The pirates own book : authentic narratives of the most celebrated sea robbers / Marine Research Society.

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

In these delightfully melodramatic accounts, originally published in an extremely rare 1837 volume, you'll find true stories of the diabolical desperadoes who plundered ships on the high seas and murdered their passengers and crews. The stories -- based on contemporary newspaper accounts, trial proceedings, and Admiralty records -- describe in lurid detail the life, atrocities, and bloody death of the infamous Black Beard as well as the cold-blooded exploits of Jean Lafitte, Robert Kidd, Edward Low, Thomas White, Anne Bonney, Mary Read, and scores of other maritime marauders.
The first edition of The Pirates Own Book was published in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1837, and during the next 25 years it was followed by at least eight other editions. Today it is a rarity among collectors. Now available once again in this inexpensive edition, it will thrill lovers of drama on the high seas or any reader interested in the true-life adventures of the ruthless men and women who sailed under the black flag so long ago.