THE MASTER MARINER

by Nicholas Monsarrat ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 20, 1979

A mammoth saga--but only the first half of a projected epic that will encompass a history of the English maritime spirit from 1588 to the present. That spirit is focused in or observed by Matthew Lawe, a mythical master mariner condemned to sail in the face of the waters till Judgment Day. So, half Wandering Jew and half Flying Dutchman (though far more sexually adventurous than either), Lawe sails through the centuries--starting as boatswain to Sir Francis Drake, in the book's richest episode. (It is because of Lawe's cowardice while commanding a fireship against the Spanish fleet that he is cursed to plow the sea forever.) We next meet him 22 years later, but he's still the same age--now sailing for the Northwest Passage with Henry Hudson, whose men are ripe for mutiny. Then on to: sailing the Caribbean with Morgan the pirate; spending some years in London with Samuel Pepys the Admiralty Clerk; fishing off the Grand Banks; sailing off to Hawaii with the doomed Captain James Cook; and, lastly, fighting alongside tragic Nelson at the fatal victory of Trafalgar. As history progresses, Monsarrat tries to shift style, approximating the literary idiom of each period--with uneven results. Still, the author of The Cruel Sea knows what landlubbers like to read when dreaming of voyages, and here he furnishes lots of it in great rolling waves.

Pub Date: March 20, 1979

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Morrow

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 1979

Categories: FICTION