Magellan's World (Great Explorers)

The first voyage around the globe was a daring, high-stakes gamble that changed the world forever.

Portugal dominated the wildly lucrative spice trade, and Spain was desperate for a piece of the action. Spain had everything to gain. Portuguese officer Ferdinand Magellan had nothing to lose. His decades fighting for Portugal had left him with a crippled knee and his king's withering scorn.

And so Magellan left Portugal to lead an expedition for his country's bitter rival, Spain. He knew it would be an exceedingly dangerous voyage, but the reality proved much worse. Killer storms, mutinies, deadly battles, murders, deprivation and disease dogged the four-year journey. Magellan was driven to ever-greater extremes of brilliance, courage, brutality and madness as he sailed around the world.

Magellan's World is the story of a harrowing adventure, an inspiring and flawed hero, and an epic event in the history of the world.

Stuart Waldman is a writer and editor. His Great Explorers book We Asked for Nothing: The Remarkable Journey of Cabeza de Vaca won a Notable Children's Book Award from the International Reading Association. He lives in New York City.

Gregory Manchess' paintings have appeared in magazines and children's books. He has won a gold medal and three silver medals from the Society of Illustrators in New York. Previously he illustrated The Last River in The Great Explorers series.