Notable Little-Known Sailing Books

[fool]

N by E, by Rockwell Kent, 1930, illustrated with woodblock carvings by the author.

A cutter voyage from Nova Scotia to a shipwreck in Greenland and as I recall a love interest that may or may not have started with sailing the vessel and ended up completely elsewhere...

https://books.google.com/books/about/N_by_E.html?id=WvHkngEACAAJ&hl=en

Speaking of books Christian, isn't your second at the printers?

Max

 

[Christian Williams]

Yes. Be out in about a month. Here's a sneak:



And yes, Rockwell Kent, a great illustrator, is quite love-starved in that yarn.

 

[fool]

Yes. Be out in about a month. Here's a sneak:

And yes, Rockwell Kent, a great illustrator, is quite love-starved in that yarn.

'tis, I found a moldy third, cut out the salvageable illustrations. That edition was well seasoned and smelled of diesel. I killed it, matted and framed them, and have screwed the 4 x 6's into the bulkheads in the main salon.

I have lived those moulds in one form or another I suppose. Bilges... ya never know what they'll yield...

Thanks for the sneak! if there is a line to subscribe to your new edition, look in the bilges, we'll be the first in line.

(Any chance you'll be reading it as well? Or are you working on one step at a time?)

 

[ChrisS]

"The Log of the Mahina" by John Neal. It describes a 1973-74 trip from the West Coast to the South Pacific and back. A mix of sea log and descriptions of destinations. The author had only been sailing for a year when he took the trip, and he went on to become a fixture in the sailing world. He has an offshore training service, on a boat called "Mahina." I guess he likes the name!

I found the book in a used bookstore in Rio Vista, California, in January. It came in a day before my visist from an estate sail, and it has a letter from the author to the prior owner of the book. Never pass by a used book store when you come across one--you never know what you might find!

 

[Grizz]

Unless overlooked...

...2 on my list but not listed (so far):

• A Voyage for Madmen - Peter Nichols [1st sponsored, solo circumnavigation race, 1968]
• The Boys in the Boat - Daniel James Brown (not sailing, but on-the-water & inspirational)

 

[footrope]

Many of these books I never heard of--at my age. A wonderful bunch of knowledge bits.

... snip ...

Ernest Gann--as a former amateur pilot I can only say, is a stunning nonfiction writer: every sailor would also be riveted by his "Fate is the Hunter," about flying the line in the early days, with the astonishing crash rate of DC3s with no nav gear landing in thunderstorms and losing engines right and left. And full of unsuspecting passengers.

In Song of the Sirens, which Keith mentions, Gann buys a fishing boat in Alaska (I think) and is charmed by the frugality of the seller. Then they ride into a gale on the way home and the engine keeps sputtering and losing power. They can;t figure out what's wrong and are certain to perish. Then Gann remembers the seller. What a cheapskate he is. How he hates to spend money on anything. They are about to sink from loss of control when Gann, after this psychological review, has a suspicions and rushes to the sputtering engine room as icey seas sweep the helpless boat. The seller has set the fuel mixture extremely lean--to save gas! They change the setting, the engine roars to happy life, and they continue successfully on.

Gann's fiction--well, fiction is harder.

I do hope, selfishly, that this parade of lesser-known nautical books continues.

Oh, great job Christian. And - spoiler alert! Now I have to find a copy of Sirens and re-read it.
His aviation writing is generally riveting. Maybe I need to review that list and see if I missed any during my mis-spent youth.

 

[ofshore74]

Sailing Just For Fun, and other obscurities from the bookshelf.

"Sailing Just For Fun" A. C. Stock writes about "high adventure on a small budget." Love the simplicity and obsessive little details of someone who sailed a tiny little boat with no engine and no electronics called Shoal Waters. Reading about his pottering around the UK, and anecdotes for how to do it with very little, ignites appreciation for the little things.

Roger D. Taylor is another Brit who wrote several books, sailed a trailer-sailor in the North Atlantic called MingMing, junk-rigged, no engine, no electronics. Gutsy. His otherworldly experiences with whales is worth reading.

James Baldwin another engineless sailor on a boat called Atom (Pearson Triton I think) wrote two books in the early 80s. Also has a Youtube channel and does incredible custom work on old fiberglass boats of the same ilk, a real craftsman. His videos are dry, but utterly absorbing and creative: https://www.youtube.com/user/atomvoyager/videos

"Sailing back in time" Maria Coffey & Dag Goering, meet and sail with Allen and Sharie Farrel toward the end of their days, two free spirits who lived and sailed the BC coast for decades. Allen designed and built every boat by hand. Was also a teacher painter and free spirit who passed along every tool, lesson and boat he ever built. The boat they live on and sailed throughout the book was called China Cloud and is a junk rigged oddity.

Edit: Added yours C.W. to the shelf, look forward to it!

 

[fool]

Surprised I din't think on it first: Diary of a Sea Captains Wife - Tales from Santa Cruz Island. A rough beginning with small scale fishing which grew to the "in" Hollywood crowd and production support to various film productions.

A rare insight into the early history, cult and culture, of the Channel Islands in Southern California. Makes a visit to the islands so much more... important.

 

[907Juice]

Not so little known sailing book?

This winter I want to redo my electrical wiring. When I search the inter webs there are hundreds to choose from. Any suggestions for a diy electrical job? Also, I’d be a paying customer if anyone wants to clear their bookshelf.

 

[Christian Williams]

I studied Nigel Calder, and bought "Boatowner's Illustrated Electrical Handbook" by Charlie Wing.

They weren't much help. Too generic and theoretical.

I got much more guidance here on the forum, and through Google searches.

 

[907Juice]

That’s what I was afraid of... I’ve wired parts of houses and cars and figured it was about the same. It is the “about” part that has me worried. I know boat stuff is a little different but not quite sure where to look. Google and YouTube are my normal go tos for a lot of stuff...

I studied Nigel Calder, and bought "Boatowner's Illustrated Electrical Handbook" by Charlie Wing.

They weren't much help. Too generic and theoretical.

I got much more guidance here on the forum, and through Google searches.

 

[Frank Langer]

Hi Juice,
While Christian and others are right that good advice is available on this forum, I still find books helpful to understand the logic, the concepts and then the how to knowledge with extra tips where needed. So I have collected a bunch of good books over the years, too many to keep cause they are piling up as I buy new ones.
So I have about 20 books on maintenance, electrical, sail trim, heavy weather sailing, etc. that I would like to sell at very reasonable prices.
If that's of interest to you, either to help with your projects or to get you through long and dark Alaska winters, let me know and we can work out details.
And yes, boat / marine wiring is different from wiring houses and cars!
Frank

 

[bgary]

So I have about 20 books ...

If there are some still up for grabs, please share a list? I'm always looking for my next new favorite book...

Bruce

 

[Frank Langer]

Hi Bruce,

Juice replied by email yesterday, so has first dibs on buying my books, and he's in Alaska where the winters are cold, dark and long, so he may need good sailing books to get him through.

But if he doesn't want them all, I'll let you know and you would be next. If others are interested, I can make a list of potential buyers. I will post a list of books and authors tomorrow when I have some time, and my email address. They will be priced reasonably.
Frank

 

[907Juice]

If there are some still up for grabs, please share a list? I'm always looking for my next new favorite book...

Bruce

YEAH! Wait your turn

 

[alcodiesel]

sailing books

I should have guessed that the fellas here would be sailing adventure reading nuts, like me. Having all these stories and books in my head actually helped me when I got caught in a pop up squall/t storm a couple years ago. 50kt winds. It was frightening yet thrilling!

When I finally got back to the marina the guys at the docks told me afterwards that I said nothing- looked kind of dazed and just put the boat to bed and left.

That's one reason I like winter sailing- nearly zero chance of t storm.

Never read 2 yrs. Before the Mast! Reading it now.

 

[Christian Williams]

Dana is a real eye-opener for those of us in Southern California--"yachting" his experience was not.

My favorite period story is The Bounty Trilogy by Nordhoff and Hall, novelizations of the familiar Bligh-Christian saga. They knew how to write historical novels, not shy on technical content and with a firm grasp of character and narrative.

Get the Little, Brown edition of about 1951, illustrations by NC Wyeth. No sailor will put it down.

 

[Frank Langer]

Frank's list of sailing/maintenance books for sale, as requested

Hi,
A couple of you had requested a list of books I would like to sell--see previous posts in this thread. The following is a list of sailing related books that I want to sell, as I've run out of space on my bookshelves, and will inevitably buy or be given new ones.

This list has been shortened considerably as a bunch have already sold, but the remaining ones that are still available are:

Sailing: The Complete Practical Manual by Michel Deshors
Sail Like a Champion by Dennis Conner
The Racing Edge by Ted Turner & Gary Jobson
The New Book of Sail Trim by Textor
Stormproof your Boat by Burr
Desirable and Undesirable Characteristics of Offshore Yachts by John Rousmaniere
The Idiots Guide to Boating and Sailing by Frank Sargeant
Good Cruising by Aiken

With one exception, they are all in excellent condition (I take good care of books). Many are hard cover, but a few are paperback. I'm thinking $5.00 each for hard cover, $3.00 each for paperback, with a possible discount if you want all or a lot of them. I'm also open to other reasonable offers. I would ask that you pay postage by whatever means you would like them sent.

Juice has finalized his purchase, and then Bruce had indicated interest, and after that whoever responds first will have the next opportunity. I have found that while the internet is great for a quick question, having a book at hand with greater detail, sometimes pictures, advice and tips, can be a great help.

Let me know if you are interested--easiest is if you send me a quick email to: franklanger@live.ca

Frank

 

[alcodiesel]

Thank you. Added bonus: I love NC and Andrew Wyeth's work. Amazon here I come!

 

[frick]

Richard bode

First You Have to Row a Little Boat: Reflections on Life & Living Paperback – June 1, 1995
by Richard Bode (Author)