STUDY GUIDE – THE GOLDEN RECKONING
“This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental”
The Golden Reckoning is indeed a work of fiction, yet there are a number of characters, places and incidents thatare used fictitiously.
Should you be curious about the ‘used fictitiously’ aspects of The Golden Reckoning, you might find researching the following topics interesting.
All of the hurricanes referenced in the book are real. They took place in
the locations and on the dates stated. The most interesting of these is ‘the Great Labor Day Storm’ that hit
Bogart / Lauren Bacall movie ‘
- how is the strength of a hurricane measured?
- what were the economic effects of the ‘Great Labor Day Storm’?
- what evacuation measures were undertaken?
- who was the famous writer whose fishing lodge was destroyed?
Characters Used Fictitiously
A number of ‘real-life’ characters have been used fictitiously or referenced throughout the book. Their stories are a matter of public record.
Henry Morgan – how did he deceive the Spanish in order to escape
- what is the difference between a pirate and a privateer,
and what role did these distinctions play in the history of the
- what was the origin of the term ‘buccaneer’?
- was Sir Henry Morgan a hero or a villain?
One early driver of exploration and the colonization of the
‘New World’ was the need for gold to finance wars in
- what was the ‘
- what were ‘plate fleets’, and why were they significant?
- the ‘Griffon’ was a real vessel … research the history of the plate fleet of 1715
- read about the story of Mel Fisher and, specifically, his discovery of the sunken treasure of the ship Atocha
The armed conflict within
- who are the main combatants?
- what are the economic, political and social forces at play?
- do you see a solution, or solutions?
Study the early history of
- why has the N American shrimp-fishing industry declined?
- is this a good thing or a bad thing – and why?
- if a ‘bad thing’, what could be done about it?
what was the ‘wrecking industry’, its history, significance and practices?