Newsgroups: rec.boats,rec.answers,news.answers Path: bloom-beacon.mit.edu!nic.hookup.net!swrinde!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!brunix!jfh From: jfh@cs.brown.edu (John F. Hughes) Subject: rec.boats Frequently Asked Questions (Part 4 of 4) Message-ID: Followup-To: rec.boats Originator: jfh@euclid Sender: news@cs.brown.edu Reply-To: jfh@cs.brown.edu (John F. Hughes) Organization: Brown University References: Date: Thu, 20 Jan 1994 21:24:49 GMT Approved: news-answers-request@MIT.EDU Expires: Fri, 20 May 1994 04:00:00 GMT Lines: 628 Xref: bloom-beacon.mit.edu rec.boats:19231 rec.answers:3811 news.answers:14367 Posted-By: auto-faq 2.4 Archive-name: boats-faq/part4 square-rigged sail by an Australian shipmaster. (sm). MASTER OF THE MOVING SEA, Gladys Gowlland, The memoirs of Peter Mathieson, ship captain, compiled by his daughter-in-law. (sm). DOVE, Robin Lee Graham, Graham set off at the age of 16 to sail around the world alone in a 24 foot Ranger sloop. He returned several years later as a young married man in a Luders 33. He and his wife then dropped out, built a lean-to in the mountains somewhere and raised a son named Quimby (no kidding). His story was also chronicled in a series of National Geographic articles in the late 60's that fueled a good many of my youthful fantasies.(wms). THE SEA GETS BLUER, Peter Heaton, 1965 A good survey of cruising and circumnavigation literature. CRUISING UNDER SAIL, Eric Hiscock, (3rd edition, including ``Voyaging Under Sail''). Still the ``Bible'' even though it is now dated. This book has more useful information on every possible aspect of cruising and voyaging than any other source. It could also come under several other categories in this listing as it covers everything from basic boat design to celestial navigation. A book I wouldn't sail without. AT ONE WITH THE SEA, Naomi James, 1978 A young woman single-handing a rather large boat while her husband skippered in the Whitbread. Naomi James was the first woman to sail single-handed around the world via Cape Horn. The voyage began from Dartmouth in September 1977, and ended in June 1978 (after 272 days). Her book of the voyage is ``At One with the Sea'', published in NZ by Hutchison (ISBN 0 09 138440 0). The book is a damn good read. I strongly recommend it. NO PARTICULAR TITLE, Tristan Jones, All his books are good. ONE HAND FOR YOURSELF, ONE FOR THE SHIP, Tristan Jones, The best book on singlehanding. Jones is opinionated and eccentric to say the least, and old fashioned as well. He is a sailor of vast experience, however, and has many good ideas. TITLE UNKNOWN, Robin Knox-Johnson. NO PARTICULAR TITLE, Larry and Lin Pardey, All of their books are pretty informative. ALL IN THE SAME BOAT AND STILL IN THE SAME BOAT, Paul Howard Fiona McCall, late 80's Excellent story of family of four circumnavigating in a 30' steel junk-rigged boat. SHACKELTON'S BOAT JOURNEY, E.F. Middleton, The most remarkable small-boat journey you'll ever read about. Understated writing style emphasizes the enormity of the trip. THE LAST GRAIN RACE, Eric Newby, Story of a Cape Horn passage aboard the giant four-masted barque Moshulu in 1938. Recently reprinted by International Marine.(sm). ONE WATCH AT A TIME, Skip Novack, Novack was the skipper of Drum during the 1986 Whitbread and this is the whole story from the time the boat was bought by rock star Simon Le Bon and his managers to the fitting out, the Fastnet Race disaster in which Drum lost her keel and capsized, the Whitbread where she began to fall apart during a storm, and ultimate third overall finish. A good read with lots of color photographs. (wms). PASSAGEMAKING HANDBOOK, John Rains and Patricia Miller, The nuts and bolts of preparing for a long passage. Oriented toward delivery work but applicable to any kind of offshore cruising, especially that first trip. Highly recommended. SURVIVE THE SAVAGE SEA, Dougal Robertson. SAILING ALONE AROUND THE WORLD, Joshua Slocum, 1899 A great classic, beautifully written. (Make sure it's the full version). JOSHUA SLOCUM, Walter Teller, 1956,1971 Biography of Slocum. I think it illuminates and enriches one's reading of the above. THE MYSTERIOUS LAST VOYAGE OF DONALD CROWHURST,, unknown, The style is not particularly riveting, but the story is. It all starts with the discovery of the ``Teignmouth Electron,'' Crowhurst's boat, in the North Sea, with no one aboard. He had set out in the boat some time earlier in a single-handed round-the-world race. The book details a reasonable theory about what might have happened, and it makes a fascinating story. BY WAY OF CAPE HORN, Alan Villiers, A tragic voyage from Australia to England in the fully-rigged ship Grace Harwar in 1929. All of Villiers' books can be safely recommended, especially his autobiography "The Set of the Sails". (sm). 7.3 Sailboat Racing PAUL ELVSTROM EXPLAINS THE YACHT RACING RULES, Paul Elvstrom, An explanation of racing rules, with examples of common situations. It is supposed to be very useful for non-experts, especially for preparing for protest hearings. (sc). SMALL BOAT, DINGHY, AND YACHT RACING, Paul Elvstrom, ...now (I think) out of print, but available in libraries. It's not "Elvstrom Speaks on Yacht Racing," which is also good, but not what you want. Written in the 60's, it's a bit dated in some ways and timeless in the things that count. And the pictures are great! Anyway, it has a lot on basic boat handling skills which doesn't get said in other places. It's where I learned things like speeding up to gybe, rather than wimping out and slowing down. I used to look at the book, then take my OK Dinghy out and try what he suggested, and I usually found that it worked. (gb1). SPEED SAILING, Gary Jobson and Mike Toppa. SAILING SMART, Buddy Melges. DAVE PERRY'S RULE BOOK, Dave Perry. WINNING IN ONE DESIGNS, Dave Perry. INTERNATIONAL YACHT RACING RULES, US Sailing, Updated and published every four years in the US by US Sailing. Provided free to US Sailing members. Both full editions and an abridged competitors edition are available from US Sailing.(sc). FAST COURSE, SMART COURSE, North Sails, Tips on how to go FAST, and racing tactics. North also has a companion video which is execlent. Best video choice are the J World tapes. DINGHY TEAM RACING, Eric Twiname, ISBN = 8129-0235-1. Quadrangle books, Chicago, 1971. Twiname is one of my favorite writers on small boat racing, it was a real loss when he was killed in a car crash some 15 (?) years ago. Don't know if the book is still in print.(pk). EXPERT DINGHY AND KEELBOAT RACING, unknown, (wh). ADVANCED RACING TACTICS, Stuart Walker, Norton 1976 ISBN 0-393-30333-0 Described as ``the one book to read'' but also as ``ponderous and dry''. CHAMPIONSHIP TACTICS, Whidden and Jobson, An excellent choice. You can buy a copy from your local North Loft. 7.4 Maintenance PRACTICAL YACHT JOINERY, Fred P. Bingham, How to butcher wood, whether you have only hand tools, portable power tools, or a full shop.(mh). UPGRADING AND REFURBISHING THE OLDER FIBERGLASS SAILBOAT, W.D. Booth., A good general discussion of the topic with many useful ideas. SHIPSHAPE AND BRISTOL FASHION, L.R. Borland, Some of the slickest little boat project ideas I've ever seen. Out of print but worth looking for. BOATOWNER'S MECHANICAL AND ELECTRICAL MANUAL, Nigel Calder, The most comprehensive and practical repair manual available. This book has been a lifesaver for me in overhauling an older boat. One of the books I would not sail without.(mh). MARINE DIESEL ENGINES, Nigel Calder, A good basic introduction to diesels, although much of it concerns powerboats.(mh). REFRIGERATION FOR PLEASURE BOATS, Nigel Calder, A complete discussion of marine refrigeration systems, theory and practice. This is for the person who wants to build one up from components.(mh). THIS OLD BOAT, Don Casey, Some of the most detailed instructions I've seen for basic restoration and upgrading procedures, including hand painting with Polyurethane paints. Assumes you know nothing.(mh). PROPELLER HANDBOOK, Dave Gerr, Covers the arcane business of choosing the right propeller for your boat. Gerr demonstrates two different approaches to predicting propeller performance, a simple method suitable for boat owners and a much more complex approach more suitable to naval architects. Requires basic algebra.(mh). BOATOWNER'S ENERGY PLANNER, Kevin and Nan Jeffrey, A very basic introduction to electrical systems with a lot of solid information about various options, including some brand-name comparisons. Assumes you know nothing about electricity.(mh). THE FINELY FITTED YACHT, Farenc Mate', Another large collection of nice improve-your-boat projects, mostly involving the living accommodations.(mh). COMFORT IN THE CRUISING YACHT CUSTOMIZING YOUR BOAT IMPROVE YOUR OWN BOAT, Ian Nicolson, Bunches of nifty project ideas for improving a boat.(mh). FIBERGLASS REPAIRS, Paul J. Petrick, This book is really good. Back in the 60's I sold fiberglassing materials and advised people how to use them (I did do *some* work myself) and I think Petrick really knows what he is talking about.(bs). CRUISING IN COMFORT, James Skoog, Cost-no-object approach, but many good ideas. LIVING ON 12 VOLTS, David Smead and Ruth Ishihara, A very detailed analysis of 12 volt electrical systems and components. It also contains much useful information about refrigeration systems as well. Best if you already know basic electrical theory and construction.(mh). SPURR'S BOAT BOOK, Dan Spurr, Lots of ideas, illustrated by the upgrading of a Pearson Vanguard. Includes repowering, which is intriguing. (jfh). UPGRADING THE CRUISING SAILBOAT, Daniel Spurr, Very good advice on overhauling an older boat. Spurr did extensive upgrades on a Triton and a Vanguard, two good low priced boats for offshore cruising, and also has many other good project suggestions. (mh). MODERN BOAT MAINTENANCE, Bo Streiffert, A large collection of project and explanatory articles with more illustration than text. It covers a remarkable range of topics and some rather complex projects. Good for the person who already knows the basic techniques. This appears to have been published originally in Sweden.(mh). MACHINIST'S HANDBOOK, unknown. PIPEFITTER'S HANDBOOK, unknown. 7.5 Fiction SPARTINA, John Casey, Only partly about boats. Very much about people who work with boats for a living. RIDDLE OF THE SANDS, Erskine Childers, No list of fiction would be complete without mentioning that first and greatest of all spy tales, Erskine Childers' RIDDLE OF THE SANDS (which was also made into an excellent film available on video. Lots of sailing...). Erskine Childers was later himself shot as a spy in Ireland and his son became Ireland's second President after Eamonn de Valera. (fm. HORNBLOWER BOOKS, E.M. Forester, The beginning of British Naval Fiction. Pale stuff in comparison to Aubrey/Maturin, according to some, but still pretty good. THE WRECK OF THE MARY DEARE, Hammond Innes, A freighter,apparently unmanned, nearly runs down a sailboat in the Englishchannel with a gale rising; that's in the first two pages.Remarkable descriptions of the Minquiers, a reef off the coast of France. THE AUBREY/MATURIN SERIES, Patrick O'Brian, British Naval Fiction at its best. Aubrey is a Captain in the British Navy, Maturin is the Ship's surgeon. Good fight scenes, excellent details on naval life and almost anything else ca. 1790-1815. The first volume is ``Master and Commander.''. THE BOY, ME, AND THE CAT, Henry Plummer, Good writing about a long cruise on a catboat. ALL WORKS, Arthur Ransome, All his books are great; the swallows and amazons series is a set of children's books; kids seem to like them at about age 7 or 8 to start with. Some of us go on reading them forever. ``We didn't mean to go to sea'' is one of the best. A note from (fm) says ``The 12 Swallows & Amazons novels are best read in the order they were written. They are not all about sailing, but most are. Ransome is particularly good at the detail of sailing and at capturing the capricious changes in wind, waves, currents, visibility, etc., that help make sailing so interesting.'' He also notes, of another Ransome work, that: ``Racundra's First Cruise is a very interesting reminiscence of sailing in the Baltic.''. 7.6 Design, seaworthiness, arts of the sailor, boatbuilding THE ALTERNATIVE KNOT BOOK, Harry Asher, A book about new knots and splices that are appropriate for modern fibers and weaves of rope. ISBN: 0911378952. (bm). ASHLEY'S BOOK OF KNOTS AND FANCY ROPEWORK, Ashley, The definitive book on the subject. ANCHORING, Don Bamford, Anchoring is really a subtle and complex business which isn't given the attention it deserves by many people. While the chapter in Hiscock covers the basics quite well, this book does it in depth and detail.(mh). SEXTANT HANDBOOK, Bruce Bauer, This is about the instrument itself and its care. Not really necessary, but nice to have.(mh). THE PROPER YACHT, Arthur Beiser, Dated and out of print, but a good guide to some of the older designs which are found on the used market.(mh). HIGH PERFORMANCE SAILING, Frank Bethwaite, ISBN 0 87742 419 4. International Marine is at PO Box 220, Camden, ME, 04843. Elsewhere in the world it uses ISBN 0 07 470 100 2, from McGraw Hill Australia Pty Ltd, 4 Barcoo Street, Roseville NSW 2069, Australia. The book is about 400 pages with four sections on the wind, water, boat development, and how to use what you have. I'm up to about page 250 now, and Frank treats all areas of the world, and when nothing but local knowledge will help you (he speaks of visiting bars on the waterfront to talk to freight ship captains rather than local sailors :-). Good stuff... (ab) From further discussion of this book on the net, it would appear to be the very best on the subject, supported by serious research data rather than conjecture. (jfh). BOAT CANVAS FROM COVER TO COVER, Bob and Karen Lipe, A very basic discussion of canvas work with a series of practical projects from simple to complex.(mh). 100 SMALL BOAT RIGS, Philip C. Bolger, He's managed to take what could be a very boring topic and make it intensely lively. TED BREWER EXPLAINS SAILBOAT DESIGN, Ted Brewer, Good introduction to the technical aspects and jargon of sailing yacht design. No math.(mh). BACKYARD BOAT BUILDING, George Buehler. PRECISION CRUISING, Authur F. Chace, A series of cruising stories which pose various problems in seamanship and piloting, along with proposed solutions for those problems. (mh). YACHT DESIGNING AND PLANNING, Howard Chapelle, WW Norton and Co. New York 1971. (I don't know if it's still in print). The book to turn to when you want lots of good useful, practical advice on yacht design. Not heavy on theory but has years of experience behind it.(mp). HEAVY WEATHER SAILING, Adlard Coles. WORLD CRUISING ROUTES, Jimmy Cornell, A route planning guide for world cruising with regional weather patterns, currents, etc. Highly recommended.(mh). THE YACHT NAVIGATOR'S HANDBOOK, Norman Dahl, A concise and very practical coverage of general navigation and piloting, the best overall reference on the subject I have found. The section on celestial is good enough to serve as a self-teaching course, although it probably isn't the best choice for that purpose. Highly recommended, but appears to be out of print. (mh). YACHT NAVIGATOR'S HANDBOOK, Norman Dahl, A good intermediate book between Chapman and Bowditch.(mh). SAFETY AT SEA, George Day, Covers everything from yacht design to abandon-ship in a broad and general way.(mh). THE NATURE OF BOATS, Dave Gerr. HOW THINGS FLOAT, E. N. Gilbert, American Mathematical Monthly, March 1991 (Vol. 98, No. 3), pp. 201-216. SURVIVOR, Michael Greenwald, The part of it you don't want to think about but must. Mainly about liferaft survival, but also covers many other topics concerned with safety and emergencies including medical procedures. Highly recommended.(mh) ADVANCED FIRST AID AFLOAT by Peter F. Eastman, MD. Seems to be the best all around medical manual.(mh). FIBERGLASS BOATBUILDING FOR AMATEURS, Ken Hankinson, You can get it from Glen-L Marine (look in the classifieds of just about any sailing magazine). It covers pretty much all aspects of glass boat building. More technical, covers different resins and reinforcements, vacuum bagging, high tech as well as low tech, gel coats, laminating, etc. (mp). CHOICE YACHT DESIGNS, Richard Henderson, See comments on Beiser, The Proper Yacht. SAILING IN WINDY WEATHER, Richard Henderson, A good book on sailing in a half gale, but not a gale or a hurricane. (jfh). THE GOUGEON BROTHERS ON BOAT CONSTRUCTION, Gougeon Brothers Inc., Bay City, MI 1983. The best by far on cold molding. Lots of practical hints. Good safety (esp. WRT epoxy) and general/setup chapters. How to mix and use epoxy, how to engineer wood composite structures. (mp). DESIRABLE AND UNDESIRABLE CHARACTERISTICS OF OFFSHORE YACHTS, ed. John Rousmaniere, Technical, but required reading for anyone choosing an offshore boat. This is a series of reports which were inspired by the Fastnet race disaster of 1979 and sponsored by the Cruising Club of America.(mh). THE SCIENCE OF YACTS WIND AND WATER, H. F. Kay, G. T. Foulis and Co Ltd 1971 Has most of the formulas you need, I guess. CHAPMAN'S PILOTING, SEAMANSHIP, AND SMALL BOAT HANDLING, Elbert S. Maloney, The bible of basic boating. Tons of good information, with perhaps a bit too much emphasis on flag etiquette, but otherwise excellent. Kept up to date by Elbert S. Maloney. (jh). AERO HYDRODYNAMICS OF SAILING, C. A. Marchaj, Adlard Coles Ltd. 1979 A complete update of the previous classic text. SAILING THEORY AND PRACTICE, C. A. Marchaj, Adlard Coles Ltd. 1964 A scientific analysis of the aerodynamic and hydrodynamic and other design factors wich define the yachts behaviour. SEAWORTHINESS: THE FORGOTTEN FACTOR, C. A. Marchaj, (International Marine Publishing Company of CAMDEN Maine), 34.95. This is the book on hull design. It is a nice melange of the artistic, political, academic, and technical, and Marchaj has a fine writing style. For boaters, all I can say is that most will find it very controversial. His precise and tightly argued passages on just why the modern racing yacht is neither seakindly nor seaworthy will have some, like myself, smugly nodding, and others, most racers, I guess, hopping mad. THE WORLD'S BEST SAILBOATS, Ferenc Mate', Even if you can't afford the boats in this book, it will give you some ideas of what to look for. Coffee-table format, glorious photography. Try not to drool on it.(mh). SURVEYING SMALL CRAFT, Ian Nicholson, How to evaluate a prospective purchase. Not a substitute for a professional survey, but very useful for preliminary work before making an offer.(mh). AMERICAN PRACTICAL NAVIGATOR (BOWDITCH), The US Hydrographic Office, (2 volumes) More than you would ever dream of wanting to know about navigation. Most of it is oriented towards big ships, but everything there is, is in there somewhere. No one will take you seriously unless you have Bowditch aboard.(mh). BUILD THE INSTANT BOATS, Hal Payson, Simple, often not-very-strong, boats.(jfh) Easy to build, and the ones with lots of curvature tend to be strong and stiff (paraphrased). (wv). BUILD THE NEW INSTANT BOATS, Hal Payson, See notes on previous book. FASTNET FORCE 10, John Rousmaniere, Fascinating, absolutely riveting book. It tells the story of the 79 Fastnet race from the perspective of the participants, by one of the participants. His story gives a different view than most of the general media reports, by somebody who was there.(mp). THE ANNAPOLIS BOOK OF SEAMANSHIP, John Rousmaniere, Simon and Schuster, New York 1989. A complete and thorough guide to every aspect of sailboat handling by a leading expert in offshore sailing. Chapters include the boat and her environment, safety, navigation, and self-sufficiency.(mp). THE CRUISING NAVIGATOR, Hewett Schlereth, (4 volumes) A full course in basic celestial navigation plus a complete reference work on the subject with perpetual almanacs and sight reduction tables. No other references are required. As a self-teaching course, it is not perfect but it is very good (I learned from it). As a working reference, its only weakness is that it does not include the moon and planets (perpetual almanacs aren't practical for these bodies). Printed on waterproof paper with heavy covers. This set cost 100 and is now out of print. A used copy is a major find. Volume ``00'', SIGHT REDUCTION TABLES FOR SMALL BOAT NAVIGATION is a find in itself. This is a much more convenient set of tables than any of the standard sets (it is a condensed version of HO 229). Highly recommended.(mh). OFFSHORE CRUISING ENCYCLOPEDIA, Steve and Linda Dashew, Not an encyclopedia, but a tremendous collection of well informed opinion on every subject imaginable. Oriented towards larger (sail) boats and cost-no-object cruising, but it has something for everybody. Whether it is worth the tremendous price (about 70) is another matter.(mh). BOATBUILDING MANUAL, Robert Steward, The most concise book on wooden boat construction (including modern methods). Easy to read and understand. A standard reference.(mp). KNOTS, Brion Toss, A nice little basic introduction to the important knots and their use by a good writer.(mh). THE RIGGERS APPRENTICE, Brion Toss, The more sophisticated aspects of rope and lines.(mh). SKEENE'S ELEMENTS OF YACHT DESIGN., unknown, An early classic. BOATBUILDING ONE-OFFS IN FIBERGLASS, Alan Vaitses, (I think it's now out of print). This one has so much wisdom per page it's worth looking for. Really a hands-on book, Vaitses made a living building glass boats for a long time, so he's made all the mistakes and knows what works and what doesn't.(mp). THE OCEAN SAILING YACHT, Donald Street (2 volumes), The first volume is dated but covers the basics well. The second volume covers most of the same subjects in a more complete manner and from a more modern perspective. The volumes complement one another.(mh). THE ART AND SCIENCE OF SAILS, Tom Whidden, Not quite so technically inclined is ``Sail Power (The Complete Guide to Sails and Sail Handling)'' by Wallace Ross. 7.7 Films and videos BURDEN OF DREAMS, Film, About the making of Fitzcaraldo. FITZCARALDO, Film, Werner Herzog, director. SAILING AROUND THE HORN, Captain Irving Johnson, video This is a fantasic videotape. You can order it from the Mystic Seaport bookstore/gift catalog. Here in San Francisco, they have it for sale at the Maritime Museum bookstore. Capt. Johnson's film documents a rounding of the Horn in 1929 (?) aboard the ``Peking'', a 4-masted barque from the famous Laiesz stable of giant square-riggers. Amazingly, three of them still survive: ``Pommern'' at the Mariehamn Museum in the Aland Islands, ``Peking'' at the South Street Seaport in New York and ``Padua'' - still afloat as the Soviet training ship ``Kruzenshtern''. ANAPOLIS SAILING SCHOOL, John Rousmaniere, Five or six volumes on various aspects of sailing. A nice hands-on approach. I've only seen a couple of volumes, but I learned a *lot* in those two hours. DRUM, Video, Sail around the world with the crew of Drum, the hard luck maxi owned in part by rock star Simon Le Bon of Duran Duran fame. Great sailing footage of the 1986 Whitbread Race, good music by Le Bon. One of my favorite sailing videos. (wms). 7.8 Misc THE OXFORD COMPANION TO SHIPS AND THE SEA, ships An encyclodepia of nautical history and personalities.(sm). THE OXFORD BOOK OF THE SEA, An anthology of maritime literature.(sm). MEALS ON KEELS, Bluewater Cruising Association, Cookbook from local cruising ass'n in Vancouver. (dk2). VOYAGING UNDER POWER (3RD EDITION), Robert Beebe, The only book I know of about long range cruising in small (50 feet/15 meters or less) power yachts. The author has designed and built several such boats and taken them all over the world. (mh). SELL UP AND SAIL, Bill and Laurel Cooper, This book is hard to describe. It begins with the question of whether you are cut out for long distance cruising and then proceeds to a lot of varied topics which aren't covered very well elsewhere. Laurel Cooper's sections on galley work and provisioning are among the best I have seen. Very British and sometimes startlingly irreverent. Useful and a good read.(mh). MANAGING YOUR ESCAPE, Katy Burke, How to arrange your life so that it does not require your presence. Oriented towards cruising but applicable to anyone wanting to pursue a freedom lifestyle.(mh). THE COMPLETE BOOK OF SAILBOAT BUYING, The editors of Practical Sailor, Two volumes, one covering the general subject of buying a boat, the other reprinting many of the PS boat review articles. The best general coverage of the topic. An earlier version called PRACTICAL BOAT BUYING is still in print. This is a single paperback volume.(mh) THE COMPLETE LIVE-ABOARD BOOK by Katy Burke. Every aspect of living aboard a boat, technical and otherwise. This is also a good guide to choosing a boat from the livability standpoint. Highly recommended.(mh). COOKING ON THE GO, Janet Groene, A complete cookbook which does not require refrigeration. Includes extensive information on long-term storage of foods, as for a major passage.(mh). THE WIND COMMANDS, Harry A. Morton, A history of sea-faring people and vessels from polynesian canoes to clipper ships with an emphasis on Pacific voyages and what was needed to make them. Morton discusses pivotal developments in ship design, navigation, maratime medicine which enabled ships to cross the Pacific, as well as the culture and lore of the sea. I didn't care for the writing style and organization. The book has an excellent bibliography. THE CARE AND FEEDING OF THE OFFSHORE CREW, Lin Pardey, The domestic side of offshore boatkeeping. Covers much more than galley topics and tells a good cruising story along the way.(mh). ROYCE'S SAILING ILLUSTRATED, Royce, A compact little book with a lot of info in it, including descriptions and pictures of sloops, schooners, marconi rigs, gaff rigs, etc., in other words, a general intro to the styles of boats that are around (although it doesn't get into the distinctions between a brig and a bark, etc., but these rarely come up in day-to-day harbor scans). THE ONE POT MEAL, Hannah G. Scheel., Not intended for boat use, but probably the most practical boat or RV cookbook around. I've used this since my college days. Probably out of print, but worth looking for.(mh). A FIELD GUIDE TO SAILBOATS, unknown, Or is it ``a field guide to boats''? This little book lists about 250 types of boats, from Dyer Dhows up to Columbia 50s. They are mostly ones that are in current production, and some of them are so painful to the eye that you want to know their names only in order to avoid them. Each page gives a drawing of the boat, with arrows pointing to distinctive features, and a long paragraph of text describing the boat. There's also basic info like tankage, sail area, displacement, length overall, waterline length, etc. (jfh). THE YACHTING COOKBOOK, Elizabeth Wheeler and Jennifer Trainer, The only coffee-table cookbook I know of. Contains some of the best recipes I have found anywhere, all easy to prepare. I use it at home more than on the boat. This is for coastal cruising, based on regional ingredients. Wheeler is a charterboat cook.(mh).