Ships and boats Books

Now available in paperback, this book traces the complete story of the Missouri from her keel-laying in 1941, her participation in the Japanese surrender in 1945, and her contribution to the Persian Gulf War. Through extensive interviews and research...

This is the definitive handbook for anyone designing, building, rigging or sailing gaff rigged craft. It provides a fascinating insight into the design, history, techniques and developments of a rig which has evolved through the centuries. John Leather...

In the tradition of Dava Sobel's ‘Longitude’ comes sailing expert David Barrie's compelling and dramatic tale of invention and discovery – an eloquent elegy to one of the most important navigational instruments ever created, and the daring mariners who...

In the tradition of The Perfect Storm and Into Thin Air, Rachel Slade’s Into the Raging Sea is a nail-biting account of the sinking of the container ship El Faro, the crew of thirty-three who perished onboard, and the destructive forces of globalisation...

The Shipwrecks of the Roaring 40s project was funded by the Australian Research Council to investigate some of the earliest and most important shipwrecks in Western Australia, including the four Dutch East Indiamen wrecked in the 17th and 18th centuries...

This is the story of Robert Holding, a young English adventurer who was only 23 when he was shipwrecked with 19 others on the Auckland Islands in the sub-Antarctic Ocean in 1864. A year later he was rescued, along with only two of his shipmates. The...

Experience 60 of the world's greatest adventures on water - from sailing the Nile by felucca and cruising the Canadian Arctic, to exploring Pitcairn Island by cargo ship. With detailed accounts of each route, beautiful photos and practical tips on how to...

Exploring the frozen Alaskan wilderness; spotting elephants and lions on a Botswana river safari; sailing through the mighty fjords in Scandinavia and New Zealand; island-hopping the Caribbean, rich in colonial plazas and white sand beaches. Cruising has...

An awe-inspiring deep-dive into the treasures found on the sea floor and what they reveal about our past.A shipwreck is a time capsule. When a maritime archaeologist picks up an item from the seabed, there is a direct connection with history...

Surprisingly, the remarkable story of the Scottish role in the discovery of the Northwest Passage a long desired trade route connecting the Atlantic and Pacific has not received a great deal of attention. This book charts the extensive contribution to...

How to select a boat, plan your project, finish the job, and actually head for the water.Over the past thirty to forty years boat builders, large and small, have produced tens of thousands of fiberglass boats. Many now sit abandoned, waiting for some...

Take the first steps to become certified to charter a boat anywhere in the world Imagine having the credentials to charter and skipper a boat in the Caribbean-or anywhere in the world. Grant Headifen and the experts at NauticEd have certified thousands...

The raw, alluring beauty of the pearl and the stories of those who collected it form a fascinating part of Australia's national heritage. The Aboriginal trade and cultural significance of the magnificent Pinctada pearl shell had been well established...

Australia's extensive coastline has a rich and diverse maritime history. In Search of Fish and Fortune celebrates the history of fishing and pearling as some of the first commercial trades established following European settlement on the western...

Before the advent of commercial transatlantic flights in the early 1950s, the only way to travel between continents was by sea. In the golden age of ocean liners, between the late nineteenth century and the Second World War, shipping companies ensured...

At Scapa Flow on 21 June 1919, there occurred an event unique in naval history. The German High Seas Fleet, one of the most formidable ever built was deliberately sent to the bottom of the sea at the British Grand Fleet's principal anchorage at Orkney by...

Suspended between sea and sky, battered by the waves and the wind, lighthouses mark the battlelines between the elements. They guard the boundaries between the solid human world and the primordial chaos of the waters; between stability and instability;...

People are drawn to the harbours and boats of Scotland whether they have a seafaring background or not. Why do boats take on different shapes as you follow the complex shorelines of islands and mainland? And why do the sails they carry appear to be so...

When the Clyde Ran Red paints a vivid picture of the heady days when revolution was in the air on Clydeside. Through the bitter strike at the huge Singer Sewing machine plant in Clydebank in 1911, Bloody Friday in Glasgow's George Square in 1919, the...

Vast Expanses is a cultural, environmental and geopolitical history that examines the relationship between humans and oceans, reaching back across geological and evolutionary time and exploring different cultures around the globe.Our ancient connections...

The nautical reference book you never knew you needed: a compendium of all superstitions maritime and marine. Learn your A-B-Seas of sailors' guiding magic and mythos - and why you should never stir your tea with a knife, lest you invite trouble and...

One of the United Kingdom's largest and last remaining Cargo Liner and Tramp Ship operators surviving into the 21st century despite the advent of the containership which has swept most traditional American and British shipping companies from the world's...

An illustrated sailing guide for beginner and expert alike--newly updated! The Complete Guide to Sailing& Seamanship is the perfect blend of captivating sea stories and essential, basic instructional methods for anyone yearning to sail. Topics...

An excellent manual for embarking on a wooden boat restoration project.The Big Book of Wooden Boat Restoration is the perfect introduction or reference guide for both novice and experienced wooden boat enthusiasts. Author Thomas Larsson, one of Sweden's...

The Edmund Fitzgerald, a colossal ore carrier, had been fighting her way through a pounding November storm on Lake Superior. Then the Fitz's radar went out, and she started to take on water. Despite gale-force winds and thirty-foot seas, there was no...

In March 2008 the Australian light cruiser HMAS Sydney II and its adversary the disguised German raider HSK Kormoran were found. In the following May a Commission of Inquiry sat for a total of 36 days and after hearing evidence from across Australia a...