Recommended Reading

I read Adventures in Solitude a couple of months ago and enjoyed it a lot. I have spent lots of time in the area and it's great to hear about the people you've seen or places you've been to.

I also recommend both of the Jim Spilsbury books, especially if you know the coast. A real persons insight to how the coast and airlines developed last century.
 
I just re-read "Two Years Before the Mast." Great adventure story of sailing around the Horn and then up an down the California coast.

Ron
 
Some months ago we hosted two librarians who were here to attend a conference in Seattle. Today I got from them a signed copy of Maira Kalman's book "Fireboat, the Heroic Adventures of the John J. Harvey". A wonderful book by a great author and illustrator. Check it out, especially if you have young children or grandchildren.
 
Plastiki - by David de Rothschild is an interesting story about a 60' catamaran that sailed across the Pacific - 8000nm. It was built with 12,500 plastic bottles glued together with an adhesive made from sugar and cashew nuts!

One of the crew was Olav Heyerdahl - the grandson of Thor(The Kon - Tiki Expedition).

Lots of pictures easy to read - and it might shock you!

Regards, Rob
 
If you haven't read Karl Marlantes Matterhorn, it's a vivid read about what the Marine infantry went through up near the DMZ. I thank my lucky stars that I didn't have to endure what they did.

It's not a read for everyone due to language and violence, but it's pretty descriptive of what went on from the perspective of a young platoon commander.

Marlantes is a native son of Astoria, and is also a recipient of the Navy Cross, our nation's second highest military honor. He has another book titled "What It's Like to Go to War".
 
"Ship of Gold" is the story of the loss of a ship hauling gold from the 1849ers to the Washington treasury. The second part of the book is the modern day locating and rush to salvage the treasure. You will be sitting on the edge of your seat from page one.
 
The best sea stories I've read for both adventure, history and sail are the Horatio Hornblower series by C S Forester. Horatio Hornblower is a fictional Napoleonic Wars era Royal Navy officer who is the protagonist of a series of novels by C. S. Forester. There is a series of book which take Hornblower from midshipman, through the War and on to the end of his career. Lower keyed than Patrick O'Brian series, but (opinion) more factual.

Ernest Hemingway is quoted as saying, "I recommend Forester to everyone literate I know," and Winston Churchill stated, "I find Hornblower admirable. Can you ask for better recommendations?

In addition C. S. Forester has written books about the British Navy in WW II that are worth reading. " Hunting the Bismarck ", WW II and "The Captain from Connecticut", war of 1812 are 2 good ones.

Another set of books are those of Eric Hiscock, who started cruising sailboats before WW II and continuing after "The War" producing an admirable set of books describing his and Susan (wife) trips around the world, giving (opinionated) cruising advice and comments. Somewhat dated, but classics. "Cruising Under Sail" and "Around the World in Wanderer III" are classics. I find it fascinating to read how, if one wanted a new boat, you just went to a Navel Architect, has a set of plans drawn up and popped off to a local yard to have the boat hammered together. No boat out of a mold then.

And "Two Years Before the Mast" has been mentioned above, but let me stress that every California boater, power or sail, should read this book to learn and appreciate what California was like in 1830 before Americans took over. Especially San Diego and Yerba Buena. Santa Barbara and Dana Point are treasured incidents in his book.

Boris
 
Lots of great books already contributed. I'd like to add "Hard on the Wind" by Russ Hofvendahl to the list. It's a true story about commercial cod fishing under sail on the Bering sea circa 1937. I read it about the same time I got my first boat and have never forgotten it.
 
One of my all time favorites is Shantyboat, written by Harlan Hubbard. True story of him and his wife, building a shantyboat, "houseboat", out of salvaged timbers from demolished buildings. They started their building process in the Cincinnati oh area during 1944. Only means of propulsion was river current. They set sail in 1946 and landed in new Orleans in 1950. Wonderful journey and just could be what boating is all about.
 
OK....here goes...

1. Desert Solitaire - Edward Abbey
2. Lonesome Dove – Larry McMurtry
3. Arabian Sands - Wilfred Thesiger
4. Undaunted Courage - Stepen Ambrose
5. American Caesar - William Manchester
6. My Old Man And The Sea – David and Daniel Hays
7. Charlie Wilson’s War – George Krile
8. Lindbergh – A. Scott Berg
9. Sailing Back in Time – Maria Coffey and Dag Goering
10. Counting Coup – Larry Colton
11. Snow Falling on Cedars – David Guterson
12. Voluntary Simplicity – Duane Elgin
 
I highly recommend a new book that I think is a great read. "The Boys In The Boat, Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics."

The crew is from the University of Washington, and the story gives a wonderful history of the members of the grew, the boat builder, Pocock, and the coaches.

Robbi
 
I gabbed a meaty book to read on the flight last week titled "Sea of Grey". It was about, as it said on the cover, "the around the world odyssey of the confederate raider Shenandoah"

It was an interesting read about the CSS Shenandoah that was sent to the Bering sea to raid New England whaleing ships. It took them a while to figure out the war was over and got in a bit of a spot with piracy laws. Who had thunk it, confed ships in the bering sea.
 
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