Career
These events were the basis of de Lery"s book, History of a Voyage to the Land of Brazil, Also Called America (1578). Exhausted and starving, they then returned to France aboard a pirate ship. Throughout this book, Léry describes his voyage across the Atlantic to Brazil.
On the way he encounters never before seen ocean wildlife that foreshadows many more discoveries to follow.
While on the ship he and his men develop new skills of judging and navigating the winds, stars, currents, and tides. Upon arrival, Léry and his men are exposed to what seems to be an entirely new world.
Throughout the body, the crew encounters a wide variety of people in an area not yet affected by European colonization. Léry witnessed the Tupinamba engage in war and cannibalize their enemies.
He endured and chronicled the Siege of Sancerre, remarking in his book, History of the City of Sancerre (1574) that his hardships in Brazil served him well, because he taught his fellow soldiers to make hammocks and eat anything, including shoe soles (though cannibalism still repelled him).
During the siege of Sancerre, a Calvinist married couple and an old woman were caught boiling the couple"s dead daughter in a cauldron for food.