Nautical Fiction - Exodus Books

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Nautical fiction is about as close to sailing the high seas as you can get these days. If that sounds a little depressing, remember that real sailors had to contend with all manner of disease, loneliness, bugs, pirates (who were not fun and not glamorous), shipwrecks, storms, mutiny, madness, poor (or non-existent) sanitation, frequent injury....basically, really bad stuff was lurking behind every coil of rope or powder keg, sometimes in them.

From that perspective, living vicariously through Horatio Hornblower, Jack Aubrey, Fletcher Christian, Ishmael, and Nathaniel Bowditch seems like a pretty great alternative. The fact that many of those characters were the inventions of seafaring men who knew what it was like out there on the blue and harsh ocean simply makes these stories all the more believable and fascinating.

It's usually not a good idea for writers to clutter their fiction with jargon—it can distract us from the narrative, frustrate us because we don't know exactly what's going on, or slow us down because we have to look up every other word. Stories about sailors, ships and the sea, however, need the technical terminology to help establish the authentic atmosphere, and in most cases it does exactly that whether you know the terms or not.

These are some of our favorite books at Exodus. Sailing maintains a romantic appeal that steamships and automated consoles have failed to render obsolete, and these writers give us exactly the elements we want: the danger, the fear, the glory. If you've got enough imagination to imagine running away and serving as cabin boy aboard a man o' war, you've got enough to imagine similar adventures on these pages.

Some of the best writers of all time wrote sea stories. Rudyard Kipling, Robert Louis Stevenson, Joseph Conrad, Herman Melville—men whose love of words enabled them to transcribe their love of the water for generations to come. As long as they're read, the creaking of masts and the crack of sails will remind us of the days before man believed he'd mastered the sea, when the sea clearly still mastered him.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he's a husband and father who loves church, good food, and weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur. Read more of his reviews here.

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	20,000 Leagues Under the Sea Windermere Readers #19 by Jules Verne, translated by Philip Schuyler Allen with a frontispiece by Milo Winter 1956 printing from Rand McNally for 10th-Adult in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC) $8.00 (2 in stock)
	Admiral Hornblower in the West Indies Hornblower Series #11 by C. S. Forester from Little, Brown & Company Nautical fiction for 8th-Adult in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $16.14 $8.00 (1 in stock)
	Admiral Hornblower in the West Indies Hornblower Series #11 by C. S. Forester from Little, Brown & Company for 9th-Adult in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC) $11.20 (1 in stock)
	All Sail Set by Armstrong Sperry from David R. Godine Nautical Fiction for 4th-8th grade 1936 Newbery Honor Book in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $12.71 $8.00 (1 in stock)
	Beat to Quarters Hornblower Series #6 by C. S. Forester from Little, Brown & Company Nautical fiction for 10th-Adult in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $16.14 $7.20 (1 in stock)
	Billy Budd and Other Tales Signet Classics by Herman Melville from Signet Classics Realistic Nautical Fiction for 10th-Adult in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19) $4.21 $2.40 (1 in stock)
	Billy Budd, Sailor, and Other Stories by Herman Melville from Bantam Books Realistic Nautical Fiction for 10th-Adult in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19) $4.21 $2.00 (1 in stock)
	Blackthorn Winter Monroe Family Chronicles #1 by Doug Wilson from Veritas Press Nautical fiction for 4th-6th grade in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $15.00 $8.00 (1 in stock)
	Blackthorn Winter Veritas Maritime Series #1 by Doug Wilson from Veritas Press Nautical fiction for 4th-6th grade in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $8.00 (1 in stock)
	Caine Mutiny by Herman Wouk from Doubleday & Company for 10th-Adult in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC) $9.60 (1 in stock)
	Caine Mutiny by Herman Wouk, illustrated by John Thompson from Reader's Digest for 10th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $12.00 (1 in stock)
	Carry On, Mr. Bowditch by Jean Lee Latham, illustrated by John O'Hara Cosgrave II from Houghton Mifflin Biography for 5th-9th grade 1956 Newbery Medal winner in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC) $16.00 (1 in stock)
	Commodore Hornblower Hornblower Series #9 by C. S. Forester from Little, Brown & Company Nautical fiction for 10th-Adult in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $16.14 $7.20 (1 in stock)
	Curse of Carne's Hold by G. A. Henty from Robinson Curriculum for 6th-10th grade in G. A. Henty Books (Location: FIC-HEN) $6.40 (1 in stock)
	Dark Frigate by Charles Boardman Hawes, illustrated by Warrenn Chappell from Little, Brown & Company for 5th-8th grade in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC) $12.00 (1 in stock)
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	Far Side of the World Aubrey/Maturin #10 by Patrick O'Brian from W. W. Norton and Co. Nautical Fiction for 9th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $13.95 $7.50 (1 in stock)
	Far Side of the World Aubrey/Maturin #10 by Patrick O'Brian from W. W. Norton and Co. Nautical Fiction for 9th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $8.00 (2 in stock)
	Flying Colours Hornblower Series #8 by C. S. Forester from Little, Brown & Company Nautical fiction for 10th-Adult in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $14.44 $8.00 (2 in stock)
	Fortune of War Aubrey/Maturin #6 by Patrick O'Brian from W. W. Norton and Co. Nautical Fiction for 9th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $14.95 $6.50 (1 in stock)
	Golden Ocean by Patrick O'Brian from W. W. Norton and Co. Nautical Fiction for 9th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $25.99 $7.50 (1 in stock)
	Gracie the Lighthouse Cat by Ruth Brown from Andersen Press for Preschool-2nd grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE) $4.80 (1 in stock)
	H. M. S. Surprise Aubrey/Maturin #3 by Patrick O'Brian from W. W. Norton and Co. for 9th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $7.50 (1 in stock)
	Hundred Days Aubrey/Maturin #19 by Patrick O'Brian from W. W. Norton and Co. Nautical Fiction for 9th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $7.50 (1 in stock)
	Innocent Voyage or A High Wind in Jamaica by Richard Hughes, illustrated by Lynd Ward from Heritage Press for 4th-7th grade in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC) $7.00 (2 in stock)
	Ionian Mission Aubrey/Maturin #8 by Patrick O'Brian from W. W. Norton and Co. Nautical Fiction for 9th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $14.95 $7.50 (1 in stock)
	Jack Nastyface Memoirs of an English Seaman by William Robinson from US Naval Institute Press for 10th-Adult in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19) $5.60 (1 in stock)
	Jack Plank Tells Tales by Natalie Babbitt First Edition (first thus) from MDC Books for 4th-6th grade in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $8.00 (1 in stock)
	Lord Hornblower Hornblower Series #10 by C. S. Forester from Little, Brown & Company Nautical fiction for 10th-Adult in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $16.14 $7.20 (2 in stock)
	Lord Hornblower by C. S. Forester from Little, Brown & Company for 8th-Adult in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC) $9.60 (1 in stock)
	Men Against the Sea by Charles Nordhoff & James Norman Hall from Little, Brown & Company Nautical Fiction for 9th-Adult in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20) $21.99 $11.00 (1 in stock)
	Midshipman Bolitho by Alexander Kent from McBooks Press for 8th-Adult in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $3.20 (1 in stock)
	Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym by Edgar Allan Poe, illustrated by Rene Clarke from Heritage Press for 10th-Adult in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC) $8.00 (1 in stock)
	S.O.S by K. Norel First English from Paideia Press for 4th-6th grade in Clearance: Fiction (Location: ZCLE-FIC) $4.00 (1 in stock)
	Salty Sails North by Gloria Rand, illustrated by Ted Rand from Henry Holt and Company for Preschool- 3rd Grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE) $3.20 (1 in stock)
	Scanlon of the Sub Service A Doubleday Signal Book by Dan Senseney, illustrated by Ray Johnson from Doubleday & Company for 4th-8th grade in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC) $4.80 (1 in stock)
	Smugglers by Iain Lawrence from Yearling for 4th-6th grade in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $3.20 (1 in stock)
	Squalls Before War His Majesty's Schooner Sultana by Ned Bustard from Veritas Press Nautical Fiction for 7th-10th grade in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $15.00 $8.00 (2 in stock)
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	Swallows and Amazons for Ever! containing abridged editions of Coot Club and The Big Six by Arthur Ransome from Red Fox Family stories/boating for 7th-9th grade in Clearance: Fiction (Location: ZCLE-FIC) $3.00 (1 in stock)
	The Hurricane by Charles Nordhoff & James Norman Hall from Little, Brown & Company for 8th-Adult in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC) $4.00 (1 in stock)
	Treasure Island Scribner Illustrated Classics by Robert Louis Stevenson, illustrated by N.C. Wyeth Deluxe from Atheneum for 5th-9th grade in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $14.40 (1 in stock)
	Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson, illustrated by John Lawrence from Candlewick Press Action/Adventure for 5th-9th grade in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $9.60 (1 in stock)
	Treasure Island Macmillan Classics by Robert Louis Stevenson, illustrated by John Falter from Macmillan for 4th-8th grade in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC) $8.00 (1 in stock)
	Treasure Island Usborne Illustrated Originals by Robert Louis Stevenson, illustrated by Fran Parreno from Usborne Action/Adventure for 5th-9th grade in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $7.50 (1 in stock)
	True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle by Avi from HarperTrophy for 4th-6th grade in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $3.20 (1 in stock)
	Voyage of the Frog by Gary Paulsen Revised from Yearling for 7th-9th grade in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $1.20 (1 in stock)
	Walk Across the Sea by Susan Fletcher Reprint from Atheneum for 4th-6th grade in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $2.40 (1 in stock)
	Wanderer by Sharon Creech 1^st edition from HarperCollins for 4th-6th grade in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $6.40 (1 in stock)
	Why Read Moby-Dick? by Nathaniel Philbrick Reprint from Penguin Press for 11th-Adult in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19) $6.40 (1 in stock)
	Wretched Stone by Chris Van Allsburg First Edition from Houghton Mifflin for Preschool- 3rd Grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE) $7.20 (2 in stock)

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