Classic books

[porth]

Last time I visited my long suffering mother, she sent me up into the loft to see "if any of my things were still there". Which they were, as she well knew....
However, while I was ferreting around up there, I found a box of my father's old sailing books; for example Once is Enough, lots of Francis Chichester's books about both sailing and flying (he flew a Gypsy Moth biplane seaplane to Australia among other things) and a copy of Sailing Alone Around the World/the voyage of the Liberdade printed in 1963.That book was one of a whole catalogue called the Mariners library. Anyone heard of these?
The sea is for sailing Peter Pye
Red Mains'l
THe cruise of the Teddy Erling Tambs
Across three oceans Conor Obrien
The wind is free Frank Wightman
The £200 Millionare Weston Martyr (A fine name!)

45 books in all, would have been enough for a winter or two!

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[Mirelle]

Yes, indeed. I have about half of that list of 45, and like, alas, too many other people, I scour secondhand bookshops in the hope of getting all of them. The series was a set of "economical" reprints of famous sailing books, published by Rupert Hart-Davies in the 50's, at the suggestion of Arthur Ransome, who wrote introductions to quite a few of them. The size was deliberately aimed at fitting into a yacht's bookshelf. Many were reprinted again in the 60's, in the same format but with a less interesting dust jacket.

They are all good - every single one is a sailing classic.

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[porth]

Maybe somebody could repeat/extend the series? Sailing books with a slower pace than your average Ellen Macarthur/Volvo Ocean Race type epic... Slocum & co can actually be read several times, or dipped into. Reminded me that a huge inboard deisel isn't completely necessary, too, which is nice just at the moment 'cos mine is currently being replaced by a 10hp outboard!! I'm bloody glad my old mum sent me up into the loft!

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