REVIEW: The Zorg

 The Zorg
Author: Siddarth Kara

When I started reading this book, I was completely unfamiliar with the story of The Zorg and the killing of more than 120 Africans bound for Jamaica to be sold as slaves in 1780.  

As the story unfolded and the terrible truth of what a ship's crew did was revealed, I just became more and more horrified. In the later pages of the book, court records from a subsequent insurance case just gutted me even more. A man actually told the court that throwing live Africans off a ship in the middle of the ocean was no more than throwing horses over board. Even the main question in front of the court was mind-boggling. The main question: Was it a loss cover-able by insurance if a crew willfully threw the "cargo" overboard due to a perceived shortage of drinkable water?

The author definitely did a lot of detailed research to write this book. The narrative flows and kept my attention from start to finish, even though it was very, very hard to read due to the subject matter.  

I started out reading from a review copy of this book and then switched to listening to the audio book version, narrated by Dion Graham. Graham read at a steady pace and his voice is easily understandable. He did great job of narration! 

Definitely thinking very deep thoughts after finishing this book. We've come a long way since 1780, but human beings are still incredibly cruel and violent to each other. It's sad. May the victims who had no chance of survival rest in peace. There is no apology or acknowledgement that makes up for what was done to them. Evil -- that's the only word that describes it. 

**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book from St Martin's Press and listened to a review audio book from Macmillan Audio. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**