Description

Newbery Medal Winner

Nat Bowditch encourages readers to own their educations and pursue knowledge with genuine zeal. Carry On, Mr. Bowditch begins with Nat as a young boy, dreaming of life at sea, and takes him through many journeys—some of which even include life at sea. Readers watch as he learns diligently, loves honestly, and invents brilliantly. Some of his work, like The American Practical Navigator, is still used today!

Readers today are still fascinated by "Nat," an eighteenth-century nautical wonder and mathematical wizard. Nathaniel Bowditch grew up in a sailor's world--Salem in the early days, when tall-masted ships from foreign ports crowded the wharves. But Nat didn't promise to have the makings of a sailor; he was too physically small. Nat may have been slight of build, but no one guessed that he had the persistence and determination to master sea navigation in the days when men sailed only by "log, lead, and lookout." Nat's long hours of study and observation, collected in his famous work, The American Practical Navigator (also known as the "Sailors' Bible"), stunned the sailing community and made him a New England hero.