Join us on Monday, June 9th at 6pm for an illustrated talk by bestselling author Hampton Sides.

JAMES COOK was arguably Britain’s greatest navigator, and his three ambitious voyages around the globe were among the most consequential in world history. But his legacy has become controversial today, as island communities around the globe have begun to view the vaunted explorer as a symbol of colonialism and the tip of the imperial spear. Historian Hampton Sides’ new bestselling book on Cook, The Wide Wide Sea: Imperial Ambition, First Contact and the Fateful Final Voyage of Captain James Cook, reassesses the eminent seafarer through a modern lens. With a vivid slideshow, Sides will narrate his own travels in documenting Cook’s epic final voyage around the world, while also deconstructing the complex circumstances that led to Cook’s dramatic death.

HAMPTON SIDES is an acclaimed American historian and journalist, and the author of several bestselling works of narrative history. The New York Times named The Wide Wide Sea one of the Ten Best Books of 2024, and Barack Obama featured it on in his coveted Summer Reading List.

“It combines the satisfaction of a Patrick O’Brian blockbuster with the insights and revelations of a true historian.
The Wide Wide Sea somehow told me more about the making of the modern world than any book I had read for ages.” – Stephen Fry, The Observer.

Books will be available for purchase and the author will sign copies after the talk.

Enjoy 10% off­ dinner at the Harbourfront Restaurant when you dine before or after the talk! Reservations required. Call 295-4207.