Pamela: The Story of a Shipwrecked Sailor by Gabriel García
Márquez
In 1955 a destroyer left Alabama (USA) heading for Cartagena
(Columbia). During a storm 8 sailors were washed overboard. Only 1 survived by floating
on a small raft, but without food and water, and eventually swimming 2 km to
shore. It was an amazing story of survival, but clouded in controversy
regarding the purpose of the ship’s journey, and whether there really was a
storm.
Judy De La: Odessa Sea by Clive Cussler
While looking for the wreck of a lost Ottoman Empire ship,
Dirk Pitt finds himself in many other emergencies and incidents and dangerous
situations.
Described by Judy as a good adventure story, a typical Clive
Cussler book.
Jo: The Scavengers by Bill Knox (Webb Carrick Murder
Mystery)
When the body of a missing diver is found caught up in
fishing nets, The Scottish Coast Guard is called in. Complications occur when
his death is linked to the local nuclear power station.
A good story, in fact Jo has read the whole series!
Claurene: Sharks, the Sea and Me by Rodney Fox
This was a terrific book. In the summer of 1963, Rodney Fox
survived a brutal shark attack off the coast of South Australia. He was not
expected to live.
He returned to the sea making a living as an abalone
fisherman, he built the first shark cage, and became involved in films
including Jaws.
Claurene really enjoyed the book, there were so many
stories!
Connie: Moby Dick by Herman Melville
Connie read a modern edition of the story as she hadn’t read
it before.
Written in 1851, it is the story of Ahab, who is now captain
of the whaling ship Pequod. He is seeking revenge on the giant white sperm
whale named Moby Dick, that on a previous voyage had bitten his leg off. There are
storms, fights and plenty of exciting adventures.
Joan: The Catalpa Rescue by Peter FitzSimmons
Joan described this as a fabulous and true story of a daring
plan, in 1869, to free six Irish political prisoners from the Fremantle Prison
in Western Australia. It not only told of the escape of the prisoners on a boat
disguised as a whaler, but included much information about Irish struggles and
the back stories of those involved in the rescue. A great story, Joan loved the
topic.
Judy J: The Batavia by Peter FitzSimmons
The Batavia was the flag ship of the Dutch East Indies
Company built to trade in the very lucrative spice trade. In 1629 on its maiden
voyage it ran aground on a reef off the coast of Western Australia.
While the captain and a number of crew set out in the longboat
seeking help, the survivors were left on nearby islands with no enough supplies
for all of them survive. A reign of terror began, murder, rape, mayhem and
mutiny, and mixed in with incredible tales of survival and bravery.
He is a great story teller!
Val I: Lands Beyond the Sea by Tamara McKinley (Ocean
Trilogy #1)
The book tells the story of of the early days of the first
settlement. Those who survived the dreadful conditions on the boats were then
faced with the harsh reality and rough conditions of life in the colonies. Val
found it spell-binding and couldn’t put it down. The descriptions of the
development of Parramatta and the Hawkesbury were of particular interest.
Colleen: Titanic
On April 14th 1912, after 4 days at sea, the
Titanic sank having hit an iceberg drifting in the south Atlantic. There were
lifeboats for less than half the passengers and crew, and no ship responded to
their distress signals. Eventually at 7am the next morning the first rescue
boats arrived. 705 people survived, while 1523 were lost making it the greatest
maritime disaster.
Pat B: Under Full Sail by Rob Mundle
This book tells the story of how the majestic clipper ships
shaped Australia by bringing thousands of migrants to our shores. Pat described
these stories as fascinating, quirky and very interesting.
Judy A: In the Kingdom of the Ice by Hampton Sides
At the end of the 18th century, people were
obsessed with getting to the North Pole. Some believed there could be a passage
through the Pacific and into the Barring Straits. A journey was financed by the
wealthy owner of the New York Herald. Two years into the voyage the ship was trapped
in ice and eventually sank. The men found themselves a thousand miles north of
Siberia with only the barest supplies
Judy described it as a really engrossing read.
Charis: Master and Commander by Patrick O’Brien (20
novels in the Aubrey-Maturin series)
Jack Aubrey takes control of a ship as the new master. He not
only has to deal with the battles in the Napoleonic Wars but his relationship
with others on board.
Claris enjoyed the great descriptions of life on board; it was
an engaging book but the detail was overwhelming at times.
Wendy also read it, loved it and couldn’t put
it down. She thought the characters were very well drawn. “Jane Austen on a
warship.”
She also read The Secret Life of James Cook by Graham Ley. This
she found very dry in comparison.
Diann: Captain Courageous by Rudyard Kipling
Published in 1897, it is the story of a
spoilt young boy, who having been kicked out of school is taken to America by
his father. When he falls overboard and is picked up by the crew of a fishing
boat, his many adventures teach him what life is really about.
Diann thought it a good mentor story
for young people.
Pat: Hell Ship by Michael Veitch
The author is the great-great-grandson of the surgeon on the
Ticonderoga, a clipper ship which sailed for Australia from Liverpool in 1852.
The conditions on board were hellish, with poor ventilation and overcrowding.
By the time the ship reached Port Philip, a quarter of the
passengers were dead, many more were ill and the ship was placed in quarantine
because a deadly typhus had broken out.
Pat described it as interesting, but not a good read.
Val: Treasure Island by Robert L Stevenson
The book evolved from a treasure map the author had drawn for
his son. It has all the ingredients of a good book for boys: a boy hero,
pirates, and one incident after another.
She thoroughly enjoyed it.
Tam: The Jason Voyage by Tim Severin
According to Greek mythology, in the 13th century
Jason and his Argonauts set out to find the golden fleece.
In 1985 the author and a specially picked crew set out to
row the route and prove that it was possible to do it. While it wasn’t an easy
read, following the map was very good and interesting.
Bev: The Devil Flotilla by Edwyn Gray (Nick Hamilton series
#2)
During World War 2, the submarine captain is chosen to take
on a very dangerous rescue of allied soldiers from the beaches.
He continues on many more of these missions with great
success.
Lesley: Adrift: A True Story of Love, Loss and Survival
at Sea by Tami Oldham Ashcraft
A young couple are sailing a luxury yacht from Tahiti to San
Diego. Two weeks into the voyage they are unable to avoid a huge hurricane.
When it finally passes, the woman finds herself alone on the boat and in a
terrible circumstance. It takes her 41 days to sail back to Hawaii, alone on
the boat and with no motor or mast.
The inner strength she showed was quite remarkable. A true
story!
Rosemary: Bailey Boat Cat
Bailey lives on board a yacht and observes how humans do
what they should do on board. Very amusing.
Kris: A Voyage for Madmen by Peter Nichols
In 1968, nine sailors set off in a race to single-handedly
circumnavigate the globe, non-stop. This had never been done before.
Ten months later, only one man would cross the finish line
and find fame and fortune.
For the others, it was death, madness and failure.
Kris described the book as riveting: the characters were so
interesting, a combination of braveness and madness. But they all had one thing
in common, the need to win. It was a great read!
Julia: Robinson Crusoe by Daniel DeFoe
It was an amazing story, especially when you remember that
is a true story and the characters are real.
DECEMBER ~ The best book you've read this year (but not from Book Club)
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