Two men who are considered among the most important explorers of the modern world are Christopher Columbus and Captain Cook. Columbus landed up in America while trying to find a sea route to India, Cook took off in the other direction towards the Pacific Ocean and was the first to map the eastern coastline of Australia, New Zealand and Hawaii.

To learn more about Captain Cook without too many details or lengthy and boring descriptions, the book Captain Cook, by Rebecca Levene, from Usborne Young Reading Series Three is excellent for children aged eight onwards.

It traces how James Cook’s desire to be a sailor led him to the sea and eventually become a captain, leading three major voyages into unknown waters in search for new worlds and eventually lose his life doing so.

Detailed maps of the three voyages into the South Sea, help to easily understand the routes he took. Contrary to popular opinion, he did not discover New Zealand. It was already discovered by Abel Tasman in 1642, Cook went round New Zealand charting its coastline. Why he didn’t stop there and he turned back are things that you learn in this book.

There is debate among researchers about whether he was the first European to reach Australia or not, however, he is credited to have done it in this book, when he sighted the Eastern coast of Australia and landed at Botany Bay, New South Wales, in April 1770.

He again set off in 1772 exploring the Antarctic Ocean, searching for what was then believed to be a great southern continent that crossed the South Pole, but that wasn’t so of course.

His final voyage started in 1776, crossing many islands in the South Pacific, landing in the Sandwich Islands, what we now call Hawaii. Then he moved on to make maps of the majority of the North American northwest coastline and on his return journey to Hawaii, he died in a fight with the natives.

This colourfully illustrated palm-sized book takes you in a very simple way to the adventures of this bold and brave seaman. — Ahzam Ahmed