truth really can be stranger than fiction!'<br /><br />This extraordinary account of larrikin, convict James Porter and what could possibly be the nicest mutiny in history, is one that all Aussies (and anyone with an interest in the land down under) should read.<br /><br />I would absolutely love to see this book added to the Australian National Curriculum for high school students.<br /><br />I have painful memories of slogging through 'Crime and Punishment' (by Dostoyevsky - or 'dusty esky' as my irreverent English class mates and I used to say) and can't help but feel that study of 'The Ship That Never Was' would have been a much more meaningful and relevant experience. Apologies to all the die hard Dostoyevsky fans :-)<br /><br />Do give this a go if you'd like to learn more about what well may be the greatest escape story of Australian colonial history.

A cracking tale of adventure that reads like a tall story yet it's all true! Vivid, entertaining history. Who knew of this pint-sized larrikan of a Tasmanian convict who just wouldn't lie down and behave? Apparently many people, but not me! Cockney convict and former sailor, James Porter joins a motley crew of convicts who steal a ship to escape Macquarie Harbour in Tasmania and somehow end up on the other side of the Pacific in Chile. This is a detailed, fascinating account that illuminates life for a convict in early Tasmania in a rollicking good story.

A compelling, page -turning history with all the best ingredients: a likeable rogue at centre stage and an against-the-odds escape from a lifetime of misery for an unlikely alliance of Australian convicts in the 1800s. The storylines of history based on English convict James Porter extend all the way from a godforsaken eastern Tasmania to an emerging and vibrant South America, weaving together extraordinary historical accounts and fully fleshed out characters I knew little about before . The author strikes a rare balance between the genres of non-fiction history and historical novel, bringing a gripping feel to a real life story based on extensive historical research. I look forward to the next book from Adam Courtenay.<br />

I loved it! Completely absorbing from page one. A real insight into early Australian history and the resilience of the human spirit. I enjoy a great read but am totally hooked when I learn along the way. Adam Courtenay has a fabulous knack for storytelling. I highly recommend this book.

An excellent read, the book moves along at a good pace and as well as telling an amazing story it provides a great deal of background regarding transportation and life in a penal colonel. A very enjoyable book.

It's not just about the escape, but what happened afterwards... with unexpected twists right up until the end!

There is nothing like a rollicking good tale where the underdog triumphs over the top dog, not to mention great escapes and characters both ingenious and deeply flawed. Adam Courtenay's book is reminiscent of a Dickens novel, except in this case, it happens to be true.<br /><br />In 1823, James Porter is convicted of stealing beaver furs and ends up transported to the bottom of the world, Van Diemen's Land, ruled by the self-serving cruel Governor George Arthur. Here, life for convists is merciless and incessantly cruel. Porter finds himself sent to Macquarie Harbour and employed to help build the brig, Frederick. When news reaches the men that Macquarie Harbour will be closed as a convict prison and the men will be sent to the newly completed penal settlement at Port Arthur, the men decide to chance their hand. <br /><br />They overtake the Frederick, dump her soldiers and captain on the beach and head for Chile. Its astounding they even made it. What happens next is an amazing tale of global politics and anti-heroism. Courtenay has gone to great lengths to set the record straight on James Porter but he tells this tall but true tale with all the verve and tension of a fictional adventure.

I loved this book - a real cover to cover read.<br /><br />It's part history, part boys own adventure - with many rascals and even more twists and turns.<br /><br />A rollicking, adventurous ride through a piece of little known (to me anyway) Australian colonial and maritime history.<br /><br />I know it it is often unwise or unkind to judge those of long ago by today's standards and morals, but to my way of thinking, having read this book, Port Arthur should be renamed, and George Arthur should be stripped of any remaining fame or glory, as well as being convicted of hundreds (perhaps thousands?) of Crimes against Humanity.<br /><br />Congratulations Adam Courtenay - can't wait for the next book!

Thank goodness a story as astonishing as this, has been preserved via this worthy book. What a tragedy if the tale of these men was lost or overlooked. As with most extensively researched and documented histories, a clear and reflective perspective is only arrived at in the final chapters and Afterword. The author did a wonderful job of making some kind of sense of who was the person, James Porter and what drove him to seemingly never be willing to 'play the game'. I do wish I had read this book before we visited Macquarie Harbour and actually met Kiah Davey while we were on Sarah Island. I had read enough (For the Term of His Natural Life, by Marcus Clarke) to understand a lot of the history of this part of Tasmania, but this book adds so much depth and insight that the experience of visiting Tasmania, and especially the South West would have been even more enhanced. Thank you so much to all those involved in the writing and research for this book because it is one of those stories that is 1,000 times much stranger than fiction.