corkonian1
New member
Re: A Voyage For Madmen
Breath of angels - John Beattie - don't let the title put you off
Breath of angels - John Beattie - don't let the title put you off
Read any good books lately?
- Thread starter Viking
- Start date
PaulJ
Member
I'm presently half way through "Rowing it Alone" by Debra Veal. She's the girl who carried on with rowing the Atlantic, single-handed after her hubby got off. 'Saw the boat and bought the book at the Southampton Boat Show.... 'very readable so far.
Viking
New member
Talking of single handed. Has anyone read 'The epic voyage of the seven little sisters' by William Wallis? An American, he built a raft (the 'seven sisters' name of the seven main logs in the raft) and single handed sailed across most of the Pacfic Ocean on a diet of mase and suger cane, Oh! and a cup of sea water a day. This was back in the early 50s. He was a man who constantly tested himself. Very interesting and readable if you can find a copy in second hand book shop or sale.
chippie
New member
Second hand bookshops often have gems.
I bought 'Messing about In Boats ' by Surgeon Rear-Admiral John R Muir, first published in 1938 -an interesting and unusual read. An old time cruising sailor who started out signing on to pilot cutters when on leave from the RN.
I bought 'Messing about In Boats ' by Surgeon Rear-Admiral John R Muir, first published in 1938 -an interesting and unusual read. An old time cruising sailor who started out signing on to pilot cutters when on leave from the RN.
tome
New member
What about the Strange Voyage of Donald Crowhurst (Nicholas Tomalin and Ron Hall). There's a spooky tale I picked up from a SH bookshop.
phanakapan
Well-known member
English Passengers by Matthew Kneale-fantastic read on many levels.
webcraft
Well-known member
Re: English Passengers
Loved this book.
Read it on the way out to Tenerife from Eastbourne last year.
Kept laughing out loud and/or becoming totally immersed for hours . . . the other two crew members were almost fighting over who read it next. Both did and both are still quoting from it nearly two years later.
Highly recommended.
<font color=blue>Nick</font color=blue> -
BlueMoment.Com
<A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.bluemoment.com/>http://www.bluemoment.com/</A>
Loved this book.
Read it on the way out to Tenerife from Eastbourne last year.
Kept laughing out loud and/or becoming totally immersed for hours . . . the other two crew members were almost fighting over who read it next. Both did and both are still quoting from it nearly two years later.
Highly recommended.
<font color=blue>Nick</font color=blue> -
BlueMoment.Com
<A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.bluemoment.com/>http://www.bluemoment.com/</A>
vyv_cox
Well-known member
The Kelvin Hughes booklet that fell out of my most recent YM has a good one - all 8 books of Bill Timan compiled into a single volume. 950 pages for 20 quid. Sounds good to me, Father Xmas has been prompted to put a copy in my stocking.
Danthegorrila
New member
I realy enjoyed that too
PB
PB
Danthegorrila
New member
The testing Ground, can't remeber the author, it about the Sidney- Hobart storm and follows three boats in prepartion and the race. It's great insight into how differently people think on boats. Really good.
Nb the other I really enjoyed was the last grain race.
PB
Nb the other I really enjoyed was the last grain race.
PB
castaway
New member
Last Great Grain Race by Eric Newby..fantastic read. The epilogue traces on a few pages the demise of the ship he sailed on, the "Moshlulu", which I had never heard of before.
The really odd thing was that the very next book I read, one of Patricia Cornwalls Dr Scarpentias thrillers. Mentions this ship by name where it lies restored I think somewhere on the Chesapeke Bay .... Odd that.
www.yachtsite.co.uk/fairweather
Nick
The really odd thing was that the very next book I read, one of Patricia Cornwalls Dr Scarpentias thrillers. Mentions this ship by name where it lies restored I think somewhere on the Chesapeke Bay .... Odd that.
www.yachtsite.co.uk/fairweather
Nick
Opinionated
New member
'Gale Force 10' - Nicholas Courtney. 'Mercator', author not to hand just now. 'The Map that Shook the World', author not to hand (maybe changed the world).
First is bio of Beaufort, second is bio of Mercator, third is bio, but can't think of his name (altz).
All three are pretty interesting, if you are fed up of novels (as I am).
IMHO, of course.
First is bio of Beaufort, second is bio of Mercator, third is bio, but can't think of his name (altz).
All three are pretty interesting, if you are fed up of novels (as I am).
IMHO, of course.
extravert
New member
Longitude by a female author with a funny name
Heavy Weather Sailing by Adlard Coles, makes you glad you're reading and not sailing.
Heavy Weather Sailing by Adlard Coles, makes you glad you're reading and not sailing.
drawp
Member
Here's my 10 cents worth
Any biography of Lord Thomas Cochrane - the role model for Patrick O'Brien's Jack Aubrey
"Ice Master: The Doomed 1913 Voyage of the Karluk" by Jennifer Niven
"Business in Great Waters" by John Terraine - U-boat wars 1916 - 1945
"The Prize of all the Oceans" by Glyndwn Williams - on Cavendish's circumnavigation
"In the Heart of the Seas" by Nathaniel Philbeck - the sinking of the whaler "Essex" which was the inspiration for "Moby Dick"
"The Devil Drives" by Fawn Brodie - a biography of Sir Richard Burton - Victorian traveller, not the actor.
Any biography of Shackleton.
Who needs to read fiction when history supplies characters and events like these to be written about!
Any biography of Lord Thomas Cochrane - the role model for Patrick O'Brien's Jack Aubrey
"Ice Master: The Doomed 1913 Voyage of the Karluk" by Jennifer Niven
"Business in Great Waters" by John Terraine - U-boat wars 1916 - 1945
"The Prize of all the Oceans" by Glyndwn Williams - on Cavendish's circumnavigation
"In the Heart of the Seas" by Nathaniel Philbeck - the sinking of the whaler "Essex" which was the inspiration for "Moby Dick"
"The Devil Drives" by Fawn Brodie - a biography of Sir Richard Burton - Victorian traveller, not the actor.
Any biography of Shackleton.
Who needs to read fiction when history supplies characters and events like these to be written about!
drawp
Member
Oops. A mistoke. "The Prize of All the Oceans" is about Anson's circumnavigation not Cavendish.
Forbsie
New member
An Ocean Without Shores by C.O. Jennings (1950)
It is about two British soldiers attempting an escape from Singapore during the 2WW in a tiny boat trying to get to Australia.
Read in one day during my hols and it's brilliant but won't tell outcome in case anyone wants it.
<A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.arweb.co.uk/argallery/forbsie>My Project Pics</A>
It is about two British soldiers attempting an escape from Singapore during the 2WW in a tiny boat trying to get to Australia.
Read in one day during my hols and it's brilliant but won't tell outcome in case anyone wants it.
<A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.arweb.co.uk/argallery/forbsie>My Project Pics</A>
G
Guest
Guest
Being very recent born again sailors of missionary zeal we're busy devouring everything in sight. We've just started sailing on the East Coast for the first time in our lives so we're particularly interested in anything local and relevant.
"A Funny Old Life" by Des Sleightholme really was incredibly funny but also very moving, an excellent book by an excellent chap.
"Magic of the Swatchways" by MG of course, crazy what these guys used to get up to, you'd have the Authorities ranting at you from the rooftops if you did anything like this today.
I'm currently reading "Sailing Just for Fun" by AC Stock - a wonderful book full of useful stuff for newbie East Coast cruising yotties like us, even if we're not quite so zealous. A goldmine.
Oh, and "Further Confessions" of course, an absolute must.
I'm stealing myself for "Heavy Weather Sailing" as a counterpoint...
"A Funny Old Life" by Des Sleightholme really was incredibly funny but also very moving, an excellent book by an excellent chap.
"Magic of the Swatchways" by MG of course, crazy what these guys used to get up to, you'd have the Authorities ranting at you from the rooftops if you did anything like this today.
I'm currently reading "Sailing Just for Fun" by AC Stock - a wonderful book full of useful stuff for newbie East Coast cruising yotties like us, even if we're not quite so zealous. A goldmine.
Oh, and "Further Confessions" of course, an absolute must.
I'm stealing myself for "Heavy Weather Sailing" as a counterpoint...
tyger
New member
There are dozens, however some that may be less familiar:
Coasting by Jonathan Raban. An excellent book about a voyage round Britain by an author to whom sailing was a means to an end, as one reviewer said "Coasting is half travel book, half autobiography, half novel (never mind the arithmetic)".
The Strange Last Voyage of Donald Crowhurst by Nicholas Tomlin and Ron Hall. An excellent book about a bizarre tragedy. It also shows how much the sailing scene has changed in 30 years.
For those that have read all the Aubrey and Maturin books there are two earlier books by Patrick o' Brian, The Golden Ocean and The Unknown Shore, both of which are based on Anson's voyage round the world.
Coasting by Jonathan Raban. An excellent book about a voyage round Britain by an author to whom sailing was a means to an end, as one reviewer said "Coasting is half travel book, half autobiography, half novel (never mind the arithmetic)".
The Strange Last Voyage of Donald Crowhurst by Nicholas Tomlin and Ron Hall. An excellent book about a bizarre tragedy. It also shows how much the sailing scene has changed in 30 years.
For those that have read all the Aubrey and Maturin books there are two earlier books by Patrick o' Brian, The Golden Ocean and The Unknown Shore, both of which are based on Anson's voyage round the world.
peterk
New member
I enjoyed
'The way of a ship' by Derek Lundy - publ. 2002
faction about his uncle's voyage
Liverpool to San Francisco around Cape Horn
in the
late 1800s - lots of good info, entertainingly and well presented
'The cruise of the Conrad' (and anything else) by Alan Villiers
anything at all by Tim Severin - just re-read and thoroughly liked
'The Spice Island Voyage'
and last, but not least:
'Sea Quest' by Charles Borden
a very fine compilation of all sorts of small boat voyages
up to the 70s
'the book that launched a thousand cruises'...including mine...
Borden knew his stuff
- he singlehand 17 foot all teak 'Confucius' from California to Hawaii.
hunt for it - most likely out of print.
have fun!
...peter, www.juprowa.com/kittel
'The way of a ship' by Derek Lundy - publ. 2002
faction about his uncle's voyage
Liverpool to San Francisco around Cape Horn
in the
late 1800s - lots of good info, entertainingly and well presented
'The cruise of the Conrad' (and anything else) by Alan Villiers
anything at all by Tim Severin - just re-read and thoroughly liked
'The Spice Island Voyage'
and last, but not least:
'Sea Quest' by Charles Borden
a very fine compilation of all sorts of small boat voyages
up to the 70s
'the book that launched a thousand cruises'...including mine...
Borden knew his stuff
- he singlehand 17 foot all teak 'Confucius' from California to Hawaii.
hunt for it - most likely out of print.
have fun!
...peter, www.juprowa.com/kittel
Cutter
Active member
Re: So many
If you are after a good biog of Cochrane try 'Sea Wolf'. His grave in Westminster Abbey has the flags of the four countries he served after the Brits tried to shut him up on trumped up charges. The ONLY time foreign soldiers carrying arms were allowed into the Abbey was to lay a wreath on his grave.
His 9 mile sail up a river at night to attack the Portugese (followed by a return trip in reverse using his anchor to control the boat) is a classic.
If you are after a good biog of Cochrane try 'Sea Wolf'. His grave in Westminster Abbey has the flags of the four countries he served after the Brits tried to shut him up on trumped up charges. The ONLY time foreign soldiers carrying arms were allowed into the Abbey was to lay a wreath on his grave.
His 9 mile sail up a river at night to attack the Portugese (followed by a return trip in reverse using his anchor to control the boat) is a classic.