The Far Side of the World ship and swam for shore; only half of them landing. Eventually, the hopeless situation forced the frigate to surrender. The "Essex" suffered 58 killed, 97 wounded, while the British casualties were 5 dead, 10 wounded. The novel provided part of the title and some of the plot-structure for the 2003 Peter Weir film, "". The fictional USS "Norfolk" morphed into the fictional American-built French privateer "Acheron", and episodes also migrated from other books in the series, including "Master and Commander" and "HMS Surprise". The design and size of the fictional "Acheron" reflect those of the USS "Constitution". In reviewing the
Master and Commander Master and Commander Master and Commander is a nautical historical novel by the English author Patrick O'Brian, first published in 1969 in the US and 1970 in UK. The book proved to be the start of the 20-novel Aubrey-Maturin series, set largely in the era of the Napoleonic Wars, that O'Brian continued working on up until his death in 2000. The novel is set at the turn of the 19th century. It follows the young Jack Aubrey who has just been promoted to the rank of Master and Commander, and Stephen Maturin, a destitute physician and naturalist whom Aubrey appoints