Prepare to Set Sail

By Julie Duffin
May 2025 View more Books

Retired high school teacher Michael Torney brings history to life in his new novel, Undiscover’d Country: A Sailor’s Niantic and Invincible Life Journey. Taken from his own great-grandfather’s 900-page journal, Torney’s book offers a unique firsthand account of 19th-century world events through the eyes of a clipper ship sea captain.

After running away from his New York City home at age 17, Henry Johnson, Torney’s ancestor, led an adventurous life, witnessing such historical events as China’s Opium War in 1839, the California Gold Rush in 1851, India’s Sepoy Rebellion in 1857, and the Taiping Rebellion in Asia. Johnson captained for Cornelius Vanderbilt, worked for George Pullman, and rubbed elbows with the likes of Samuel Colt, Dan Sickles, and Nathaniel Hawthorne. “These are not made-up interactions or stories,” says Torney, who lives in Wheaton. “My great-grandfather witnessed it all and wrote it down. The crimes and events depicted actually happened. His experiences give us a front-row seat to a really interesting era.”

He adds: “The most engaging history is a well-told story we can learn from. We cannot conceive of where we are going, unless we know where we have been. My book attempts to weave a tapestry of cascading stories into something meaningful for today’s reader.”

Photo: Michael Torney