Sail Wisely: The Best Books About Boats
Sailing must be one of the most exciting and challenging experiences in existence: the captain must face the dangers of the wind and the sea, often not knowing how he or she will reach port. However, embarking on a sea voyage, whether alone or with others, is something every adventurer should try at least once in their life. Would you dare?
If the answer is a resounding "yes", get ready! Because In this article we are going to help you unravel the mysteries of navigation Through one of its most fundamental elements: the ships specifically designed to navigate those waterways. If you're looking to set sail, we warmly welcome you to our selection of the best books about ships.
The best books about ships
Where (1991), by Robin Lee Graham
This is Robin Lee Graham's biography, but don't be confused: This is not just any life story, but one of the most legendary adventures in maritime literatureIn 1965, at the age of sixteen, the author embarked on a seven-meter sloop located in the Californian town of San Pablo with the aim of fulfilling his great dream of sailing around the world.
Five years later, after traveling 33.000 nautical miles across all the oceans, experiencing adventures in Africa, the Atlantic, the Panama Canal, the Galapagos, and other places, he returned home with a wife he had met in Fiji and with whom he had a daughter. Despite the wonders, The writer also faced unimaginable dangers that Only those who read the pages of your book will be able to discover it.
Robin Lee Graham Quotes
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"Happiness has no boundaries. It's a state of mind, not a possession, not a set route through life, not a goal to be achieved, but something that creeps in gently like evening mist or morning sunlight, something beyond our control."
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“No one can be completely safe from life’s setbacks. If something were to happen to Lee—and it would be the end of me if it did—I would still feel like I did the right thing for him. Success or failure, he is fulfilling his destiny. We all have only one life; some are short and some are long. He loves life and wants more than to follow convention for fear of what others think, or to be just another face in the crowd following the herd.”
The Kon-Tiki Expedition (2024), by Thor Heyerdahl
The curious and evocative name of the author of this book is a taste of what lies within. Thor Heyerdahl is not only an ethnologist and an inveterate explorer, but also a nimble writer with great descriptive skills and a well-developed sense of humor. These characteristics make his trip feel relatable and entertaining, even though everything could go wrong.
However, this is not the case. The author was certain that the predecessors of the Incas and the ancient inhabitants of certain regions of Polynesia They worshipped a single sun god called Kon-Tiki. This led him to assume that the first settlers of the Pacific islands were Americans from pre-Hispanic times.
To test his hypothesis, he ordered a raft to be prepared that faithfully represented that of the ancients, summoned several comrades, and set off for their destination. The author and his crew followed the chosen path, and, to their torment, brought it to a successful conclusion., demonstrating that, sometimes, reality not only resembles fantasy, but is capable of surpassing it.
Quotes by Thor Heyerdahl
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"Some believe in destiny, others don't. I do, and I don't. Sometimes it can seem as if invisible fingers are pulling us like puppets on strings. But we were certainly not born to be dragged along. We can take the reins ourselves and adjust our course at every crossroads, or throw ourselves down any small path into the unknown."
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"Dissent and controversy are what drive science. Agreement and acceptance rarely stimulate experimentation and progress."
Two years at the foot of the mast (2017), by Richard Henry Dana Jr.
This book is a pioneer in many ways., among them, the fact that it shows a protagonist of noble birth, cultured and sensitive, in a wild environment where he must access his most primitive condition to survive the dangers that surround him. The plot begins in 1834, when Richard Henry Dana, a Harvard student and son of a prestigious lawyer, left Boston with the crew of the merchant ship Pilgrim.
Being a common sailor, he quickly learned from the others. Together, they headed for California via the Cape Horn route. It was precisely upon his return that he wrote this volume with the aim of revealing what life at sea is like, both its light and its shadow. The truth is that Its publication brought about a paradigm shift regarding the conflict of displacement and its derivatives.
Quotes by Richard Henry Dana Jr.
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"However, the life of a sailor, at its best, is a mixture of some good with much bad, and some pleasure with much pain. The beautiful is linked with the disgusting, the sublime with the commonplace, and the solemn with the ridiculous."
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"There is a magic in the sea, in its songs and stories, and in the mere sight of a ship and a sailor's clothing, especially to a young mind, who has done more to man navies and fill merchant vessels than all the recruiting parties of Europe."
Sailing solo around the world (1989), by Joshua Slocum
This title is a classic from any angle., and no wonder, since only a merchant seaman could have dreamed up a voyage like the one Joshua Slocum undertook on April 24, 1895, especially considering that he was in the midst of the transition from the great clippers to the arrival of steam. But, without hesitation, the author crossed 46.000 miles on his great sailing ship.
The hulk was a 37-foot yawl-rigged sailing vessel completely rebuilt by himself. slocumWho He became a role model for all the teachers who came after him.Everyone has envied, to a greater or lesser extent, the qualities of the vessel and its countless attributes in maintaining balance with just its sails.
Quotes by Joshua Slocum
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"I had already discovered that it was not good to be alone, so I sought companionship in my surroundings, sometimes in the universe and sometimes in my own insignificant self; but my books were always my friends, no matter how much everything else failed."
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"I grabbed the side of the boat and held on as he rolled over onto his stomach, because I suddenly remembered I couldn't swim."
Hey, Petrel (1989), by Julio Villar
Here's a title very different from all the others on this list. At its core, The volume is more of a prose poem than a novel or a biography, and its author, a bohemian by nature, shows him leaning toward a more improvised and beautiful type of narrative, with the characteristics of a travel diary, but without the rigor of time, space, or reality. To a certain extent, these are the impressions of a child.
The author himself states that his journey is "of a simplicity and purity that only many, many years ago, when I was a child, I was able to feel." In the work there are references to Walt Whitman, about whom the writer makes brief digressions. The story, on the other hand, is set from the time he left Barcelona in 1968 until he arrived at the port of Lekeitio in the summer of 1972.
Quotes by Julio Villar
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"...I carry very few things, and as I walk, nothing has changed, or almost nothing. I like it this way. Otherwise, I wouldn't take a single step..."
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"On my journey, I have not visited great cities, nor even prosperous towns; I have not climbed high or difficult mountains, nor have I entered famous castles or museums. I have traced my route over the harsh, modest, and ungrateful earth... with the simplicity of an animal that wanders here and there, without any preconceived intention."
Through the South Seas with Jack London (2016), by Martin Johnson
The protagonist of this work is a ship whose name is inspired by The Hunt for the Snark, a poem by Lewis CarrollExtraordinary things happen on this 44-foot ketch, sparking controversy left and right across the United States. In the volume, a very young Martin Johnson unexpectedly manages to enlist as a cook on the crew of the Snark, which sailed to San Francisco Bay on April 23, 1907.
For more than two years, the vessel sailed the South SeasHowever, the voyage ended permanently when Jack London had to make port and be admitted to Sydney Hospital to recover from an illness. Even so, the adventures experienced by the crew were enigmatic and unparalleled enough to remain in the annals of literature.
Jack London Quotes
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"You can't wait for inspiration to strike. You have to chase it with a club."
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"I would rather be a superb meteor, with every atom of my being in magnificent radiance, than a sleepy, permanent planet."
