The best nautical novels transporting the reader into the lives of seafarers, their adventures and the dangers of the sea

Although this is a novel about a warship and the convoys, the Artic Convoys to North Russia were very real. Winston Churchill said the artic convoy mission was, "The most dangerous journey in the world." I personally sailed with men who had sailed in these convoys taking food, fuel, and weapons to Russia. I sailed with seamen whose ships had been torpedoed by U-Boats, some men had been torpedoed more than once.

I was only 3 years old when the war ended but I have sailed to the Artic and to Vladivostok in the North Pacific, and I have worked on deep sea trawlers fishing off the north coast of Iceland and I can tell you that working at sea, even in peacetime, can be a very dangerous occupation. In wartime life at sea must have been terrifying at times. Now in the comfort of my central-heated house, I pay tribute to the men and women who go down to the sea in ships.

I’ve read all of Ernest Hemingway’s books and although it is many years ago since I read The Old Man of the Sea (when I was a young man of the sea). One man alone in a boat on the wide ocean appeals to me as I have been in that situation myself on several occasions. My boat, a 28-foot motor/sailer, berthed in Fleetwood was my refuge from a troubled world. As a fire officer, I may have been involved with a motorway pile-up, cutting casualties out of wrecked vehicles, or a tragic house fire or simply dealing with bolshie firemen on my station. I would go to my boat, wait for the tide, sail out of the harbour alone, clear the shipping channels, drop the sails, make myself a coffee, sit outside on the deck, and unwind in the solitude of the sea.

Treasure Island is my favourite childhood story. I used to dream of finding hidden treasure on some distant tropical island. My mother would wax lyrical about the Isle of Man, she had many holidays there in the 1920s and 1930s. She called it her ‘treasure island’ and told me about its clear harbour water and golden sands. Well, for those who don’t know, the IOM is a small island in the middle of the cold Irish Sea. Talk about a disappointment when I visited the island. It was freezing cold, wet, dismal, and its capital city Douglas was in the advanced stages of decline—a long way from Stevenson’s version of the Hispaniola and pirates of the Spanish Main. However, I still enjoy reading about Black Dog, Billy Bones, Dr. Livesey, Long John Silver, and the cabin boy Jim Hawkins and at the age of 79 I can still dream of digging up Pieces of Eight and Gold Doubloons.

On his way into exile on Elba in HMS Undaunted, Napoleon Bonaparte, remarked on the conduct of British sailors, how silently and efficiently they went about their duties. It is true that discipline on British warships was strict, and punishment for offenders was harsh from flogging to hanging. However, contrary to some opinions, British seamen on the whole were happy with their lot. They were well-fed and were fairly treated. The maxim ‘train hard fight easy’ was prevalent with British sailors, this novelette undoubtedly reflects this attitude.

The Billy Budd story, set aboard HMS Bellipotent, is a microcosm of life in general; Duty, Patriotism, Envy, Camaraderie, Conspiracy, Jealousy, Justice, and Punishment. I have faced a similar dilemma that faced Captain Vere myself, although not a life and death decision, but having the choice of turning a blind eye to an offence against the Discipline Regulations or prosecuting the offender resulting in his dismissal from the Fire Service.

You do not have to be a lover of seafaring novels to enjoy Dana’s memoir and his vivid descriptions of people and places. Two Years Before the Mast is a masterpiece of writing. As an Englishman, I have always enjoyed reading American prose; Steinbeck, Hemingway, Melville, they seem to write clearly and to the point without the long-windedness of some authors. 

How times have changed since the days when Dana was a seaman, (even when I was at sea in the 1950s 60s, and 70s) to today’s conditions for seafarers. My nephew who is a chief engineer with BP has the same amount of leave as the time he spends at sea, (4 months max) with the internet, skyping, and Netflix. He is highly paid and flown home first class. My contract was for 12 months, no leisure facilities on the ship, a letter now and then, and a train ticket and a ferry journey home.